Read the palette before you build
The current core catalogue combines 12 Basic parts with 160 Special parts. The Basic tab is intentionally compact: common blocks, plates, slopes, round shapes, a wide foundation plate, an axle block, and several footprints cover the first structural decisions. The Special tab contains the much broader collection of running gear, bodywork, vehicle systems, and themed shapes. Every current public part belongs to the core content registry and can be used in Career-eligible builds.
Each palette card shows a name and size label, while the part preview and usage hint help explain its likely role. Search matches names and role words. Specialist filters narrow the visible set, suggested search presets jump to useful groups, and the recently used row keeps repeated parts close at hand. These tools change what the palette displays; they do not remove parts from an existing build.
Inspect a part before committing it when its silhouette or footprint is unfamiliar. The detail preview rotates a procedural representation and shows the current part information without placing anything. After selection, move the pointer into the workspace and use the placement ghost, orientation label, size, and support feedback together. A visually small center point can belong to a long axle, wing, rail, or plate whose footprint needs more open cells.
Build the foundation with Basic parts
Basic blocks create height and compact solid volumes. Plates cover wider or longer areas with less vertical bulk, making them useful for a floor, chassis rail, cross-member, or broad mounting surface. The 4 by 6 Wide Plate can establish a stable footprint quickly, while long and narrow pieces help define wheelbase and side rails. Slopes introduce a nose, roof transition, or body taper after the rectangular volume is secure.
Begin near the lowest layer and leave open space where running gear will attach. Two lengthwise rails connected by cross-members are easier to inspect than a solid mass of hidden blocks. Cross-members also create several supported top surfaces for later layers. If a tall cabin or equipment stack is planned, widen the base before raising it. The stability estimate considers the footprint and height relationship, so moving dense structure lower can be more useful than adding decoration around a narrow tower.
Basic does not mean functionless. A clear foundation determines whether wheels and axles can sit symmetrically, whether connector targets remain reachable, and whether the placement system sees useful supported cells. Use the Camera tool to orbit under and around the frame. A gap hidden from the default view can leave the next layer partially supported or floating.
Shape the machine with Special parts
Running gear and control
The Special palette includes road wheels, racing tyres, off-road tyres, rims, train wheelsets, axles, drive shafts, steering racks, knuckles, control arms, suspension-shaped pieces, hubs, joints, and connectors. Their names describe the game role and visual identity; they do not claim real mechanical simulation. Wheels contribute to contact and readiness counts, axle and drive parts contribute to the drivetrain path, and steering pieces identify control support for the aggregate Ramp model.
Body, glass, and aero
Slopes and wedges shape noses, roofs, hoods, cabins, rocket forms, and heat-shield silhouettes. Glass parts cover windshields, windows, canopies, cockpit domes, lamp lenses, and light bars. Wing forms cover front and rear wings, spoilers, diffusers, fins, aircraft wings, and tail surfaces. Aero-labelled parts contribute to the game model's aero assessment, but they do not calculate real fluid dynamics.
Utility and themed families
The catalogue also supports rally, off-road, service, construction, rail, aircraft, spacecraft, and exploration ideas. Tracks, sprockets, lattice booms, winches, outriggers, buckets, conveyor shapes, sirens, stretchers, hose reels, cargo ramps, rotor guards, docking ports, arrays, thrusters, and handrails help communicate an original machine's purpose. Use them as readable modules rather than scattering detail across an unfinished frame.
Several families have distinct procedural geometry instead of sharing a plain box. Wedges use sloped surfaces, wings use tapered forms, springs use a coil with a center damper, crawler tracks include tread pads and side sprockets, seats include a base and bolsters, and lamps use housings with visible lenses. These visuals improve recognition. The Ramp remains the documented single-chassis stat simulation rather than a per-part deformation model.
Connect functional socket roles
Functional fit is more specific than ordinary support. A part can rest on the frame without completing a wheel, drive, steering, or connector relationship. During placement, the builder checks nearby compatible hotspots and distinguishes an exact socket match from weaker pin support. Socket markers and a short fit label identify the candidate relationship before you click.
