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SpaceX breaks Starship test record, rolls next booster to launch pad
SpaceX has completed a record-breaking test of a Starship booster and rolled a newer Super Heavy prototype to the launch pad just hours apart.
Almost six weeks after SpaceX began Super Heavy Booster 7’s static fire test campaign, the company has broken new ground by simultaneously igniting seven Raptor engines at once. A matter of hours later, confirming SpaceX CEO Elon Musk’s plans in real time, the company transported a second Super Heavy prototype (Booster 8) from the factory to the launch pad, where it joined Booster 7.
According to Musk, those rockets will soon switch places, ensuring that no time is wasted while SpaceX continues to gradually work towards Starship’s first orbital launch attempts.
Booster 7 kicked off the most important stage of its flight qualification process on August 9th and 11th with two back-to-back static fires, each igniting just one of 20 installed Raptor engines. Both appeared to be successful and SpaceX returned B7 to its Boca Chica, Texas factory, reinstalled a full set of 33 engines, and sent the Super Heavy back to the launch pad two weeks later.
On August 31st, SpaceX attempted to ignite three of Booster 7’s 33 Raptors. One engine failed to ignite but the others did not, resulting in a mostly successful two-engine test. Over the next two weeks, SpaceX performed several ignition-free ‘spin-prime’ tests, two of which appeared to spin up all 33 engines without causing an explosion. Finally, SpaceX telegraphed its next major goal with a seven-engine spin-prime test on September 16th and another (albeit with a slightly different set of engines) on September 19th.
Shortly after the second seven-engine spin-prime, SpaceX refilled Booster 7 with propellant, went back through the same procedures, and ignited the same seven engines for about five seconds. No obvious issues arose and Musk later implied that the test went well. It set a new record for the largest number of Raptors simultaneously ignited on a single prototype and likely also broke the record for most thrust produced by a vehicle tested at Starbase.
If all seven upgraded Raptor V2 engines were operating at full throttle, they could have briefly produced more than 1600 tons (~3.6M lbf) of thrust – roughly equivalent to two Falcon 9 boosters. Measuring about 69 meters (~225 ft) tall and 9 meters (~30 ft) wide, Super Heavy will be the most powerful liquid rocket booster ever tested once it ignites as few as 20 of its 33 engines at full thrust.
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In an increasingly rare update, Musk revealed that SpaceX will once again return Booster 7 to Starbase’s factory for mysterious “robustness upgrades” after the latest round of testing. Musk doesn’t seem to think that those upgrades will take very long, and anticipates that Starbase’s “next big test” will be the first complete wet dress rehearsal of a fully-assembled two-stage Starship, followed by Super Heavy’s first 33-engine static fire test, “in a few weeks.”
More likely than not, each step of that process will take multiple attempts and uncover issues that will then need to be corrected and verified over the course of several months. But with Starship 24 having already completed a full six-engine static fire, there’s a small chance SpaceX will find itself with a fully-stacked Starship that is more or less ready for its first orbital launch attempt by the end of October.
In the meantime, after Booster 7 returns to the factory, Booster 8 – finally complete after a relatively slow six-month assembly – will kick off basic proof testing at SpaceX’s South Texas orbital launch site. SpaceX wasted no time preparing for that swap and transported Booster 8 to the pad just seven hours after Booster 7’s seven-engine static fire. If things move more smoothly than they did with B7, it’s possible that B8 will complete proof testing and be ready to head back to the factory for Raptor installation by the time B7’s upgrades are finished – a very efficient transition if it works out that way.
Tesla has started to deploy the 2026 Summer Update to owners across its fleet, and among the biggest changes are improvements to Navigation, a new startup animation for the Model 3 and Model Y, Caraoke scoring, and new capabilities for Grok.
As the update has started making its way to some cars, we can now see a few of the features operating in real-time. We will show you what some of the new features look like in this article, along with some additional details on what changed.
Not all of the new features in the 2026 Summer Update have quite made an appearance, but some of them have, so we’ll show those here:
New Animation Screen for 3/Y
Tesla is rolling out a new startup animation for Tesla Model 3 and Model Y owners. This is present in Launch Edition and Performance Model 3 and Model Y, but other trim levels do not have anything like this.
The new animation screen on Model 3/Y with the 2026 Summer Update
Apparently color will also be customizable: pic.twitter.com/wSdwggtG3S
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 27, 2026
Owners can adjust the color associated with the startup animation to suit their preferences. It is a surprise that more automakers do not focus on this animation for their vehicles; it can be a great first impression piece and make the car immediately feel more luxurious.
