UPDATE: A Tesla patent dropped 7 days before the Roadster reveal. The numbers are wild.
Filing: US 2026/0285418 A1
“Deployable and Active Rear Wing Assembly with Safety Features”
Inventors: David Lemire & James Michael Arthur Crook
Published Sep 24, 2026
What it actually describes:
1. Two-piece wing (main element + leading-edge slat 3–15 mm ahead)
2. Hidden flush in the deck lid in road mode
3. Four-bar linkage (also rails / lead screws)
4. Full deploy < 3 seconds
5. Angle change < 0.25 seconds
6. High-downforce mode: up to 700 kg (~1,540 lb) above 100 mph
7. DRS mode: 0 kg downforce, ~250 drag counts removed
8. Track mode: GPS sees a circuit, wing strategy changes automatically
9. Crash mode: ADAS predicts a rear hit → wing starts folding before impact. Mechanical latches dump it if the software is too late.
The drawings are a low 2+2 fastback with a huge diffuser.
Not confirmed for production. Timing is not an accident.
10.01 Waco, TX 🍿