Tesla Roadster 3.0 Demo: Party Tricks, Dirty Secrets and Question Marks

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Clearly this week’s big event was the new Tesla Roadster and we have two different takes on that demo from Sergiu Tudose (editor-in-chief) and Cristian Agatie (EV/tech editor).

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By: Cristian Agatie

The Tesla Roadster "epic demo" showed a supposed sports car that could lift in the air, kickflip, and land softly. Very few technical details were offered, and the little that people could see with their own eyes raised more questions than Tesla could answer.

I'm not gonna lie to you: what Tesla pulled during the Roadster demo was nothing short of sorcery. To say that I'm impressed would be an understatement. However, I believe this was purely an entertainment show, not a vehicle launch. As a PR stunt, it served its purpose marvelously, but to expect that Tesla actually will deliver such cars in 2028, as Musk promised on stage, would be beyond naivete.

And this is why I'm compelled to take everything that was said and demonstrated and make sense of it from a car and tech guy's perspective. Because while I believe the demo was real, it was also fake. Moreover, the car that flipped in the air at the McGregor base in Texas will never head to a Tesla delivery center. But first let's line up the info that Tesla presented as facts.

Tesla Roadster 3.0: The official data

The obvious thing is that the Roadster presented on October 15 had nothing in common with the one unveiled in 2017, except that both were prototypes. The 2017 Roadster is dead and buried, and the 2026 model is a completely new car, with a fresh design and its own set of features. This means that a new timer has started now until this prototype reaches production-ready status. Nine years of waiting, gone, wasted, and the Roadster is again a fresh promise.

What has changed during those years? First, Tesla realized that some of the Roadster's original specifications (or, rather, the promise of them) were unrealistic. The Roadster 3.0 can only go ">300 miles" on a charge instead of 620 miles. It makes sense, as Tesla's battery efforts faltered, and there's no miracle battery that can double the energy density to make that range possible.

However, what the car lost in range it gained in performance. The new Roadster promises to accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 1.6 seconds in the base Performance trim without any rocket helpers. The Thrust trim, which features acceleration thrusters, promises to do the same in 0.9 seconds. Meanwhile, the Rocket variant cuts that to 0.59 seconds. It's unclear how it does that, but probably more powerful thrusters are involved.

More interesting than the performance figures is the so-called "multi-mode suction system." As Tesla announced, this is able to pull up to 2G or 4,700 kg of downforce, which means it can support more than twice the weight of the Roadster. This suggests the Roadster weighs over 2,300 kg (5,000 lb), something that is not apparent in the live demo.

Now, some nerdy stuff

While official information is scarce, Tesla was more generous with what it showed during the event. The most important was the battery pack, which uses Tesla's 4680 cells. That's not a very good pedigree, if we consider the poor performance that the 4680 cells have demonstrated in Tesla EVs. However, the Roadster uses bespoke 4680 cells, and the battery pack features some upgrades.

For the full article, please continue reading on our site.

By: Sergiu Tudose

Let's step back for a second and really look at what the all-new Tesla Roadster could bring to market once it enters production in about two years time. The fact that it can leap (instead of fly) like some early rendition of Superman, is nothing more than a distraction.

Try telling you wife enthusiastically how Tesla just unveiled a leaping, spinning car that people will be able to buy, and she’ll look at you as if you were a 14-year-old. Not that she doesn’t look at you like that already.

Sure, the fact that the Roadster can briefly take off and land is pretty wild. But it’s far from the bigger breakthrough here. For over a century, the car industry has struggled to generate as much grip as possible, using better tires, clever diffs, torque vectoring, just anything to improve acceleration. It’s usually the tires that limit performance. Just ask Mate Rimac or Christian von Koenigsegg.

What I see, when I look at the new Roadster, is possibility. Its cold-gas thrusters allow for a whole new way of applying force to a vehicle.

Rear-facing thrusters can generate forward momentum, but lateral thrusters could theoretically help a car change direction more efficiently. It’s properly fascinating. And I’d be way more impressed if the Tesla Roadster could achieve record levels of cornering speeds using controlled thrust, as opposed to performing wacky aerial stunts that benefit no one. But we’re not there yet.

With that in mind, I think that this is the perfect time for the likes of Ferrari, Porsche, Lamborghini, and McLaren to develop their own thrust-assisted performance systems. Tesla doesn’t own that technology, because cold-gas thrusters aren’t anything new. Even a 12-year-old can understand the principle.

Gas is stored under high pressure and released through nozzles in whatever direction is deemed necessary. And because we’re talking about supercars and hypercars that already cost hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars, the additional expenses and complexity wouldn’t necessarily render such projects commercially impossible.

