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SpaceX fits Starship prototype with tank bulkheads as hop test pad progresses

Starhopper and SpaceX's spartan assembly facilities are pictured here, showing the inside of the aft section and a completed tank dome. (Austin Barnard)

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SpaceX workers have begun installing fuel and oxidizer tank bulkheads inside the first BFS/Starship prototype at the same time as the vehicle’s nearby ‘launch’ facility continues to sprout important infrastructure and slowly morph from a giant pile of dirt into something capable of supporting rocket hop tests.

Several observable characteristics of this project still do not immediately make sense but whatever the direction SpaceX is moving in, engineers and technicians are working around the clock to ensure that progress is steady.

Moreso than any other single part, the most confusing aspect of Starhopper has to be the apparent condition of its steel tank domes, distinctly covered with a patina of impurities like rust, dirt, dust, and grime. For a water tower or other miscellaneous storage tank, this would be completely acceptable. For aerospace-grade propellant tanks that will have to safely store dozens or even hundreds of tons of supercool liquid methane and oxygen to feed ultra-high-performance Raptor engines, the purity of ingested propellant and thus the cleanliness of the tanks holding it is going to be of paramount importance.

To use an example that applies to the rockets SpaceX currently flies, Falcon 9’s first and second stages are almost always drained and cleaned before and after their first static fire tests in McGregor, Texas to ensure that no unintended debris is ingested by Merlin turbopumps. This is necessary because Falcon rockets are currently built in an extremely large hangar that simply cannot feasibly be kept to cleanroom conditions, while SpaceX’s garment requirements are less strict than some old-guard aerospace companies, typically letting workers wear normal clothes (albeit with hairnets/beardnets) while working inside Falcon 9 tanks and structures. The improved work conditions and worker comfort comes at the cost of frequent tank cleaning.

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While SpaceX clearly has a great deal of experience with nontraditional methods of rocket production, the Hawthorne assembly line might be the cleanest cleanroom on Earth compared to Starhopper’s rusty tank domes and fully-outdoors assembly. Even odder is the apparent fact that SpaceX is actually installing (and maybe even welding) those tank domes without any cleaning at all, indicating that they either look far worse than they actually are, are not a real problem for Raptor or cryogenic propellant tanks, or will be scoured only after installation. Regardless, SpaceX is keeping close followers and those familiar with aerospace on the tips of their toes as Starhopper continues to be worked on.

(Launch) pad progress

Roughly one mile to the east of Starhopper’s assembly roost, SpaceX employees and contractors have been working to complete earthmoving and start outfitting a prospective Starhopper prototype launch pad with a stable concrete base and all the infrastructure needed to support a complex rocket and its propellant, electricity, and heat-resistant surface needs. However, despite recent statements from executives like CEO Elon Musk and COO/President Gwynne Shotwell, the ‘facility’ appears to be many, many months away from anything reminiscent of an actual launch pad like the three SpaceX currently operates in California and Florida.

Instead, it seems that the first BFR-related launch facility will be more of a Spartan, minimalist slab of concrete, a healthy berm, and a handful of propellant tanks and heat exchangers, much like the ‘pad’ that supported Falcon 9’s Grasshopper and F9R hoppers. Over the last few days, the pad construction crew has installed the first of those propellant tanks and heat exchangers and continue to refine the overall layout of the site, still primarily made of compacted dirt. Given the potential simplicity of a Grasshopper-style launch and landing pad, the facility could be anywhere from a few weeks to a few months away from completion.

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Eric Ralph is Teslarati's senior spaceflight reporter and has been covering the industry in some capacity for almost half a decade, largely spurred in 2016 by a trip to Mexico to watch Elon Musk reveal SpaceX's plans for Mars in person. Aside from spreading interest and excitement about spaceflight far and wide, his primary goal is to cover humanity's ongoing efforts to expand beyond Earth to the Moon, Mars, and elsewhere.

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Tesla Cybercab is coming to Asia this month as US service officially begins

Tesla Asia says Cybercab will be on display in Hong Kong, Tokyo, Beijing and Shanghai this month.

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Concept image of Tesla Cybercab in the streets of Hong Kong via Grok
Concept image of Tesla Cybercab in the streets of Hong Kong via Grok

Tesla’s Cybercab is heading to Asia. The official Tesla Asia account posted on X Thursday, inviting Cybercab fans to “Come experience the future of autonomy in Hong Kong, Tokyo, Beijing & Shanghai.” The post went up within hours of Tesla’s own Cybercab milestone in Texas, where the company said Thursday it had begun offering rides in across Austin.

Exact dates and venues for the Asia tour haven’t been released yet, though Tesla Hong Kong replied to the announcement with “Cybercab will be on display in Hong Kong soon,” while Tesla Japan’s response pointed fans to a sign up page for updates. Neither post mentions test rides or a service area, and nothing so far suggests Tesla is launching Robotaxi operations in any of the four cities. Based on how Tesla has run past Cybercab tours, in Europe in late 2024 and at US shopping centers that same December, the Asia stops are almost certainly static displays at Tesla stores or public venues as a means to stimulate buzz for its future driverless ride-hailing service in the big cities.

