Tesla's Roadster Reservation Fine Print: No Delivery Guarantee

Tesla has pulled the wraps off its long-awaited next-generation Roadster, and the specs it showed off were nothing short of theatrical. The company even demonstrated the car’s ability to leap over one of its own Semis. But buried beneath the flash is a sobering detail for anyone rushing to put money down: Tesla’s own reservation paperwork admits the car might never actually reach buyers.

The reservation agreement shown on Tesla’s website states plainly that the Roadster remains in development, and that the company “cannot guarantee when your vehicle will actually be delivered or if it will be delivered.” That language undercuts the sense of finality that a deposit usually implies. Tesla also stresses that a reservation is not a purchase order. Even with deposits running as high as $250,000, what a customer secures is an “approximate” spot in line, contingent on the car eventually entering production.

Pricing remains equally unsettled. Tesla notes that any figure it displays is only an estimate and that the final cost will not be locked in until a buyer configures their vehicle. The company says it is still determining which options, features and hardware the car will carry. It has pointed to a 2028 timeframe for launch, though the agreement leaves room for the presentation’s details to shift before then.

One notable omission is a no-resale clause, which Tesla has attached to other limited-run offerings in the past. Instead, the Roadster reservation is explicitly non-transferable. The upside for deposit holders is that the money is fully refundable, whether a buyer simply changes their mind or Tesla ultimately fails to deliver the car. For those who have held reservations since 2017, a couple more years of waiting may feel like business as usual.