AutoHunter Spotlight: 2008 Tesla Roadster

Tesla sold 1.83 million cars worldwide in 2023, reflecting a 23% increase from the prior year. That volume was enough to account for about 19% of the global market for battery-electric vehicles. Tesla is huge these days. And while we are getting used to seeing Model S, Model 3, and even Cybertruck examples on the road, some people may not realize that the brand’s original production car was a sports car – and it repurposed parts from a Lotus.

Featured on AutoHunter is this 43K-mile 2008 Tesla Roadster. The car is being sold by a private seller in New Orleans, Louisiana, and the auction will end on Monday.

For Tesla’s first foray into the electric vehicle space over 15 years ago, the company chose to use a body and chassis from the Lotus Elise. The body panels (including the bumpers) were made from carbon fiber to reduce weight.

Unlike its Lotus brethren, momentum for this two-seater comes from a three-phase, four-pole induction electric motor mated to a single-speed BorgWarner automatic transmission (rated at 248 horsepower and 200 lb-ft of torque). Juice is drawn from a 53-kWh lithium-ion battery pack that gives a range of about 244 miles on a full charge. Efficiency is further maximized via a regenerative-braking system – one of the first of its kind in the industry.

Specs aside, how’s the performance? Tesla claimed that the Roadster could hit 60 mile per hour in about 3.9 seconds and that it had a top speed of 125 miles per hour. That is faster by about half a second to 60 when compared to the car’s Lotus Elise body-double. So yes, this car can move.

According to the listing, this Roadster retains a largely original configuration, although the stereo has been swapped out to an aftermarket JVC unit. The car’s CARFAX report begins in Oceanside, California in 2009 and shows accident-free ownership in California and Louisiana. Electric-vehicle maintenance looks a lot different from that of an internal-combustion vehicle, but a couple of service items do show up on the history, including a repair to the wheels.

According to Tesla’s website, the company is diligently working on bringing another Roadster to life. It will reportedly boast performance numbers far beyond those of the original car: 1.9-second zero-to-60, 250 mph top speed, and 620-mile range. “Roadster maximizes the potential of aerodynamic engineering – with record-setting performance and efficiency,” Tesla says.

It remains to be seen if and when Tesla will deliver on those promises, so for now, sit back and admire the car that started it all for Tesla. There were only 2,450 Roadsters delivered worldwide between 2008 and 2012, so the ones that remain are collectibles – and will become increasingly more desirable in the coming years as the new Roadster makes its debut.