Tesla Roadster Flies Using SpaceX Rocket Tech, Musk Shows

Elon Musk unveiled a new version of the Tesla Roadster on Oct. 16, 2026, and the car did something no production sports car has done before: it flew. Footage released by ABC News shows the vehicle climb a curved ramp inside a SpaceX facility and then launch itself into the air, using propulsion drawn from SpaceX rocket technology, before settling into a controlled landing, according to ABC News.

What Happened at the SpaceX Facility Test

The demonstration took place at a SpaceX facility, where the Roadster accelerated up a curved ramp and left the surface entirely before coming back down under its own control, ABC News reported in the video description accompanying the Oct. 16 clip. A companion HTT News report on the same test describes the car hovering briefly before touchdown, according to HTT News.

How the Flight-Capable Roadster Works

ABC News attributes the car's ability to leave the ground to "SpaceX rocket technology," tying the demonstration directly to hardware developed by Musk's rocket company rather than conventional automotive engineering. Neither ABC News nor HTT News detailed the specific propulsion components used in the test, and no technical specifications were released alongside the footage.

By the Numbers

• Oct. 16, 2026 — date of the SpaceX facility test, confirmed by both ABC News and HTT News.
• 1 minute, 34 seconds — runtime of the ABC News video clip documenting the demonstration.

What the Footage Shows

"Using SpaceX rocket technology, the sports car climbed a curved ramp and hurled itself to a controlled landing."

That description, published alongside the ABC News video, is the most detailed account available of the sequence: a ramp climb, a launch off the surface, and a landing that the network characterizes as controlled rather than a crash or bounce.

What to Watch Next

• Whether Tesla or SpaceX issues a technical breakdown of the propulsion system shown in the clip.
• Any statement from Musk himself beyond the unveiling, since neither source material includes a direct quote from him.
• Confirmation of whether the flying capability is intended for a production version of the Roadster or remains a demonstration-only feature.
• Additional test footage from the same SpaceX facility, given that HTT News has already published a separate report on the hovering sequence.

Key Terms Explained

SpaceX rocket technology: propulsion systems developed by Musk's spaceflight company, here applied to a road vehicle rather than a launch vehicle, per ABC News.

Controlled landing: a descent and touchdown managed by onboard systems rather than an unpowered fall, as distinguished in the ABC News description of the test.

Curved ramp: the launch structure the Roadster used to gain the angle and speed needed to leave the ground, as shown in the facility footage.

Both outlets covering the Oct. 16 test agree on the core sequence — ramp, launch, controlled landing — but neither has published performance figures such as altitude, airborne duration, or landing speed. Until Tesla or SpaceX releases those numbers, the demonstration stands as a visual proof of concept rather than a documented performance benchmark.