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Tesla stores continue to face anti-Musk protests
Scenes from a protest outside of Tesla’s store in Loveland, Colorado.
Tesla stores have been the target of widespread protests and vandalism in recent weeks, after Elon Musk made a controversial gesture in January, and as he and the Trump administration’s newly created government efficiency division continues to gut federal agencies.
On Saturday, I went to the Tesla store in Loveland, Colorado, where demonstrators were already protesting upon my arrival at roughly 12:45 p.m. MT. Walking up to the protest, I could see scattered groups of demonstrators lined up along about two blocks, spanning from the Tesla store to a nearby intersection and Sprouts location. One protestor said he had counted about 230 people at around 1:00 p.m. MT.
The protest felt generally peaceful, with cars driving by and honking, and demonstrators leaving a large space between the front of the Tesla store and the sidewalk, easily allowing workers and customers to go in and out.
You can see a few videos and photos from the site below, along with some of the responses I got from protestors and a prospective customer.
Walking up to the protest, I could see scattered groups of demonstrators lined up along about two blocks, spanning from the Tesla store to a nearby intersection and Sprouts location.
One protestor said he had counted about 230 people at around 1:00 p.m. MT. pic.twitter.com/gbZIuWWej7
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) March 15, 2025
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Protests in front of the Tesla store in Loveland, Colorado pic.twitter.com/qLRM9TY0ng
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) March 15, 2025
READ MORE ON TESLA PROTESTS AND VANDALISM:
- U.S. AG Pam Bondi: Tesla Molotov attack suspect facing up to 20 years in prison
- Tesla mulls adding a new feature to fight off vandals as anti-Musk protests increase
- Tesla fire in Germany may be considered a threat to the state
- Tesla showroom in Oregon gets shot up for second time in a week
- Donald Trump pledges Tesla purchase amid anti-Musk protests
- Congress supports probe into ‘domestic terrorism’ of Tesla vandalism
- Anti-Musk protests at Tesla store in New York lead to arrests
- Elon Musk slams MSNBC for relating Trump’s terrorism warning to Tesla ‘protests’
- One dozen Teslas burn in arson attack in France, investigation underway
I spoke to about a dozen protestors about what they were protesting against. Most said they were there to condemn Musk’s recent federal worker and program cuts with the Trump administration, his performance of what some said resembled a Nazi salute at Trump’s inauguration ceremony in January, or the administration’s recent attacks against transgender and queer individuals.
One protestor, Elsa, identified as a former Republican and said she was “highly concerned that our Constitution is being ignored,” especially with regards to the three branches of government and the system of checks and balances.
“It surprises me that, even if you voted for Trump, or you believe in capitalism, which, I didn’t vote for Trump, but I do believe in capitalism — I’m a former Republican, I was a Republican for most of my life — but it’s dangerous to have power rest in a handful of ultra-wealthy people,” Elsa said.
“And our whole country needs to realize that,” she adds. “This to me is not even Republican or Democrat at this point.”
Instead, she says it now comes down to whether people want to give billionaires huge tax breaks, or to use that money to support a range of groups in the U.S., including those who have social security benefits, are veterans, or are 9/11 survivors seeking cancer treatments, as a few examples.
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Another protestor, Mary, said she was taking part in the demonstration “because she loves this country and democracy,” adding that she wanted to help preserve democracy for her grandchildren.
Still another protestor, Bryan, said that they were protesting because of the Trump administration and Musk’s attempts to erase transgender, non-binary, and queer people from history, drawing comparisons to the rise of fascism in Nazi Germany, where early human rights violations were lodged against gay and queer communities.
“I’m here because I have to be,” Bryan said. “I’m afraid of the future.”
Yet another person and his family were holding Ukraine flags, saying that they were protesting for a wide range of reasons, but especially for Trump’s recent meeting with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Musk’s claims that the top Ukrainian executive was to blame for what he has called a “forever war.”
While most protestors appeared to be generally friendly, especially with each other, I did hear a few exchanges between demonstrators and those with other opinions. While I heard more cars honking throughout the experience, seemingly in support of the protests, I also noticed a few from which passengers yelled things like “Go Trump.”
“Direct action, we need to stop these fascists with direct action,” one protestor yelled in response.
Additionally, I also talked to a prospective customer, Kristy, who was there for a test drive and said she had a negative experience with the protestors.
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“I was test driving a Tesla, and as we pulled in and parked right here, this black one, these people right here in the middle yelled at me, ‘Hope you’re turning in your f*cking Nazi car,’ and I said ‘F*ck you,’” Kristy explained.
“And they’re like ‘F*ck you too, you’re a Nazi, f*cking Nazi lovers.’ And so, they’re just yelling racial slurs at me, and I’m far from a Nazi.”
Tesla store advisers declined to comment on the protests, and so did Loveland police.
