The Official Grand Theft Auto Modding Thread

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Welcome to the Official Grand Theft Auto Modding Thread! This will be for modding discussion and assistance.

Note: All of this was done in Vice City; GTA3 should be the same, only different programs might be needed.


Warning! May cause problems with your game! Be sure to backup critical files!


What you need:




  • A Copy of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City or Grand Theft Auto III for the PC.
  • A .dff file and .txd file or a .vcm for the car you want to install.
  • The Handling.cfg line , default.ide line, and carcols.dat line (usually included in .zip or .rar file) (not needed if you are going the file is .VCM
  • Vice City Mod Manager (If you want to do the modding the easy way)
  • Vice City Mod Packager (also for the easy way)
  • REspawn's IMG tool (If you want to modding the hard way)
  • Notepad (comes with windows)
  • Backups of 3 files (...\Vice City folder\models\gta3.img, ...\Vice City Folder\data\carcols.dat, and ...\Vice City Folder\data\default.ide)
The Easy Way: (not for GTA3)
I prefer this way, since it is a lot easier to uninstall and install cars quickly. When using VCMM, you must activate DMagic1's Wheel mod, or it will not work. It comes with VCMM.


If you download a car, and it is in .VCM format:
  1. Put .vcm file into \Vice City Mod Manager\Mods\vcm\
  2. Run VCMM
  3. Double click on the car you want to install
  4. Select a car to replace (note: The engine sounds will stay the same, so choose accordingly)
  5. Run Vice City
  6. When you are done with the mod and want to uninstall it, simply double click on the installed mod in VCMM.
If you download a car and it is in two or three files, (.dff, .txd, and maybe a .col):

  1. Make sure you have the Vice City Mod Packager.
  2. Run Vice City Mod Packager
  3. Enter name of the mod and the Author (please, if you ever plan to distribute this VCM to the internet, give credit to the author(s) of the car and then VCM by :yournamehere:
  4. Enter a short description. Make a blank text file for the full description. Use this txt file for all of the VCMs, if you want.
  5. Enter the path to a 171x128 jpeg for a thumbnail. You can use a blank thumbnail, if you want. It must be exactly 171x128. You can use the same jpeg for the screenshot.
  6. Choose Car Modification/Replacement radio button
  7. Enter the paths to the .dff and .txd (included in the car's .zip or .rar). The .txd and .dff files will be named after an in-game car (i.e., infernus.dff). Choose the corresponding .col data from the car that the filenames are named after.

    • If your car came with a .col file, follow these steps:
      1. Copy and paste the .col file into the ...\VCMP\tools directory
      2. Run dumpcol
      3. Type in filename of .col file and click dump to .clp
      4. Copy the created .clp file into the ...\VCMP\include\coll directory
      5. In VCMM, choose the .clp's filename in the .col data dropdown
    [*]Look in car’s readme.txt file for handling.cfg, default.ide and carcol.dat lines. Turn off word wrap and copy entire lines into boxes in VCMM. (If the remade file does not include these lines, choose the car that the filenames are named after in the dropdowns.)
    [*]Enter the name of the car in the last box (be warned, depending on your resolutions, these names might not appear clearly in vice city if they’re too long.)
    [*]Hit next and save the file in the …\Vice City Mod Manager\mods\vcm\ directory.
    [*]You can now turn on the mod using VCMM, which was explained above!
    ​
Enjoy!

The Hard Way (Manual Install) (Thanks to GTChamp2003)

I'm going to write how i installed a car manually and you just copy what i did.
Now the car we are going to install will be this one.It's a Ferrari Enzo.Pick a download server and download the car.Now extract the contents of the RAR file using WinRAR.When you have done that you will see four files(banshee (for ferrari enzo ferrari),(Ferrari Enzo.dff),(Ferrari Enzo.txd) and Ferrari Enzo Ferrari Setups.I will explain the last one later.

First thing you've got to do is download this.It's called a CollEditor.With it you can edit the collision files.When the download is complete extract the files from the .zip.Now open the Collision File Editor.Ignore the options on the right side for now.First go to File and then Load,it should automatically open the coll folder,if not you can manually set the path wich on my PC is:C:\Program Files\Rockstar Games\Grand Theft Auto Vice City\models\coll
After you've done that load the vehicles file using the colleditor.You should now see all the vehicle names and their collison animation below.Now do the following,find the banshee and delete it by clicking on the delete button on the right side.After you have done that import the collision file that came with the Ferrari Enzo.Do that by clicking on the Import button on the right side and locate the Ferrari Enzo folder and open the banshee file.A menu should now pop up and you will be able to select the banshee collision file,click on it and then click on import.You have now succesfully imported a collision file.Now click on Save and then when asked click on Yes.You can now turn the colleditor off.

