Forza Horizon 6 Guide: How To Turn Off Car Damage
Stop driving around Japan in a crumpled metal box just because you misjudged a single hairpin turn.
If you're anything like me, your pristine Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro rarely stays pristine for long. Between hunting for hidden Barns, tracking down Treasure Cars, and accidentally putting yourself straight into a bamboo forest, your vehicle is going to take a serious beating. By default, Forza Horizon 6 slaps a layer of nasty scrapes, cracked windows, and massive dents onto your ride every time you trade paint with a solid object.
But you don't have to live with a ruined aesthetic. You can completely disable the visual destruction or instantly repair it with a simple button press.
The Damage And Tire Wear Settings
Before you panic about losing credit multipliers, you should know that modifying your damage settings carries absolutely no penalty. You earn the exact same amount of money whether your car crumples like tin foil or bounces off walls like a tank.
Changing The Difficulty
Open your campaign menu, head into the Settings, and tab over to Difficulty. Scroll down until you spot the Damage and Tire Wear toggle. You have three distinct options here.
The Instant Repair Exploit
If you prefer keeping Cosmetic damage turned on for screenshots but hate driving all the way back to the Horizon Festival to fix your ride, I have a massive shortcut for you.
The Photo Mode Trick
Any time you're in free roam, press up on the directional pad to open Photo Mode. Once the camera interface boots up, simply tap the left bumper (LB or L1) to trigger "Reset Cosmetic Damage." Now, just close the camera.
Despite the name of the prompt, this completely repairs your vehicle in the live game. If you're running Simulation mode, this trick instantly fixes your engine and tire wear, restoring your performance without forcing you to sit through a loading screen.
Repairing At Home
You also get a completely free repair every single time you enter one of your properties or the main festival garage. If you want to make the most out of those properties while you're parked inside, check out my Forza Horizon 6 garage space customization guide to learn how to properly display your collection.
Dealing With Damage During Races
You need to be incredibly careful if you choose to run Simulation damage during an actual event, especially online.
The Rewind Dilemma
There is no magical repair button while you're actively racing. If you smash your engine block into a barricade, your only option is to trigger the Rewind feature to erase the mistake entirely. That works perfectly fine against AI Drivatars, but using Rewind during an online multiplayer race will instantly drop you to the back of the pack while the rest of the lobby speeds ahead.
If you're running a highly specialized setup, a damaged component will completely ruin your handling. You can refer to my Forza Horizon 6 tuning guide to understand exactly how much work goes into a perfect suspension alignment, which makes destroying it on the first lap incredibly painful. If you plan on trading paint online, turn the damage setting off entirely. Realism isn't worth losing a race.
