# F.A.Q > Frequently asked questions for ML Vehicle Persistence Category: VEHICLE PERSISTENCE · Source: https://miciomods.it/docs/ml-vehicle-persistence-faq · Last updated: 2026-07-28 ## Setup **Is a garage script required?** No. Persistence runs on its own. A garage is only used to decide when a vehicle should leave the world, and any garage that deletes the vehicle on store is handled automatically. **Does it work on standalone servers?** Yes. World-vehicle claiming works on any framework. Database-owned vehicle detection needs a framework with a `player_vehicles` or `owned_vehicles` table; on standalone, enable `Config.WorldVehicles` and use the `OpenServer.CanPersist` hook for custom ownership. ## World Vehicles **What happens when a player drives an NPC vehicle?** With `Config.WorldVehicles.enabled = true`, the first player to sit in the driver seat of any unowned vehicle becomes its permanent owner and the vehicle starts persisting. **How do I stop a mission or rental vehicle from being saved?** Call the export from the spawning resource: ```lua exports.ml_vehicle_persistence:DoNotSave(plateOrNetId, 'mission') ``` **Do claimed vehicles count toward the parking limit?** By default yes. Set `Config.WorldVehicles.countTowardLimit = false` to exempt them. ## Persistence **What happens when a player disconnects while parked?** The vehicle stays in the world with its owner attached and respawns after a restart. **Are mods, colors, fuel and damage saved?** Yes. Full vehicle properties, fuel level and body and engine health are stored and reapplied when a player streams the vehicle in. **What happens to a destroyed vehicle?** It leaves persistence by default. Set `Config.PersistDestroyed = true` and the wreck comes back as a wreck, with burnt body, dead engine and burst tyres, on respawn and after a restart. **How does the parking limit work?** `Config.MaxVehiclesPerPlayer` caps how many parked vehicles an owner keeps. When the limit is hit, the oldest parked vehicle stops being persistent. Set it to `0` for no limit. **How many vehicles can the server hold?** Saved vehicles live in memory and are only spawned into the world when a player is within `Config.SpawnDistance`, then despawned once everyone leaves. Only the vehicles near players exist as entities, so hundreds of saved records cost nothing in the world. **Why does an admin /dv bring the vehicle back?** `Config.RespawnOnExternalDelete` is `true`, which treats every external delete as an accident. Set it to `false` for the expected behavior, or route the deleting resource through `deletehook.lua` or the `PurgeVehicle` export. **Does a tow truck moving a parked car break it?** No. A vehicle moved without a driver is detected on the next world scan and its saved position is updated. A tow that deletes and respawns the entity instead counts as a removal. ## GPS **What does the GPS item do?** It lists the owner's persisted vehicles with their distance and sets a waypoint on the one picked. Vehicles currently in a garage are listed too, marked as stored instead of a waypoint. **How does GPS tampering work?** A thief uses the `gps_scanner` item and sweeps around a vehicle. The beep gets faster the closer the GPS is, and bystanders hear it too. Holding the scan next to the vehicle rips the GPS out, and the owner's GPS then freezes on the last known position with a tampered badge. **How does the owner get the GPS back?** Only the vehicle's owner can install a `gps_module` on the recovered vehicle, which consumes the item and restores live tracking. Until then the position stays frozen. **Can I disable the scanner but keep the GPS item?** Yes. Set `Config.GpsScanner.enabled = false` and leave `Config.GpsItem` set. ## Admin **How do I open the admin panel?** Run `/vpadmin` in chat, or open it from the shared admin hub. The command is set in `Config.Admin.command`. **Who can open the panel?** Any `ml_bridge` admin. Set `Config.AdminAcePermission` to a dedicated ACE node to restrict it to a sub-team. **Do panel settings survive a restart?** Yes. Settings changed in the panel are stored as overrides on top of `shared/config.lua`. Use the panel's reset button to drop an override and go back to the config file value. **How do I clear only the vehicles around me?** `/vpclear ` removes persisted vehicles within that many meters of your ped. `/vpclear` with no argument wipes every persisted vehicle. ## Updates **How do I update the script?** 1. Download latest from CFX Portal 2. Backup config files 3. Replace all files except config 4. Restart the resource New database columns are added automatically on boot. No manual migration is needed.