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Falcon Heavy's 27 engines on display at 39A. The white material on the left and right engines are indicative of flight-proven boosters. (SpaceX) Falcon Heavy's 27 engines on display at 39A. The white material on the left and right engines are indicative of flight-proven boosters. (SpaceX)

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SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy launch imminent as Elon Musk unveils first photos

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8 years ago

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For the first time in SpaceX’s history, the company is close enough to the inaugural launch of its massive Falcon Heavy rocket that the vast majority of the vehicle is already at Cape Canaveral, FL, and all three of its first stages have been mated together.

We know this because Elon Musk took to Instagram and Twitter last night and posted the first-ever real-life photos of the launch vehicle, currently stationed at the Horizaontal Integration Facility (HIF) at SpaceX’s LC-39A launch pad.

At launch, Falcon Heavy will only be surpassed in thrust and payload by the megarockets of the 1960s, the US Saturn V and the Soviet N-1. Best described by an eager employee, Falcon Heavy will have the same thrust as fifteen 747 Jumbo Jets at full throttle, and could nearly carry a fully-loaded 737 passenger jet into low Earth orbit (LEO) in a fully expendable configuration.

Over the past several weeks of inactivity, SpaceX’s pad technicians have been hard at work modifying the LC-39A launch pad and its Transporter/Erector/Launcher (TEL) to support the inaugural launch of Falcon Heavy. This mainly involved considerably upgrading the water deluge system used to muzzle the impact of the sheer sound created at launch, but also required the addition of four more hold-down clamps, necessary to abort a launch after engine ignition. An additional array of communications wiring and umbilical connections for fueling have also likely been added to the TEL in order to support the requirements of what are essentially three simultaneous Falcon 9 launches.

Pad 39A’s TEL undergoing modifications. Hold-down clamps are the grey enclosures seen at the end of the TEL. Note the worker standing in the middle for a sense of scale. (Tom Cross/Teslarati)

A lack of frenetic activity at the pad in the last handful of days suggests that those modifications are nearly complete, and SpaceX fans and followers are now eagerly awaiting the rollback of the TEL to 39A’s integration facilities, where Falcon Heavy will soon after be integrated with the TEL for the first time ever. After this milestones, we can expected Falcon Heavy to be rolled out the pad for what is known as a wet dress rehearsal (WDR), akin to a launch or static fire but without any engine ignition. It’s possible that a bug-free WDR could fluidly transition into the first static fire for the vehicle, but it is probable that SpaceX will take a more cautious approach with this launch campaign. Following the successful completion of the WDR and static fire, Falcon Heavy’s inaugural launch will be imminent. We are potentially no more than 40 days out, the closest SpaceX has ever been to a Falcon Heavy launch.

Of note, the final picture posted by Musk offers an absolutely stunning view of the vehicle’s business end, showing off its 27 Merlin 1D engines and revealing quite obviously that both of Falcon Heavy’s side cores are flight-proven, whereas the center core is new. The photos provided also offer a glimpse of the only component clearly missing, the second stage and its mysterious Tesla Roadster payload. Unconfirmed whispers in the fan community have it on good authority that the Roadster has in fact already been mated to the second stage’s payload adapter, and transport to the Cape and integration with the full Falcon Heavy stack are undoubtedly imminent.

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Possibly most significant of all, Musk suggested that the Roadster payload would be sent on a course to Mars, although it has yet to be concluded whether that will be in the form of a general orbit similar to Mars or an actual trans-Martian injection culminating in an orbit around the Red Planet. The former is far more likely, but the latter would be an extraordinarily impressive test of SpaceX hardware in deep space, a necessary precursor for the company’s goals of interplanetary colonization. Time will tell, and in the meantime we can expect a veritable flood of rocket and payload photos as SpaceX rapidly approaches a historic moment for the company.

Be sure to follow us on Instagram as we go bring you live video and behind the scenes coverage from Cape Canaveral at each SpaceX launch!

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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 Cybertruck gets Full Self-Driving v14 release date, sort of

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5 hours ago

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October 7, 2025

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Tesla Cybertruck owners are wondering when they will get access to the company’s Full Self-Driving version 14.1 that rolled out to other owners today for the first time.

Cybertruck owners typically receive Full Self-Driving updates slightly later than other drivers, as the process for the all-electric pickup is different. It is a larger vehicle that requires some additional attention from Tesla before FSD versions are rolled out, so they will be slightly delayed. CEO Elon Musk said the all-wheel steering technically requires a bit more attention before rollout as well.

After some owners got access to the v14.1 Full Self-Driving suite this morning, Cybertruck owners sought out a potential timeframe for when they would be able to experience things for themselves.

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Tesla owners show off improvements with new Full Self-Driving v14 rollout

They were able to get an answer from Ashok Elluswamy, Tesla’s Head of AI, who said:

“We got you. Coming soon.”

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The release of FSD v14.1 for Cybertruck will not be tempered, either. Elluswamy then confirmed that Tesla would be rolling out the full-featured FSD v14 for the pickup, meaning it would be able to reverse and park itself, among other features.

Elluswamy said it would be capable of these features, which were void in other FSD releases for Cybertruck in the past.

Tesla’s rollout of FSD v14.1 brings several extremely notable changes and improvements to the suite, including more refined operation in parking garages, a new ability to choose parking preferences upon arriving at your destination, a new driving mode called “Sloth,” which is even more reserved than “Chill,” and general operational improvements.

