My Summer Car Build Guide

The Start #

Before you start playing the game, you should watch other people play it first. This will help you begin to familiarize yourself with the game and its mechanics. This game is notoriously difficult and frustrating, but you surely can get the hang of it.

Game Mechanics #

This game's control scheme might be confusing. Take a look at the settings menu and change the controls if you want to.

By default, the F key is your best friend in this game. Most actions, like eating food, are activated by using so, since LMB will usually just pick the item up. However, you need to press LMB to open doors and push buttons inside the car.

You may notice the player attributes panel in the top left corner of your screen. It shows whether you chose the permadeath option when starting the game, the day of the week, your money, and, most importantly, your needs.

Going Places #

You spawn in your home. Outside is the bare body of your project car, the Satsuma AMP. Before you can build it you must get to Teimo's shop in the town of Peräjärvi — you live at the end of the Kesselinperä peninsula, so it's a long way.

Three vehicles are available from the start:

• Jonnez ES (modified moped) — up to 80 km/h, but needs a helmet that obstructs the view, has little carrying space, and is hard to ride on keyboard without falling over.
• Kekmet (tractor) — windshield, plenty of room (more with the trailer), but very slow.
• Boat — fastest to Peräjärvi since water lets you travel in a straight line, but items can fall in the lake and the dock is far from the store.(unless you bring the Jonnez)

First Journey #

Now that you know the vehicles and their pros and cons, you need to make the first journey. There are many approaches, but only the best two are provided.

Land Approach (Tractor) #

The land approach is the simpler of the two. Yes, the tractor is slow, but reliable, (somewhat) efficient and has a lot of space for items.

1. In the kitchen your uncle's house is visible from the window. On a table outside it is a Christmas present — open it with F and take the gift money with F. Don't drink the booze or you'll get VERY drunk.
2. Past it is the woodshed where the tractor is stored. Pull the hand throttle a bit, start the engine, disengage the parking brake. Use the high gear range unless you're really stuck or climbing steep hills. Hook up the trailer by reversing into it. Put the black diesel jerrycan (in the woodshed) in the trailer.
3. (Optional, easier) Bring a beer case and some sausages — but note milk, sausages, pizza and macaroni expire if left out of the fridge. Open the parts catalog in the garage and order the fuel mixture gauge and ratchet set. A letter spawns when you order — take it and put it in the trailer.
4. Check the four pistons on the garage shelves. Write down which ones are more black than the others. Take the green jerrycan and put it in the trailer.

Head down the home road, turn left at the first two junctions, then go straight until you reach Fleetari's Repair Shop. (There's an alternative route along the railroad tracks — but it's a gamble, since the train may come at any moment and kill you or leave you stuck in the swamp. Not supported by this guide.)

At the shop you'll find a black muscle car parked in the driveway. Go inside and greet the shop owner; on the right is a shelf of parts. Buy these:

Put the parts in the trailer and continue driving. Turn left and cross the little bridge, go up the hill and turn right sharply to reach the abandoned farmhouse. Use the tractor forks to break the door, go up to the attic and turn right. There's a wasp nest — but if you hug the wall the wasps won't attack. On a mattress are four car wheels. Take them, drop them out the window, then jump out. Put the wheels in the trailer. Two tires start at 1% condition, so you'll want to replace them soon (bring wheels to the repair shop and use the service brochure).

Continue in the direction you came, taking no turns, until you reach the town and the gas station and store. Put the letter in the post box — these parts will be delivered to the store in a couple of days, costing 908 mk to buy. Then go inside and buy:

After paying, put the shopping bag, motor oil and (if bought) the battery into the trailer. Go to the black diesel pump and refuel the tractor (open the fuel cap by scrolling). Fill the black jerrycan with diesel and the green one with gasoline (open caps with F). Go inside and pay for the fuel.

Head home the same way without stopping at the farmhouse. Put the purchased parts, wheels, jerrycans, motor oil and (possibly) battery in the garage. Take the shopping bag into the storeroom (accessible from the kitchen), open it by holding F, and put the food in the fridge before it expires. Press F to take the cigarettes — smoke them by holding I. Take the alternator belt, oil filter, motor oil, light bulb boxes, spark plug box and brake fluid to the garage (you can lean through the wall with Q).

If it's late, go to sleep. The next day you'll be able to build the car.

