Walking everywhere in 7 Days to Die is a death sentence once your map opens up. Vehicles turn a half-day loot run into a quick round trip, haul a base’s worth of materials, and let you outrun a screamer-summoned mob. Since the 1.0 update, what you can build is no longer tied to spending skill points on a vehicle perk — it is governed by the Vehicles crafting skill, which you level by reading magazines. This guide walks the full progression from the humble bicycle to the end-game gyrocopter, covering the parts, the recipes, storage, and fuel.
How vehicles are unlocked in 1.0
In the current 1.0 build, vehicle recipes are gated behind the Vehicles crafting skill, not a points-based perk. You raise that skill by reading Vehicle Adventures magazines, each of which increases the skill by one level, up to a maximum of 100. As your Vehicles skill climbs, higher tiers of vehicle become craftable. The gyrocopter sits at the top: its chassis and accessories schematics require collecting roughly 99 Vehicle Adventures magazines to learn.
The relevant perk is Grease Monkey in the Intellect attribute. It does not unlock vehicles directly — instead it boosts the loot odds of finding Vehicle Adventures magazines, reduces the crafting cost of vehicle parts, and makes Repair Kits more effective on vehicles. If you want to reach the motorcycle and 4×4 faster, leaning into Intellect and Grease Monkey speeds up your magazine drip considerably.
The vehicle lineup at a glance
There are five vehicles, and they form a clean upgrade ladder. The numbers below are drawn from the official wiki. Speeds are listed as blocks per second; the second figure is with sprint/shift held.
| Vehicle | Speed (no shift / shift) | Storage slots | Seats (MP) | Fuel tank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bicycle | 5 / 10 | 9 | 1 | None (pedal-powered) |
| Minibike | 9 / 10 | 27 | 1 | 1,000 |
| Motorcycle | 14 / 14 (16 with Super Charger) | 36 | 2 | 3,000 |
| 4×4 Truck | 14 / 14 | 81 | 4 | 10,000 |
| Gyrocopter | 15 / up to 18 with Super Charger | Large (radial menu) | 2 | 2,000 |
Bicycle: your first set of wheels
The bicycle is the entry-level vehicle and the cheapest to build. It needs 2 Wheels, 1 Bicycle Chassis, 1 Bicycle Handlebars, and 1 Mechanical Parts, assembled at a workbench. It uses no fuel — you pedal — so it costs nothing to run, but its 5 blocks/s cruising speed is barely faster than sprinting. It still offers 9 storage slots, which is a meaningful early bump for loot runs.
One quirk worth knowing: if there are items stored in the bicycle’s inventory, you cannot pick the bicycle up into your backpack or toolbelt until you empty it. The same applies to the other vehicles.
Minibike: the workhorse
The minibike is the first fuel-burning vehicle and a huge quality-of-life jump. It requires 2 Wheels, 1 Minibike Chassis, 1 Minibike Handlebars, 1 Engine, and 1 Lead Car Battery. The engine and lead car battery are the gatekeeping parts here — both are typically scavenged. Engines come from Working Stiffs crates and from wrenching sedans, while Lead Car Batteries are most often found in decayed sedans.
With 27 storage slots, a 1,000-unit gas tank, and 9-10 blocks/s, the minibike covers most early-to-mid-game travel. It is a single-seat vehicle in multiplayer, so it is a personal commuter rather than a group ride.
Motorcycle: speed and a passenger
The motorcycle is a clear upgrade over the minibike. It needs 2 Wheels, 1 Motorcycle Chassis, 1 Motorcycle Handlebars, 1 Engine, and 1 Lead Car Battery. The Motorcycle Handlebars alone are a serious craft, calling for a large stack of Mechanical Parts, Duct Tape, a Headlight, Electrical Parts, and Forged Steel — so you will want a steel production chain running before you commit.
The payoff: 14 blocks/s (rising to around 16 with a Super Charger mod), 36 storage slots, a 3,000-unit tank, and a second seat so a teammate can ride along. For most players the motorcycle is the sweet spot of speed, range, and build cost.
