Elon Musk: The first Tesla Roadster we sold was 'completely unsafe'

Tesla's Model S electric car has won rave reviews from auto critics.

But the company's first crack at an electric car, the Roadster, had some problems.

In fact, CEO Elon Musk now admits the car was "completely unsafe."

During Tesla's annual shareholder meeting on Tuesday, Musk recounted the company's bumpy road to building an electric car.

The Roadster, which went on sale in 2008, utilized a chassis made by sports car maker Lotus.

"Frankly this car, although it passed all the regulatory requirements for a street legal car, was completely unsafe," said Musk. He noted that the car broke down all the time, it tended to get "stuck" in second gear and that it was primarily "hand built."

Within a year, Musk said, Tesla did a "complete reboot" of the car's design, technology and suppliers. That paved the way for a generation of Roadsters that performed better and which actually generated a profit, according to Musk.