The first thing you need is the fan-based suction system. We know it works, because the Tesla Roadster isn’t the first automobile to use one. Any carmaker could implement such a technology, given enough resources. 

Then come the lateral thrusters to generate sideways forces. This one is tricky, but possible – I mean, at this point, what is impossible?

For the full article, please continue reading on our site.

By: Alex Oagana

In the fall of 2026, BMW dropped a bombshell that didn’t quite send the shockwaves it should have throughout the automotive industry, and that’s probably because it was firstly presented to its shareholders, and secondly because it was dressed as a brilliant cost-saving measure for the future.

Before jumping into the following diatribe, I should probably first present the facts in the way that they were presented by BMW itself in a press release at the end of September, 2026. In short, the main story was centered about a restructuring program that was announced at BMW Group’s Capital Market Day, which is nothing out of the ordinary in this day and age, when “cost-cutting,” “spiralling market share” and “falling profits” are some of the most used expressions in any automotive corporate meeting in Germany.

What was out of the ordinary was the rest of the context, as BMW pretty much announced that it will even integrate AI into its corporate ladder. The German carmaker has been integrating AI deep into its production and various other parts of its organization since 2023, and has been using AI agents tasked with monitoring geopolitical risks, product quality and cutting costs for some time now. That said, they are truly going for it on a whole other level in the near future.

With the latest measures, set to be implemented during 2027 and completed until 2028, the Munich carmaker is set to reduce the number of divisions and associated management roles by 20 percent. These positions will not disappear into thin air, though, at least not exactly. as they will be replaced by a large-scale deployment of “agentic AI applications.”

These software agents are allegedly capable of performing a bunch of tasks with minimal human intervention, and will be in charge of various things, including, and this is where the bombshell comes, development, purchasing from suppliers, sales and aftersales. BMW calls it a game-changer in the automotive industry, and I fully agree.

Believe it or not, by 2028 BMW is set to become more of an “AI-orchestrated company” than any other car automaker out there. The main idea is to reduce costs, albeit it’s not exclusively doing that, and Munich expects to reach approximately 1 billion euros in annual savings by 2028, an interim EBIT margin of 3 to 5 percent and a return to the long-term 8 to 10 percent target range by the start of 2030, and it’s all thanks to this deployment of AI.

Now, what BMW has not mentioned is which specific decisions these agentic AI systems will be making, how they will be validated, what happens when (not if) they are wrong, and who will be held accountable for the consequences of their errors. On top of it, it’s not clear how the carmaker will manage the transition from a management structure designed around human judgement to one designed around algorithmic recommendations or decisions.

I think these are all perfectly suitable questions that should have been answered before all the shareholders were informed of the plan. I’m not saying it’s an awful plan, but its complexity and never-before-seen scale deserve a much closer look. BMW told everyone the upsides, but maybe we should look at the potential downsides as well, since from some perspectives it sounds awfully close to opening a Pandora’s box.

For the full article, please continue reading on our site.

By: Vlad Radu

To improve performance and boost the aggressiveness of a car’s overall look, manufacturers have equipped their rides with side-exiting exhausts on several occasions on iconic production models.

Side-exiting exhausts began appearing on cars during the 1950s. At first, this layout was chosen to shorten the length of the exhaust systems and, subsequently, to smooth out underbody and improve downforce.

Like many other innovations that were born on the race track, side exhausts eventually made their way to production cars, mainly high-performance models derived or inspired by race cars.

Surprisingly, there aren’t that many production cars that used side-exiting exhaust, but of the few that did, the following five were the most impressive.

Chevrolet Corvette C2

The Corvette debuted in 1953 and in just a few years, it became America’s most iconic mass-produced sports car.

The original first-generation model was produced until the end of the 1962 model year, after which it was replaced by a totally redesigned variant.

Known as the C2 and officially marketed as the Corvette Sing Ray, the second-generation was a massive improvement, not just in terms of styling but also performance potential.

The model was improved constantly during its four-year lifespan, with new options being introduced with each model year.

One of the most memorable, yet often overlooked option was the side-exiting exhaust, introduced in 1965 with the designation RPO N14.

Shelby Cobra 427 S/C

After retiring from racing, Le Mans-winning driver Carroll Shelby went on to become one of America’s leading designers, engineers and race team managers.

He founded Shelby American in California and went on to build one of the most impressive sports cars of all time, the Shelby Cobra.

Based on Britain’s AC Ace, the Cobra was a thoroughly improved machine that performed spectacularly on both road and track. 

For the full article, please continue reading on our site.

By: Mircea Panait

Porsche seems unwilling to leave the poor-selling Panamera alone for long, and who could blame the German automaker? Introduced nearly three years ago, the Cayenne's low-slung alternative prepares for a well-deserved facelift that carries modest changes. The most recent of spied test vehicles appears to be the GTS, hence its centerlock wheels and circular quad exhaust outlets.