For the following part you will need the IMG tool wich you can find in the first post of this thread.What you do is open the IMG tool and click on File>Open and it should automatically locate the gta3.IMG file.If not you can find it in the GTA Vice City Models folder.Now open the gta3.img file using the IMG Tool.Next thing you do is click on Edit and then on Find.Type in banshee.dff.You should now see both the banshee.dff and .txd files.Right-click on both of them and click on delete.After you have deleted both you can now click on Commands and then on Add.Find the two files that came with the Ferrari Enzo.Before you import them rename the Ferrari Enzo.dff to banshee.dff and Ferrari Enzo.txd to banshee.txd.Now you can import them both using Command>Add.After you have done that close the IMG tool.

Now for the last part.
Open the text file that came with the Ferrari Enzo.Scroll a little bit down and you should first see the DEFAULT IDE ENTRY.Now go to the Vice City folder and in the Data folder open the default.IDE file using notepad.When you have done that scroll down untill you find the line for the banshee.The files are numbered so it's easy to find.Look for number 159 and you should find it.Now what you do is change the properties in the default.IDE to match those in the text file that came with the Enzo.You could also delete the line in the default.IDE and copy the one from the Enzo text file.After you have done that save the file and exit.

The next line in the Enzo text file is the HANDLING IDE ENTRY.
This time open the Handling.IDE file wich is also located in the data folder.The same thing applies here.Find the banshee line and delete it.Next copy the one from the Enzo text file and paste it into the Handling.ide file.Save and close it.

The last line in the Enzo text file is optional,it defines what colors the car can have in the game.You don't have to change anything here.If you do want to change the colors,then open the carcols.dat file using notepad and find the banshee line.Delete the numbers behind it and copy and paste the ones from the Enzo text file.
You are done.The only thing that remains to be done is find the banshee in the game.There is also one more step to be done if you wish to change the name of the car from Banshee to Ferrari Enzo,if neccesary i will explain that here aswell.

Manual Install of DMagic1's Wheel Mod (Thanks to GTChamp2003)

Just remember to install this wheelmod first,after you have reinstalled the game and unchecked the read-only property of the Vice City folder.

There is one more thing you could do.Check the default.IDE and see if you can find the following lines:
This one is right at the top:# wheels: 250-257, 249
If it doesn't say 249 behind 250-257,the add it.You could also just copy the above three numbers i wrote.
Now scroll down,past all the cars and find the next wheels section,the last line should be:249, wheel_lightmod, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
If it doesn't say that then copy and paste it under:256, wheel_smallcar, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
So it should look like this:
# wheels
237, wheel_rim, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
238, wheel_offroad, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
239, wheel_truck, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
250, wheel_sport, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
251, wheel_saloon, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
252, wheel_lightvan, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
253, wheel_classic, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
254, wheel_alloy, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
255, wheel_lighttruck, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
256, wheel_smallcar, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
249, wheel_lightmod, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0

Now save a close the default.IDE and add the file nowheel.dff to GTA Vice City/models/generic.

Next open the default.dat file and add this line under # model data:
MODELFILE MODELS\GENERIC\nowheel.DFF

So it should look like this:
# model data
MODELFILE MODELS\GENERIC\AIR_VLO.DFF
MODELFILE MODELS\GENERIC\WHEELS.DFF
MODELFILE MODELS\GENERIC\nowheel.DFF

Now you may not need to do all that but just check to see if it says exactly what i wrote above,if not then change it.​
 
The three you just posted should really be the only ones you use for modding. All the rest have crappy quality stuff. But I can't mod any cars on my games, they just crash. I'm thinking I need a better graphics card, because I get the occasional lag on VC, and GTA III lags constantly.
 
Jimmy Enslashay
The three you just posted should really be the only ones you use for modding. All the rest have crappy quality stuff. But I can't mod any cars on my games, they just crash. I'm thinking I need a better graphics card, because I get the occasional lag on VC, and GTA III lags constantly.
Click to expand...
What does it say when you install them? does an error message pop up? or does it just not run?
 
I can install them fine, but when I go in the game, as soon as one spawns on GTA III it just freezes, and on Vice City it comes up with a handling error or something.
 
The mod might be bad, it might have corrupted data... did you use VCMM? You must also activate the DM1Magic Wheel mod.
 
I have installed manually, used VCMM and various other ways for GTA III, too. I have installed many widely-used mods. Many. They just don't work. So I don't know.
 
