Tesla delivered its first production Roadster in 2008.
The first-generation Roadster was Tesla’s debut vehicle and entered regular production in March 2008. The first production car, known as “P1,” was delivered to Tesla chairman Elon Musk in February 2008 after the company completed required regulatory approvals.
The Roadster had been unveiled as a prototype on July 19, 2006. Based on the Lotus Elise platform, it used lithium-ion battery cells and demonstrated that an electric sports car could offer both high performance and substantial range. Its stated range exceeded 200 miles on a charge, an unusual achievement for a production electric vehicle at the time.
The “2008” answer refers to the first-generation car’s launch and first customer deliveries. It should not be confused with the second-generation Roadster, which Tesla announced in 2017 but had not entered regular production as of 2026.