Look, I love Arrakis as much as the next spice-addled wanderer, but after my third time sprinting across open sand like a caffeinated kangaroo, I realized my boots were not going to cut it. The dunes are gorgeous until you are the one eating them. In Dune: Awakening, vehicles are not just a flex; they are survival gear with a personality. Some will get you from point A to point B without your legs filing for divorce, while others are built to vacuum up spice or start airborne arguments. Sure, you can fast travel between places you've already visited, but sometimes you want a ride that screams, 'I built this in a shelter and I am emotionally attached.' Here's how to unlock vehicles in Dune: Awakening, plus every ride I'm aware of in 2026.
How to unlock vehicles
Most vehicles must be built at a base or shelter. You'll unlock vehicle parts through the research menu using Intel Points. When you unlock a vehicle's schematic kit, you get the ability to craft each piece of it. No amount of glaring at the workbench will do it for you, sadly.
For the Sandbike, which is likely your first set of wheels, research the Mk1 Sandbike Assembly. Once that knowledge is in your brain, here's the build order:
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Craft all the parts for the vehicle.
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Equip a welding torch and select the assembly option.
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Find an available flat-ish space on the ground and begin construction.
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After the body is built, you'll need a Vehicle Fuel Cell, which is crafted in a Chemical Finery.
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Slot in enough fuel cells, and boom — you're rolling.
Vehicle grading
Vehicles have grades, same as everything else in Dune: Awakening. Higher grade means better quality and generally beefier stats, but you'll need rarer resources to craft those fancy parts. Because construction is modular, you can mix different grade components when building. So your Sandbike might have a Grade A heart and Grade C everything else — a little chaotic, but that's showbiz.
How to repair vehicles
Using your vehicle will slowly wear it down. Normal use damages it, and enemy fire or environmental chaos speeds things up. If you see smoke billowing out, that's not a performance mod; it's your vehicle telling you to fix it before it becomes expensive modern art.
To repair:
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Equip a welding torch and have welding wire on hand.
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Select the repair option and aim at the damaged component.
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Fire the torch and watch your baby get stitched back together.
The torch automatically uses welding wire from your inventory, so you don't need to manually load it. Higher-quality welding wire slows future degradation, which means fewer roadside meltdowns. Don't cheap out on the wire, pal.
All Dune Awakening vehicles
As of my latest runs in 2026, these are the vehicles you can craft:
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Sandbike 🏍️ — One-person ground vehicle, fastest land-based ride. Perfect for solo zoomies, but low storage means you are not hauling a weekend market run across the desert.
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Buggy 🚙 — Four-person ground transport for your squad. Can be armed with weapons and equipment, so it doubles as group transportation and a rolling disagreement factory.
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Sandcrawler 🛞 — One-person spice collection vehicle that can also harvest flour sand. Well-armored but slow; think armored tractor, not race car.
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Scout ornithopter 🪂 — The lightest and smallest flying vehicle. No weapons and average armor, but speedy enough to make you feel like a nosy desert bird.
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Assault ornithopter 🚁 — Not as fast as the scout, but very agile and well-armored. Can be armed, because sometimes a flyover just isn't spicy enough.
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Carrier ornithopter ✈️ — The largest air vehicle and the slowest. Can carry large groups or a ton of loot across long distances. Well-armored, so it's basically a flying moving truck with delusions of grandeur.
| Vehicle | Primary role | Key perk | Known catch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sandbike | Solo ground travel | Fastest land vehicle | Low storage |
| Buggy | Group ground transport | Can mount weapons | Team-focused |
| Sandcrawler | Spice harvesting | Collects spice and flour sand | Slow |
| Scout ornithopter | Light flying recon | Speedy and light | No weapons, average armor |
| Assault ornithopter | Air combat | Agile and armed | Slower than scout |
| Carrier ornithopter | Heavy air transport | Huge cargo/group capacity | Slowest |
Unlock early, craft spare fuel cells, and keep a welding torch on you at all times. Once you start mixing vehicle grades and experimenting with ornithopter flight paths, Arrakis feels less like a death sentence and more like a very dry playground. Now get out there and try not to park your Sandbike in a worm's personal space.