What do you mean by "activating" DM1Magic wheel mod, I install it but do you have to do something special to activate it, this might be my problem...
 
Blake
What do you mean by "activating" DM1Magic wheel mod, I install it but do you have to do something special to activate it, this might be my problem...
Click to expand...
When you activate it with VCMM, it will be fine. Just double click it in VCMM. The green light next to it wuill turn on. That's it. Nothing else. This mod allows custom wheels, I believe. Some mods dont need it, but most do.
 
You download it for GTA III. Also, it wasn't my problem, because I've already heard of this and I've tried installing with it on and off. I'm pretty sure it's a problem with my comp, because I get plenty of lag with GTA III, and I occasionally do with Vice City.
 
I haven't done any modding with GTAIII becuase I don't have it (not even fro the PS2). i couldn't help ya there....
 
Well I have installed DM1Magics wheel mod for GTA3, but it does the same ting anyway. But I used VCMM and I put a couple of cars into the game. Problem being no SFX sounds play and all my cars now go a bit skitz under heavy acceleration while they'ree in first gear.
 
I'm going to write how i installed a car manually and you just copy what i did Jimmy.
Now the car we are going to install will be this one.It's a Ferrari Enzo.Pick a download server and download the car.Now extract the contents of the RAR file using WinRAR.When you have done that you will see four files(banshee (for ferrari enzo ferrari),(Ferrari Enzo.dff),(Ferrari Enzo.txd) and Ferrari Enzo Ferrari Setups.I will explain the last one later.

First thing you've got to do is download this.It's called a CollEditor.With it you can edit the collision files.When the download is complete extract the files from the .zip.Now open the Collision File Editor.Ignore the options on the right side for now.First go to File and then Load,it should automatically open the coll folder,if not you can manually set the path wich on my PC is:C:\Program Files\Rockstar Games\Grand Theft Auto Vice City\models\coll
After you've done that load the vehicles file using the colleditor.You should now see all the vehicle names and their collison animation below.Now do the following,find the banshee and delete it by clicking on the delete button on the right side.After you have done that import the collision file that came with the Ferrari Enzo.Do that by clicking on the Import button on the right side and locate the Ferrari Enzo folder and open the banshee file.A menu should now pop up and you will be able to select the banshee collision file,click on it and then click on import.You have now succesfully imported a collision file.Now click on Save and then when asked click on Yes.You can now turn the colleditor off.

For the following part you will need the IMG tool wich you can find in the first post of this thread.What you do is open the IMG tool and click on File>Open and it should automatically locate the gta3.IMG file.If not you can find it in the GTA Vice City Models folder.Now open the gta3.img file using the IMG Tool.Next thing you do is click on Edit and then on Find.Type in banshee.dff.You should now see both the banshee.dff and .txd files.Right-click on both of them and click on delete.After you have deleted both you can now click on Commands and then on Add.Find the two files that came with the Ferrari Enzo.Before you import them rename the Ferrari Enzo.dff to banshee.dff and Ferrari Enzo.txd to banshee.txd.Now you can import them both using Command>Add.After you have done that close the IMG tool.

Now for the last part.
Open the text file that came with the Ferrari Enzo.Scroll a little bit down and you should first see the DEFAULT IDE ENTRY.Now go to the Vice City folder and in the Data folder open the default.IDE file using notepad.When you have done that scroll down untill you find the line for the banshee.The files are numbered so it's easy to find.Look for number 159 and you should find it.Now what you do is change the properties in the default.IDE to match those in the text file that came with the Enzo.You could also delete the line in the default.IDE and copy the one from the Enzo text file.After you have done that save the file and exit.

The next line in the Enzo text file is the HANDLING IDE ENTRY.
This time open the Handling.IDE file wich is also located in the data folder.The same thing applies here.Find the banshee line and delete it.Next copy the one from the Enzo text file and paste it into the Handling.ide file.Save and close it.

The last line in the Enzo text file is optional,it defines what colors the car can have in the game.You don't have to change anything here.If you do want to change the colors,then open the carcols.dat file using notepad and find the banshee line.Delete the numbers behind it and copy and paste the ones from the Enzo text file.
You are done.The only thing that remains to be done is find the banshee in the game.There is also one more step to be done if you wish to change the name of the car from Banshee to Ferrari Enzo,if neccesary i will explain that here aswell.
 
Recommended Hardware Requirements:
-Intel Pentium IV or AMD Athlon XP processor
-256(+) MB of RAM
-16 speed CD / DVD drive
-1.55 GB of free hard disk space(+ 635 MB if video card does NOT support DirectX Texture Compression)
-64(+) MB video card with DirectX 9.0 compatible drivers ("GeForce 3" / "Radeon 8500" or better with DirectX Texture Compression support)
-DirectX 9.0 compatible sound card with surround sound

That's what it says in my Vice City manual.
 