 Barely camouflaged, the refreshed Panamera receives new side vents for the front bumper, complete with diagonal slats that replace the horizontal units of the pre-facelift model. A new central bumper section is also visible, and the headlights are in for a different signature as well. Out back, the sportier diffuser appears to be the biggest change over the outgoing GTS.

V6 and V8 powertrain options should carry over with little in the way of updates, while the interior may surprise us with a different approach to a variety of controls. The biggest question mark is whether the Flow Display of the Cayenne Electric will be adapted for internal combustion models. The curved OLED display flows into an integrated wrist pad that supports one's hand while interacting with the touchscreen.

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Volkswagen Group brand Audi is testing a sporty model of its own, but as opposed to the Panamera, the S6 e-tron Performance is coming with electric-only muscle. A product of the stillborn RS 6 e-tron project, the newcomer dons larger wheels, revised bumpers, and more flared wheel arches than the S6 e-tron Sportback and Avant.

A more purposeful front bumper with revised side intakes and a prominent lower splitter helps the Performance stand out from its brother, yet its broader wheel arches make the biggest difference. Vertical openings behind the front wheels also have to be highlighted, openings that relieve the high-pressure air that would otherwise be trapped in the wheel wells.

Rolling on dual-spoke alloys with performance rubber, the S6 e-tron Performance is a bit of a mystery from the standpoint of maximum output figures. We all know the S6 e-tron belts out 543 horsepower in launch mode, but for a sub-RS model, chances are that Audi Sport has decided on 800-ish ponies in optimal conditions. The platform underpinning it can go as high as 1,139 horsepower in the Cayenne Turbo Electric.

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Mitsubishi's revived Pajero has an imaginary three-door sibling, and this fellow looks considerably more at home on narrow trails due to the shorter wheelbase. Digital artist Nikita Chuicko is the man behind this rendering, and rather than using the JL-series Wrangler for comparison, his pride and joy is pictured next to the 90-series Land Rover Defender.

Keeping the Pajero's upright styling intact, said rendering turns the body-on-frame SUV into a more compact vehicle that should pride itself on a much improved breakover angle. Mitsubishi has no plans of bringing a three-door Pajero to market, so treat this design study as nothing more than wishful thinking. The rendering, however, works because the five-door already has the right visual ingredients.

Nikita's version removes the rear doors, leaving a tighter passenger compartment behind the front seats. The high beltline and upright rear section preserve its rugged appearance, and the shorter body also puts more emphasis on the wheels. The visual idea does have a bit of historical context, for the Pajero has been offered in a variety of flavors over the years, including as a three-door kei SUV in Japan.

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Another unofficial design study that caught our attention in the past week is the Back to the Future makeover of the gen-two Tesla Roadster, a project attributed to the pixel meister known as Ildar. Having spent years occupying the space between intended-for-production status and just another broken promise, the second coming of the Roadster is a stupidly wild machine.

That is precisely why this rendering works this well, taking the angular styling of the Roadster and pushing into a retro-futuristic look that would make the DeLorean Time Machine blush in awe. Both are heavy on geometry instead of curves, and both pride themselves on visual identities that work perfectly so today and by 1980s auto design standards as well.

Although it's not likely to reach series production in 2028, the gen-two Roadster presented this week by Elon Musk himself does push the envelope of engineering due to SpaceX technologies. Think a selection of thrusters that enable the car to briefly lift off the ground, a fan-based suction system for upside-down driving, and 60 miles per hour (97 kilometers per hour) in a simply ridiculous 0.59 seconds in Rocket specification. Doc Brown would be impressed, for sure!

By: Bogdan Popa

Aftermarket head unit upgrades have long been a convenient (yet costly) way to breathe new life into an old car. The world has just lost a big player in this space, as Sony has decided to wave goodbye to its aftermarket car audio business. Sales will continue until December 31, but beginning in 2027, Sony will be all about phones and other electronics (not Bravia TVs, though).

We probably didn’t need a study to come down to this conclusion, but new research discovered the obvious: people use Waze to dodge police radars. The app does more harm than good in the long term, the study concluded, as it makes speed checks less effective, with drivers only slowing down ahead of the flagged locations.

You probably don’t hear this too often, but Google is super-busy working on Android Auto. The company has just shipped Android Auto 18.0 (including for production devices), and this time, big news is hiding under the hood.

The Cielo update is on its way with video app support - so yes, you’ll be able to watch YouTube in your car - and widgets. Meanwhile, Firefox will go live on Android Automotive as part of a major Play Store refresh.

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