News
SpaceX contemplates Mars rocket factory on the South Texas coast
In statements provided to the Brownsville Herald, a Texan paper dedicated to a South Texas region that includes SpaceX’s Boca Chica launch site, state representative René Oliveira hinted that SpaceX’s plans for the region could go “well beyond conducting launches.”
SpaceX and South Texas
The Herald’s Steve Clark provided a great summary of the history between SpaceX and Texas in recent years, particularly related to the company’s efforts to construct a launch facility in the region. Aside from a considerable effort to create a sturdier foundation for the pad along the sandy, shifting shoreline of Boca Chica, Texas, the company’s work in the region has been rather quiet since the prospective pad’s announcement in 2014. Through a combination of tax incentives and a direct cash infusion, the state of Texas and the Rio Grande Valley region have both in some way strived to strengthen their relationships with SpaceX and solidify the iconic group’s presence in the region.
For Brownsville and Boca Chica, in particular, the latter of which has a population well under 100 individuals, SpaceX’s permanent presence would be a massive boom for the local economy by bringing an infusion of dozens or potentially hundreds of skilled, full-time positions to the quiet region.
In recent months, SpaceX has been very gradually progressing development of facilities around their potential launch site, albeit not the pad itself. These changes include a nearly complete public-private radio communications facility intended to both give college students hands-on experience and communicate with SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule as early as late 2018. Intriguingly, a Tesla energy installation has also been recently spotted at the facility.
Finally, a vast crane has been semi-permanently stationed on SpaceX property and had a corrugated shed build around it to protect it from the elements and SpaceX stalking fans in the region.
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- Tesla Powerpack battery storage unit being installed at SpaceX’s facility in Boca Chica, Texas [Credit: Nomadd via NASASpaceFlight.com Forum]
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- The boom of a giant crane (possibly meant for BFS) seen in late 2017, parked at SpaceX’s Boca Chica facilities. (Reddit /u/ ticklestuff)
More than just a launch pad?
State Rep. Oliveira’s statements can be seen in full below.
“About a year ago, SpaceX came to me with their concept of a new, larger, expanded plan for Boca Chica Beach,” Oliveira said. “The concept went well beyond conducting launches, and would require new commitments for construction, investment and jobs to support the new operations.”
“We looked at the original plan for the launch site, and the chain of work that would be done inside and outside on the rockets that would take off from Boca Chica. The concept SpaceX is examining would bring a lot of that work to Boca Chica, going well beyond the original plan.”
He [State Rep. René Oliveira, D-Brownsville] declined to reveal the details of the new concept for Boca Chica, saying it’s up to SpaceX to detail its plans and associated costs when it makes a request to CCSDC to apply for funding.
The timing of SpaceX concept, reportedly presented to Oliveira in late 2016 or early 2017, strongly indicate that the rocket company is considering a considerable expansion of their aspirations for the South Texas facilities under construction. Partly based on Oliveira’s suggestion that SpaceX and Brownsville “looked at…the chain of work” necessary for rockets to launch Boca Chica, the most obvious conclusion available is that SpaceX is thinking about developing Boca Chica into a veritable rocket city.
A Falcon 9 conducts tests at SpaceX’s McGregor testing facility in central Texas. (SpaceX)
A major problem facing SpaceX’s Mars rocket (BFR) program is dealing with the vehicle’s sheer size, 9m (30 feet) in diameter and at least as tall as Falcon 9. This size would make transporting the vehicle cross-country by road all but impossible, potentially forcing the company to abandon a bulwark of their current Falcon manufacturing strategy. The most obvious solution, as discussed briefly by CEO Elon Musk and President Gwynne Shotwell, would be to build a rocket factory where the launch pad is located. Boca Chica is thus almost certainly a prime location under SpaceX’s consideration for both the launch complex and factory needed to build and operate BFR. And this argument has been strengthened in recent months by statements from both executives hinting that prototype BFR spaceship (BFS) tests could begin in South Texas as soon as early 2019.
To say that the creation of such a manufacturing and launch infrastructure would transform the region would be an understatement. The sheer shock value of a small city being able to lay claim to the only private orbital launch complex in the US would be valuable in its own right, not to mention the distinct possibility that such a facility might one day launch the first humans to Mars. If the educated speculation above is, in fact, the truth of the matter, SpaceX can be expected to begin earnestly petitioning the local and state governments for additional public funds to partially support the major undertaking. Most importantly, the company would almost certainly need to procure an updated or wholly new environmental impact assessment from the FAA before being allowed to begin construction beyond the scope of the original 2014 grant.
