Working out how to repair vehicles in Death Stranding 2 might be a bit of a hurdle if you didn't play the first game, or simply can't remember since it's been so long. You'll need to repair vehicles in order to counterattack timefall damage, when you accidentally drive into a big rock at full speed, or any enterprising bandit who decides to take a pot shot at you.
You'll also need to charge vehicles if you want to keep them running, but luckily that's far simpler. If you happen to come across the Pickup Off-Roader truck early in the game (found in the Bandit Base Northwest of C1 in Mexico) you can use it until you unlock another. While you can't repair enemy vehicles, you can still charge them, meaning you can keep using the truck for a while, so long as you don't ride it off a cliff.
This guide is based on the PS5 version of Death Stranding 2, but we'll update it if anything changes as and when the PC version arrives. If the first game is anything to judge by, we could see it coming our way in around six months time.
How to repair vehicles in Death Stranding 2
To repair a vehicle in Death Stranding 2, you need to bring it to a shelter with a garage or a safe house once you unlock them. These are recognisably bigger than the low occupancy shelters, and have stone vehicle obstructions outside, which will lower when you get close, allowing you to drive in. Once there, simply hold circle on controller next to your vehicle to start the repair process.
In Mexico, you can do this at:
- Ciudad Nudo Del Norte
- C1 South Distribution Centre
- Former Geophysics Research Lab
As mentioned above, you can't repair enemy vehicles. That means if you grab the Pickup Off-Roader from the Bandit Base Northwest of C1, you won't be able to repair it, so you should be careful considering that's the only vehicle you'll get until you unlock the Tri-Cruiser after defeating the first big boss. Once you leave Mexico, it'll become a lot easier to repair your vehicles as you can do it onboard the DHV Magellan.
How to charge vehicles in Death Stranding 2
There are multiple ways to charge vehicles in Death Stranding 2. These are:
- Repair your vehicle. Provided it's not an enemy vehicle—meaning you can't repair it—repairing your vehicle will also top off its battery, even if it isn't damaged. This is the fastest way if you're visiting a shelter with a garage. Some bases also have pillars that will zap your vehicle and charge it super fast, so keep an eye out for these.
- Wait for it to gain solar charge. Since vehicles charge from solar power, in a pinch, you can rest next to it and wait for some charge to return—especially handy if you run out of battery close to a shelter. Hold square on controller to rest and then square again to sleep.
- Unlock Emergency Vehicle Charger. Once you unlock the APAS skill system by progressing, you can get this enhancement at level 15 Servicemanship. It lets you charge vehicles in a pinch using Sam's battery.
If you do steal the Pickup Off-Roader from bandits or any other enemy vehicle you want to keep hold off, I recommend parking it in a base so it can slowly regain its charge. While you're out and about driving, also make sure to watch out for chiral spiders, because they'll swarm you and each one drains battery charge if it hits.
More generally, try not to boost your vehicle if you have a long trip ahead and don't want to run out of battery, and stick to favourable terrain and roads where possible, since driving straight through rivers or over rocks also costs extra power.
How to increase vehicle battery in Death Stranding 2
There are a couple of ways you can increase your vehicle battery in Death Stranding 2. These are:
- Unlock Battery Efficiency Boost. This APAS skill will reduce vehicle power consumption by 8% so they can run longer, though you'll need to advance your Porter grade to unlock it.
- Unlock Battery Units by reaching two stars with West Fort Knot in Episode 3: Drawbridge. You'll head here as part of the story, but you can add this component to your vehicle to increase its charge capacity, and stack up to six of these for more power.
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