Those who were lucky enough to receive the suite have already started showing off the improvements, and they definitely seem to be a step up from what v13’s more recent versions were capable of.

CEO Elon Musk called v14 “sentient” a few weeks back, and it seems that it is moving toward that. However, he did state that additional releases with more capabilities would be available in the coming weeks, but many owners are still waiting for this first version.

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Tesla launches two new affordable models with ‘Standard’ Model 3, Y offerings

It is the first time Tesla has revealed any details about what it planned to launch in terms of its new, lower-cost vehicles, which are mainly aimed at countering the loss of the $7,500 EV tax credit.

Published

7 hours ago

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October 7, 2025

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla has officially launched its affordable models with the new Model 3 and Model Y ‘Standard’ versions hitting the company’s Online Design Studio on Tuesday.

It is the first time Tesla has revealed any details about what it planned to launch in terms of its new, lower-cost vehicles, which are mainly aimed at countering the loss of the $7,500 EV tax credit.

Here’s what Tesla went with for its release of the new affordable models.

Tesla Model Y ‘Standard’

The Model Y Standard is a stripped-down version of the all-electric crossover and starts at $39,990.

Deliveries are slated for November and December, the company says if you plan to order one, and it comes with a few major changes to improve efficiency and bring down cost for owners.

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  • New athletically tuned exterior and new alloy wheels to improve aerodynamics
  • 15.4″ touchscreen in the front, the same as the other trims
  • Available in three colors: Stealth Grey (free), White ($1,oo0 extra), Diamond Black ($1,500 extra)
  • Textile and vegan leather interior
  • Range sits at 321 miles
  • New front fascia
  • Covered glass roof (textile on inside)
  • Windows are not acoustically laminated for a quieter cabin
  • Manual mirrors and seats
  • Smaller frunk
  • No rear infotainment screen
  • No basic Autopilot
  • 69 kWh battery
  • New 19″ Aperture wheels
  • 0-60 MPH in 6.8 seconds
  • 7 speaker stereo, down from 15 speakers in premium models

Tesla Model 3 ‘Standard’

The Model 3 Standard was a surprise offering from Tesla, as many had only anticipated the company to refine and offer a more affordable version of the Model Y.

Coming in at $36,990, it features many of the same changes Tesla made with the Model Y “Standard,” all ways to improve price and make it less flashy than the more premium offerings.

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Deliveries are also slated for November for this vehicle, and it features relatively the same stripped-down offerings as the Model Y Standard.

  • Available in three colors: Stealth Grey (free), White ($1,oo0 extra), Diamond Black ($1,500 extra)
  • Textile and vegan leather interior
  • Range sits at 321 miles
  • Covered glass roof (textile on inside)
  • Manual mirrors and seats
  • No rear infotainment screen
  • No basic Autopilot
  • 69 kWh battery
  • New 19″ Aperture wheels
  • 0-60 MPH in 6.8 seconds
  • 7 speaker stereo, down from 15 speakers in premium models
@teslarati 🚨 Tesla’s Affordable Models are here! Let’s talk about them! #tesla #fyp #viral #teslaev #elonmusk ♬ Natural Emotions – Muspace Lofi

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Tesla owners show off improvements with new Full Self-Driving v14 rollout

Some of the big things that Tesla faced head-on with the development and release of v14 were navigating in parking garages and handling parking after arriving at a destination.

Published

9 hours ago

on

October 7, 2025

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Credit: Tesla Europe & Middle East/X

Tesla owners with access to the company’s Full Self-Driving new version, v14, which rolled out on Tuesday morning, are showcasing some of the very impressive improvements that have arrived.

CEO Elon Musk called v14 “sentient” a few weeks ahead of its rollout, claiming the newest iteration of the company’s Full Self-Driving platform would be the most accurate to date.

Tesla FSD (Supervised) V14.1 with Robotaxi-style dropoffs is here

It was obvious this narrative had Tesla owners keeping their expectations high, as there were very evidently things that needed to be improved upon that were present in v13. I wrote about several improvements I was hoping to see, and based on the release notes for v14, Tesla did have these things in the works already.

Some of the big things that Tesla faced head-on with the development and release of v14 were navigating in parking garages and handling parking after arriving at a destination.

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Tesla said it was working to increase the capabilities of Summon within parking garages, as many owners believe that is where it would be the most beneficial.

While that does not appear to be part of this initial v14 rollout, it does seem Tesla is focused on improving the suite’s ability to navigate through these garages, including stopping for a ticket to enter the facility, finding a spot, and parking in an appropriate space.

It was evident this was a huge improvement based on one example from an owner who received v14:

If you look closely, you will even see the car shift slightly to the right when it arrives at the ticketing station, making it easier for the driver to hand over their ticket and payment. It then moves back out to the right when leaving to return to the center of the lane. It’s very intuitive.

Additionally, it appears to be more accurate when parking, thanks to improvements that enable owners to select the type of parking upon arrival at a destination.

In the v14.1 release notes, Tesla said that it has added “Arrival Options for you to select where FSD should park: in a Parking Lot, on the Street, in a Driveway, in a Parking Garage, or at the Curbside.”

One owner chose to navigate home and chose a garage to park in. Full Self-Driving performed it without any issues:

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These are just two evident improvements so far, and there are likely many more on the way. The changes and fixes will be tracked by anyone with access to FSD v14 in the coming weeks.

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