Vehicle Handling Editor

The Vehicle Handling Editor lets you tune a vehicle’s CHandlingData block with sliders and a one line explanation per field. You can start from a template or import your own handling.meta, flip handling, model and damage flag bits, and export a clean handling.meta, a runtime Lua script for live testing, or a carcols.meta mod kit for add-on cars.

What it is for

Handling work is a loop: change a value, restart the resource, respawn the car, drive, repeat. The editor shortens that loop. You see every field with its unit and meaning, you see what you changed against the loaded values, and you can copy a Lua snippet that applies the new values to the car you are sitting in without a restart. When the car feels right, you download the final handling.meta.

It is also the quickest way to give an add-on car a mod kit, so it can take engine, brake, gearbox, suspension and armour upgrades.

Quick start

1. Pick a template under Start from template, or click Import handling.meta and paste the file (or use Open file), then Parse.
2. Set handlingName so it matches <handlingId> in the car’s vehicles.meta.
3. On the Physics tab, tune the values. A field you changed gets an amber dot and a Reset link that puts that one field back.
4. Switch to Flags for handling, model and damage flags, and to Mod kit if the car needs a carcols.meta kit.
5. Watch the Driving profile tiles on the right to see what the change does to top speed, drivetrain and grip.
6. Pick an output tab (handling.meta, Lua or carcols.meta), then copy or download it.

Undo N changes in the top bar puts every field back to the loaded template or import. Your work is saved in this browser.

Templates

The templates are generic, hand-tuned starting points, not copies of base game cars.

Loading a template keeps your current handlingName.

Importing a handling.meta

Paste a whole handling.meta or a single <Item type="CHandlingData"> block. If the file holds several vehicles, the editor lists them as chips (“N vehicles found, pick one”) and you choose which one to load. Fields the editor does not have sliders for (for example fDownforceModifier) and the SubHandlingData block are kept and written back on export, so bikes, boats and planes keep their CBikeHandlingData, CBoatHandlingData or CFlyingHandlingData item untouched.

If you want to start from a real game vehicle, copy its <Item type="CHandlingData"> block from the game’s handling.meta and import that.

Fields

The Physics tab has section chips (All, Body & mass, Engine & gearbox, Brakes & steering, Traction, Suspension, Damage & fluids, Seat, value & AI). Each field has a slider and a number box. The number box accepts values outside the slider range, which matters for imports that go past it.

Body and mass

Engine and gearbox

Brakes and steering

Traction

Suspension

Damage and fluids

Seat, value and AI

fSeatOffsetDistX, fSeatOffsetDistY and fSeatOffsetDistZ move the driver seat position (-1 to 1 m). nMonetaryValue is the base value used for things like insurance and sell price. AIHandling picks how AI drivers handle the car: AVERAGE, SPORTS_CAR, TRUCK or CRAP (an imported value that is not in this list is kept as an extra option).

Flags

The Flags tab has three panels: Handling flags (strHandlingFlags), Model flags (strModelFlags) and Damage flags (strDamageFlags). Click a bit to toggle it, or type the hex value in the box at the top right of the panel. Each bit shows its name, a short description and its hex mask.

Some common ones:

Model flag changes usually need the vehicle to be respawned.

Mod kit

The Mod kit tab builds a carcols.meta with one kit. An add-on vehicle needs a kit before it can take performance upgrades or show up properly in tuning menus.

Picking the Mod kit tab switches the output to carcols.meta.

Driving profile

The tiles on the right are estimates from the current values:

Output

handling.meta

The handling.meta tab gives a complete file with one item. Floats are written with six decimals and flags as hex without 0x. If the loaded handling had no SubHandlingData, three NULL items are added.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<CHandlingDataMgr>
  <HandlingData>
    <Item type="CHandlingData">
      <handlingName>MYCAR</handlingName>
      <fMass value="1400.000000" />
      <fInitialDragCoeff value="8.000000" />
      <fPercentSubmerged value="85.000000" />
      <vecCentreOfMassOffset x="0.000000" y="0.000000" z="0.000000" />
      <vecInertiaMultiplier x="1.000000" y="1.000000" z="1.000000" />
      <fDriveBiasFront value="0.000000" />
      <nInitialDriveGears value="6" />
      <fInitialDriveForce value="0.300000" />
      <!-- ...every other field in the same style... -->
      <nMonetaryValue value="100000" />
      <strModelFlags>440010</strModelFlags>
      <strHandlingFlags>20000</strHandlingFlags>
      <strDamageFlags>0</strDamageFlags>
      <AIHandling>SPORTS_CAR</AIHandling>
      <SubHandlingData>
        <Item type="NULL" />
        <Item type="NULL" />
        <Item type="NULL" />
      </SubHandlingData>
    </Item>
  </HandlingData>
</CHandlingDataMgr>

