Abstract:
Tesla postpones the launch event of the new generation Roadster to October 15. I hope this is the last time car fans and enthusiasts have to wait for this new generation of Tesla Roadster. The postponement of the press conference itself is quite dramatic, and a new patent application disclosed on the official website of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) makes the whole thing even more intriguing.
The new patent obtained by Tesla is called "Electric Fan Car". The patent drawing shows that four duct fans spray airflow backward to increase downforce and improve the stability of the vehicle at high speeds.
In the preview image released by Tesla last month, you can see four white air streams spurting upward. Tesla cleverly hides the design details of the new generation Roadster in this teaser image.
The Tesla community said that the car company also flipped the image vertically to further increase confusion. However, after rotating the picture 180 degrees and restoring it, the meaning of this trailer becomes clear (see the picture below).
What’s interesting is that Musk originally promised to carry SpaceX cold-air thrusters, aiming to achieve 0-100mph (0 to 60 mph acceleration) in about 1 second, rather than ducted fans used to increase downforce and improve handling performance.
"Electric fan car" patent details
According to information from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Tesla submitted this patent application on January 17, 2024, and was authorized on September 29, 2026. The patent was obtained only two days before the scheduled launch of the Roadster.
The patent number in the United States Patent and Trademark Office is US 12,746,987 B1. Figure 1 in the patent document PDF shows the airflow channels under the vehicle.
The patent abstract summarizes the purpose of the invention as follows:
Abstract (Patent No. US 12,746,987 B1)
An electric vehicle that includes a ducted fan system used to increase downforce and reduce wind resistance. The ducted fan system may have a diffuser section extending from the air inlet of the vehicle chassis to the air outlet on the rear side of the vehicle.
Duct fan systems can be connected to the high-voltage battery and control systems of electric vehicles. The electric vehicle can also be equipped with a second set of expansion sections to further enhance downforce.
The media believes that Tesla deliberately used the now-discontinued Model S electric sedan as a schematic carrier in this patent.
If car companies directly use the engineering drawings of the new generation Roadster, the design plan will be leaked before the scheduled launch; combined with the postponement of this launch, the spoiler effect will be very serious.
But the core question still remains: Is this patent really prepared for a new generation of Roadster? In the end, the most credible answer lies in the hands of Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who will reveal the answer on October 15 in Austin, Texas.
It is entirely possible that Musk will abandon the previous SpaceX thruster plan, but if true, existing reservation customers and potential buyers will be disappointed.
A teaser video from Tesla last year showed a fan running at high speed. I guessed at the time that it was a fan for the Roadster, but the conference was postponed indefinitely, and the purpose of this fan has always been a mystery.
This new patent gives a lot of clues (you can read Sadie Parker’s technical analysis of this patent on the X platform). However, abandoning the high-pressure cold air thruster solution would be a major setback for Tesla.
Tesla Roadster reservations and pricing
Roadster has a huge customer base in the reservation queue. In 2017, Tesla debuted the second-generation Roadster at a semi-truck launch event and immediately opened reservations, charging a deposit of US$50,000.
In the past nine years, many pre-order users have chosen to cancel their subscriptions and have gone through a long and slow refund process, but there are still a large number of first-generation pre-order customers.
The originally announced pricing of the second-generation Roadster:
Founders Series: US$250,000
Standard version: US$200,000
Tesla reopened reservations last month, and the deposit is still US$50,000 (US$5,000 by credit card, US$45,000 by bank wire transfer). However, the official website does not indicate any price.
Tesla will announce the pricing of the new Roadster at an upcoming conference.
Tesla previously needed to deliver approximately 80 Roadsters to referral reward program winners. This press conference will also clarify how the company handles this backlog of delivery orders.
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