For a game originally released way back in 2013, GTA 5 and its online iteration, GTA Online, have managed to stay in the public gaming consciousness with very little effort. It does this by offering periodic updates – all of which are free – and providing constant online support. Even with the new announcement of GTA VI, the game is still one of the most played and enjoyed on all platforms, largely due to the aforementioned updates. The latest of these updates, is the Chop Shop. The GTA Online: Chop Shop Update adds to a long list of the ways to make money in GTA Online, but how exactly does it work?
What is the GTA Online: Chop Shop Update?
The Chop Shop update is the second major update of 2023, and it adds new vehicles, locations to purchase and missions to play. Not to mention utilisation of the tow truck, which we saw in the GTA V story mode – but more on that later.
The update essentially functions in a similar way to the auto-shop, by adding small tasks and missions which can be completed to earn money.
There are two ways in which to do this; either use the tow truck in a semi-legitimate business of ‘repossessing cars’, or take part in huge heists with set-ups and preps in tow (no pun intended).
How to Get Started & Customise Your Chop Shop
To begin the update, you need to accept a call from Yusuf Amir. He advises you of a new business opportunity that he has spied and you need to purchase a chop shop in order to take part in this. There are three locations you can purchase and any of them will do the job fine.
However, it must be said that the chop shop in La Puerta – even though it is the most expensive – comes with a handful of problems. The main of which being vehicle spawns. Another issue you will notice almost immediately is that the chop shop is situated directly next to a gang attack – not ideal! There’s nothing worse than trying to earn some cold-hard cash and having to deal with rent-a-cop gangsters trying to make a name for themselves in the underworld.
Once you have decided on a location, you get to customise it before checking out. Customisation is largely the same as other businesses we have seen before in GTA Online. You can choose to customise:
- Tint – This is the colouring of the interior and has no bearing on the gameplay.
- Trade rates – This offers 50% on all repairs with LS Customs and insurance premiums with Mors Mutual.
- Tow truck – There are two available options for tow trucks. One is the standard, which is around $700,000, and the other is a more beat-up style of the same truck and this costs around half. There are no effects on gameplay, but it has to be said that the ‘beater’ style offers a style akin to the Creeper’s truck in the Jeepers Creepers franchise – so if that is your thing then I would opt for that.
- Wall safe – Functions the same as all wall safes. Increases capacity to accommodate double the amount of the original safe. The original holds $100,000 and the wall safe extends this to $250,000. It offers no bonus on earnings, just capacity.
- Staff – Purchasing this upgrade allows you to half the time it takes for your chop shop to salvage any vehicles you tow via the tow truck missions.
How to Earn with Your GTA Online Chop Shop
Robberies
Robberies are vehicle-focused heists. Each one has scope-out missions, prep missions and set-ups attached – so far, so GTA, right?
Robberies cost $20,000 to set up each time after the initial robbery, which is kindly taken care of by Yusuf this time.
Robberies can only be done once per week and there are three to choose from. This means that there are three robberies that can be done each week, but none of them can be repeated on the same account. Robberies refresh every Thursday when the GTA Online counter ticks over for the weekly update.
Each robbery has tasks that must be done in free mode, but this can be a ‘friend-only lobby’ if you choose. There is no incentive to doing the tasks in an occupied lobby as there are no bonuses available for this. There are also no ‘high demand’ bonuses to be earned when selling the vehicles, so it may just be best to do it in a invite-only or friend/crew-only lobby for simplicity’s sake.
Once a vehicle has been stolen, it can either be kept, sold or salvaged.
- Keeping a vehicle means it is added to your usable vehicles.
- Salvaging a vehicle means it is stripped for parts. This results in a 20% loss of overall value.
- Selling a vehicle means you drive it down to the dock, and it is then lifted onto a cargo ship, the funds for the vehicle are transferred immediately, minus any costs due to damage.
Every time you steal a vehicle, there are challenges that can be earned in the heist, as we have seen before in previous heists. These are worth chasing as they can net you extra cash. Each challenge gains you $10,000 and if you get all three in the same playthrough, you will earn a bonus of $20,000.
Tow Truck
While the robberies will gain you the most money in a short space of time, if you want to take things more slowly and steadily – respectively – then you can opt for the tow truck missions.
Tow truck missions are semi-legitimate missions that allow you to ‘repossess’ (it’s just stealing really) vehicles throughout the map. Only specific vehicles can be stolen and salvaged and stealing each usually results in a chase of some description. Would YOU be okay with someone taking your car?
Each salvage can net you around $40,000 to $60,000, so it is not a bad side pay-out. The more tow truck missions you do, the more your potential earnings increase, much in the same way that the popularity bar works for the nightclub content.
Payouts for the tow truck missions, unlike the robberies, are not instant. Once the vehicle has been delivered, it takes between 48-96 hours to receive payment. The timescale is on the lower side and assumes that you decided to opt for the staff upgrade when setting the business up.
While not the biggest earners in GTA Online, the tow truck missions do capture the same feel of the GTA story missions that see Franklin doing much the same thing for Tonya.
It also bears saying, if you find yourself netting a wanted level, you cannot call Lester etc. to remove the wanted level, so it may just be better off biting the bullet, literally, and taking the easy way out.
With GTA VI on the horizon, it is fair to say that this update represents the winding down of the online portion of GTA V. Where Rockstar could have thrown in the towel and coasted on what they already had, they decided instead to deliver a wonderful piece of unique and fun content, which will no doubt, pull detractors back for one last heist…
