Tesla’s new Roadster may fly with the help of cold-gas thrusters when it begins deliveries, but one Model Y in Mexico City tried to beat it to the punch. Security camera footage shared by TRT Haber shows a Model Y that, in the outlet’s words, “crashed into a house’s garage and flew downward.”
What the Video Shows
The crash happened around 5 p.m. on October 19 in the Lomas del Chamizal neighborhood of Mexico City’s Cuajimalpa district, an area known for steep, winding roads. In the clip, the black Model Y comes down a steep hill toward a sharp bend as a white truck heads up the road. Instead of making the turn, the Model Y goes straight through a home’s entrance gate.
A second camera angle shows the car tearing across the garage and terrace, breaking through the back wall, and launching off the ledge in a cloud of dust before dropping several meters to a lower level.
It was far from the tallest tumble a Tesla has ever taken, though. Earlier this summer, a Model 3 plunged 300 feet off a cliff with two passengers inside, both of whom made it out of the incident with minor, non-life-threatening injuries.
Mexico City’s Secretariat of Citizen Security said the driver lost control while taking the curve. One early report suggested the driver may have swerved to avoid a dump truck coming up the hill, but that was never confirmed and doesn’t appear to be the case from the footage. Fortunately, reports suggest the driver walked away without injuries, while the home’s gate, walls, and terrace took heavy damage.
Built to Take a Hit
Walking away from a crash like that is a good sign for the Model Y’s safety. It was designed with crash protection in mind — we can see in the video that the vehicle’s airbags deployed after it rammed through the garage gate. The Model Y earned the IIHS’s Top Safety Pick+ award earlier this year, the institute’s highest safety rating.
Not a Tesla App
Tesla’s latest Full Self-Driving (Supervised) software also adds Automatic Collision Evasion, which can engage FSD during manual driving to steer around a crash that braking alone can’t prevent. However, it’s limited to HW4 vehicles on controlled-access highways, so here’s hoping it expands to residential streets like this one soon.
Authorities haven’t published a final report on what caused the crash, and no speed has been confirmed. For now, this Model Y’s short flight will have to hold the title until the Roadster’s production begins in 2028.
Tesla’s Emergency Drive Away feature lets you leave a Supercharger in an emergency without unplugging first. But as one owner just found out, tapping the button has consequences even if you never actually drive away.
According to X user @Tutrifour, Tesla Service will charge $539 to inspect the charge port and clear the alert after Emergency Drive Away was activated, “even if you didn’t move the car an inch.”
How You Activate It
Tesla introduced Emergency Drive Away earlier this month with software update 2026.38.3. Teslas normally won’t shift out of Park while plugged in, but this feature is a last resort if you feel threatened or need to leave a Supercharger quickly.
If you try to shift while plugged in, a red warning appears on the touchscreen. To confirm, you have to hold the brake pedal while tapping “Activate.”
Not a Tesla App
What Happens Next
Once activated, the car can shift into gear, and the charging handle breaks away from the port as you drive off. Short camera clips are also sent to Tesla to confirm there was a real emergency.
The car also flags that it needs service. A photo shared by @Tutrifour shows their vehicle’s touchscreen displaying a persistent red alert reading “Emergency Drive Away has been activated,” along with a note that service is required. Since a breakaway can damage the charge port, Tesla wants it inspected before you use it again, and according to @Tutrifour, that inspection cost $539 even though the car stayed put. They did, however, note that the vehicle would still charge when plugged in while the service alert was on the screen.
If you do pull away, the costs can climb. Tesla says repairing a damaged Supercharger stall can cost up to $25,000, and misuse can lead to penalties.
Read Before You Tap
Accidental activations are already happening. Days ago, we covered the first documented use of Emergency Drive Away at an Austin Supercharger, where a tired driver tapped through the prompts and pulled away with the cable still connected.
Tesla’s Director of Charging, Max de Zegher, has said the feature will be improved quickly based on feedback, and accidental activations seem like a good pain point to address.
Tesla already gets camera clips whenever Emergency Drive Away is activated, and vehicle telemetry would show whether the car actually moved while plugged in. If both confirm the car never left the stall, Tesla could clear the service alert remotely rather than charging owners for an inspection. That would keep the safeguard in place for real breakaways without penalizing anyone who simply tapped the wrong button. Until then, it’s worth reading every prompt carefully before tapping Activate.
![Tesla Driver in Mexico Makes His Model Y Fly [VIDEO]](https://www.notateslaapp.com/img/containers/article_images/2026/model-y-flying-accident-mexico.webp/d58bf5d7e21ac7f8713f4f35023d506b/model-y-flying-accident-mexico.jpg)
