When it was founded in 2003, Tesla was far from the benchmark in the field of electric cars as we know it today. In 2008, the production of the first model of the American firm began: the Tesla Roadster the first generation has nothing in common with today’s Tesla. It actually uses a base Lotus Elise modified to turn it into a 100% electric sports car with a carbon fiber body.

It’s powered by a 252bhp electric motor, allowing it to accelerate from 0 to 100km/h in 3.9 seconds, with a range of 393km thanks to a 53kWh lithium-ion battery located behind the cabin. Ten years later, Elon Musk sent a replica of the roadster into space, into orbit around the sun: a great way to get people talking about his other company, SpaceX. In general, 2680 copies Roadster I sold four years into my career, and now this model is a rare gem on the used market.

All design and engineering of the original @You are here The Roadster is now fully open.

Everything we have, you now have.https://t.co/5d10soAYr8

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 22, 2023

Tesla Roadster: Elon Musk publishes all his documentation

While we’re still waiting for the launch of the second-generation Tesla Roadster, the brand’s boss has just announced on social media that it is now fully open sourceand is available free of charge at service.tesla.com/roadster.

Referring to the “source code” of a vehicle, as we might do for software or an application, is not a common practice. In addition to the various user and maintenance manuals for the Roadster I, we provide numerous documents valuable technical details on the design of the vehicle, such as its electrical architecture, its hardware, its engine, its battery, its air conditioning system or even its diagnostic software.

Lots of information about the Roadster I

In theory, with this wealth of information, we can imagine building a roadster replica from scratch based on the Lotus Elise. But above all, these documents will allow the happy owners of the model to better understand how it works, maintain and repair their vehicle and identify the elements that need to be addressed for this. A great way to immortalize an iconic model.

With this new announcement, Elon Musk is talking about Tesla again, improving its image among its large community of users and fans. Developed more than 15 years ago, the first generation Roadster is now technically outdated, and the Tesla boss is not taking any chances by revealing so much technical information to competitors.

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