Vehicle Damage

A damaged Audi RS4 (B7) in Midnight Club: Los Angeles.

Function

A 1999 Nissan Skyline GT-R V-Spec having been damaged out.

Vehicle damage is a feature that has appeared in every game in the Midnight Club series to date. It serves as an obstacle to prevent players from freely ramming their cars through objects without repercussions. Players can monitor their damage via some sort of meter on the HUD.

Damaged out

If a vehicle receives too much damage, the vehicle will no longer operate properly. In Midnight Club: Street Racing, and Midnight Club: Los Angeles, this results in an instant loss for the player, no matter the position of the racer. Vehicles can also be instantly damaged out if they are downed in deep water, or driven into a gas pump.

Midnight Club: Street Racing

Damage first makes its appearance in Midnight Club: Street Racing. It can be monitored by a meter in the bottom right of the HUD. The more damage taken, the more the bar will begin to fill. When the vehicle is at critical health, the meter will begin flashing. Vehicles will begin to deform and bend based on the severity of the collision and where it 's located. When moderately damaged, vehicles will begin to emit grey smoke and a knocking noise will be emitted from the engine. At higher levels the smoke will begin to darken and become heavier while the knocking noise becomes louder. Sometimes a wheel will loosen but this is purely visual and has no effect on performance.

Midnight Club: II

Damage retains its function from the first game. As the car collides with more and more objects the damage meter begins to increase. Damage can be viewed in the bottom right of the screen above the tachometer. Unlike the first game, the damage meter is now split into 11 color coded segments, each color signifying the severity of the damage. There are 4 green, 3 yellow, 2 orange, and 2 red segments. Visually damage does not appear until the vehicle reaches the yellow zone of damage.

Unlike the original Midnight Club parts don't deform and bend the same way they used to. Damage is now static, however front panels, like hoods and wheel arches can be knocked off. Along with roofs caving in. Much like before, smoke begins to appear after the player reaches a certain level of damage, with sparks and flames appearing near critical. Another new addition includes the ability for vehicles to explode if the collision that damaged out the vehicle is violent enough.

Midnight Club: Los Angeles

Damage retains its function from the previous three games. As the player collides with more stuff, the meter continues to fill red. If the bar fills completely, their vehicle will be damaged out. The player will be shown trying to start their car's engine or be knocked off their bike.

Sport bikes are known to take more damage a lot easier than cars, this can be evident when doing Goal Attacks, as every Goal Attack requires the player to finish first under a target time with less than 25% damage.

The player can repair every time before restarting or continuing to another race. However, unlike repairing in a gas station or in a garage, certain parts will be completely black or scratched.