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A Tesla owner who purchased a Model S Signature Edition, one of the final 250 units of the all-electric flagship vehicle that the company discontinued earlier this year, is attempting to sell the car despite a no-resale clause that prohibits reselling for the first year.
The car is being sold by J&S Autohaus in Ewing, New Jersey, and is priced at $260,490, well above the $159,420 that Tesla sold it for earlier this year.
🚨 The first Tesla Model S Signature Edition is up for sale for $260,490
Tesla placed a no-resale clause on the Model S and X Signature, so it will be interesting to see if the company takes any action. https://t.co/N9rKGHnbD6 pic.twitter.com/6FZhDL1KNR
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 14, 2026
To those who do not know, the Model S Signature was a highly exclusive, limited-run farewell variant of the Model S Plaid that was produced this year to mark the end of production of both the Model S and Model X, Tesla’s two flagship vehicles.
Limited to just 250 units with invite-only sales, it serves as a collector’s item celebrating the legacy of the Model S, which helped pioneer Tesla’s electric vehicle success since its 2012 launch.
It bundles top-tier performance with bespoke cosmetic and luxury upgrades, plus Tesla’s Luxe Package. Here’s what the Model S Signature has over the typical Model S Plaid:
- Exclusive Exterior – Unique Garnet Red Paint, matching door handles, gold Tesla “T” badges upfront, gold Plaid and Signature badging at the rear.
- Premium Interior – White Alcantara upholstery with gold piping/accents, gold Plaid seat badges, Signature-marked door sills, individually numbered dashboard plaque, gold puddle lights, special interior lighting sequence, and a custom Signature key fob.
- Performance Upgrades – Carbon-ceramic brakes with gold calipers
- Bundled Luxe Package – Full Self-Driving (Supervised), four years of Premium Connectivity, free lifetime Supercharging
- Performance Metrics – ~1,020 horsepower, sub-2-second 0-60 MPH, ~390-mile range
Tesla quickly introduced a No Resale Agreement for the Signature Editions of the Model S and Model X, which would penalize the seller for “the amount of $50,000 or the value received as consideration for the sale or transfer, whichever is greater.”
The company continues:
“If you sell or otherwise transfer the ownership of your Model S or Model X, the remainder of the Recommended Maintenance, Wheel and Tire Protection Plan, and Windshield Protection Plan will transfer automatically to the buyer. The Full Self-Driving (Supervised), Free Supercharging and Premium Connectivity will not transfer with the vehicle and will terminate once the ownership of the Model S or Model X is transferred.”
Tesla will likely come after the seller, especially as it has been about two months since Tesla launched deliveries.
Tesla rolled out Full Self-Driving (Supervised) v14.3.5 yesterday, and about fifty miles of driving on the new version has given me enough time to highlight what seems to be strong about the release and what is not.
Additionally, Tesla has added a few new features with this specific update, which we’ll highlight as well.
Tesla Full Self-Driving v14.3.5 Performance
The new update is business as usual. Things seem to be running completely normal and necessary, but there are a few things that we’ve seemed to pick up on based on our own experience with v14.3.5, as well as what other users are seeing.
Initially, it seems to be more aware of its surroundings, making moves that are incredibly courteous to other drives and operating just a tad more reserved than what the suite might have done previously.
We had two instances where it showed this, the first being FSD needing to pass a Flagger Force vehicle that was placing down signage for the day. Their work truck was right at the front corner of a right-hand turn; typically where most cars travel when they take that turn.
FSD v14.3.5 recognized this, slowed down, and took the turn wide with no issues:
🚨 Tesla Full Self-Driving v14.3.5 takes a wide turn as flagger crews set up signage for the day https://t.co/3v0PL9qhlI pic.twitter.com/i4CKqxE16c
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 13, 2026
Additionally, v14.3.5 backed up for a semi truck that was making a wide turn onto a road my car was on. This is not new, but it seemed to be backing up for courtesy; it didn’t seem completely necessary, but it might have put some peace of mind in the truck driver’s head:
🚨 Tesla Full Self-Driving v14.3.5 backs up for an oncoming tractor trailer taking a wide turn https://t.co/0WuAqNMpRR pic.twitter.com/s6yZGVm5Te
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 13, 2026
X user Mike P, also a Pennsylvania native like myself, shared three clips of his Tesla running v14.3.5 performing similar maneuvers. He said:
“FSD turns right into a small alley that only fits one car at a time, sees oncoming car, reverses out of alley to make space, realizes oncoming car is actually parking, re-enters alley.”