Other Saturday protest footage from Tesla stores in California, Texas, and New York
The Loveland Tesla store has also been the site of repeated attacks in recent weeks, with authorities on Friday making a second arrest following multiple incidents. You can see the Department’s press release for the arrest below.
Another arrest has been made by the Loveland Police Department.🚔
The arrest was related to an incident earlier this month, which involved an incendiary device being ignited and thrown at a Tesla location. https://t.co/s1pZjAacD3
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) March 14, 2025
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The protest was also part of widespread demonstrations on Saturday, and it’s just the latest in actions targeting Musk’s electric vehicle (EV) company, some of which have included acts of vandalism, graffiti, arson, and even the use of weapons on Tesla storefronts.
Multiple other protests were also captured in footage on Saturday, including one in Santa Rosa, California, as shared by the San Francisco Chronicle, and another attended by conspiracy theorist Alex Jones in Austin, Texas. Still another was captured in New York City, and you can see footage from each of these protests below.
“Hey, hey, ho, ho, Elon Musk has got to go.”
Protesters rally during a protest outside a Tesla showroom against U.S. President Donald Trump and the Tesla CEO in Santa Rosa. 🎥: @stephenlamphoto pic.twitter.com/qpXuuGNghf
— San Francisco Chronicle (@sfchronicle) March 15, 2025
Viciously crazed leftist Tesla protesters in Austin are dumbstruck when I invoke the truth about their movement, calling it a “Pedophile Satan Cult”. pic.twitter.com/WzWPfYup4R
— Alex Jones (@RealAlexJones) March 15, 2025
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Another anti-Elon Musk and Tesla protest outside of a showroom in New York City! pic.twitter.com/QLrRfWesG2
— Art Candee 🍿🥤 (@ArtCandee) March 15, 2025
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Cybertruck
Tesla Cybertruck production snaps back after ugly supplier fight
Cybertrucks are piling up again at Giga Texas after Tesla’s court win against a parts supplier.
Cybertruck production at Giga Texas is showing its first visible recovery since Tesla sued a supplier last month over withheld manufacturing tooling.
Aerial observer Joe Tegtmeyer flew over the Austin factory Wednesday morning and counted roughly 100 or more Cybertrucks filling the outbound lot, a sharp jump from the thin numbers seen in recent weeks. The flyover came a day after a judge granted Tesla a temporary restraining order against Angstrom Automotive Group, the parts supplier at the center of the dispute.
Tesla filed an emergency lawsuit in late July after Angstrom told the automaker it planned to close the Troy, Texas facility where Tesla’s die-cast tools, trim dies and other Cybertruck stamping equipment were housed. According to Tesla’s complaint, a shipment of 700 finished parts never left the building, and when Tesla sent representatives to retrieve its equipment, accompanied by law enforcement, they were turned away. Angstrom allegedly then asked for an extra $250,000 a week to keep operating, which Tesla’s filing described as holding its own property for ransom.
TESLA: U.S. District Judge Christopher R. Wolfe of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, Waco Division granted Tesla a Temporary Restraining Order and Writ of Replevin in its dispute with Angstrom Automotive (Case No. 6:26-cv-00477).
The order authorizes… https://t.co/E1DKcQSxMn pic.twitter.com/LR8aAiV2Og
— S.E. Robinson, Jr. (@SERobinsonJr) August 5, 2026
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The restraining order gives Tesla immediate right of entry to Angstrom’s facility to recover the tooling. It is temporary, with a fuller hearing still to come, but the speed of Wednesday’s rebound suggests the Angstrom shortage was indeed the main bottleneck limiting Cybertruck output. Outbound lot counts are an imperfect measure of actual production, since finished trucks can sit for days before shipping, but a lot that full after a lean stretch is a meaningful signal.
Cybertruck output at Giga Texas has fluctuated all year as Tesla worked through supply issues and introduced new trims, including a cheaper Dual Motor AWD version that drew strong early demand.
Elon Musk
Space finally faced the people living next to its next Terafab mega-project
SpaceX confirmed Terafab’s Grimes County site is locked in, with construction starting within months.
SpaceX and Terafab representatives sat across from Grimes County residents for the first time on Wednesday, telling a packed Commissioners Court room that the $55 billion chip manufacturing project is now a done deal at the Gibbons Creek Reservoir site.
The meeting followed a $10 million check SpaceX sent the county earlier this week, satisfying a payment deadline built into the tax abatement agreement both sides signed in June. Elon Musk shared a post on X confirming the payment, and County Judge Joe Fauth told the San Antonio Express-News his office deposited the check after it beat its deadline.
Wednesday’s session, first reported by KBTX, moved the project from paperwork to construction. Terafab representative Riley Trennell told residents the JETI tax break agreements with Iola ISD and Anderson-Shiro CISD are signed and active, and that civil work and foundation prep are starting almost immediately. Renderings of the facility could be released within days, he said, with construction beginning within months.