The timing lines up with Tesla’s only prior Cybercab appearance in the region, a booth at the China International Import Expo in Shanghai last November, which Teslarati covered at the time. At that event, Tesla’s regional general manager for Shanghai framed the car as evidence of the company’s broader mission, a message Tesla has since formalized in its Master Plan Part IV, which states that “autonomous vehicles have the capacity to dramatically improve the affordability, availability and safety of transportation while reducing pollution, particularly in our increasingly dense global cities.” The same document is where Tesla lays out its “sustainable abundance” framing for Cybercab and Optimus alike, describing the two as the hardware behind an AI driven push to cut the cost of transportation and labor at scale.

Whether Cybercab actually operates as a robotaxi anywhere in Asia remains an open question, considering China has already pushed an autonomous ride-hailing market that’s run on homegrown players like Baidu’s Apollo Go and Pony AI. For now, the four city tour reads as a marketing push timed to Austin’s momentum.

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Tesla Cybertruck targets job site crews with new Tailgate Utility Track and Bed Gear Box accessory

Tesla launched a $350 tailgate track and a $985 lockable Bed Gear Box for Cybertruck.

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Tesla Cybertruck construction site

Tesla’s Cybertruck team added two more items to the Tesla Shop, targeting job site crews and owners who use the truck bed for actual work rather than just showing it off. The official Cybertruck X account posted the Tailgate Utility Track and the Bed Gear Box within minutes of each other, part of a five item batch that also included a reflective jacket, a spray paint hat and an updated reflective tee.

The Tailgate Utility Track runs $350 and turns the folded down tailgate into another mounting surface. It’s a single aluminum track with a T-slot for sliding accessories and two L-track attachment points, plus two load stops included in the box. The pitch is straightforward: strap down oversized cargo, like lumber or a cooler, that hangs off the back of the bed without it sliding out mid-drive. It bolts onto the existing tailgate and works on every Cybertruck trim.

The Bed Gear Box costs $985 and is a different kind of accessory. It’s a lockable aluminum storage box, 55.78 inches long, 19.8 inches wide and 7.79 inches tall, that mounts to the bed’s L-track rails and comes with two internal bins for smaller items. According to Tesla, at just over 57 pounds empty, it’s meant to stay in place rather than come in and out with each trip, giving owners a factory-fit alternative to loose totes for tools, recovery gear or emergency supplies. Tesla’s listing notes that Long Range and Dual Motor AWD Cybertrucks need the L-Tracks accessory installed separately before the Gear Box will mount, since L-tracks come standard only on certain configurations.

Tesla Cybertruck bed gear box accessory

Tesla Cybertruck bed gear box accessory

Both accessories lean on the idea Tesla has been building toward since Elon Musk first described the Cybertruck’s third-party attachment strategy at the 2023 shareholder meeting, when he said the truck would ship with mounting points so outside companies, and Tesla itself, could keep adding gear without redesigning the bed. That’s the same L-track backbone underneath the tailgate shield and jumpseats Tesla launched last year, and the off-road armor package that arrived through the same X account in 2025.

Owners looking to round out the rest of the L-track ecosystem, cargo dividers, MOLLE panels, bed racks and similar gear, can find a wider range of options through our Cybertruck accessories collection.

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Tesla set to open Cybercab rides to the public, with no steering wheel or pedals

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Credit: Tesla

Update: Tesla has announced Cybercab will enter the public fleet on Friday, September 4 at 5 p.m. CT. The article and headline have been updated to reflect this.

Tesla Cybercab rides will officially open to the public in Austin, Texas, on Friday, September 4 at 5 p.m. CT, as the company confirmed on Thursday following its launch event that the two-seater would be available in the company’s Robotaxi fleet.

Cybercab is Tesla’s first vehicle completely void of any manual controls. It has no steering wheel and no pedals, and it will utilize Tesla’s Full Self-Driving fleet to operate. The first rides have already happened, as those at the event were able to hail a Cybercab to any location within the company’s geofence in Austin.

Tesla’s $25K car is the Cybercab with no steering wheel or pedals

The addition of Cybercab to the public Robotaxi fleet is a major statement in Tesla’s trek to launch fully autonomous driving. For years, critics have complained about the need for drivers to continuously supervise the vehicle.

With Cybercab, there are no manual controls in the cockpit other than to control the seat, the center screen, and the climate. The vehicle is fully geared toward being a living room on wheels in a sense: equipped with Starlink V5 satellites, CEO Elon Musk said the vehicle would enable 4K live video, gaming, and other entertainment options during travel.

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Musk noted that Cybercab is “designed and built for maximally efficient autonomous operation.”

Tesla continues to push the envelope on autonomy, and over the next several months, the company could start selling Cybercab units to the public.

The company opened up a public interest form on its website to gauge demand, and many have already submitted requests to purchase a fleet of Cybercab units for their own personal ride-hailing side hustle.

Tesla hints its already prepping for Cybercab fleet orders

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The launch of Cybercab in this area marks a major accomplishment for Tesla, as it also announced that it has reached 1 million unsupervised autonomous miles since launching driverless rides on the Robotaxi fleet.

Things are moving along at a fine pace, and although we have waited for this for some time, the day has finally come when Tesla is offering self-driving rides of some kind to the public.

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