On paper, the new Tesla Roadster is a tour de force with a claimed range of 620 miles, a 0-60 time of 1.9 seconds. It’s seriously impressive, but if you take Tesla CEO Elon Musk at his word, a “special upgrade” package for the car could allow it to fly. I thought Musk was kidding. Apparently some of you think he’s serious.
Here’s what Musk said on Sunday:
Musk previously expressed skepticism of the incredibly-skeptical idea of flying cars, so the response to his statement might’ve been due to his potential about-face alone. He also spends time with rockets as CEO of SpaceX when he’s not focused on trying to build all-electric cars.
So, maybe—maybe!—he could build a super-fast car that can handle a hop or two. But, I’m sure kidding. It’s not “just a question of safety.” The regulatory logistics of flying cars are gigantic and, possibly, insurmountable.
Take the way he hedges it:
“Not saying the next gen Roadster ... *will* definitely enable it to fly short hops, but maybe ... Certainly possible ...”
I’m not saying I’m definitely going to eat my shoe, but maybe. It’s certainly possible, and—maybe—I might eat some of my shoe, but I could potentially think otherwise at some point.
I asked Tesla to clarify whether Musk is serious, but I highly doubt it.