New Tesla Roadster Now on Display at LA’s Petersen Museum

If you’re in Los Angeles this weekend, you can see Tesla’s new Roadster in person. Tesla announced on X that the Roadster is on display at the Petersen Automotive Museum, with the exhibit running from October 24 to 27 in the Main Lobby.

It’s the first chance for the public to see the new Roadster since Tesla unveiled it at SpaceX’s test site in McGregor, Texas, earlier this month. The car is only there through Tuesday, so there isn’t much time to stop by.

It’s the Thrust, Not the Rocket

The Petersen lists the car as the 2028 Tesla Roadster Thrust Prototype. That’s not the version that stole the show at the reveal, where the Rocket trim drove upside down and flipped over Tesla’s entire lineup.

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Tesla plans four versions of the Roadster. The standard car makes 1 MW, or about 1,340 hp. Performance adds suction fans, adaptive suspension, and more torque for a 0-60 time under 1.6 seconds. Thrust adds a 200-liter cold-gas thruster system with four rear nozzles, cutting 0-60 to under 0.9 seconds. Rocket is invite-only, seats just one, and adds six more nozzles and a bigger tank so it can actually fly and maneuver in the air. We’ve covered each trim’s specs, pricing, and performance in more detail.

The Thrust is also the trim that original Founders Series reservations were converted to. As noted in the museum’s description of the exhibit, the Roadster with its cold-gas thrusters hit 0-60 mph in under one second at the unveiling — 0.81 seconds, to be precise.

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Look, But Don’t Touch

The Petersen’s exhibit page calls the Roadster Tesla’s “last best driver’s car.” It also highlights the active aero and fan-driven suction system that let it create an additional 2Gs of downforce to stick to surfaces upside down, even when standing still.

Don’t expect to climb inside, though. The exhibit is roped off, so visitors can only look and take photos. That’s a step back from the reveal event, where several attendees got up close and even sat in the car. You’ll also notice the prototype has no side mirrors, though Tesla says U.S. production cars will have them.

What’s Next for Roadster

Production is set to begin in 2028. Reservations currently require a refundable $50,000 deposit for Performance and $250,000 for Thrust. With Tesla taking the Roadster on the road this soon after its reveal, it wouldn’t be surprising to see it at more museums or showrooms in the months ahead.