new tesla roadster arriving very soon design chiefTesla design chief Franz von Holzhausen says the next-generation Roadster is coming "very soon," offering the same three-word promise the company has leaned on for nearly nine years without a date, specs, or a single new detail to back it up.Von Holzhausen made the remark on the latest episode of Jay Leno's Garage. The exchange was brief and came as the episode wrapped. Leno said he was "eagerly anticipating the arrival of the new Roadster," and von Holzhausen answered, "Yes, very soon." Leno pressed him, asking again, "Very soon?" The reply was identical. Leno's deadpan response, "10 years… just shy of 10 years," summed up the credibility problem.The timing is worth noting given the venue. Von Holzhausen, who has led Tesla design for close to 18 years, was not on the show to discuss Tesla. He appeared to show off his 400-horsepower V8-swapped Pontiac Solstice, a gas car he designed at GM two decades ago. "I'm a Tesla guy, but the sound sounds pretty good," he told Leno.Tesla, Not Porsche, is Actually the Most Appealing Car BrandTesla, Not Porsche, is Actually the Most Appealing Car BrandLook at any official headline covering J.D. Power's latest Automotive Performance, Execution, and Layout (APEAL) Study, and you'll see a familiar champion at the top: Porsche. The legendary German sports car maker officially took the crown as the most appealing premium brand.However, if you look closely at the charts, there is a giant asterisk sitting right next to the segment average-and it points to Tesla.While Porsche holds the official trophy, Tesla scored significantly higher than every single brand in the study. In fact, Tesla's owner satisfaction scores are so high that they single-handedly pull up the entire luxury segment's average.So why isn't Tesla sitting in the official #1 spot, and what makes its appeal so overwhelming?Colum WoodColum WoodAdvertisementAdvertisementThe Roadster has been "coming" since Tesla revealed the prototype in November 2017, when production was promised for 2020. That target slipped repeatedly, moving to a vague "12-18 months," then 2022, 2023, and 2024. In February 2024, Elon Musk promised a production unveil by year-end with deliveries in early 2025. None of it materialized.We heard back in July of 2025 from Tesla Vice President of Vehicle Engineering Lars Moravy, who said the vehicle was " definitely in development."Last November, Musk set a demo date of April 1, 2026, April Fools' Day, a choice he admitted gave him "deniability." That date moved to "late April," then to "a month or so" on the Q1 earnings call, and finally to August. August is here, and no demo has happened. Even if von Holzhausen's "very soon" proved accurate, the result would be a demonstration, the second in a decade, rather than a production vehicle.The original pitch remains familiar to anyone who has followed the car: a 0-60 mph time of 1.9 seconds, a 250-mph top speed, 620 miles of range, and a $200,000 starting price. Founders Series reservation holders put down $250,000 nearly a decade ago and are still waiting.The final production car (if it ever gets here) could be even faster, relying on rocket thrusters co-developed by SpaceX.