Water Approach (Boat) #

If you don't feel like struggling with the tractor, take the water approach. The biggest downside is that the docks in Peräjärvi are quite far from the shop — so bring your moped.

1. Follow a dirt trail to the lake where the boat is located.
2. First go to your uncle's house, visible from the kitchen window. On a table outside is a Christmas present — open it with F, take the gift money. Don't drink the booze.
3. (Optional) Take a beer case. Open the parts catalog and order the fuel mixture gauge and, optionally, the ratchet set. A letter spawns when you order — put it on the moped's rack.
4. Check the four pistons on the garage shelves and note which are blacker. Take the green jerrycan and put it in the boat.
5. Take the moped. To start it: press the kickstand up, mount it, enter driving mode with ⏎, lean left with Q, press RMB on the fuel tap to turn it downwards (don't press LMB — that uses the reserve tank you'll want in an emergency), then kick the starter until the engine starts. Use the switch on the right to kill the engine.
6. The moped's rack carries a few items, though they may fall off. You can also carry items in your hands while riding. Combining these, carry two small items on the rack and a larger one in hand.

Drive the moped into the boat — carefully, so it doesn't fall off. Start the boat by pulling the starter; make sure it's in neutral. The boat's gears aren't controlled by keyboard — press LMB/RMB on the gear lever (press the red button to stop).

Aim for the island in the middle of the lake (you can visit it later; not this trip). When you approach, you'll see the sandy shore at Peräjärvi — aim for its left end and you'll find the docks. Get out, drive the moped (holding the letter) to the tarmac road, turn left, then left again. The shop is the yellow building marked Teimon Kauppa. Put the letter in the post box (parts cost 908 mk in a couple of days), then buy the same store items as above.

After paying, take the shopping bag, motor oil, two-stroke fuel and (if bought) battery to the boat with the moped — repeat trips if needed. Fill the green jerrycan at the green gasoline pump (open the cap with F). Make sure you pay for fuel inside, otherwise Teimo will call and threaten to call the police.

At the boat, open its fuel cap by scrolling and refill with two-stroke fuel. Arrange items so they don't fall off. If an item starts sliding off, stop accelerating, switch to neutral, and exit driving mode fast to reposition. If an items falls in the lake it's gone — you may need to restart the journey.

Follow the coast left from the pier, past a wooden cabin and some roads to the lake, until you find a river. Turn into it and stop at a pier by a small bridge. With the moped, go right to the repair shop (identifiable by the muscle car in the driveway). Buy the same Fleetari parts as above, then bring them to the boat.

Pick up the beer case and, when you start the motor, carry it while driving away from the pier. Cross the bridge, go up the hill, turn sharply right to the abandoned farmhouse. Break the doors with the beer case, go to the attic and turn right, hug the wall past the wasp nest, grab the four wheels off the mattress, drop them out the window and jump out. Put them in the boat. Two tires start at 1%.

Turn the boat around and turn left out of the river. Vaguely follow the coast (don't enter the swamp gulf), aim for the peninsula and follow it to your home pier. When home, unload everything to the garage, put the shopping bag and food in the storeroom/fridge as described above, and go to sleep. Next day you can build.

The Car #

Your project car — the Satsuma AMP — spawns outside your garage as a bare body, with the actual parts in the garage. You must put it together from scratch. The wrench sizes are a guessing game the first time; this guide tells you exactly what to do.

How it Works #

Take a car part with LMB and hover over where it goes. A check mark icon means you can install it with LMB. If a part is unbolted, hovering shows a disassemble icon — press RMB to remove it. To bolt parts, open the spanner (or ratchet) set with F, then press 1/2 to switch to and from tool mode. In tool mode, LMB selects a spanner; bolts of matching size turn green. Scroll up to tighten, down to loosen. Switch back out of tool mode when ready to mount another part.

Reading the Build Tables

Preparation #

First, read the note on your fridge — it gives some information about the game. Then arrange the garage parts however you like — there are no rules. You may push the car into the garage (much easier once the wheels are on).

Building #

Chassis

Engine — Block

Engine — Other

Interior

Exterior

Fluids #

After building, you still need to add the fluids. Unscrew the caps of the reservoirs, fill, and screw them back on.