Check it out here:
Rapidfire epic moments on FSD V14.3.5
1) FSD turns right into a small alley that only fits one car at a time, sees oncoming car, reverses out of alley to make space, realizes oncoming car is actually parking, re-enters alley.
2) Insane speed to vehicle cues. As FSD approaches… pic.twitter.com/bSnySSlFHR
— Mike P (@mikepat711) July 13, 2026
It seems like Speed Profiles are still in need of some tweaking; I am adjusting what Speed Profile I’m in frequently, constantly changing it to get it to travel at the correct speed. This was an issue for me on v14.3.4. It seems like they’re just a little inconsistent.
Terrible Parking
Parking attempts on v14.3.5 were not good. There are quite a few people who have said this:
Yeah it seems like FSD v14.3.5 is having some issues with parking early on https://t.co/Bw5ULfVmDq pic.twitter.com/RHdpjOEpIo
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 13, 2026
David Moss, the Tesla owner who has taken multiple coast-to-coast drives without any interventions, also has had some issues with parking early on with v14.3.5:
Horrible first impression v14.3.5 on my 2025 Tesla Model 3 LR RWD Premium 😭
3 terrible parking jobs in 23 min including parking on a ramp in a business park & parking perpendicular out in the road on street only parking situation.
Wish I had a better drive but I still believe… pic.twitter.com/TtyhRHAFG7
— David Moss (@DavidMoss) July 13, 2026
New Features
Tesla has added the ability to open Camera Preview at any time. Previously, it was only available in Park. Here’s what that feature looks like in action:
🚨 Here’s the new Camera Preview feature on FSD v14.3.5 pic.twitter.com/OodfZgDppy
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 13, 2026
Check back later this week for a longer review of what we’ve noticed on Full Self-Driving v14.3.5.
Lifestyle
Tesla makes the cut on California’s newest EV Rebate program
California just signed a $270 million EV rebate into law and it starts this summer.
California Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 168 into law on Monday, July 13, 2026, creating a $270 million EV rebate program that delivers money directly at the dealership rather than as a tax credit applied months later. The program, called MyFirstEV, is funded equally by California’s state budget and participating automakers, with each contributing $135.5 million to make the math work.
The timing is directly tied to the loss of federal support when the $7,500 federal EV tax credit ended, removing the most significant consumer incentive that had driven EV adoption in the U.S. California, which accounts for roughly one-third of all EVs sold nationally, moved to fill that gap with a state-level replacement.
The rebate structure is straightforward. First-time EV buyers can receive $3,500 off any new battery-electric vehicle with an MSRP up to $50,000. Used EVs priced at $25,000 or below qualify for a $1,750 rebate. The credit is applied at the point of sale, which removes the friction of the old federal system where buyers had to wait for tax season to see the benefit. The program goes live later this summer, with the California Air Resources Board expected to release full participation details next month.
California hits Tesla Cybercab and Robotaxi driverless cars with new law
For Tesla buyers, the implications are mixed. The Tesla Model 3 RWD at $42,490 and the Model 3 Long Range at $47,490 both fall under the $50,000 cap and would qualify for the full $3,500 rebate for first-time buyers. The Model Y, which starts at $44,990 after Tesla’s recent price adjustment, also qualifies. The Model X, Model S, and Cybertruck all exceed the cap and receive no benefit. As Teslarati has reported, the program also includes a carve-out exempting California-based automakers like Rivian and Lucid from the price cap entirely, a provision that puts Tesla at a disadvantage since it relocated its headquarters to Texas in 2021.
Other qualifying vehicles include the Chevrolet Equinox EV, Ford Mustang Mach-E, Hyundai Ioniq 5, Kia EV6, and Volkswagen ID.4.
Tesla owner attempts resale of Model S Signature Edition for over $260k
Tesla Full Self-Driving v14.3.5 Early Impressions: new features and early performance
