My Summer Car: Survival and Build Guide

How to survive a 1995 Finnish summer in My Summer Car: staying alive (the game has permadeath), building the Satsuma without losing your mind, earning money, passing inspection, and the mistakes that end most first saves.

Researched September 2026 — current as of the 1.0 release line (left Early Access 8 January 2025; last patch 21 September 2025). Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

Quick Start

1. Permadeath is real. When you die, your save is gone. Back up your save folder manually before risky things like drunk driving or first test drives.
2. Save at home. Saving is tied to your house, not a menu button. Build the habit of saving every time you get home.
3. Your survival needs matter. Hunger, thirst, fatigue, stress, dirtiness and a full bladder all affect you. Ignore them and you pass out or die.
4. The Satsuma starts in hundreds of loose parts. You assemble the engine and car yourself. Expect your first build to take hours and to need troubleshooting.
5. Every bolt must be tightened. Loose bolts are the number one cause of parts falling off, leaks and engines that won't run.
6. Use the other vehicles first. The van, tractor and moped get you groceries and jobs while the Satsuma is in pieces.
7. Money comes from odd jobs. Emptying septic wells, delivering firewood, hauling junk cars, picking strawberries, and other small gigs keep you fed and fueled.
8. Obey the law early. Police checkpoints exist, driving drunk or uninspected gets you fined or jailed, and knocking down people is treated as attempted manslaughter.
9. The car needs inspection before you can legally drive it and enter the rally.
10. The sequel exists. My Winter Car entered Early Access on 29 December 2025. My Summer Car still gets occasional fixes, but no major new features.

Setting and Status

My Summer Car is set in the fictional Finnish region of Alivieska, around the lake Peräjärvi, in summer 1995. It spent eight years in Early Access (from 24 October 2016) before its 1.0 release on 8 January 2025. Amistech has said to expect important patches when necessary but no major feature changes. The game switched to DX11 in January 2022; an older DX9 build may be offered if needed.

Recent patches (September 2025):

• Thunderstorms made less severe on average.
• A windshield tax sticker is now required for passenger cars.
• Installing the alternator or starter can shock you if the battery is not disconnected.
• Some store prices keep rising until you deliver enough store product adverts.
• Highway AI cars should now avoid stationary player vehicles.
• Fixes to alternator and starter hotwiring and to fish trap logic.

Staying Alive

Survival Needs

Keep a stock of food and drinks at home so you don't have to drive to the shop hungry.

Common Ways to Die

• Car crashes, especially at night, drunk, or in a car with loose steering or brakes.
• Electrocution when working on the electrical system with the battery connected.
• Drowning and falling from heights.
• Starving or dehydrating on long jobs.
• Getting hit by traffic while on foot.
• Neglecting needs until you pass out somewhere dangerous.

Death places funeral candles at your crash site; it also wipes your save. Back up your save folder regularly.

Law and Order

• Police checkpoints can stop you. Drunk driving or driving an uninspected, unregistered car can lead to fines or jail.
• A prison tattoo has consequences; for example Grandma pays you less.
• Running over NPCs is a serious crime. Driving over a rally spectator also earns a jail sentence.

Vehicles You Can Use

The Ferndale muscle car can also be borrowed; since the December 2024 patch Fleetari takes it and its keys back if you keep it too long. There is also a wasp-infested station wagon in the world, and wasps can now fly into the house if you leave doors open.

Small Rules That Catch People Out (from official patch notes)

• Moped fuel: consumption was increased in December 2024, so don't assume a full tank lasts all week.
• Helmet: you can't answer the phone with the helmet on or with both hands full.
• Bees: bees hit the moped helmet visor (a splat effect was added in December 2024), so wear it.
• Rally starts: a "flying start" check and penalty were added in December 2024.
• Police checkpoints: checkpoint areas were made safer in December 2024, but they still stop drunk and uninspected drivers.
• Jail: sentences last in-game days (the jail has a TV); your cousin can even end up as your cellmate.
• Odometers were reset in the January 2025 patch, so old saves show fresh readings.

Building the Satsuma

The Satsuma AMP (based on the Datsun 100A) arrives as a shell and piles of parts in your garage. The game gives no step-by-step instructions, so a structured approach saves hours.

General Build Rules

1. Work in a logical order. Assemble the engine block and internals, then the engine's external parts, then mount the engine, then suspension, brakes, electrics and body panels.
2. Tighten every bolt after placing a part. Most parts have multiple bolts, each needing the right spanner or ratchet size. Hovering a bolt tells you if it is tight.
3. Use the engine hoist to lift the finished engine into the car.
4. Disconnect the battery before installing the alternator or starter, or you risk an electric shock (added in the September 2025 patch).
5. Wiring matters. Missing or unconnected wiring means no ignition, no lights, no charging.
6. Double-check before first start. Look for missing parts, loose bolts and empty fluids before cranking.

