In Car Mechanic Simulator 2021, players can restore cars that are available in the game, whether if it is pre-installed, came from the downloadable content (DLC) car packs, or downloaded as a car mod from the Steam Workshop, using more than 4,000 car parts.
They can either sell it for additional profit and for future car projects, as well as added car parts and upgrades, or keep it as part of their garage collection.
They can also repair or restore different kinds of cars, ranging from classic Americana muscle cars to compact cars to sports cars to full-size sedans to hatchbacks to grand tourers to minicars.
One of the cars that are already available in the game is the Lacroix Fret, or real life, it is the Peugeot Partner, a panel van that was manufactured from 1996 to 2021 by the PSA Group, then later picked up by Stellantis to continue its production up until this day.
How to Restore a Lacroix Fret
Players can find, and buy, the Lacroix Fret in the Junkyard, the Car Salon, and the Car Auctions. Once they have purchased the van, according to Boblas' YouTube video, they will wash the body and the interior in the Car Wash, then move it to one of Car Lifts that are in the Garage.
From there, they will drain whatever oil that is remaining inside the engine using the Oil Drain machine, then they will drain the rest of the fluids that are in their respective reservoirs such as the brake fluid, the coolant, the power steering fluid, and the windshield washer fluid using the Drain Tool.
Once they finished draining the van's oil and the fluids, they will disassemble it, and get the parts needed to be repaired and replaced, until what is remaining on the Car Lift is the body frame, which they need to repair using the Wielding Machine.
Then, they will repair the van parts that they can still use in the restoration project by placing them on the Repair Tables that are on the Workshop. From there, they will play a minigame where they need to hit the green tabs in order to fully fix said parts.
On the other hand, the parts that are impossible to be repaired will be sold instead for additional Credits, which they can use to buy new replacement parts. If they bought the van in the Junkyard, they will also need to buy the missing parts.
Once they got the repaired and replaced parts, they can now start reassembling the whole Lacroix Fret van, starting with building its engine, which is an I4 DOHC BFM. They can also switch it with either an I4 SOHC ABT, an I4 DOHC AQC, an I3 DOHC, an I4 DOHC Turbocharger, or an I3 DOHC Turbocharger engine.
In order to do this on the Engine Stand, they will need the engine block, the crankshaft, the pistons with their rings, the rod caps, the crankshaft bearing caps, the oil pan, the oil filter, the flywheel, the clutch plate, the clutch pressure plate, and the clutch release bearing.
They will also need the engine head, the camshafts, the camshaft caps, the spark plugs, the engine head cover, the ignition coils, the exhaust manifold, the turbocharger, the intake manifold, the fuel injectors, the throttle, and the fuel filter.
They will also need the cam gears, the timing chain, the timing covers, the alternator, the power steering pump, the water pump, the idler rollers, the serpentine belts, the belt tensioner, and the crankshaft pulley.
Once they finished building the whole engine, they will remove it from the Engine Stand, then they will install it to the van's engine bay using the Engine Pulley.
Then, they will install the internal parts such as the gearbox, the starter, the reservoirs, the battery, the brake servo, the ECU type A, the air filter with the base and cover, the fuse box and cover with the new relays and fuses, the radiator with the fan, the fuel tank and pump, and the ABS pump and module.
Then, they will install the rest of the parts, including those for the exhaust pipes, the suspension, and the braking system, as well as the tires and rims, the body kit including the doors, the windshield and other glass panels for the door, the lights, and the parts for the interior such as the seats and the steering wheel.
Once they finished reassembling the whole van, they will fill the engine and the reservoirs with the new batch of oil and other fluids, then they will paint the body with the color of their choice in the Paint Booth.
Then, they will move the van to the Test Path room to realign the lights and the wheels, as well as to test the newly-installed braking system.
Then, they will move it to the Dyno Test room to tune up the gears in the gearbox and do a dyno test to check the performance of the newly-built engine. Once they are satisfied with results, they can test drive their own Lacroix Fret, which they can either keep for their collection or sell it for additional Credit.
