Elon Musk says owners of the new Tesla Roadster will be able to ask the car to perform the stunts Tesla showed off in its unveiling, while the car will drive itself. Musk made the comment Saturday in an X response to tech blogger Robert Scoble, adding the promise of a circular track at Tesla’s headquarters in Texas. Scoble had argued that the person in the Roadster was not actually driving it. In his description, the driver operates a computer that tells another computer what to do, and steering, braking and acceleration are handled by cables. Musk responded: “That’s right. You’ll be able to ask the Roadster to perform any of the tricks shown autonomously, as it will be responsive. Plus, we’ll have a wild loop track (crazier even than Hot Wheels) at our Texas headquarters where you can test drive your Roadster.” @Scobleizer True. You will be able to ask the Roadster to perform any of the tricks shown autonomously, as it will be responsive. Plus, we’ll have a wild loop track (crazier even than Hot Wheels) at our Texas headquarters where you can test drive your Roadster. — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 17, 2026 At the October 15 event outside Waco, the car drove up a curved ramp until it was upside down, flew out on cold gas thrusters, spun around, and landed. It also floated over a Cybercab, Cybertruck, Semi, Model Y and Model 3 while moving. As we noted in our breakdown of the Roadster’s three configurations, Musk said at the event that the car will “literally just inflate” to perform maneuvers whenever the owner wants. Saturday’s response adds that the car would run them by itself. Tesla has described some of the hardware that would make this possible. The Roadster uses wire-steering with a yoke, and its cold-gas thrusters rely on electric actuators for small in-flight adjustments. A fan system under the car creates suction, which Tesla says is strong enough to keep it upside down, a setup we covered in our look at the Roadster’s fan system and thrusters. Musk did not say when an autonomous stunt feature might arrive, how it would work, or what he means by responsive. He also did not give any size, location or opening date for the Texas track. Production of the Giga Texas is planned for 2027 or 2028, and Tesla says the car is not approved for use on public roads. The Rocket version, the one designed to fly, is by invitation only. The comment follows a week in which Musk mocked the event, including his claim that the demo would be a success, which we covered ahead of the broadcast. Tesla reports third-quarter earnings on October 21, and shareholders can submit and vote on questions through the Say portal until 4 p.m. EDT on October 20, according to our earnings Q&A preview. A question about the self-driving Roadster stunts and the Texas track would be a quick way to get specific details from management.
