handling.meta Field Reference: What Each Value Actually Does

Almost every behavior question about a GTA V vehicle - "why does my car flip in corners," "why does it accelerate so slowly," "why does the rear bias feel off" - traces back to one of about 20 fields in handling.meta. The GTAMods wiki documents each field with its data type, purpose, and recommended range. This post lays them out grouped by what they actually control.

Mass and physical properties

fMass - the weight of the vehicle in kilograms. The GTAMods wiki notes this is "only used when the vehicle collides with another vehicle or non-static object." Documented range: 0.0 to 10000.0+. This is the headline weight number.

fInitialDragCoeff - drag coefficient on the rage physics archetype of the vehicle, proportional to velocity squared. Higher values reduce top speed. Documented range: 10 to 120.

vecCentreOfMassOffset - a 3-component vector shifting the center of gravity. X is left/right, Y is forward/back, Z is up/down. Documented per-axis range: -5.0 to 5.0. This is one of the most commonly tuned fields because it affects feel dramatically.

vecInertiaMultiplier - resistance to rotation around each axis. The Z-axis component affects steering response. The wiki recommends a minimum of 2.0; documented range is 0.0 to 4.0+.

Drivetrain

fInitialDriveForce - "the drive force of the car, at the wheels." The GTAMods wiki notes most vehicles fall in the 0.10 to 0.40 range. Documented absolute range: 0.01 to 2.0+. This is the field that most directly determines acceleration.

fInitialDriveMaxFlatVel - "the speed at redline in top gear; controls the final drive of the vehicle's gearbox." Documented range: 0.00 to 500.0+. Effectively the top speed setting.

nInitialDriveGears - number of forward gears. Documented value range: 1 to 10. The wiki specifically warns to "avoid exceeding 8 to prevent downshift issues."

Brakes

fBrakeForce - multiplies the game's calculation of deceleration. The wiki summarizes: "Bigger number = harder braking." Documented range: 0.01 to 2.0+.

fBrakeBiasFront - "controls the distribution of braking force between the front and rear axles." Range 0.0 to 1.0, where 0.5 is equal distribution. Most production vehicles bias forward (slightly above 0.5).

fHandBrakeForce - braking power applied when the handbrake is engaged. Higher = stronger braking.

Steering and traction

fSteeringLock - "the maximum angle (in degrees) that the steered wheels will be able to turn." Documented range: 1 to 90 degrees. Drift-tuned cars tend higher; track-focused cars tend lower.

fTractionCurveMax - "Maximum cornering/acceleration coefficient of grip. Effectively the peak grip status before any loss of grip."

fTractionCurveMin - "Sliding cornering/acceleration coefficient of grip. Effectively the grip status after loss of grip."

The relationship between these two values is what controls the car's slip behavior. A wider gap (higher Max, lower Min) gives more dramatic, slower-developing slides. A smaller gap means snappier transitions to and from sliding.

Suspension

fSuspensionForce - "Affects how strong suspension is. Can help if car is easily flipped over when turning." Higher values stiffen the suspension.

fSuspensionCompDamp - "Damping during strut compression. Bigger = stiffer." This is the bump damper - how much the suspension resists compressing into a hit.

fSuspensionReboundDamp - "Damping during strut rebound. Bigger = stiffer." This is the rebound damper - how much the suspension resists extending back out after a compression.

fSuspensionRaise - "The amount that the suspension raises the body off the wheels." The wiki notes typical adjustments are around ±0.02. Negative values lower the body, positive values raise it.

fAntiRollBarForce - "The spring constant that is transmitted to the opposite wheel when under compression. Larger Numbers = less body roll."

Damage

fCollisionDamageMult - "Multiplies the game's calculation of damage to the vehicle through collision." Documented range: 0.0 to 10.0. The wiki specifically notes that zero disables engine damage as a side effect.

fEngineDamageMult - "Multiplies the game's calculation of damage to the engine, causing explosion or engine failure." Documented range: 0.0 to 10.0.

Where to read further

The GTAMods wiki page is the canonical community reference for handling.meta and includes many additional fields beyond the most commonly tuned ones above (steering input curves, anti-rollover behavior, deformation handling, drive-bias for AWD, etc). Always cross-reference against the actual handling.meta of a stock GTA V vehicle that has the character you are tuning toward - looking at how Rockstar tuned the Adder vs the Buffalo S vs the Elegy is more instructive than any rule of thumb.

Sources

• GTAMods Wiki: handling.meta