Troubleshooting / FAQ
Drive Beyond Horizons FAQ
The car does nothing, or cranks and never fires, or runs and will not move. Each of those is a different fault with a different fix. This page sorts the common problems by the symptom you can actually see.
Early Access
Checked 26 October 2026. Current features and announced rebuild plans are different stages of development.
1
Read the symptom first
Almost every repair question in this game has the same shape: something is missing, and the car tells you which family it belongs to by how it fails. Guessing part by part wastes whole evenings. Matching the symptom to the family takes seconds.
| What you observe | Where the fault lives |
|---|
| Complete silence, no dash, no click | Electrical: battery or ignition |
| A single click, nothing more | Battery charge or electrical load |
| Turns over, refuses to catch | Fluids: oil or fuel |
| Engine idles, wheels do not turn | Controls: pedals or handbrake |
| Moves, but barely | Drivetrain, engine size or load |
2
Nothing happens at all
Q. I turn the key and the car is completely dead.
Three things cause total silence: there is no battery fitted, the battery has no charge left, or the ignition component itself is missing. Check for the part before you go hunting for a charged replacement, because an empty battery bay looks the same as a flat battery from the driver seat.
Q. I get one click and then nothing.
A click means the electrics have power but not enough of it to spin the engine. Either the battery is low, or too much is drawing from it at once. Switch off the lights, the radio and any other electronics, then try again. If it still clicks, check battery charge and capacity. The October patch reports a fix for the Battery Recharge Station; use charging or replacement as appropriate.
✗
Battery capacity is a real requirement Bigger engines need more current to turn over. The IFA diesel, for example, wants a battery rated at 180A or better. A battery that starts a small four cylinder happily can be simply too weak for a heavier engine, and the symptom is the same click.
3
It cranks but never fires
Q. The engine turns over but will not catch.
The starter is doing its job, so this is fluids. Either the engine has no oil in it, or the tank has no fuel, or the fuel in the tank is the wrong type for the engine. Check all three in that order.
Q. There is no sound at all when I try to start it.
If the electrics are alive and the starter is silent, the most likely answer is that no engine is installed. It sounds obvious, but on a wreck you are rebuilding piece by piece it is easy to lose track of what is actually bolted in.
4
It runs but will not move
Q. The engine is running and the car stays where it is.
Check the handbrake first, every time. It is the single most common answer and it costs one keypress to rule out. After that, look at the pedals: the brake, accelerator and clutch are separate parts and a car missing any of them will idle happily and go nowhere.
5
It moves, but far too slowly
Q. My car crawls no matter how hard I push it.
There are four usual causes and they are worth checking in this order: the clutch pedal or gear shifter is missing, the engine is too small for the weight of the vehicle it is bolted into, the car is overloaded with cargo, or it simply needs more power. A turbo is the direct answer to the last one.
✓
Weigh the cargo, not just the parts Full barrels are heavy. A 100 litre barrel weighs 20 kilograms before anything goes in it, and a small 75 litre barrel weighs 59 kilograms empty. Hauling several of those is a real performance decision, not just an inventory one.
6
It is impossible to steer
Q. The car is unmanageable, especially at speed.
Usually the engine is too powerful for the chassis it is in, or the wheels and tyres do not match each other, or the tyre choice is wrong for what you are driving on. Slowing down genuinely fixes a lot of it. A monster engine in a light body is fun for a minute and then puts you in a ditch.
Q. My road train swings all over the place.
If the towed vehicles have their front wheels on the ground, take them off. Leaving them on is what makes a train wander, unless the front of the towed car is already slightly raised.
7
Fuel, fluids and mistakes you can undo
Q. I put the wrong fuel in. Is the car ruined?
Do not rely on opening the cap on a slope: the
30 August patch corrected fuel draining from opening the lid. Stop adding fluid, inspect the contents and use the current transfer controls. The announcement does not establish that this mistake requires abandoning the save.
Q. How do I tell petrol from diesel at a station?
By the nozzle colour. Green nozzles deliver petrol and red nozzles deliver diesel. Away from stations you have to check the container itself, because a canister will happily hold oil, petrol, diesel or a mixture of them.
Q. Can I run a petrol engine in a diesel vehicle?
Yes. The engine dictates the fuel, not the body it sits in. Fit a petrol engine into a vehicle that came with a diesel one and it will run, provided you also swap what is in the tank. This matters when the only working engine you have found is the wrong type on paper.
Q. How much oil does an engine actually need?
It varies by engine, from 3 litres for the smaller four cylinders up to 10 litres for the flat six and the IFA diesel. A little is enough to get it running, but an underfilled engine is not one you want to take a long way from home.
8
Questions about the wider game
Q. How do I make money?
Two ways only: find cash or gold bars at points of interest, or complete Horizon Express jobs. There is no passive income and no selling loop to grind, so exploring thoroughly is the reliable route.
Q. What can I spend it on?
The in-game computer trades money for items, parts and accessories, and an ATM converts it into physical stacks of cash. If one specific part keeps refusing to spawn, buying it is usually faster than another salvage run.
Q. Do I still need to tow everything I own?
Not since the garage arrived. Vehicles and items can be stored there, so the old habit of dragging a chain of donor cars and thirty loose items around is no longer necessary. Park the spares and travel light.
Q. Is completing a car to original spec realistic?
It is a long project rather than a quick one, and players have found it slow going. The reviewed official updates do not confirm that towing a wreck changes part spawn rates. Check available replacement parts rather than depending on that unverified claim. Treat it as a goal to chip away at rather than something to force in one session.
Current technical fixes and input limits
The 19 October patch reports a fix for infinite loading when joining a game. It also lists remaining controller D-pad and stick problems under testing. Check the installed update and input bindings before treating a control failure as a missing vehicle part.
The 8 September update addresses locker-related memory leaks, achievement-related lag and terrain desynchronization between players. These are technical faults, separate from fuel, battery or pedal diagnosis. The notes describe particular fixes, not a guarantee that every multiplayer or performance issue is solved.
For a persistent problem, note the game version, host or guest role, object involved and reproducible steps. Keep existing saves intact while investigating; the official notes do not require deleting them.
Sources: 19 October patch and known issues, 8 September technical fixes. Checked 26 October 2026.
Summary
Silence means electrical, a crank without ignition means fluids, and an idling car that will not move means the handbrake or a missing pedal. Nozzle colour tells you the fuel at a station, green for petrol and red for diesel, and the old slope-and-open-cap draining advice no longer follows the current patch notes. Money comes only from found valuables and Horizon Express jobs.
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