Euro Truck Simulator 2 – Beginners Guide

Welcome to the Euro Truck Simulator 2 game guide, in which we climb up the career ladder, leading to the creation of a large transport company. We start the game from a subordinate driver to finally work on our own account and hire more drivers to drive the trucks of our own fleet.

Euro Truck Simulator 2 – also known as ETS 2 – is a continuation of the well-known and popular cycle focusing on driving large trucks and carrying more or less valuable loads. In this part of the game, the creators put even more emphasis on economics and running your own business.

In this guide you will find a handful of general advice and a discussion of individual aspects directly related to the gameplay and driving of large vehicles.

General Advice

Note: Credit goes to AKKRA

Very soon you will receive an offer of the first loan from the bank. Although the offer seems to be very tempting, because thanks to such help you will be able to buy your first, own truck right away, it is better to take advantage of ready-made, although less paid orders at the beginning.

The costs of running a business and the need to look for the most lucrative orders may initially make you unable to afford to pay the installment, so it is better to have a cash supply. The first loan is safest if you have about 50 thousand euro on your account.

Respect the traffic regulations. Driving at a red light will result in automatic crediting, even if there is no police patrol nearby. The amount of such fines may not be high, but you also risk colliding with another vehicle, thus an even higher fine and destroying the cargo. This in turn means less money.

Remember that you can save the game status at any time. Even when you have undertaken a very long delivery, you can make a manual record to start the game later from the last place. However, you will have to start the truck from the beginning.

Use the direction indicators. It is not only an add-on to increase the realism of the game. Artificial Intelligence drivers will see it and try to guess what maneuver you’re trying to make, reacting appropriately and often making your plan easier.

Main Menu

1. Labour market – after clicking on this button you will see another window where you can choose an ad for a single transport or organize transports in your own company if you have already earned your first truck.

2. World map – once you launch it, you will be able to see the whole map of Europe, and more specifically the countries that are available in the game. It will also show your position and the current route, if you are in the process of completing the order. You will also see other drivers, if you have already hired some.

3. Radio – here you can run your own songs saved in mp3 format on your hard drive. If you do not yet have a radio station programmed, you will see instructions on this aspect when you press this button.

4. E-mail – from here you have access to a mailbox, where information of various types will appear. These can be credit offers from a bank or news about a new truck dealer in town and reminders about important events.

5. Save or load the game – if you do not use the quick save and load options, you can do it manually using this button. After pressing it, select the appropriate function.

6. Options – all game settings. Here you will find options for display, sound, control, controllers and several others.

7. More – you will find a few extras here. You can view the payroll, as well as all available trucks and semi-trailers in the game. You can also simulate any modifications to the vehicles to see what they will look like in reality.

8. Exit – button to close the game and exit to the desktop.

9. Player profile – a brief look at the selected driver. Here you will learn about your level and experience points, total distance travelled and overall rating. You can also check your progress history including earnings, driver’s skills or change the player’s profile and turn on the photo mode.

10. My truck – details of the current truck tractor. You will also find the buttons responsible for truck dealers, improvements and cabin modifications inside. You will also perform diagnostics to find out the details of the vehicle damage.

11. Company status – brief information about your company. Here you will find your current account balance, number of garages, trucks and drivers, as well as recent profits. You can also go to the company manager, bank or job agency module.

Start: Driver Profile and City Selection

The beginning of the game is very difficult, because as a novice driver we are doomed to carry out orders for external companies for little money. However, it has its advantages – we practically don’t care about refueling a truck and have routes that usually don’t require us to rest.

However, before we take care of the first order, we have to create a foundation for our future company, which is connected with setting up a player profile, where we will define basic information about the company. Ultimately, we are to become a serious player in the transport industry in Europe.

Below is a sample window for creating a new player profile in Euro Truck Simulator 2.

We are defining only a few things that will have no real impact on the game. First of all, they are meant to help distinguish existing profiles in the game if more than one person uses the game or if we decide to start an alternative career.

The available options are to specify the name of the driver, his or her gender, a picture from among the available ones, as well as the default truck model and company logo. Once we choose these basic elements, we give our company a name and choose the language. Note that this choice is related to the language version of the game. However, you can change it in the options during the game.

After completing the profile creation you will go to the control configuration window. You can choose to control the keyboard, as well as the mouse or additional controllers like steering wheel and pad.

Once you have configured the control and set up a profile, the game will ask you to choose the starting city where your transport company will be located. You have almost one hundred cities in the following countries: Poland, Norway, Sweden, Great Britain, Denmark, Holland, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Switzerland, Austria, Hungary and Italy.

So from the excess of cities you may have a headache, although the initial choice is seemingly not so important. Your first garage will appear in the selected city, among other things, if you have already finished transporting on behalf of other companies. As for the choice of the city, you can, of course, choose some extreme locations to gradually explore the whole of Europe.

However, a much better idea is to choose a city somewhere in the middle of the map, for example in western or southern Germany. In the future, this will give you more choice when it comes to potential orders. The more you find yourself in the middle of the map, the more transport corridors and thus more orders.

Labour Market: Quick Order

Beginnings can be difficult, especially when we want to “go for it” and start a thriving company. Many owners of real transport companies also started their career as a private driver in small businesses. We start playing Euro Truck Simulator 2 with great plans.

However, before we implement them, we have to earn money for the first truck, without which building the company will remain a pipe dream. The game will very quickly offer you to visit a bank in order to take a loan, but initially it may not be a good idea. You can read more about this aspect on the appropriate page of our guide.

Initially, we can use one-time job advertisements without any restrictions, i.e. quick transport orders from A to B. Kilometers and rates are very different, but the orders focus on the area you are currently in or the neighboring cities.

