Why won't my shovel go on the Tool Rack?
The game files list the Shovel for the Tool Rack, but players report that only the Grinder and the Polisher hang reliably. We have not found the reason; keep the shovel on the floor or a shelf.
Nomad Drive Furniture
Nomad Drive furniture and loose items can go almost anywhere in your RV, and what you place stays put while you drive. This guide covers where things fit in each vehicle, what the Tool Rack holds, how the fridge and cooler keep food fresh, and how to clean your RV and get rid of rust.
How does furniture work in Nomad Drive?
Hold an item, choose Place, and it snaps onto a surface; once placed it stays put while you drive.
- Floors and roof racks take anything, furniture included.
- The dashboard takes small things only: no furniture, stoves or cooking pot.
- Outside walls take photos, pictures, license plates, the interior ladder and the Tool Rack.
- The Tool Rack hangs on a wall. The game lists seven tools for it, but players report that only the grinder and polisher hang reliably.
- Fridge and cooler shelves stop fresh food spoiling, and they do not need power.
- Cleaning: a dirty sponge washes clean on a bucket of water, rain rinses the vehicle, and rust has to be ground off before you paint.
Nomad Drive furniture facts
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| While driving | Items and furniture you place on a vehicle stay put. Source: The game's text. |
| Floor and roof rack | Take anything, furniture included. Source: The game files. |
| Tool Rack | Lists the Grinder, Polisher, Crowbar, Flashlight, Metal Detector, Pan and Shovel; players report only the Grinder and Polisher hang. Source: The game files and players on Steam. |
| Fridge and Cooler | Fresh food on their shelves stops spoiling; no power needed. Source: The game's text and code. |
| Dirty sponge | Put it on a bucket with water in it. Source: The game's code. |
| Rust | Grind it off before you paint. Source: The game's text. |
How to place furniture and items
Take the item in your hands, then use Place to enter placement mode. Confirm Placement puts it down and Cancel Placement backs out. The keys are the ones the game shows on screen.
The game's tip for turning things reads: "While placing an item, press the rotate keys to turn it a neat quarter-turn."
Items snap onto surfaces rather than floating anywhere. If something will not go down, the game tells you why:
- "Too big for this surface"
- "Too tall to fit here"
- "Too small to stack here"
- "This stack is already tall enough"
Where things go in your RV
Each RV has a floor, shelves, a dashboard and walls, and each kind of surface takes different things.
| Surface | What it takes |
|---|---|
| Floor and loading space | Anything, furniture included |
| Roof Rack (once built) | Anything, furniture included |
| Shelves | Items and furniture that fit, no vehicles |
| Dashboard | Small items only: no furniture, no stoves, no cooking pot |
| Outside walls | Photo, Picture, Plate (license plate), Interior Ladder I and the Tool Rack |
| Hood and bumpers | Plate only |
The inside walls are set differently in each vehicle:
| Vehicle | Inside walls take |
|---|---|
| Hippie Van | Pan, Picture, Plate, Photo, Cleaning Sponge, Tool Rack, Tow Hitch, Crowbar, First Aid Kit and tires |
| C-Class RV | Dining chairs, keys, Interior Ladder I, Pan, Picture, Plate, Photo, Cleaning Sponge and kitchen wall cabinets |
| School Bus | Dining chairs, keys, Interior Ladder I, Pan, Picture, Plate, Photo, Cleaning Sponge, Tool Rack, Tow Hitch, Crowbar, First Aid Kit and tires |
| Retro RV | Its main body surface takes anything in the game files |
| Motorcycle | No walls; its luggage spot takes small items, like a dashboard |
The Roof Rack has to be built with a Roof Rack Blueprint first; our blueprints guide shows how. The full list of furniture and where each piece turns up is on our items list, and the five vehicles are on our vehicles list.
Does furniture fall over while driving?
No. The game's tip "Cargo Stays Put" reads: "Items and furniture you place on a vehicle's floor, shelves, dashboard or roof rack stay put while you drive. Walls take furniture and tools too."
The tip covers items you place with Place and Confirm Placement, so use placement mode for anything you want to ride along.
How to use the Nomad Drive tool rack
The Tool Rack is a wall rack for tools. Hang it first, then hang tools on it.
- Hang the rack. Place the Tool Rack on a wall: the outside wall of any of the four RVs, or the inside wall of the Hippie Van or the School Bus. In the C-Class RV it only goes on the outside.
- Hang a tool. Hold the tool and place it on the front of the rack.
What it holds. The game files list seven tools for the Tool Rack: the Grinder, the Polisher, the Crowbar, the Flashlight, the Metal Detector, the Pan and the Shovel.
What players report. Players say only the Grinder and the Polisher hang reliably. In the demo in June, a player found that the shovel, the metal detector and the crowbar would not attach; in Early Access on October 28 another could not hang a shovel or a tire. We have not found why the larger tools do not hang, so if a tool will not go on, keep it on the floor or a shelf.
Tires and the Crowbar can also go straight onto the inside walls of the Hippie Van and the School Bus, without a rack.
Nomad Drive fridge and cooler
The game's tip "Keep It Cold" reads: "Put fresh food on a fridge shelf and it stops spoiling."
Every Fridge and every Cooler in the game has these cold shelves. Food stays fresh while it sits on the shelf, or in a stack resting on it. The game's code only checks that the food is on a cold shelf, so a fridge does not need a battery or generator to keep food fresh.
For cooking and eating, see our beginner guide to food and cooking.
How to clean the RV and remove rust
Your vehicle gets dirty as you drive, and rust spreads if you leave it. Three tools and the weather deal with it.
- Cleaning Sponge: scrubs dirt off. It gets dirty as you use it. To clean it, put it on top of a Bucket with water in it; it slowly comes clean and uses up some of the water. The bucket has to hold water, not another drink.
- Rain: the game's tip "Rain Rinse" reads: "Leave your vehicle out in the rain and it slowly washes clean, faster the harder it rains. Parked under a roof, it stays dirty."
- Grinder: grinds off rust.
- Polisher: polishes the body.
Order matters when you paint. The game warns "Dirty surface: clean first" and "Rusty surface: grind first", and its tip "Rust First" reads: "Paint over rust and it won't fully cover, and the rust creeps back. Grind it off first, then paint."
The Grinder and the Polisher both run on a charge that runs out as you use them.
Version notes and limits
- Not tested in play: where things fit, the Tool Rack list, the cold shelves and the sponge come from the game's files and code.
- Not checked: why the larger tools do not hang on the Tool Rack, the size limits in real units, and whether the Retro RV's main body surface is its inside wall.
- Refresh trigger: we recheck this page when a patch changes placing, the Tool Rack, the fridge or cleaning.
For the rest of the game, start at our Nomad Drive guide hub.
FAQ
Does the fridge need power?
No. Fresh food on a fridge or cooler shelf stops spoiling, and the game's code does not check for power.
Can you clean the sponge and use it again?
Yes. Put the dirty Cleaning Sponge on top of a Bucket with water in it and it slowly comes clean.
Will furniture fall over while driving?
No. Items and furniture you place on a vehicle's floor, shelves, dashboard or roof rack stay put while you drive, and walls take furniture and tools too.
Can you put furniture on the roof?
Yes, once the vehicle has a Roof Rack. It takes anything, furniture included.
How do you get rust off the RV?
Use the Grinder to grind the rust off, then paint. Paint over rust does not fully cover, and the rust comes back.
Sources and version history for this guide: Nomad Drive sources and versions.
Spot an error or a post-patch change? See how we label evidence and handle corrections in the Editorial Policy.