Over the weekend Tesla finally set a date for the Roadster unveiling – October 1 in Waco, Texas. The decision to hold the event in Waco and not Giga Texas immediately raised one question – why? The answer could be sitting outside Waco at SpaceX’s rocket development and testing facility in McGregor, where some interesting footage captured earlier this year has now resurfaced.
The video was recorded by NASASpaceflight on April 15, the same month Tesla was at one point expected to reveal the Roadster. It shows a large covered structure at the McGregor facility, with an unidentified object being raised vertically inside. On its own, however, there is nothing in the footage that directly links the object to Tesla or the Roadster.
But with previous reports pointing specifically to McGregor as the location where Tesla planned to test and demonstrate the Roadster’s SpaceX-developed thrusters, the footage is getting a closer look ahead of the October 1 event.
A Roadster silhouette was overlayed on the object, and it looks remarkably like the vehicle’s recently revealed wordmark. We can also see cold gas thrusters being tested by an object on the ground, with the gas emerging through the tent structure.
I'll just put this out there https://t.co/VfpgpWLg0H pic.twitter.com/65i2ZmSEvl
— TheSpaceEngineer (@mcrs987) September 13, 2026
However, there is currently no evidence confirming the object in the video is a Roadster, or even that the footage shows testing related to the vehicle. TheSpaceEngineer later clarified that the object being lifted into the air wasn’t flying under its own power.
“This is being lifted by a gantry, not it flying,” he explained, adding that the covered structure contains a large lifting system.
Why McGregor Is Getting Attention
The speculation becomes more interesting when combined with what has emerged about Tesla’s October 1 event. Invitations sent to Roadster reservation holders confirm the event will take place in Waco, Texas. SpaceX’s McGregor facility is located roughly 35 minutes outside the city, making it an obvious candidate for where Tesla could demonstrate the vehicle’s more extreme capabilities.
Why did Tesla pick Waco for the Roadster reveal?
— Drive Tesla 🇨🇦 (@DriveTeslaca) September 12, 2026
SpaceX’s rocket development and test site is in McGregor, Texas, about 35 minutes outside of Waco. https://t.co/YhpIXiaXcC pic.twitter.com/FJpBDm3Rdw
That also lines up with an August report from The Information, which said Tesla was planning to demonstrate a Roadster equipped with SpaceX-developed cold-gas thrusters at McGregor. The vehicle would reportedly lift off the ground while being remotely operated, with spectators positioned hundreds of yards away because of the noise. Tesla has not confirmed McGregor as the venue.
The company’s latest teaser is only adding fuel to the fire. Tesla announced the October 1 event with the words “Go for launch” alongside an image showing four bright plumes, which we all naturally assumed were SpaceX cold gas thrusters. Also hidden within the image were the words “Where we’re going…”, which is a nod to the iconic ‘Back To The Future’ movie trilogy.
Musk has been talking about using SpaceX thrusters on the Roadster since 2019, when he said the system would use ultra-high-pressure air stored in a composite overwrapped pressure vessel in place of the rear seats.
So while the April footage doesn’t prove Tesla was secretly testing the Roadster at McGregor, the location, timing, and Tesla’s choice of Waco for the October 1 unveiling make the old video considerably more interesting than it was five months ago.
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