Vehicle Maintenance
Vehicle maintenance does not feel urgent until the car fails during a horde escape. By then, the lesson is usually permanent.
Maintenance Is Boring Until It Saves Your Life
A neglected car is a countdown timer. The trip where it finally matters is rarely a calm one — it is the horde escape, the long supply run, the rainy night far from base. Maintenance is how you make sure the timer never runs out at the worst moment.
Parts To Watch
- Engine condition
- Battery charge
- Tyre condition
- Brakes
- Suspension
- Windshield and windows
- Trunk condition
Engine and tyres are the survival-critical pair. The rest degrade your control and protection, which still gets people killed — just more slowly.
Mechanics XP Strategy
Read Mechanics skill books when you find them, inspect vehicles regularly, and remove and reinstall parts you can safely handle to build XP. Practise in a cleared area, never beside a horde — a failed part job under pressure is how a routine task becomes a death.
Long-Term Vehicle Setup
- Spare gas cans
- A spare battery
- Spare tyres
- Tools
- Emergency food and water
- A backup weapon
- Medical supplies
Keep this kit in the trunk of any vehicle you rely on. A car is also a mobile cache, and the day something goes wrong far from base you will be glad it was stocked.
Survivor Tip
“Read skill books before grinding the skill, not after — the multiplier is the point.”