Coincidentally, Porsche and Tesla unveiled their respective halo cars on October 15. While Elon Musk's company put on a spectacular show featuring a Roadster performing an airborne flip, Porsche took a more traditional approach with its Mission S concept. Now, the man calling the shots in Zuffenhausen has made it clear which side of the fence he's on.

Speaking at a conference in Berlin this week, Michael Leiters took a subtle jab at Tesla's presentation, saying Porsche wants to "completely steer clear from any kind of effects and shows." Instead, the company wants to demonstrate tangible technological innovation. According to Bloomberg, the executive also pointed out that the two cars target different customers, suggesting Porsche isn't particularly interested in competing with Tesla on spectacle.

The contrast was hard to miss. Tesla finally pulled the wraps off its next-generation Roadster almost nine years after showing the prototype in 2017. The October presentation featured a car driving up a curved ramp before launching into the air, performing a midair rotation, and landing on its wheels. The stunt relied on compressed-air thrusters developed with help from SpaceX engineers.

It was certainly an attention-grabbing way to introduce a new sports car, but Tesla still has plenty to prove. The company has outlined several versions, including a Performance model with suction fans and a Thrust variant featuring rear-mounted cold-gas thrusters. 9 seconds. There's also a single-seat Rocket version with thrusters all around, although that configuration won't be road-legal.

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