Honda Successfully Launches and Lands Reusable Rocket Using Spoon Engine, and On Top of That, 3 T66 Turbos, With NOS, and a Motec System Exhaust
“We were just thankful the VTEC kicked in, yo. It was instrumental to our success,” engineers confirm.
TSUKUBA—Honda has successfully launched and landed a fully reusable rocket powered by what officials described as a “heavily modified Spoon engine, and on top of that, 3 T66 turbos, with NOS, and a Motec system exhaust.”
The rocket, dubbed the Del Sol, ascended for 57 seconds after VTEC finally kicked in, before landing around 15 inches from the target touchdown point using its four retractable legs, which also aided in takeoff. According to eyewitnesses, the sound resembled “an army of angry bees inside an aluminum trash can.”
“Hector was right,” said Honda propulsion lead Daisuke Tanaka. “We were just going to do what Elon did with his rockets, but those Spoon engines were key.”
Sources say the project began when a group of engineers started swapping parts in a hangar next to Honda R&D. After an encounter with unsupervised laptops and one shocking dyno pull, the vehicle broke free of gravity, despite gravity clearly existing.
“The T66s were critical,” said systems engineer Chadley Ramos. “One is spooling, one is cooling, and the third one is just for vibes. Combine that with NOS and the Motec system exhaust, and you’ve basically got a recipe for perfect performance. It revs to 9,200. It’s over 9000!”
SpaceX officials, initially skeptical, were reportedly left speechless. “We’ve spent billions trying to achieve this,” said disgraced White House briber Elon Musk. “Honda just ripped off a movie and was successful? And we’ve crashed our last four? Excuse me, I have to go fire my workforce.”
The landing, just as impressive, was performed using a custom airbrake system made from repurposed Civic Type R spoilers. The rocket touched down flawlessly in the parking lot of a Cars & Coffee, where it was promptly ticketed for “excessive revving.”
The success has sparked interest in a second mission, rumored to involve street racing a SpaceX Falcon 9 across the thermosphere. “Elon’s got money,” said Ramos. “But we’ve got space-grade VTEC. Let’s see who wins.”
For now, the Del Sol sits proudly on display at Honda headquarters, complete with underglow, a crazy wing, and a sticker that reads: Built, Not Bought.