The initial Tesla Roadster put the all-electric manufacturer on the map, even if most Model S and Model X customers don't remember it. Slated to begin its return in 2021, the second-generation Roadster bests it, predecessor, by appending two small rear seats, a significantly longer driving range and a much higher level of performance. Tesla CEO Elon Musk bragged about a 1.9-second 60-mph time and a 250-mph top speed when the Roadster concept was uncovered back in 2017.
Tesla declares it will offer the base Roadster sports car for $200,000 and a limited-edition Founders Series for $50,000 more. We have no specifications on what differentiates the two, other than the fact that only 1000 Founders Series models will be built. If you're a collector, maybe it's worth the extra dough, otherwise keep your money.
When the 2021 Tesla Roadster was uncovered as a concept in November 2017, Musk praised some pie-in-the-sky performance numbers for this car, including a 60-mph time of 1.9 seconds, a top speed of more than 250 mph, and a quarter-mile time of just 8.8 seconds.
That's fantastic. For reference, if that 60-mph time holds up, it will mean the Roadster is a full second more agile than its key rival, the gasoline-powered McLaren 570S. Also during this interview, Musk noted that the Roadster sports car will come with standard all-wheel drive. This is less unexpected. Tesla's mainstream EV models use two electric motors—one at the front and one at the rear—to drive all four wheels, so it makes sense we'd see the equivalent setup for the Roadster. @ tesla.