© RM Sotheby's2011 Tesla R80 3 0 Roadster Sport 0
Holding out for the next-gen Tesla Roadster? Keep waiting. While Tesla says the new open-roofed supercar will enter production sometime this year, we reckon the second-gen Roadster is well over a year away. Hey, we warned you of this when we showcased the rather impressive drop-top Model S conversion carried out by Ares Design and mentioned that if it's a drop-top Tesla you want, then you're either going to write the check to Ares Design or source a well-kept first-gen Roadster. Hey, speaking of .
As part of RM Sotheby's recent Arizona sale, a well-optioned 2011 Tesla Roadster Sport R80 3.0 crossed the auction block, claiming a respectable $112,000 final sale price (including fees). Not bad, considering second-hand EVs hold value about as well as a decade-old water-damaged Maserati. This car's final price, however, proves that even the most desirable Roadster variants still haven't dug into a collectability niche quite yet.
© RM Sotheby's With an original purchase sticker starting somewhere around RM Sotheby's final hammer price, this Roadster is well-optioned in "Sport" configuration and is one of a handful of original Roadsters to undergo the $29,000 R80 3.0 battery upgrade that increased range to 340 miles. Despite this car's rather low 17,492 miles, it couldn't quite match the $140,000 sale price of a 4,000-mile 2011 Tesla Roadster Sport with R80 upgrade that changed hands at RM Sotheby's Elkhart sale. Wrong time, wrong crowd? Who knows-the collectible Tesla market is still in its infancy.
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We're not sure if it's the miles, condition, color, or lack of interested bidding parties that are responsible for that $28,000 price gulf, but those who are interested in picking up a first-gen Tesla Roadster would do well for themselves by checking around with specialists before locking in on one particular car.