strHandlingFlags
Handling flags
strHandlingFlags is a 32-bit field written as hex that switches vehicle behaviours on: the CVT gearbox, the off-road power bonus, armour, rear-wheel steering and others. Half of all vanilla cars leave it at 0.
- Format
- hex, no 0x
- 32 bits, 1 = on
- Vanilla at 0
- 318 of 608
- most cars set nothing
- Most used
- TYRES_CAN_CLIP
- 170 cars, bit 17
- Applies
- respawn
- read when the car is created
Decode a value
Paste the value from a handling.meta, or pick a vanilla car, and the bits light up. The counts on the right say how many of the 608 vanilla cars use each bit.
Only bits 12, 20 and 21 change the straight-line model. The rest change collisions, steering or damage, which the gauges cannot show.
How to read a value
The field is one number written in hexadecimal without a 0x prefix. Each bit is a switch; bit 0 is the rightmost. To combine bits, add their hex values: CVT is bit 12 (1000), the strong off-road bonus is bit 21 (200000), and a car with both writes 201000.
- Bit n as hex
- 1 shifted left n times, e.g. bit 12 = 0x1000
- Combine
- add the hex values, or tick the boxes above
- Sultan
- 0 in the file, pick it above and every box is empty
The bits that change speed
Three bits feed the straight-line model. HF_CVT (bit 12) replaces the gearbox with a single 0.9 ratio and caps the car at 1.2 × fInitialDriveMaxFlatVel. HF_OFFROAD_ABILITIES (bit 20) adds about 10 % drive force, HF_OFFROAD_ABILITIES_X2 (bit 21) about 20 %. Those two are the hidden reason some off-roaders out-accelerate cars with better numbers.
HF_HAS_RALLY_TYRES (bit 3) changes the grip curve: it starts at fTractionCurveMin and builds with slip, the rally-tyre feel. HF_REDUCED_MOD_MASS (bit 1) makes tuning parts add less fMass, which is on 84 modern sports and super cars.
Setting flags on a server
Flags are read when the vehicle is created, so the file is the normal route. FiveM can also set them globally before a spawn; the native takes the hex as a string. Setting them on an already spawned vehicle has no effect for the bits that are read at creation.
SetHandlingField('SULTAN', 'CHandlingData', 'strHandlingFlags', '201000')Related fields
- strModelFlags
Build switches read when the vehicle is created: ABS, axle types, twin rear wheels, hatchback.
Read the page - nInitialDriveGears
Number of forward gears. The ratios come from a fixed table per count, so this decides how the speed range is split.
Read the page - fInitialDriveForce
How hard the engine pushes per kilogram. Roughly 10 m/s² of acceleration per 1.0 in first gear, before drag and grip limits.
Read the page - fTractionCurveMin
Grip once the slide has started. Keep it about 10 % under the peak; above the peak the curve breaks.
In the index
Numbers on this page come from the vanilla handling files of GTA V (one entry per handling name, 55 fields catalogued) and from a speed model checked against 617 measured top speeds. Published 2026-09-08. Not affiliated with Rockstar Games or Cfx.re.