SpaceX plans to send a spacecraft to Mars as early as 2018

SpaceX plans to send its Dragon spacecraft to Mars as early as 2018, the company announced today — marking a major first step toward CEO Elon Musk’s goal of sending humans to the Red Planet.
The company didn’t say how many spacecraft it will send, but hinted it would conduct a series of these Dragon missions, which is a modified version of the spacecraft that the company uses to transport cargo to and from the International Space Station. The Red Dragon is equipped with eight SuperDraco engines that allow the capsule to land on solid ground, a technique known as a propulsive landing. The engines are meant to turn on during the Dragon's descent toward the Martian surface, slowing down the vehicle's fall and allowing it to land on ground in a controlled way. It's similar to how SpaceX lands its Falcon 9 rockets post-launch.

http://www.theverge.com/2016/4/27/11514844/spacex-mars-mission-date-red-dragon-rocket-elon-musk