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Tesla’s Elon Musk highlights that wait for next-gen Roadster ‘will be worth it’

(Credit: HyperChange)

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Elon Musk teased that the long wait for Tesla’s next-gen Roadster “will be worth it.” The CEO’s update came as a response to tech YouTuber Marques Brownlee’s tweet about the vehicle, which has seen delays in its deliveries.

Musk and Design Chief Franz von Holzhausen remain tight-lipped about the new Roadster’s improvements, but there is no doubt that it will be astonishing. Since the next-gen Roadster’s unveiling, there have been staggering improvements in Tesla’s other vehicles and the company’s technology, especially in the battery development front. 

For instance, the Model S passed the 400 mile EPA range earlier this year and Tesla finally unveiled its own 4680 cell during Battery Day in September. Currently, some specs of the Model S Plaid almost overlap with the base next-gen Roadster.

The base Roadster has a 0-60 mph time of 1.9 seconds, while the Plaid Model S can do it under 2.0 seconds. The numbers speak for themselves. The base Roadster still beats the Plaid Model S in top speed and range, but not by a league. The all-electric supercar has a top speed of +250 mph and a range of 620 miles, while the Plaid Model S has a top speed of 200 mph and an estimated range of 520+ miles. 

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Then there is the Roadster with the SpaceX Package which will be another variant altogether. The host of YouTube channel Engineering Explained ran the numbers on the Roadster SpaceX Package using Issac Newton’s basic physics principles. He determined that the Roadster could hit 0-60mph in 1.1 seconds with SpaceX thrusters. Without a doubt, that much power will need sufficient energy and may rely heavily on the success of Tesla’s homegrown battery cell. 

Elon Musk and Tesla Chief Designer Franz von Holzhausen have dropped some vague hints about the next Roadster over the last two years. In October 2019, Holzhausen teased that Tesla had already made improvements to the Roadster since its unveiling. 

“It’s evolving deservedly so; it needs more time. It will be even better than what we’ve unveiled. In every way,” he said during an appearance in Ryan McCaffrey’s Ride the Lightning podcast. Unfortunately, Franz didn’t dive into specific details about the improvements that could be expected in the production version of the all-electric supercar.

Elon Musk said that the Cybertruck production and deliveries may start before the Roadster during an appearance at The Joe Rogan Experience podcast. Gigafactory Texas is expected to start Cybertruck production next year, though Model Y production will likely commence in the complex first. Tesla has been making great progress with the construction of Giga Texas so far.

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After Tesla successfully ramps Cybertruck production, it may start working on manufacturing the next-gen Roadster and the Semi. Whether the Roadster’s production will precede the Semi’s remains unclear. Either way, Tesla has a lot of work left before its next-gen Roadster hits the road. 

Since its unveiling in November 2017, the Tesla Roadster has been a long-awaited vehicle in the electric car community. Tesla’s next-gen Roadster is quite symbolic for the EV automaker. After all, it was the original Tesla Roadster that really kicked the company into gear so many years ago.

The EV automaker removing the Roadster from the main page of tesla.com may have worried some people, especially considering its historic position at Tesla. The noted tech YouTuber’s tweet about the change probably reflected most of the community’s feelings on the matter. “The Roadster being gone from tesla.com scares me,” Brownlee tweeted, tagging Elon Musk. 

The Roadster has been removed from the front page of Tesla’s website, but can still be found using the hamburger menu. Elon Musk’s short reply to Brownlee’s tweet revealed that Tesla has not forgotten about the next-gen Roadster at all. Tesla may simply be waiting for all the pieces to come together before it produces the next iteration of its historic vehicle.

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Maria--aka "M"-- is an experienced writer and book editor. She's written about several topics including health, tech, and politics. As a book editor, she's worked with authors who write Sci-Fi, Romance, and Dark Fantasy. M loves hearing from TESLARATI readers. If you have any tips or article ideas, contact her at maria@teslarati.com or via X, @Writer_01001101.

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Tesla Full Self-Driving shows stunning maneuver in Europe to silence skeptics

In a striking demonstration of autonomous driving prowess, Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) system recently showcased its capabilities on the narrow rural roads of the Netherlands. Captured in two in-car videos, the system encountered scenarios that would challenge even the most experienced human drivers.

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla Full Self-Driving, fresh on the heels of its approval for operation on European roads for the first time, showed off a stunning maneuver that will certainly silence any skeptics on the continent.

Fresh off its approval in the Netherlands, Full Self-Driving is working toward a significant expansion into more parts of Europe.

In a striking demonstration of autonomous driving prowess, Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) system recently showcased its capabilities on the narrow rural roads of the Netherlands. Captured in two in-car videos, the system encountered scenarios that would challenge even the most experienced human drivers.

In the first clip, a wide tractor occupied more than half the lane on a tight two-way road. Rather than braking abruptly or forcing a collision risk, FSD smoothly edged the vehicle onto the adjacent bike path—using the extra space with precision—before seamlessly returning to the lane once clear.

The second clip was equally demanding: while overtaking a group of cyclists, an oncoming car approached at speed.

FSD maintained a safe, minimal buffer to the cyclists while timing the pass perfectly, avoiding any swerve or hesitation that could unsettle passengers or other road users.

This maneuver highlights FSD’s advanced spatial reasoning and predictive planning. On roads often under three meters wide, with no room for error, the system calculated available clearance in real time, incorporated shoulder and path geometry, and executed a controlled deviation without compromising safety.