The foundations for an exciting future are being built in Texas. Next up: Terafab → https://t.co/jGg52Zhn5I pic.twitter.com/SNfSXNr2tb
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) August 6, 2026
Elon Musk launches TERAFAB: The $25B Tesla-SpaceXAI chip factory that will rewire the AI industry
Musk first announced Terafab in March as a joint venture between Tesla, SpaceX and xAI aimed at producing over a terawatt of AI compute annually, an amount that dwarfs the roughly 20 gigawatts the entire global chip industry produces today. Intel joined as a manufacturing partner in April. Musk has said the project needed its own day in the spotlight rather than being squeezed into an earnings call, and for months the Grimes County site remained unconfirmed even as reporting pointed there.
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SpaceX attorney Buck Brannon used Wednesday’s meeting to note that the company’s abatement is roughly 78 percent, not the 100 percent some earlier reports suggested. In exchange, SpaceX will pay Grimes County a fixed $20 million a year for 35 years, a total of $710 million, which Brannon said exceeds the $14 million Tesla paid Travis County in 2025.
SpaceX also addressed environmental concerns that have followed the project since Musk’s Terafab partnership with Intel was announced. Representatives said Terafab will not raise electric bills for other ratepayers, will not deplete local water supplies and will not draw down the Navasota River. SpaceX confirmed it owns the Navasota River pumping station, which it plans to use to divert stormwater into the Gibbons Creek Reservoir, and said it will build its own natural gas plants to power the facility rather than pulling from the ERCOT grid.
Grimes County commissioners also approved an addendum letting county employees use ten approved AI chatbots for work, including Grok.
Elon Musk has declared that SpaceX has effectively solved one of Starship’s most persistent engineering challenges: the reliability of its heat shield tiles.
During the company’s first-ever Earnings Call, the SpaceX CEO stated:
“I don’t want to jinx it or anything, but I think I would call the heat shield problem solved at this point. All indications from data and visual inspection is we have solved it. That doesn’t mean we won’t make improvements, but we do not see any technical obstacles to achieving rapid reusability at this point.”
Starship’s heat shield consists of roughly 18,000 hexagonal ceramic tiles covering the windward side of the upper stage. These tiles form the thermal protection system that shields the vehicle’s stainless-steel structure from the extreme heat of atmospheric reentry.
Elon says he believes the heat shield problem with Starship is currently solved.
He called it “arguably the single biggest problem” pic.twitter.com/eEE9vM5zlz
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 4, 2026
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During descent, atmospheric friction generates temperatures exceeding several thousand degrees Celsius and creates plasma flows capable of melting unprotected metal. The tiles absorb, radiate, and insulate against this energy, allowing the vehicle to survive and potentially fly again. Without a durable heat shield, full and rapid reusability, the cornerstone of Starship’s design for frequent launches, satellite deployments, and deep-space missions, would remain impossible.
The tiles have long been a source of difficulty. On earlier test flights, a significant number of tiles detached during ascent due to vibration, aerodynamic loads, and imperfect attachment methods using pins and adhesives. Gaps between tiles allowed hot plasma to infiltrate, causing secondary damage and hot spots on the underlying structure.
These issues echoed challenges faced by NASA’s Space Shuttle, whose ceramic tiles required extensive, labor-intensive inspections and replacements between missions, preventing rapid turnaround. SpaceX has iteratively improved materials, standardized tile shapes, refined attachment techniques, added secondary ablative layers, and tested sealing methods such as “crunch wrap” felt to close gaps.
Progress was visible across Flights 10–12, with steadily better tile retention, yet questions remained about whether the system could support the minimal-refurbishment goal of rapid reuse.
Flight 13 on July 24 provided the decisive evidence. Ship 40 flew a deliberately more demanding profile with higher dynamic pressure to stress the heat shield beyond typical operational loads. It successfully deployed 20 operational Starlink V3 satellites, the first such payload on a Starship mission, performed an in-space Raptor engine relight, and executed a controlled reentry.
Elon Musk sheds two new bits of detail on Starship after 13th test launch
Cameras on six of the satellites and onboard sensors captured extensive imagery and data of the shield throughout the flight. The ship then achieved its softest splashdown to date in the Indian Ocean, remaining intact and floating rather than breaking apart or exploding as on prior missions. This allowed drone inspections and continuous telemetry of the heat shield in near-real time.
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Post-flight analysis showed the majority of tiles remaining attached with only minor damage and limited plasma streaking at seams. Musk noted that the mission delivered “all the heat shield data we needed and then some.” Combined with visual inspections, these results underpinned his subsequent assessment that the core technical barriers to rapid reusability have been cleared. While refinements will continue, Flight 13 marked a pivotal step toward Starship’s operational future.
Tesla Cybertruck production snaps back after ugly supplier fight
Space finally faced the people living next to its next Terafab mega-project