Motor Oil

Fill motor oil in through the rocker cover, using the oil you bought. Oil condition affects performance and bad oil causes overheating; quality and amount drop over time, so replace it regularly. Press F on the dipstick to check color — the darker, the worse. If it darkens consistently, replace the oil filter and oil. To change it, unbolt the size 13 bolt on the oilpan to drain, re-bolt, refill, and replace the oil filter.

Radiator Coolant

Coolant is needed for the radiator to cool the engine. It can be bought at Teimo's, but there's a trick to save money: go to the kitchen, lean into the sink and drink A LOT of water — until your urine bar goes red and beyond (but STOP before your bladder bursts at double the red level, or you die). Then go to the radiator, aim for the hole, and press P. Keep trying until the tank is full. There are no differences between using piss and coolant.

Brake and Clutch Fluid

Fill both the brake and clutch master cylinders. You'll need about two and a half bottles, possibly more if you forgot to tighten brake lining nuts and fluid pours out.

Gasoline

The main fluid. Take the green gasoline jerrycan you filled, open it, and pour fuel into the fuel tank pipe. Pour all of it in.

Tuning #

Some parts need manual adjustment after assembly. (The wiki has visual tuning infographics you can click to enlarge.)

Steering Rods

To stop the car swerving to the side, adjust the steering rods. After assembling the chassis and bolting the wheels, use a size 14 spanner (a ratchet won't work) on a nut on the steering rods. Scroll down until the wheel stops moving, then scroll up 60 times — this centers the wheel. Do both wheels and the car drives perfectly straight.

Rocker Shaft

You can adjust the rocker shaft after starting the car (see visual guide), or without it running: take the screwdriver, scroll down on each screw until fully loosened (these screws don't turn green when hovered), then scroll up 7 times. Repeat for all valves. This sets the valves as loose as possible without ticking. If you hear ticking after starting, readjust. Note: an improperly adjusted distributor makes a similar but higher-pitched sound.

Camshaft Gear

After tightening the gear, continuing to scroll up rotates it. There's a notch on the gear that must align with a notch on the crankshaft and engine block. An improperly adjusted camshaft gear may cause serious engine damage — tune carefully.

Alternator

Adjust when putting on the alternator belt. Untighten the screwdriver screw, scroll up on the alternator by hand, then put on the belt. Afterward, scroll down until it stops moving, then scroll up 2 clicks — visually the belt should sit just barely on the alternator's groove. This stops the belt squealing and minimizes wear.

Distributor

Adjust so the engine gets enough spark. Before starting (as with the rockers): unscrew it two ticks, scroll down until it stops, then scroll up 27 times. After starting: pull the choke and scroll down (advancing ignition) until it ticks, then scroll up (retarding) one at a time until it stops, maximizing power.

Carburator

With the fuel mixture gauge: after building and starting, let the engine heat to about half on the temp gauge, take the screwdriver to a screw on the carburator. Scrolling up adds air (number rises), scrolling down reduces air (number falls). Tune for about 14.9.

Without the gauge, two consistent methods: start the car, warm to half on the temp gauge, and watch the exhaust. If gray/black, scroll up until clear; if very white, scroll down until clear — this takes the ratio from 14.1 to ~14.5, passing inspection. If already passed and you want more torque/power, scroll down 17 times instead for 13.1 (ideally tune to 13.5/.6, as engine heat shifts you out of the 13.1 range).

Wiring #

After building and tuning, wire up the electronics. Take the wiring mess and press F on the connectors.

Under the car / engine bay:

Troubleshooting #

If the car is built, starts, and drives without problems, move on. Otherwise refer to this guide:

The car doesn't make any sound and doesn't start

Caused by missing wiring, a missing/loose starter, or an improperly attached (or dead) battery. If you didn't buy a new battery, put the old one on the garage charger. If the needle sits all the way right, the battery is dead — save up and buy a new one.

The car makes a cranking noise, but doesn't start

Caused by a fuel leak/missing fuel, untightened spark plugs, or a broken rocker shaft.

The car starts, but doesn't stay turned on

Caused by untightened spark plugs or a lack of tuning.

The car makes a weird sound after it starts

Many sounds point to broken or improperly adjusted parts:

• High-pitched chirping — improperly tuned distributor.
• Squealing — alternator belt too loose, or a damaged water pump.
• Clicking — badly tuned rocker valves.
• Infrequent clonking — unaligned camshaft gear. This especially damages the car — turn off the engine immediately if you hear it.