GTChamp2003 -- I know how to install manually, it was the first way I learnt to install on both games. But it just doesn't work. I don't need help on how to install cars, but I need to know why it keeps screwing up so I can fix the problem. Now I'm getting a new Graphics Card, so even if that's not the problem, my PC will run better. But please don't try to help me with installing.
 
Well,if u are installing cars like i posted above then the game should run fine.I have installed hunderds of cars that way and i hardly had any problems.It happens sometimes that the car won't work,but it's very rare.Another option could be what you said,your gfx card.
One more question,did u try installing Ultimate Vice City mod.It installs everything automatically without any errors.If the game then screws up,you'll know it's a problem with your PC.
You can get it here.I suggest you try it if you haven't already,this way you'll know for sure if you are installing the cars wrong or if you need new parts.

One more thing,the DMagic's Wheelmod is different for GTA3 and Vice City,and also uses different values.The value 249 for custom wheels only works with Vice City and i think that GTA3 uses 089.Not sure about that last one.
 
Yeah, that's what I meant with the DMagics WheelMod thing.

Also, I have Ultimate Vice City. Used that. Trust me, I tried every way possible, Blake can vouch for that because I went through a stage of just being obsessed with trying to mod my game. The only thing I can mod are textures. I'm not so sure it's my GFX Card, but it's a possibility. I might get a new one if a friend can pick one up for free. Then we'll see.
 
Jimmy, I can't vouch for that, I remember you trying to install a car manually and not doing it the way described above, then I remember yuo trying the automatic installer which didn't work. I used VCMM and got a car in straight away so I dunno.
 
Well,i'm sorry i can't help you then.99% of the time that the game freezes when installing new cars is because people forget to install the wheelmod and or input the wrong value for the wheels.I'm telling you,the best thing to do is reinstall Vice City completely(delete the entite folder),after you have installed it again,uncheck the read-only property and install Ultimate Vice City.You can't mess anything up that way.If you can run the original Vice City then you can run every mod and car that is available out there.The requirements don't change.Trust me on this one,it has to work.It even worked on a Pentium 3 650Mhz with a 32 MB video card and 256 MB of RAM.I just tested it.

Just remember to install this wheelmod first,after you have reinstalled the game and unchecked the read-only property of the Vice City folder.

There is one more thing you could do.Check the default.IDE and see if you can find the following lines:
This one is right at the top:# wheels: 250-257, 249
If it doesn't say 249 behind 250-257,the add it.You could also just copy the above three numbers i wrote.
Now scroll down,past all the cars and find the next wheels section,the last line should be:249, wheel_lightmod, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
If it doesn't say that then copy and paste it under:256, wheel_smallcar, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
So it should look like this:
# wheels
237, wheel_rim, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
238, wheel_offroad, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
239, wheel_truck, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
250, wheel_sport, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
251, wheel_saloon, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
252, wheel_lightvan, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
253, wheel_classic, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
254, wheel_alloy, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
255, wheel_lighttruck, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
256, wheel_smallcar, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
249, wheel_lightmod, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0

Now save a close the default.IDE and add the file nowheel.dff to GTA Vice City/models/generic.

Next open the default.dat file and add this line under # model data:
MODELFILE MODELS\GENERIC\nowheel.DFF

So it should look like this:
# model data
MODELFILE MODELS\GENERIC\AIR_VLO.DFF
MODELFILE MODELS\GENERIC\WHEELS.DFF
MODELFILE MODELS\GENERIC\nowheel.DFF

Now you may not need to do all that but just check to see if it says exactly what i wrote above,if not then change it.
 
Mind If I put some of that in the First post, GTChamp? I will giove you credit.
 
Not at all,go right ahead.All the info in one spot makes it easier to find then to search an entire thread.
 
GTChamp2003
Well,i'm sorry i can't help you then.99% of the time that the game freezes when installing new cars is because people forget to install the wheelmod and or input the wrong value for the wheels.I'm telling you,the best thing to do is reinstall Vice City completely(delete the entite folder),after you have installed it again,uncheck the read-only property and install Ultimate Vice City.You can't mess anything up that way.If you can run the original Vice City then you can run every mod and car that is available out there.The requirements don't change.Trust me on this one,it has to work.It even worked on a Pentium 3 650Mhz with a 32 MB video card and 256 MB of RAM.I just tested it.

Just remember to install this wheelmod first,after you have reinstalled the game and unchecked the read-only property of the Vice City folder.

