Abstract:
On October 17, Tesla’s new generation Roadster shocked the world with its “flying” function. Many foreign media published articles commenting on Tesla’s display. The following is a summary of comments from foreign media:
Roadster in flight
Bloomberg: Tesla once again signals merger with SpaceX
Tesla chose to display the Roadster at the SpaceX base and used SpaceX's thruster technology on the sports car, once again releasing a signal that the two companies may merge. For years, Tesla has hinted that the next-generation Roadster might include SpaceX options. Some investors and analysts see overlap between the two companies as a reason for a merger.
“We are seeing these two companies getting closer and closer,” said Garrett Nelson, senior equity research analyst at CFRA. “Now, this trend is gradually developing to a point where Musk can propose that since the two companies work so closely together, a merger is a reasonable choice.”
Reuters: Show off engineering prowess, but no commercial value
Some observers believe that Musk is building momentum for a merger of the two giant companies he controls, an idea he has previously explored by discussing overlapping businesses.
“This is a show of engineering prowess that has no commercial value other than embarrassing traditional automakers.” Gene Munster, a Tesla investor and managing partner of Deepwater Asset Management, said on the social media platform X.
Wall Street Journal: The new Roadster is the restart of Tesla’s sports car project
After nine years of delays, potentially millions of dollars in deposits, and a lot of hype, the Tesla Roadster is finally ready, and it's taking off.
This event held in Texas is, to some extent, a reboot of the Roadster project. Tesla showed a prototype of the car in November 2017 and began accepting deposits from consumers interested in lining up to buy the car: $50,000 for the regular version and $250,000 for the limited-edition "Founders Series." The Roadster was originally scheduled to go into production in 2020, but this plan never materialized.
Business Insider: Three major questions to be answered
For those Tesla fans who are prepared to pay a deposit of up to $250,000 to reserve this new Roadster, it’s best to take a closer look at the fine print. First, a key question is, where exactly can this car be driven on the road? Musk said he was "not sure it would be legal in all jurisdictions." When the audience asked whether the car was legal for the road, Musk's answer was vague.
Secondly, the final price may be higher. Spending up to $250,000 to reserve a Roadster will never guarantee you'll get the car at that price. According to the terms and conditions of the Tesla Roadster reservation agreement, costs for the Performance and Thrust versions are only estimates as the company is still "researching what options, features and hardware will be available on the model." Finally, delivery times are not guaranteed. Tesla's terms also remind pre-orderers that the Roadster is still in the "development stage" and Tesla "cannot guarantee when the vehicle will actually be delivered or that it will ultimately be delivered."
CNBC: Tesla’s last car designed for human drivers
While the Roadster has undoubtedly sparked a lot of buzz among Musk's fans, the car is expected to remain a high-end, limited-production model. Musk said that the Roadster will be put into production in 2028, but did not announce the price. He also said that the Roadster is not equipped with Tesla's automatic driving system and will be Tesla's last car designed for human driver control.
Financial Times: Reviving Tesla’s image as a bold innovator
Tim Levin, senior editor of the electric vehicle website InsideEVs, said that given that Tesla’s best-selling model Model Y has been launched as early as 2020, the new Roadster is expected to help Tesla reshape its bold and innovative brand image. But he cautioned that the electric vehicle industry has changed since Tesla first unveiled the Roadster as a concept car.
"Maybe the world needed to be convinced then that electric cars could be these vehicles that accelerate super fast," Levin said. "But maybe now, it's not going to have the impact that it should have in 2020."
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