How To install Mods (Correctly)

Introduction

If you’ve spent any time tearing up West Coast, Italy, or Jungle Rock Island, you already know that mods make BeamNG.drive truly shine. Whether it’s a hand-built drift map, a new turbocharged I-Series, or a custom scenario pack, installing mods correctly can make or break your experience.

This guide covers how to properly install third-party BeamNG mods, how to organize them, and how to troubleshoot issues when something doesn’t quite work.

📦 Step 1: Understand Where Mods Go

BeamNG mods are stored in one of two places, depending on how they’re installed:

🧩 Option 1: In-Game Repository Mods

When you subscribe via the in-game “Repository” or BeamNG.com Mods section the game goes to this folder:

BeamNG.drive\mods\repo

These are automatically managed by the game. You don’t need to touch them manually.

🧰 Option 2: Manual / Third-Party Mods

When downloading mods from sites like:

BeamNG.com forums (most reliable)

ModLand, ModDB, RaceDepartment, etc. (use with caution)

You’ll often get a .zip file.
These should be placed directly in your mods folder:

\BeamNG.drive\mods

✅ Important:
Do not unzip the file unless specifically told to by the mod creator. BeamNG loads .zip mods automatically.

🗂️ Step 2: File Structure

Let’s say you downloaded custom_drift_map.zip.

Inside that .zip, you should see a proper folder structure like this:

levels/
custom_drift_map/
main.level.json
info.json
art/
...

If you open the ZIP and see another folder first (like custom_drift_map/custom_drift_map/...), that’s a nested structure and BeamNG won’t recognize it.

👉 Fix:
Open the ZIP, go one level deeper until you find the “levels/vehicles” folders, and then re-zip that inner folder’s contents.

🔧 Step 3: Enable the Mod

Launch BeamNG.drive

Go to Repository → Mods Manager

Make sure your new mod shows up and is Enabled ✅

Restart the game to ensure it fully loads

🧼 Step 4: Clearing the Cache (When Things Break)

If mods don’t show up, textures go missing, or BeamNG starts acting weird:

Open BeamNG Launcher

Click “Manage User Folder” → “Clear Cache”

Restart BeamNG

This fixes 90% of mod-related problems.

💡 Step 5: Best Practices for Stability

Keep backups of your favorite mods

Avoid mods from sketchy sources (they can break your game or include malware)

Don’t mix old BeamNG mods (pre-0.25) with new versions

Remove duplicate mods (two vehicle mods with the same internal name = crash city)

Keep your game and mods up to date