Next-Gen Tesla Roadster

You know it's the auto industry we're talking about when, after only a little time a market, a replacement for the Tesla Roadster is already being discussed. Like politics, it's never to early to start speculating, right?  Jonny Lieberman of the WebRidesTV blog gives us fodder to do just that, with his chance to sit down with Tesla's CEO Elon Musk for an interview.

Surprisingly, he did not pick the company's all-important upcoming Model S as a topic of conversation. No, he asked about the next-generation Roadster. Some quite interesting information ensued that gives us a glimpse into Musk's thinking for the future.

Tesla and Musk has always seemed to hold in high regard the German auto companies and German engineering, and that has proved true in reality with recent investment by Daimler.  I bet there's something you didn't know; other than his Tesla Roadster, Musk's daily driver is a Porsche 911 Turbo.

He likes the car having all that performance, while continuing to have the ability to take his along with him. It's no secret that the Roadster isn't practical whatsoever; it's a small Roadster with two, uncomfortable seats.

That might change with the car's next generation. He says a new Roadster  will be a 2+2 based on the Model S platform, like all future Teslas. A "roomier Porsche" with 10% bigger rear seats and 50% more trunk space than the Porsche 911. In other words, Tesla is benchmarking the 911 and that is in no way a bad thing. In fact the Roadster might not be a Roadster at all.

There could be a convertible (most likely there will be), but the next model will be a “Full range of sports cars, from a base model to a GT version". A luxurious, practical Tesla GT? Sign me up!