--- title: "New Tesla Prototype Has Retractable Spoiler" description: "We still don’t know when Tesla’s long-awaited Model S Plaid will officially hit the market — but the hype couldn’t be any higher. YouTube channel The Kilowatts spotted the latest high-performance version of the car company’s best-selling electric sedan doing laps at the Laguna Seca Raceway in California. According to a tweet by the channel, […]" date: "2021-05-17" modified: "2021-05-17" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/tesla-model-s-plaid-retractable-spoiler" categories: - "Advanced Transport" - "Tesla" tags: - "elon musk" - "model s" - "tesla" - "the digest" --- # New Tesla Prototype Has Retractable Spoiler ![Tesla's Plaid Model S prototype was sporting an "adjustable wing built into the trunk" while doing laps at Laguna Seca in California.]() *\Image: Futurism\* ## Adjustable Wing We still don't know exactly when Tesla's long-awaited Model S Plaid will officially roll off the lot — but the hype couldn't be any higher. The electric car enthusiasts at YouTube channel The Kilowatts spotted the latest high-performance version of the car company's best-selling electric sedan doing laps at the Laguna Seca Raceway in California. According to a [tweet by the channel](), the racecar-red prototype was sporting an "adjustable wing built into the trunk" — another indication that Tesla is taking the relatively niche sports car segment very seriously with a space-age, pop-out spoiler. https://twitter.com/klwtts/status/1393331489253728258 ## Spoiler Alert It won't be the first sports car with a retractable spoiler. For instance, the spoiler on the Lamborghini Aventador [pops up]() to aid in traction during high speed driving. If the Model S Plaid's rumored lap times at Laguna Seca are anything go by, the vehicle will be extremely quick, being able to outcompete most of its class. Tesla has been unusually tight-lipped about the Plaid and Plaid Plus+ variant, as [*Electrek* points out](). As such, it's still very much unclear if the retractable spoiler will be part of the production version. There's a good chance we will hear from CEO Elon Musk about the vehicle in the coming months, [according to *PCMag*](). Currently, the estimated delivery of the Plaid version is "August-September" [according to the company's website](), sporting a 0-100 km/h time of just 2.1 seconds — what it claims to be the "quickest accelerating car in production today" — and a [lavish new spaceship-like interior](). All told, it's the latest evidence that with more and more major carmakers coming out with high-performance electric vehicles, Tesla will have to do even more in the future to differentiate itself from the competition. **READ MORE:** [Tesla Model S Plaid prototype with insane retractable spoiler spotted on race track]() \[*Electrek*\] **More on Plaid:** *[Tesla Reveals Lavish New Spaceship-Like Model S Interior]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()