Fluids to Fill

• Engine oil (and check the oil pan is bolted, or it leaks).
• Coolant in the radiator.
• Brake fluid and clutch fluid.
• Fuel.

Low or missing fluids destroy the engine or leave you without brakes.

Tuning and Troubleshooting

When the engine will not start or runs badly, check these in order:

1. Battery charge and connections. A flat battery is the most common no-start. Charge it at home.
2. Fuel in the tank and fuel reaching the carburetor.
3. Spark plugs fitted and tightened.
4. Ignition timing at the distributor. Adjust it until the engine runs smoothly.
5. Carburetor mixture. Too rich or too lean causes stalling, poor power or overheating.
6. Valve clearances. Adjust the valve adjustment screws; badly adjusted valves hurt power and can damage the engine.
7. Loose bolts anywhere in the drivetrain.

Tune in small steps and test each change. If you are unsure about a setting, community guides and wikis list exact values.

Wear and Maintenance

• Parts wear over time and eventually fail.
• Replace worn parts with new ones ordered from the parts catalog (delivered by snail mail) or bought locally.
• Fleetari's repair shop can service and fix vehicles for a fee if you don't want to do everything yourself.

Making Money

Money is tight early. The jobs listed by the game's own description and Wikipedia include:

• Emptying septic tanks and waste wells with the Gifu vacuum truck.
• Delivering firewood using the Kekmet tractor.
• Hauling junk cars for cash.
• Picking strawberries.
• Brewing kilju (homemade alcohol) to sell.
• Driving Grandma to and from church.
• Delivering store product adverts for Teimo (which also stops some price increases).
• Fetching a drunk neighbour home from the pub, one of the side jobs Wikipedia lists.

Job-by-Job Notes

Since the January 2025 patch, a waste well can sometimes pay in full even if it was only partly full, so the septic job is one of the better early earners.

Tips:

• Do the reliable jobs first; they fund food, fuel and parts.
• Pay attention to job timing; some jobs have limited windows.
• Don't overspend on upgrades until the car runs and passes inspection.

Inspection, Tax Sticker and the Rally

1. Get the car running, driving, braking and with working lights.
2. Get the windshield tax sticker (required as of the September 2025 patch).
3. Take the car to inspection. Failures list what is wrong; fix and return.
4. Once inspected, you can drive legally and enter the weekend rally for prize money.

Rally tips:

• Rally-spec parts and a well-tuned engine matter, but a clean run matters more.
• Don't jump the start; a "flying start" penalty exists.
• Watch out for spectators; hitting one gets you jailed.

Upgrading the Satsuma

After it passes inspection, you can:

• Tune it toward rally performance (suspension, tyres and engine parts).
• Build an "obnoxious bass-boom disco machine" with subwoofers (as the store page puts it).
• Restore it to perfect factory condition.

Parts come by mail order, so plan ahead.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Not backing up saves. Permadeath catches everyone once.
• Leaving bolts loose. Check every part.
• Working on electrics with the battery connected.
• Driving the Satsuma before checking brakes and fluids.
• Drunk driving or driving uninspected past police.
• Running out of food and money during a long build.
• Buying upgrades before the car runs reliably.
• Ignoring wear until a part fails at speed.

Advanced Tips

• Test drive in daylight on quiet roads with the van nearby for towing.
• Keep a towing rope in the van. Retrieving a dead Satsuma is a regular chore.
• Use the tractor or van for jobs so your project car isn't at risk.
• Mods: community mod loaders such as MSCLoader and many mods exist. They can break after patches and may corrupt saves, so back up before installing.
• Hardware: the game supports steering wheels and shifters.
• Try My Winter Car once you've mastered this one; it is set in the same area in winter 1999, with a new project car (the Corris Rivett) and ice racing on the frozen lake.

FAQ

Is My Summer Car finished? Yes. It left Early Access on 8 January 2025. It still gets bug fixes but no major new features.

How do I save? Saving is done at your house. Save every time you get home, and back up your save files manually.

Why won't my Satsuma start? Usually a flat or disconnected battery, missing fuel, loose bolts, missing wiring, or bad ignition timing and carburetor settings.

Is there a sequel? Yes, My Winter Car entered Early Access on Steam on 29 December 2025.

How do I make money early? Septic well jobs with the Gifu, firewood with the tractor, junk car hauling, strawberry picking and kilju.

Do I need a steering wheel? No, but the game supports wheels and shifters, and many players prefer them.

Can I lose my save to death? Yes. Death is permanent and removes your save.

Sources

• My Summer Car on Steam
• My Summer Car – Wikipedia
• My Summer Car Steam news and patch notes