There is one more thing you could do.Check the default.IDE and see if you can find the following lines:
This one is right at the top:# wheels: 250-257, 249
If it doesn't say 249 behind 250-257,the add it.You could also just copy the above three numbers i wrote.
Now scroll down,past all the cars and find the next wheels section,the last line should be:249, wheel_lightmod, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
If it doesn't say that then copy and paste it under:256, wheel_smallcar, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
So it should look like this:
# wheels
237, wheel_rim, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
238, wheel_offroad, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
239, wheel_truck, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
250, wheel_sport, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
251, wheel_saloon, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
252, wheel_lightvan, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
253, wheel_classic, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
254, wheel_alloy, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
255, wheel_lighttruck, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
256, wheel_smallcar, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0
249, wheel_lightmod, generic, 2, 20, 70, 0

Now save a close the default.IDE and add the file nowheel.dff to GTA Vice City/models/generic.

Next open the default.dat file and add this line under # model data:
MODELFILE MODELS\GENERIC\nowheel.DFF

So it should look like this:
# model data
MODELFILE MODELS\GENERIC\AIR_VLO.DFF
MODELFILE MODELS\GENERIC\WHEELS.DFF
MODELFILE MODELS\GENERIC\nowheel.DFF

Now you may not need to do all that but just check to see if it says exactly what i wrote above,if not then change it.
Click to expand...
Is this the installation of the wheel mod?
 
Thread grave digging time...

Seems like the most appropriate place to ask my question, rather than starting a new thread.

I've recently installed Vice City after a long absence from playing the game (the PS3 is mothballed for the time being so no GTA:IV for me). When I last installed it on my old laptop, I was quite into modding, so I know my stuff with regard to adding cars, changing scenery textures and so on.

However, I installed IMG Tool and it doesn't seem to be working correctly.

When I open the utility, it comes up with the following message:

prob1.jpg


The program then opens as normal, so I load up gta3.img to be left with the usual list. I'm wanting to install a Mazda MX-5 in the game and this car replaces the Cheetah. I do my search for the cheetah.txd file as the first one to replace, and when I use the replace option, it comes up with a message along the lines of "file is too large to replace". Right, so I try deleting the file:

prob2.jpg


Even though the file isn't in use - I'm not using the game, nor have I got the file open other than in IMG Tool.When I click on the OK box, it just sits on this screen, thinking away to itself. I haven't let it run the "deleting" process through as I got bored after five minutes waiting - and I doubt it takes five minutes to delete a tiny file. It won't let me rename the file either, and it comes up with another error message.

Basically, it won't let me change anything. After thinking it might be because of the read-only attributes of the file, I installed CROA, a program that clears any read-only attributes of a file even if it's protected, as this is a program I used in the past. And it still doesn't work :indiff:

What could be causing the problem? Is it a Vista compatibility thing? The only other thing I can think of that it might be is that I tried to open gta3.img in notepad at first. I didn't save over the file as a .txt so I haven't physically altered it, but my computer does seem to think that notepad is now the default program to alter the file with. As a precaution, I'm re-installing the game just in case that is the problem, but as IMG tool is only too happy to open gta3.img I can't see that I've broken the file or anything.

Any help appreciated! 👍
 
Er, thread revival?

I've gotten a copy of GTA SA, and I'm having a blast modding it. I'm running this on an Eee PC 900HA, and it runs beautifully.

A little while ago, I decided to try out some modding, starting with modifying the Handling, and I switched my Jester to RWD. I was proud of this, then I decided to go for CLEO 3 modding, because of how easy it is. I got a bunch of scripts, and had tons of fun. Then I went for the big guys. Because my skin changer script came with a setting for external skins, I've been using about 10. This made me decide to start modding cars. I have an RX-7, an NSX, and numerous rally homologlation cars. Unfortunately, my computer can't handle the really high quality mods, I have to sift through hundreds.

This was the end, until today. I was watching a few videos of drifting, and I saw a video of a map called Rokko, it's a mountain road that winds for 20 kilometers. I watched in envy, then saw a post that directed me to the website of a friend of the modding community, Ryosuke. Considering that most of my mods come from him, I felt a need to humor him, and checked out the installing. It was quite frankly easy. I just stuck the files into gta.img, updated the map, and was well on my way into drifting my Evo 6.

Oh, and on the readme file, It said Scarlet Devil Mansion, and given my gaming experiences over the last month, I was slightly perplexed. Then I saw a side road while drifting, and I was glad I kept my "SAVE ANYWHERE" script.


Alright, now to see if it stays open or not.
 

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