4×4 Truck: the mobile base
The 4×4 is the definitive late-game ground vehicle. It requires 4 Wheels, 1 4×4 Truck Chassis, 1 4×4 Truck Accessories, 1 Engine, and 1 Lead Car Battery. The chassis is the expensive component, eating 250 Forged Steel along with Mechanical Parts, Duct Tape, Leather, and Electrical Parts.
What you get is enormous: 81 storage slots — close to a portable base — a 10,000-unit fuel tank for huge range, and four seats so the whole group can travel together. Top speed matches the motorcycle at 14 blocks/s, so the truck trades nothing in pace while carrying vastly more. It is the vehicle to build before a long mining expedition or a base relocation.
Gyrocopter: ruling the sky
The gyrocopter is the end-game prize and the only flying vehicle. Its schematics — the Gyrocopter Chassis and Gyrocopter Accessories — are learned by collecting around 99 Vehicle Adventures magazines, so it is the last thing you will unlock. The chassis recipe is steep, demanding hundreds of units of Forged Steel and Electrical Parts plus Mechanical Parts, Duct Tape, and Leather.
It is technically the fastest vehicle in the game, reaching 15 blocks/s (and up to 18 with a Super Charger), and being airborne it ignores terrain entirely — no rivers, cliffs, or wrecked roads to slow you down. It seats two, carries a generous amount of storage accessible from the radial menu, and runs on a 2,000-unit gas tank. The trade-off is the cost to build and a moderate noise profile that can draw attention on landing.
Fuel, parts, and storage
Every motorized vehicle runs on Gas Cans. You can loot gas, but the reliable source is crafting it at a Chemistry Station from Oil Shale — each Oil Shale yields gas, and you mine Oil Shale from the desert biome. Keep a chemistry station and a stack of oil shale at home and fuel stops basically disappear.
The hardest-to-find vehicle parts are Engines and Lead Car Batteries, both needed for every motorized build. Engines come from Working Stiffs crates and wrenched sedans; batteries from decayed sedans. Wrenching wrecked cars also feeds you Mechanical Parts and Electrical Parts — the connective tissue of nearly every recipe — so make a sedan-stripping circuit part of your early routine.
Finally, vehicle mods extend what these machines can do. The Super Charger Mod raises top speed and acceleration and fits everything except the bicycle. There are also off-road headlight mods, reserve fuel tank and fuel-saver mods, expanded seating, and armor/plow options for the 4×4. Slotting these turns a stock vehicle into a tailored tool for whatever you are doing.
Frequently asked questions
Do I still need a vehicle perk in 1.0?
No. In 1.0, vehicle recipes are unlocked by the Vehicles crafting skill, which you raise by reading Vehicle Adventures magazines. The Grease Monkey perk does not unlock vehicles — it boosts how often those magazines drop, cuts vehicle part crafting costs, and makes Repair Kits more efficient.
Which vehicle should I build first?
Aim for the minibike as your first real vehicle — it needs only two wheels, a chassis, handlebars, an engine, and a battery, and its 27 storage slots transform loot runs. Push toward the motorcycle once you have steel production for the demanding handlebars recipe.
What fuel do vehicles use?
All motorized vehicles run on Gas Cans. The most sustainable supply is crafting gas at a Chemistry Station from Oil Shale mined in the desert. The bicycle uses no fuel at all.
Keep rolling
Vehicles tie into nearly every other system in the game. To grind those Vehicle Adventures magazines efficiently, see our magazines and crafting-tiers guide, and plan your Intellect investment with the skills, attributes and perks guide. A 4×4 also makes trader runs and quests far less painful when objectives are scattered across the map.
Half the fun of building a motorcycle or gyrocopter is showing it off — convoys, group loot runs, and racing back to base before a blood moon all land better with friends. If you want a persistent world that stays online so everyone can keep their garage between sessions, spinning up a dedicated 7 Days to Die server is the easiest way to do it, and our 7 Days to Die setup docs walk you through configuration step by step.
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