It treated the bike path as a legitimate extension of navigable space, something many drivers might hesitate to do, while respecting Dutch road norms and cyclist priority.

Such feats align closely with a growing library of impressive FSD maneuvers documented on camera worldwide.

In urban Amsterdam, for instance, FSD has navigated the world’s densest cyclist environments, weaving through hundreds of unpredictable bike movements on canal-side streets with tram tracks and pedestrians.

One uncut drive showed it yielding smoothly at crossings, overtaking where needed, and even handling a near-perfect auto-park in a tight residential spot, demonstrating the same low-speed precision seen in the rural clips.

Teslas using FSD have tackled turbo roundabouts in the Netherlands, complex multi-lane circles notorious for geometry challenges, merging confidently while yielding to traffic. Similar clips depict smooth handling of construction zones, emergency vehicle pull-overs, and gated parking barriers, where the car stops precisely, waits for clearance, and proceeds without driver input.

Collectively, these examples illustrate FSD’s evolution toward handling the unpredictable.

The rural Netherlands maneuvers aren’t isolated. Instead, they reflect a pattern of spatial awareness, cyclist deference, and traffic anticipation seen from city streets to highways.

As FSD continues refining through real-world data, videos like this one are certainly building a compelling case for its readiness on Europe’s varied roads.

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Tesla utilizes its ‘Rave Cave’ for new awesome safety feature

Part of the massive interior overhaul of both the Model 3 “Highland” and Model Y “Juniper” was the addition of interior accent lighting to help bring out the mood of the vehicle, increase the customization of the interior, and to create a unique listening experience.

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Credit: Tesla | X

Tesla is utilizing its ‘Rave Cave’ for an awesome new safety feature that will arrive with the upcoming Spring Update for 2026.

Part of the massive interior overhaul of both the Model 3 “Highland” and Model Y “Juniper” was the addition of interior accent lighting to help bring out the mood of the vehicle, increase the customization of the interior, and to create a unique listening experience.

Tesla added a Sync Lights feature that will strobe the accent strips with the beat of the music.

It is one of the most unique and one of the coolest non-functional features of a Tesla, as it does not improve the driving of the vehicle, but makes it a cool and personal addition to the interior.

However, Tesla is going to take it one step further, as the Rave Cave lights will now be used for blind spot recognition. This feature will be added as the Spring 2026 Update starts to roll out.

Tesla writes:

“Accent lights now turn red when an object is in your blind spot and your turn signal is engaged, or when an approaching object is detected while parked.”

This neat new safety feature will now increase the likelihood of a driver, who is operating their Tesla manually, of seeing the blind spot warnings that are currently available on the A pillar and on the center touchscreen.

These new alerts will now warn drivers of cross traffic as they back out of a parking space with little to no visibility of what is coming. It is a great new addition that will only increase the safety of the vehicles, while also utilizing something that is already installed in these specific Model 3 and Model Y units.

The Model 3 and Model Y were the central focus of the Spring 2026 Update, especially considering the fact that the Model S and Model X are basically gone, with only a few hundred units left. Additionally, Tesla included new Immersive Sound and Car Visualization for the Model 3 and Model Y specifically in this new update.

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Tesla parked 50+ Cybercabs outside its Texas Factory with some crash tested

Dozens of Tesla Cybercabs have been spotted at Giga Texas crash testing facility ahead of launch.

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Tesla Cybercab fleet spotted at Gigafactory Texas [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)
Tesla Cybercab fleet spotted at Gigafactory Texas on April 13, 2026 [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)

Drone footage captured by longtime Giga Texas observer Joe Tegtmeyer shows over 50 units of Tesla Cybercab at the Austin factory campus, including several units clustered by Tesla’s on-site crash testing facility.

The outbound lot at Gigafactory Texas sits just outside the factory exit and serves as the primary staging area where finished vehicles are held before being loaded onto transport carriers or dispatched for validation testing. On any given day, the lot holds a mix of Model Y and Cybertruck units alongside the growing Tesla Cybercab fleet, as can be seen in the drone footage captured by Joe Tegtmeyer.

Tesla Cybercab fleet spotted at Gigafactory Texas [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)

Tesla Cybercab fleet spotted at Gigafactory Texas on April 13, 2026 [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)

Roughly 50 Cybercab units are visible across the campus, parked in tight organized rows. Most of the units visible still carry steering wheels and pedals, temporary additions Tesla included to satisfy current safety regulations while the vehicles accumulate real-world data ahead of full regulatory approval for a steering wheel-free design.

Tesla Cybercab fleet spotted at Gigafactory Texas [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)

Tesla Cybercab fleet spotted at Gigafactory Texas [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)

Tesla operates dedicated Crash Labs at both its Giga Texas and Fremont facilities that are purpose-built for controlled structural crash tests. Historically, automakers begin intensive crash testing roughly one to two months before volume production kicks off. The Cybertruck followed almost exactly that pattern. The Cybercab appears to be on the same track facility that we first saw back in October 2025.

Tesla Cybercab crash test units spotted at Gigafactory Texas [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)

Tesla Cybercab crash test units spotted at Gigafactory Texas [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)

The first production Cybercab rolled off the Giga Texas line on February 17, 2026. Volume production is now targeted for April. Musk previously wrote on X that “the early production rate will be agonizingly slow, but eventually end up being insanely fast,” and separately stated Tesla is targeting at least 2 million Cybercab units per year. Commercial robotaxi service in Austin is targeted for late 2026.

 

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