Vehicles

File:Scarab and Scorpion SRV ED.jpg

Scarab and Scorpion SRVs

Vehicles are short-range modes of transport used to traverse the surface of terrestrial planets and moons, or short distances in space.

SRV

File:Vehicles-Elite-Dangerous-Concept-Art.png

Vehicles concept art

Surface Recon Vehicles (SRV) are ground vehicles used by commanders to traverse a planetary surface. It's faster than walking On Foot, yet slower and more nimble than a ship. The SRV features storage space for commodities, and enables close examination of points of interest in relative safety. Ships can transport SRVs with a Planetary Vehicle Hangar.

SRVs are purchased together with a Planetary Vehicle Hangar (PVH) for storage and maintenance. The PVH module can be transferred between ships, but SRVs cannot be transferred between hangars.

Any damage accumulated by an SRV during an excursion is automatically repaired when it boards the Vehicle Bay. If an SRV is destroyed, the pilot will redeploy aboard their ship and a new vehicle must be bought.

Unlike the ship scanner, the SRV scanner is capable of locking onto small threats such as skimmers, on foot persons and surface objects such as canisters. In ED: Odyssey, the SRV turret is a viable option to engage on foot enemies from afar.

Models

There are two SRV models manufactured by Vodel: the Scarab and the Scorpion.

Image	Name	Type	Seats	Multicrew	Size	Cargo Capacity	Top speed	Manufacturer	Cost
File:Rhino SRV Concept.jpg	Rhino	Miner	3	Yes	Large	24 t		Vodel
File:SRV-Scarab.png	Scarab	Exploration	1	No	Small	4 t	40 m/s	Vodel	5,270 CR
File:ED-SRV-Scorpion.png	Scorpion	Combat	2	Yes	Small	2 t	32 m/s	Vodel	24,863 CR

A Surface Recon Vehicle (SRV) is a terrestrial rover. One or more SRVs can be carried by ships that are equipped with a Planetary Vehicle Hangar. Planetary gravity affects the handling of SRVs, requiring pilots to take care when driving to avoid damaging collisions or unintentionally launching into extreme jumps. If the pilot's SRV is destroyed, they will return to their ship, whether it is still parked on the surface or has automatically returned to orbit. Any damage sustained by an SRV is automatically repaired upon returning to the ship. SRV fuel and ammunition can be synthesized as needed, provided the pilot has the necessary materials.

Skimmers

Skimmers are small, remotely-piloted surface vehicles that hover at low altitudes over a planet's surface. They usually guard Settlements and Shipwrecks. Skimmers cannot be used by players.

Vehicle concepts

Exopods

File:Exopod render.png

Exopod

File:Vehicles-Elite-Dangerous-Concept-Art.png

Vehicles concept art

An Exopod is a single-pilot space utility vehicle designed for short excursions in localized areas of space, such as carrying components around Capital Ship Docks. At present, Exopods are not available for purchase.

Frontier made concept art of vehicles that are not available in ED. These vehicle concepts are much larger than the Scarab and specialized.

Notes

• Originally there were plans for additional classes of SRVs to be released during ED: Horizons, but they did not materialise before the next expansion ED: Odyssey. In 2016 during an AMA, David Braben was asked "is there an ETA for planetary mining? and will we get a special SRV for that purpose" Braben said "No ETA yet, but it is planned."
• Files datamined from the ED: Odyssey alpha hinted at two additional SRV models, the Scorpion and the Rhino. The Scorpion was officially released with ED: Odyssey Update 9.