Tesla has included this on more premium trims, but it is nice to see it on the Model 3 and Model Y.
Grok Improvements
Grok can now adjust more things in the car outside of the Navigation system. Now, drivers can adjust anything from climate to driving settings by simply speaking to the AI assistant in the car:
@Tesla‘s AI assistant (Grok) with its new vehicle commands in action.
Set the climate, your destination and vehicle settings all in one go! pic.twitter.com/0bBTqaAk6G
— Not a Tesla App (@NotATeslaApp) July 28, 2026
You don’t even have to push a button, either. Instead, you can just say “Hey, Grok,” if you have it enabled. That feature rolled out with the 2026 Spring Update just a few months back.
This is a great feature, especially pertinent for the Robotaxi platform, as there will be no buttons inside the Cybercab when it eventually starts giving rides to the public. It also broadens Grok’s capabilities, which were relatively limited in terms of vehicle setting adjustments beforehand.
Tesla briefly offered one Robotaxi part in its Parts Catalog for your personal car, only to remove it just a short time after it was first noticed.
Tesla’s Robotaxi camera washer apparatus was briefly available for purchase on the company’s Online Parts Catalog. The camera washer was first noticed on Model Y Robotaxi vehicles about six months ago in Austin.
🚨 Tesla looks to have installed Camera Washers on the side repeater cameras on Robotaxis in Austin
pic.twitter.com/xemRtDtlRR— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) January 23, 2026
First noticed by Not a Tesla App, the Camera Washer entries appeared for the new “Juniper” Model Y under a category called “Halo,” which has also now disappeared. Interestingly, Halo probably is related to Tesla’s internal “Project Halo,” which was a project that aimed to retrofit customer-owned Model Ys into functional Robotaxis.
This hardware addition would likely be required for the vehicle to operate as a Robotaxi, as the Camera Washer seems to be a non-negotiable part of the vision-based system Tesla utilizes for self-driving efforts.
However, this part has since been removed and is no longer visible on the EPC.
Now the true question lingers: Why would Tesla add this Camera Washer to the Model Y parts catalog? Is it planning to make it available for owners to utilize on their own cars for personal use, or will it become a prerequisite for Robotaxi operation in customer-owned cars?
While discussing the upgrade options for Hardware 3 vehicles during the Q1 Earnings Call, Tesla CEO Elon Musk had said that the company could establish small, satellite shops that would upgrade cameras and self-driving computers. Perhaps this same strategy could be utilized for vehicles that want to be included in Robotaxi but do not have the correct hardware.
AI4 is currently represented as capable of unsupervised self-driving, and the same was said about HW3 at one point, only for Tesla to admit last quarter that it would, unfortunately, not be possible. Perhaps AI4 vehicles might need this camera washer as a prerequisite, just as HW3 cars will need that camera and computer upgrade.
This could be the first hint of that’s where we are headed.
Tesla has started rolling out a broader change to the ride experience for its Robotaxi fleet by silencing turn signals, but the change is certainly polarizing.
Tesla has generally made it clear that its purpose-built ride-hailing platform, Robotaxi, will cater to the rider in nearly every way possible. This includes having climate preferences, music, and other personal settings loaded up in the car as the rider enters.
But Tesla is taking it a step further by muting turn signal chimes altogether, a change that appears to be a way to make the ride more peaceful:
Tesla has finally turned off the blinker/turn signal noises in their Model Y Robotaxis.
This is a small update, but will definitely be noticeable for riders. It didn’t really make much sense to leave the turn signal sound on when it’s Unsupervised. pic.twitter.com/ITwx60PAMO
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) July 27, 2026
However, there are a handful of people who are not thrilled about this change. Turn signals are a conditioned part of the human mind for those who ride in a car regularly.
Taking a turn without one feels strange and odd, and not hearing it click while activated could set off some alarms for riders, who might use the noise as confirmation that other drivers know of their intention to turn.
I kind of like it being on, threw me off when riding with Zoox who has had it disabled
— Dan Burkland (@DBurkland) July 27, 2026
Turn signal noises are still audible in customer cars, so if you use FSD in your personal vehicle, you will still hear the turn signal.
The move is certainly one that is unique, but not one that separates it from other ride-sharing services. In a normal car, the clicking sound confirms to the driver that the blinker is active. In a fully driverless Robotaxi, that feedback serves no purpose for passengers, other than peace of mind.
Tesla Summer Update begins rolling out: a look at the new features
Tesla briefly offered this Robotaxi part for your personal car
