A car hanging upside down makes a remarkable photograph. I still cannot think of a journey I need to make that way.

That tension is what interests me about Tesla’s latest Roadster reveal. Its most memorable moment offered almost nothing I would ask for in an everyday car. Yet, it made me think much harder about the future of transportation than another acceleration chart would have.

My reading of the spectacle is simple: Tesla wanted us to see an extreme capability and imagine what else might become possible. The implied message, as I interpret it, was this: if we can make a car do this, imagine what we might build next.

That is a powerful invitation. I want to accept it while keeping a clear distinction between what impressed me and what has actually been demonstrated.

Nine years of waiting deserve more than applause.

The history matters. Tesla first presented the next-generation Roadster in November 2017, with production originally promised for 2020.…