Drive Tesla Download: Top Stories for October 12-18

Drive Tesla Download is back. The Roadster finally arrived this week, and yes, it flies. Here’s that story, followed by nine more you shouldn’t miss.

#1 Top Story

Roadster

Tesla Roadster finally revealed with thrusters, sub-one-second acceleration and ability to fly…actually

Tesla showed three versions at SpaceX’s McGregor, Texas site, and the top Rocket model uses cold-gas thrusters to leave the ground (here’s how it works). Production is slated for 2028, with Canadian reservations set at $70,000 for the Performance and $350,000 for the Thrust.

Model 3

Tesla pauses Model 3 Premium orders in Canada, citing exhausted import quota despite over 33,000 spots remaining

Tesla stopped taking orders for both China-built Model 3 Premium trims on October 12, saying its quota had run out, while federal data showed 33,069 of 33,397 spots still unused. Global Affairs Canada told us it is consulting automakers on the rest of the quota, and a Tesla Canada executive says Ottawa sets how many cars each automaker can bring in.

Robotaxi

Waymo is coming to Canada, with Toronto robotaxi service planned for 2028

Waymo’s first move into Canada starts with mapping Toronto streets in the coming days, ahead of a fully driverless ride-hailing launch in 2028. Toronto-based Element Fleet Management will handle maintenance, charging and cleaning.

EV Sales

U.S. EV Sales Rebound in Q3 2026 as Tesla Captures 54% of Market

Cox Automotive estimates 266,630 EVs were sold in the U.S. in Q3, up 7.7% from Q2, and Tesla’s 144,094 made up 54% of them. The Model Y alone accounted for 37.2% of all U.S. EV sales.

EV Sales

Zero-emission vehicle sales in Canada jump 55% in August as market share hits 13%

Statistics Canada counted 22,716 new zero-emission vehicles sold in August, up 55.1% from a year earlier and 13.0% of all new vehicle sales. The totals include plug-in hybrids.

EV Policy

China Cutting EV Export Tax Rebates Next Year, Potentially Impacting Tesla Model 3 Prices in Canada

China’s VAT rebate on exported EVs drops from 13% to 9% on April 1, 2027, which could push up the cost of the Shanghai-built Model 3 Premium sold in Canada. Tesla hasn’t announced any Canadian price changes.

FSD

Tesla Finally Brings FSD v14 Lite to Intel-Powered Model S and Model X

Owners of Intel-based HW3 Model S and Model X cars, stuck on FSD v12 for nearly two years, are now getting FSD (Supervised) v14.3 Lite. Early reports say some features, such as Start from Park and Actually Smart Summon, are missing.

FSD

Slovakia becomes ninth EU country to officially approve Tesla FSD

Slovakia’s Ministry of Transport formally recognized the Dutch approval of FSD (Supervised) on October 16, though Tesla hasn’t said when it will roll out there. An EU-wide decision is now expected in December.

EV News

2027 Mercedes-Benz GLC Electric Arrives in Canada Starting at $78,400

Mercedes-Benz’s Canadian configurator lists the GLC 400 4MATIC Electric at $78,400, or $84,491 with fees. It has 483 hp, a 94 kWh usable battery and DC fast charging at up to 330 kW.

Supercharger

Tesla’s centralized Supercharger payment kiosks arrive in Canada

Supercharger tracker MarcoRP spotted Canada’s first centralized payment kiosk at a Kingston, Ontario site waiting to be energized, which will let non-Tesla drivers pay by card without the app. Canadian kiosk pricing hasn’t been confirmed.

That’s it for this week. See you next Sunday for another Drive Tesla Download.

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