Select the functional part, hover near the intended assembly, and inspect the socket candidate. The dedicated Socket button aligns the selected part to the best compatible available target. Generic Snap Best instead prioritizes a safe supported placement and may not complete the functional chain. Manual movement is still available when you want to choose another valid layout.
Wheel hubs and axle ends intentionally meet at the same functional connection cell. Socket placement allows that matched relationship while keeping collision protection against unrelated occupied cells. If no compatible open target exists, the Socket action remains unavailable. Add or rotate the required counterpart, move the surrounding body out of the way, and try again.
Use layers and support deliberately
Brick Garage places parts on a grid with vertical layers. The active placement layer appears in the nudge controls and status rail. Floor returns the preview to the lowest layer, Above uses the top of the selected part as a starting layer, and the plus or minus controls move the preview layer directly. Selected parts can also be nudged up or down by one layer when the destination is valid.
Support quality describes the proposed placement. Fully supported means the footprint has broad contact with the floor or existing structure. Partially supported means only part of that footprint has support. Floating means the part has no adequate support beneath it, and blocked means the placement conflicts with occupied space or another safety rule. A status is feedback about the current grid assembly, not a real-world structural analysis.
Relaxed mode permits otherwise valid floating experiments, which is useful for conceptual aircraft, detached reference shapes, or temporary layout work. Strict mode prevents unsupported floating placement and encourages connected construction. Switching modes does not rearrange existing parts. If you want a test-focused chassis, strict mode is a useful discipline, but you should still inspect socket readiness, proportions, and calculated statistics separately.
Keep dense parts close to the base and distribute them between the front and rear areas instead of concentrating every heavy component above one axle. A wider footprint can improve the stability estimate, while extra parts also add estimated mass. Check several camera angles, especially the underside and roof line, before building upward. Hidden pieces that add mass without useful support may make a later Ramp result harder to interpret.
Understand what parts change in the Ramp model
A prepared snapshot converts the build into aggregate game statistics. The documented Ramp inputs include wheel count, axle and drivetrain support, steering, aero, braking, mass, and stability. The simulation uses those inputs to tune one chassis collider and shared launch, friction, linear damping, and angular damping values. It does not calculate independent collisions, suspension travel, tyre deformation, or breakage for each visible brick.
Mass is a trade-off rather than an automatic penalty. More structure can support a wider, lower chassis, but unnecessary bulk can reduce momentum in a short or stalled run. Stability reflects factors such as footprint, height, wheels, and part count. Aero and braking have their own contributions, yet neither replaces a sound frame or functional running gear. The best design depends on the goal of the next run.
Use preflight warnings as a compact audit. Missing wheels, weak drive, low stability, heavy mass, tall proportions, and low aero margin each suggest a different edit. After the run, tuning hints map a fall toward widening or lowering the chassis, a stall toward wheel and drivetrain support, and a heavy short run toward trimming bulk. A strong stable run may call for smaller mass or aero adjustments instead of a rebuild.
Compare one change at a time. Save a baseline, prepare it, run with a chosen start push, and record the finish reason. Duplicate the design before changing a major module. Prepare the new version and use the same push. The current-versus-best panel compares wheels, drive, stability, mass, aero, and braking, but the best score is not the only useful outcome. A more stable finish or longer clean distance may be the better result for your chosen goal.
A practical part-selection checklist
- Choose Basic plates or blocks that establish the intended footprint and wheelbase.
- Reserve open cells for wheel, axle, steering, and connector targets.
- Add cross-members and inspect support from the underside before raising the body.
- Use Socket for compatible functional fits and Snap Best for general supported placement.
- Keep dense components low, then add glass, body shaping, aero, and readable details.
- Prepare a fresh snapshot after edits and use Ramp feedback to select the next single change.
Read the complete how-to-play guide for saving, Ramp controls, Career progression, and BR1 remix sharing, or return to Brick Garage to start a build.