Because we will never see Elon Musk’s flying car on the roads

The presentation of the flying Tesla Roadster made millions of people roll their eyes, yet we will never see such a vehicle on our roads.

On the Italian night between 15 and 16 October 2026 the US car manufacturer Tesla presented the second generation from the Roadsterscompletely gaining the attention of the automotive sector (and not only), with the simultaneous “obscuring” of the announcement of the beautiful Mission S Of Porsche. To make the event a real one media show the presentation was out of the ordinary to say the least, in which the Roadster was shown performing pirouettes in the air, leaps, climbs and landings worthy of Back to the Future And Supercars. Essentially, she was shown to the world as a real one flying carthanks to technology derived from Falcon rockets SpaceXthe private aerospace company of Elon Muskwho also heads Tesla.

The secret of the video which made millions of people roll their eyes resides in a complex system based on ten thrusters connected to hundreds of kg of compressed air crammed into carbon fiber tanks. They are positioned around the body of the car nozzles which function like those used by rockets and spacecraft to stabilize flight and land (where possible, as in the case of the Falcon and the Starship). In the first phase of the presentation, the Tesla Roadster traveled along an upside-down C-shaped ramp in which it stopped vertically (and upside down) like a gecko, thanks to a very powerful fan system which, by sucking in the air, is able to literally attach it to the surfaces. In the second phase, the one that left those present stunned, the car traveled down the ramp at high speed, but instead of falling violently to the ground, with a “circus move” it righted itself in flight and landed delicately thanks to the aforementioned nozzle system. Something never seen before and which literally drove social media users crazy, shouting “this is the future” and “flying cars are reality”.

Flying cars, first of all, are nothing new. Just look at the 35 minute flight of the AirCara hybrid vehicle that flew between Nitra International Airport (Slovakia) and Bratislava International Airport in June 2021. But numerous late-stage projects are in development, from Alef Model A at the PAL-V Libertywithout forgetting the eVTOL which, although not circulating on the road, are very close to the concept of a “personal” flying car cherished by many science fiction films and novels.

Even the system active suction from the platform that allows it to remain attached to a vertical surface or a ceiling is nothing new; Tesla’s evolved system recalls the experiment of Brabham BT46B Of Formula 1 from 1978, equipped with a fan to maximize ground effect. More recently, the same result was achieved by the English electric hypercar McMurtry Speirlingwhich during various presentations showed the ability to remain glued and upside down on a platform, again thanks to super fans that suck in the air.

Returning to flying, the system proposed by Tesla would not actually allow flying, but only making leaps of a few tens of metres, because the rechargeable compressed air system does not work like an engine based on a common fuel. For the same mass or volume, it has much less energy than aviation fuel and to keep a vehicle that weighs tons in the air, you need a lot of it. Essentially, the vehicle can perform controlled leaps and aerial maneuvers, but cannot fly like the AirCar, an airplane or an eVTOL.

It should also be considered that the model shown during the show was a sort of “empty shell”, unmanned and remotely controlled. No one can exclude that the commercial version of the “flying” car is capable of performing the same stunts; but the fundamental point is another. What purpose would these aerial leaps and pirouettes serve? And, more importantly, who would allow it circulation of such a vehicle granting the freedom to perform such maneuvers? Simply no one, because the strict regulations for theapprovalwho are very strict even on the simple color from the direction arrowswould not for any reason in the world allow the circulation of a car which, by jumping, could end up hitting other vehicles or people. At least not with the current regulations.

Very high pressure cold gas tanks arranged around the entire vehicle would also represent a extreme risk in the event of road accidents; furthermore, the possibility that they could activate themselves due to breakdowns or similar would put occupants and pedestrians in serious danger. The moment the car is in the air, even if for a few seconds, among other things it should be subjected to aviation regulation; who has a drone he knows well which and how many authorizations are needed even to fly a small one. Nor should we forget the deafening noise of this system, the maintenance very rigorous to which it should be regularly subjected and a whole series of issues that make it practically non-approved for everyday roads. Suffice it to remember that the Cybertruck of Tesla was not approved in the European Union due to the rigid stainless steel body, the sharp edges considered dangerous for pedestrians and other parameters. Imagine how a car capable of making leaps of several meters, full of tanks, can be considered “safe”.

It was announced that the Tesla Roadster, which is not even a roadster but a coupe-berlinetta a far cry from the original made on the floor of the Lotus Elisewill be available from 2028 in the normal version, without the system aerospace derivationwhile the special one will be reserved for selected customers by invitation. At the moment one can imagine a situation similar to that of certain extremely exclusive cars Ferrarilike the 599XX and the FXX Kwhich despite being owned are kept by the Maranello company and made accessible to customers only on the track. Maybe Tesla will build an “amusement park” where owners of the flying Roadster can try out stunts.

We are unlikely to ever see such a system on the road. In the very distant future, however, applications derived from this technology to avoid accidents or mitigate their consequences cannot be ruled out. But at the moment it is unlikely that such a project has any hope of turning into a commercial product standard for everyday roads.