Load it in a resource like this:

fx_version 'cerulean'
game 'gta5'

files {
    'data/handling.meta',
}

data_file 'HANDLING_FILE' 'data/handling.meta'

Restart the resource and respawn the vehicle. Handling is read when the vehicle is created, so a car that was already out keeps the old values.

Lua

The Lua tab writes a client script that applies the values with SetVehicleHandlingFloat, SetVehicleHandlingInt and SetVehicleHandlingVector on the 'CHandlingData' class, then calls ModifyVehicleTopSpeed(vehicle, 1.0) so drive force and top speed changes apply right away.

With Only changed fields on and two values changed:

-- Runtime handling for MYCAR (client side).
-- Values use handling.meta units: FiveM converts km/h, degrees and bias values itself.
-- Changes apply to this vehicle only and are lost when it is deleted or respawned.
local function ApplyHandling(vehicle)
    SetVehicleHandlingFloat(vehicle, 'CHandlingData', 'fInitialDriveForce', 0.35)
    SetVehicleHandlingFloat(vehicle, 'CHandlingData', 'fInitialDriveMaxFlatVel', 165.0)
    -- Commonly needed so drive force and top speed changes take effect right away.
    ModifyVehicleTopSpeed(vehicle, 1.0)
end

RegisterCommand('handling', function()
    local vehicle = GetVehiclePedIsIn(PlayerPedId(), false)
    if vehicle == 0 then
        print('You need to be in a vehicle')
        return
    end
    ApplyHandling(vehicle)
    print('Applied MYCAR handling')
end, false)

Run it on the client that owns the vehicle. You pass the same numbers you would write in handling.meta, FiveM converts them to the game’s internal units. Floats always carry a decimal point (165.0, not 165). The Lua output does not include AIHandling.

carcols.meta

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<CVehicleModelInfoVarGlobal>
  <Kits>
    <Item>
      <kitName>1450_mycar_modkit</kitName>
      <id value="1450" />
      <kitType>MKT_STANDARD</kitType>
      <visibleMods />
      <linkMods />
      <statMods>
        <Item>
          <identifier />
          <modifier value="25" />
          <audioApply value="1.000000" />
          <weight value="20" />
          <type>VMT_ENGINE</type>
        </Item>
        <!-- one Item per level and upgrade -->
      </statMods>
      <slotNames />
      <liveryNames />
    </Item>
  </Kits>
  <Lights />
</CVehicleModelInfoVarGlobal>

Then reference the kit in the car’s vehicles.meta item and register the file:

<kits>
  <Item>1450_mycar_modkit</Item>
</kits>

data_file 'CARCOLS_FILE' 'data/carcols.meta'

Common mistakes

• handlingName does not match. The value must equal <handlingId> in vehicles.meta, or the car keeps its old handling.
• Fixing the spelling of fCamberStiffnesss. It really has three s’s. Spelling it “correctly” means the game ignores it.
• Testing on a car that was already spawned. Respawn after restarting the resource.
• Flags with 0x. In handling.meta flags are hex without a prefix, for example <strModelFlags>440010</strModelFlags>.
• Duplicate mod kit ids. Two cars with the same kit id make tuning menus show the wrong parts.
• Shipping only the Lua. Runtime changes only affect that one vehicle and are gone when it is deleted. Ship the final values in handling.meta.

Limitations

The editor has sliders for 45 common CHandlingData fields plus the three flag sets and AIHandling. Other fields from an import are kept as they are but cannot be edited here. The driving profile numbers are estimates, not a physics simulation. Everything runs in your browser and nothing is uploaded.

Related tools

• fxmanifest.lua Generator
• Vehicle Pack Validator
• Vehicle Sirens Editor
• Model Hash Browser