All fixable — see Tuning.

The car makes a gunshot sound

The Satsuma backfires when the air/fuel ratio is too lean (greater than 16), or the camshaft backfires (which also shoots fire from the carburator). This happens if you don't tune the carburator and leave the mixture lean, or the camshaft is out of adjustment.

A rectangular red light appears on the dashboard

The oil pressure light. It turns on when oil pressure is low — normal when the car is off. If the car is on, you have an oil leak; fix it before driving or risk catastrophic engine failure.

A circular red light appears on the dashboard

The alternator light. On when the alternator isn't producing more power than the engine uses — normal when off. If it stays on while running (even when revving), the alternator may be broken, not installed/wired correctly, or the belt not installed. An intermittent light points to a worn alternator that will need replacing.

White smoke is coming out of the engine bay

Your head gasket is broken (or close to it), or the headers and exhaust pipe are missing.

White particles are coming out of the engine bay and wetting the windshield

Your car is overheating. Slow down or stop and let it cool.

The car keeps veering left/right on its own

Either bent suspension, or the wheels need aligning.

The car won't move, though the wheels are spinning

You most likely forgot to disengage the handbrake.

The car is sluggish, won't pick up speed, and stalls

Most likely you forgot to tune the distributor, rocker shaft, or carburator. Another cause: spark plugs that are untightened or broken.

The Uncle #

One of the most important early-game characters is your uncle Toivo. After 30–90 real-world minutes pass following the installation of the engine, driver's seat, or rear left trail arm, uncle Toivo spawns.

When he spawns, a blue van (Hayosiko Pace) appears outside his house. Knock on his door and he'll give you the keys. You can drive it until you sleep, at which point he takes it away. If you finished the car, slept, and he still hasn't appeared, do some jobs while you wait.

Second Journey

Once you have the keys, make another trip. Teimo should have called to say your order arrived — if not, do jobs and wait. Start the van (turn the ignition key and hold until it starts), disengage the parking brake by hovering and holding RMB, and fasten your seatbelt.

Bring the diesel jerrycan (for emergencies) and food and drinks. The van uses ~30 L/100 km, so about 120 km on a full tank; the drive to the shops on the highway uses about 20–25% of the tank.

Head down the home road like the land approach, turning right at the first junction. Stay on the dirt road until asphalt, then turn right until the highway, and right again. Drive up to 80 km/h — the van and truck speed limit (100 for the Satsuma). Driving faster at a police checkpoint gets you fined. Take the first exit to reach the town and shop. (The alternate route, in blue on the wiki map, is a little slower but safer since it's mostly highway.)

At the shop, pay for your order, fill the van with diesel (and pay), and buy whatever else you want. Head home, then take everything out of the van — it despawns the next morning.

Storyline

The uncle storyline is a waiting game. When you get the keys and drive the van for a day, the uncle despawns and returns after a week. You drive again for a day before he leaves, and the week after he spawns again and gives you the truck keys.

During the wait, earn money with the jobs below.

Truck

Two weeks after your first encounter, the uncle spawns outside (no van) and tells you he lost his license for speeding. He gives you the keys to the Gifu — an old septic tanker truck. The van can now be found outside the Lindell inspection shop for free use.

Vehicle Inspection #

First Inspection

Once the car runs, drives, and matches the tuning steps, take it to the Lindell inspection shop. Its crucial to bring the warning triangle (found on the back of the tractor) and place it anywhere in the car. Bring tools in case something needs adjusting. Avoid highways in an unregistered vehicle — police fine you at checkpoints.

When the shop doors open, drive the Satsuma onto the lift. Exit, talk to Lindell at the front desk, and pay 325 mk. He inspects the car and provides a receipt. If it passes, the register plates appear; if not, they don't. Note what's marked on the sheet (you can switch the language to English by clicking the union jack, and back to Finnish by pressing the flag). Once fixed, get re-inspected for another 325 mk.

Second Inspection and Beyond

After the first pass, Lindell posts a flyer 21 days later alerting you the vehicle needs another inspection. Check the list of permitted and forbidden parts to ensure it passes.

The Jobs #

To get inspected you need tires replaced, which needs money, which comes from jobs in Peräjärvi. Here are some of the jobs you can do: