Car Mechanic Simulator 2021 Maps & Locations Guide: Every Area Covered

Q: Why do the cars have names I do not recognise?

Licensing. The 72 base game cars are modelled on real vehicles but wear invented badges, so Bolt stands for Chevrolet, Salem for Ford, Ribbsan for Nissan, Sakura for Toyota, FMW for BMW and DC for AC. The Bolt Reptilia is a 1970 Corvette, the Salem Spectre is a 2013 Mustang and the Sakura Supa is a 1993 Supra. The licensed DLC packs are the exception and use real names, including a Nissan Fairlady, a GT-R R35, a Tesla Roadster and a Model 3.

Q: What should I buy first with my credits?

The 2,000 credit Engine Crane and the 1,500 credit parts Repair Table, in that order. Both are used on almost every job. The 500 credit Tablet and 750 credit Warehouse are cheap quality-of-life additions worth grabbing early. Hold off on the 15,000 credit Paintshop and 20,000 credit Dyno until the job queue actually demands them.

Q: How do I unlock the Junkyard and the barns?

The Junkyard opens at level 5, so completing story orders for experience is the fastest route to it. Barns work differently: each one needs a map, and maps drop randomly from the lootboxes awarded for finishing story orders. There is no way to buy a barn map, so story progress is the only supply.

Q: Is the Dyno worth 20,000 credits?

Only once you want tuning work. The Dyno measures horsepower and torque and is what makes tuning orders available in the first place, so without it that whole job category stays closed. For a garage running ordinary repair orders it is dead weight, which is why most players buy it last after the Test Path, Welder and Paintshop.

Q: How do I find a fault that does not show on any part?

Use the 10,000 credit Test Path. Suspension problems and wheel or headlight misalignment do not display as a condition percentage on any component, so examine mode will never surface them. Driving the car on the Test Path is the only diagnosis the game offers, and it doubles as the alignment tool once you have found the problem.

Complete Car Mechanic Simulator 2021 maps and locations guide. Every area with difficulty, rewards, progression order, and what to do in each zone.

EarlyGuides Editorial Team

Researched and editorially reviewed. Updated August 12, 2026.

Red Dot Games released Car Mechanic Simulator 2021 through PlayWay on 11 August 2021 with 72 cars and more than 4,000 individual parts. You start with one lifter, a free repair bench and no money, and every piece of workshop equipment after that has a price: 2,000 credits for the Engine Crane, 5,000 for the Welder, 10,000 for the Test Path, 15,000 for the Paintshop and 20,000 for the Dyno. Base game cars carry fictional badges for licensing reasons, so the Bolt Reptilia is a 1970 Chevrolet Corvette, the Salem Spectre is a 2013 Ford Mustang and the Sakura Supa is a 1993 Toyota Supra. Only the licensed DLC packs, such as the Nissan and Electric Car sets, use real names.

Car Mechanic Simulator 2021 features distinct areas with increasing difficulty. This guide covers every major location in progression order: what to do, what to get, and when to move on. For the step-by-step path, see our walkthrough.

Area Progression Order

Order	Location	Difficulty	Key Rewards	Recommended Build
1	Garage	From the first order onward	Equipment slots, second Lifter at 2,500, Garage Expansion at 10,000	Body and paint specialist
2	Junkyard	Level 5 onward	Cheap donor cars, low cost parts, salvage material	Body and paint specialist
3	Barn	Mid game, once story orders start dropping maps	Project cars, used part sets, rare finds	Engine rebuild specialist
4	Car Auction	Once you can hold several thousand credits in reserve	Most of the 72 base game cars, flip opportunities	Engine rebuild specialist
5	Car Salon	Late game, once credits stop being the constraint	Perfect condition cars, exclusive models	Engine rebuild specialist

Garage: Starting Area

The open plan workshop where everything happens. It starts with one free Lifter, a free Tire Changer, Wheel Balancer, Spring Puller, Oil Drain and Interior Detailing Toolkit, plus a PC and radio for browsing orders. The 10,000 credit Garage Expansion adds the floor space for the rest of the equipment.

Attribute	Detail
Difficulty	From the first order onward
Key Rewards	Equipment slots, second Lifter at 2,500, Garage Expansion at 10,000
Recommended Build	Body and paint specialist
Key Equipment	Welder

What to Do Here

Learn the basics of Fictional badges on real cars. This is where you practice without heavy punishment.
Collect starting resources and your first equipment upgrade.
Clear all main content before moving to Junkyard.
If you're struggling, read our beginner's guide.

Junkyard: Early Game

Unlocks at level 5 and is the cheapest source of both cars and parts. Most vehicles here are scrapped shells whose parts are close to unusable, so bring the Repair Table and Salvaging station into the plan before you start hauling things back.

Attribute	Detail
Difficulty	Level 5 onward
Key Rewards	Cheap donor cars, low cost parts, salvage material
Recommended Build	Body and paint specialist
Key Equipment	Welder

What to Do Here

Focus on mastering Examine mode and part condition. It's critical from this point on.
Farm for Welder if you don't have it yet.
Complete all objectives for maximum rewards.
Prepare for the difficulty spike in Barn.

Barn: Mid Game

Reached only with a map, and maps drop randomly from the lootboxes awarded for finishing story orders. Inside, you search piles of junk that reveal sets of used parts to pick from, and the cars themselves are among the better project vehicles in the game.

Attribute	Detail
Difficulty	Mid game, once story orders start dropping maps
Key Rewards	Project cars, used part sets, rare finds
Recommended Build	Engine rebuild specialist
Key Equipment	Welder

What to Do Here

This is the main skill check. Bring an optimized build.
Engine Crane becomes accessible here. Prioritize getting it.
Master Garage levels and equipment costs for the boss encounters.
Check our boss guide if you get stuck.

Car Auction: Late Game

Where most of the 72 cars can eventually be bought. Prices scale with condition, so the same model can be a bargain or a waste depending on what it needs. It requires real working capital, which makes it a mid to late game activity.

Attribute	Detail
Difficulty	Once you can hold several thousand credits in reserve
Key Rewards	Most of the 72 base game cars, flip opportunities
Recommended Build	Engine rebuild specialist
Key Equipment	Engine Crane

What to Do Here

Full build optimization is expected by this point.
Engine Crane should be your primary, fully upgraded.
Barn maps and junkyard salvage mastery starts mattering here.
Farm resources for the push into Car Salon.

Car Salon: Endgame

The showroom, selling cars in perfect condition for a set price including models you will not find rotting in a junkyard or a barn. It is the expensive option and the right one when you want a specific car for tuning rather than a restoration project.

Attribute	Detail
Difficulty	Late game, once credits stop being the constraint
Key Rewards	Perfect condition cars, exclusive models
Recommended Build	Engine rebuild specialist
Key Equipment	Engine Crane

What to Do Here

This is endgame. Best-in-slot gear and a perfected build are mandatory.
See our boss guide for endgame fight strategies.
The reward loop: clear content → upgrade → push harder content.
Experiment with Auction flipper for variety once you've mastered the meta.

Exploration Tips

Clear areas in order: Garage → Junkyard → Barn → Car Auction → Car Salon. Skipping areas means missing resources you'll need later.
Check every corner: Hidden caches and secrets are often in non-obvious locations.
Match your equipment: Some areas favor different equipment types.
Read the walkthrough: Our walkthrough provides exact progression milestones for each area.
Don't rush: Clearing an area fully gives more resources than speedrunning two areas.

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