Tesla Rocket Power and 4 Other Things We Didn’t Get in 2022

As a fan of outlandish solutions to life’s simple transportation problems, the Tesla Roadster’s rocket-assisted powertrain fits the bill. This isn’t the first time someone has looked at rocket-power-propulsion to move a machine forward. Companies like Turbonique offered rocket-boosters to affix to a car yourself, which might not have been the most popular idea in car-culture history. We doubt Tesla will use actual combustion rocket engines on this Roadster, but we didn’t get to find out this year.

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One of the big hopes for 2022 was a flood of new cars to help make us forget about 2021. Unfortunately, that didn’t pan out. With the computer chip shortage wreaking havoc across industries, it’s also forced used car prices upward. That said, the forecast for 2023 isn’t looking great either, but hopefully car production increases and helps stabilize prices.

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Even those who aren’t following motorsport may have heard that Lewis Hamilton was the favorite to clinch his record-setting eighth Formula 1 title. Well, that didn’t happen. Despite a controversial ending to one of the most dramatic seasons of the hybrid era, Hamilton’s hoped-for title went to Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen.

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Tesla's over-the-top Cybertruck should be rolling off the assembly line by now, but the futuristic BEV has hit a few more bumps in the road. Initially shown in 2019, the Cybertruck was originally scheduled to start production in 2021. Unfortunately for Tesla fans, the polarizing rig has hit a series of delays. There might be a light at the end of the tunnel with the most recent production estimates pointing at the Cybertruck launching sometime in 2023.

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This is probably going to be a staple on this list until the end of time, but talks of flying cars have grown considerably in the last few years. Promised for decades, and featured in the futuristic cartoon The Jetsons, flying cars are still a pie-in-the-sky dream. Now, it does seem like companies are still working on small personal aircrafts that are being called flying cars, but we’re still waiting for those to take off.

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