- Tesla’s first cars have exploded in recent years.
- This is thanks to the “star power” of the Tesla brand and the importance of the Roadster in the history of the electric car.
- Tesla only made about 2,450 Roadsters from 2008 to 2012.
When a small California upstart named Tesla Motors launched a limited-production electric sports car in 2008, no one could have predicted that the same company would one day be the world’s most valuable automaker and would be credited with sparking the electric vehicle revolution.
Today, Tesla’s early cars are becoming hot collectibles, the price of which has skyrocketed in recent years as Elon Musk’s empire has exploded.
Tesla made around 2,450 Roadsters between 2008 and 2012, selling them for around $100,000 and up. The original two-door convertibles have depreciated over time, with one changing hands for $38,000 on car auction site Bring a Trailer in 2018.
A 2011 Tesla Roadster 2.5 Sport that sold in January for $190,000.
Bring a trailer
What a difference a few years make. According to Hagerty, a classic car insurance company, Roadster values have nearly doubled in the past two years, from an average of $69,000 in May 2020 to $127,000 this year. This is based on the values provided by owners looking to insure their vehicles and largely reflects what they paid.
Some examples with particularly low mileage or desirable options fetched far more than that. In January, a 2011 Roadster 2.5 Sport sold for $190,000. In May, someone paid $212,000 for one of the first 100 Roadsters built.
The price spike was accompanied by a pandemic-induced frenzy in the collector car market as enthusiasts turned to their vehicles as an escape, said Brian Rabold, vice president of automotive intelligence at Hagerty, to Insider. A sexy, fast and fun-to-drive car that has become an important part of electric vehicle history, the Roadster also has distinct appeal among fans of Tesla and the broader electric car movement, he said. .
A 2011 Tesla Roadster 2.5 Sport that sold in January for $190,000.
Bring a trailer
“It was Tesla’s first product, so it has this special place in history. As Tesla’s fortunes grew into the company it is today, a lot of that comes down to the Roadster,” he said.
In the past five years alone, Tesla has grown from a faltering startup to a $700 billion company with a global presence and an army of loyal fans. Its CEO Elon Musk has become a celebrity and the richest person on the planet. It all helped propel the Roadster to new heights, experts said.
Randy Nonnenberg, CEO of Bring a Trailer, attributed the Roadster’s recent success to the “star power of the Tesla brand”.
A 2011 Tesla Roadster 2.5 Sport.
Bring a trailer
Dan Richland, a retired literary agent who lives in California, has owned a string of fast gas cars over the decades, but sold out on electric vehicles after driving a Tesla Model S in 2020. Since then, he bought several Teslas and plunged much of his net worth into the company’s stock, he told Insider. He wanted to own the car that started it all and bought a 2010 Roadster for $140,000 in May.
“My thinking on that was this: This is the original Tesla. It’s a miracle that this car actually made it to market,” he said.
Part of the Roadster’s appeal is that it’s unlike any new electric car available today, said Pete Gruber, who runs Gruber Motor Company, an independent Tesla repair shop in Phoenix, Ariz., that specializes in electric cars. Roadsters. “You have four-door grocers all day,” he said. “Nothing is a brightly colored two-seater sports car.”
Gruber launched an online marketplace that connects Roadster sellers and buyers in late 2020 and plans to open a Roadster storage facility to capitalize on the sales boom. Over the past couple of years it has seen more serious collectors buying Roadsters as investments.
According to Hagerty, Roadster values have stabilized slightly, reflecting a slowdown in the broader collector car market. Both Rabold and Nonnenberg expect prices to rise in the foreseeable future.
“Will it be a rocket ship and they’ll be worth 20 times what they’re worth now? Probably not. But are they a very solid, worthwhile investment? I think so,” Nonnenberg said.
Are you a Tesla owner with a story to share? Would you like to let me drive your Roadster, Model S, Model 3 or Model X? Contact this reporter at [email protected]
#Decadeold #Tesla #Roadsters #sell #Elon #Musks #cars #hot #collectibles