Fast orders for external companies are characterized by the fact that they take place in different trucks belonging to the client. So we don’t have to worry about fuel or fatigue, as we usually get to work with a sufficiently refuelled tractor. So it would seem that this work is a dream. However, the stakes are not too high.

You must also remember that you will have to pay for any damage, be it to trucks or semi-trailers. The appropriate amount will not be deducted from your account, but all costs will be charged after the order is completed. You will then be able to take a closer look at the costs you have put your employer at risk.

How to accept the first order

In the main menu of the game, in the bottom bar, you will notice a button called Labor Market . Press it to call up a small window in the middle of the screen, where you select the Quick Order option .

Then another window will appear with the list of available orders . There you will find some important information about the type of transport. So you can check what you will be transporting, from which company to which one, the waiting time and the expiration date of the offer and the truck you will be driving.

However, all this information is less important, because the most important element is the remuneration. Just be careful not to pick orders quickly for as much money as possible. Much more important information is the earnings per kilometer driven. So it may happen that the final amount will be slightly higher, but instead you will have to drive a hundred more kilometers.

Experience and Abilities, Best Practices

You gain points of experience after the completed deliveries, also at the very beginning, when you still work for other companies. The faster the delivery, with no flaws in the form of a damaged product, the more money and experience you gain.

Along with experience points there are also skill points (called ability points in the game), which we can spend on various types of upgrades. Before you proceed with the selection of points, read their description carefully and think about which better to spend the ability points on.

Skills are divided into five types, each of which has a plus and minus icon. These buttons are used to distribute the points.

Dangerous cargo

Before you start to invest in these points, take a better look at the Long-distance points. Develop dangerous loads later and never forget them. They will give you access to more serious and better paid, although somewhat risky, orders.

• Class 1: Explosives such as dynamite, fireworks or ammunition.
• Class 2.1: Flammable gases such as acetylene or hydrogen.
• Class 2.2: Non-flammable gases, including cryogenic gases such as nitrogen or neon.
• Class 2.3: Poisonous gases which can lead to death or serious illness when inhaled. Such gases are for example fluorine, chlorine or hydrogen cyanide.
• Class 3: Flammable liquids. It contains very common but also very dangerous fuels such as petrol, diesel or kerosene.
• Class 4.1: Flammable liquids, nitrocellulose or matches.
• Class 4.2: Spontaneously flammable aluminium alkyl or white phosphorus.
• Class 4.3: Dangerous in case of soaking: sodium, calcium, potassium…
• Class 6.1: Poisonous materials, substances harmful to health such as: potassium cyanide, mercury chloride or pesticides.
• Class 6.2: Materials hazardous to humans and the environment – infectious materials, virus cultures, used needles and the like.
• Class 8: Corrosive substances. Substances that can dissolve organic tissue or seriously corrode certain metals. Examples are sulphuric acid, hydrochloric acid, potassium hydroxide or sodium hydroxide.

Long-distance car driver

The more points invested in these capabilities, the greater the money for long-distance deliveries. Along with dangerous loads it creates a really great set for better earnings.

• Rank 1: Deliveries up to 400 miles. +5% higher salary for delivery distances over 250 miles. +25% bonus to experience for delivery distances over 250 miles.
• Rank 2: Delivery up to 650 miles. +10% bonus for delivery distances over 400 miles.
• Rank 3: Delivery up to 1,000 miles. +15% bonus for delivery distance over 650 miles.
• Rank 4: Delivery up to 1600 miles. +20% of the higher compensation for delivery distances over 1000 miles.
• Rank 5: Delivery up to 2500 miles. +25% of the higher compensation for delivery distances over 1600 miles.
• Rank 6: Delivery anywhere. +30% of higher compensation for delivery distances over 2500 miles.

High value cargo

Abilities in which you should invest from the beginning. This increases remuneration for high value deliveries, although such goods are much more susceptible to damage.

• Rank 1: Unlocking high value orders. +5% higher remuneration for high value delivery. +18% bonus to experience for high value delivery.
• Rank 2: +10% higher remuneration (increase: 5%) for high value cargo delivery.
• Rank 3: +15% of the higher salary (increase: 5%) for high value shipping.
• Rank 4: +20% of the higher salary (increase: 5%) for high value cargo delivery.
• Rank 5: +25% of the higher salary (increase: 5%) for high value cargo delivery.
• Rank 6: +30% of the higher salary (increase: 5%) for high value cargo delivery.

Gentle load

Develop these skills when you have a lot of experience behind the wheel. The pay for such deliveries is very high, but it applies to the most delicate goods in the game – any breakage can cause several dozen-percent losses here.

• Rank 1: Unlocking the transportation of fragile goods. +5% higher remuneration for the delivery of the fragile cargo. +22% experience bonus for delivery of the fragile cargo.
• Rank 2: +10% of the higher salary (increase: 5%) for delivery of the fragile cargo.
• Rank 3: +15% of the higher salary (increase: 5%) for delivery of sensitive cargo.
• Rank 4: +20% of the higher salary (increase: 5%) for delivering the sensitive cargo.
• Rank 5: +25% of the higher salary (increase: 5%) for the delivery of the sensitive cargo.
• Rank 6: +30% of the higher salary (increase: 5%) for the delivery of the sensitive cargo.

Delivery on time

Something for the punctual. If you have a problem with on-time deliveries, don’t spend points on these skills initially.

• Rank 1: Unlock important deliveries. +3% higher salary for completing a valid delivery. +20% bonus to experience for completing a valid delivery.
• Rank 3: +9% of the higher salary (increase: 3%) for completing a valid delivery. Rank 3: +9% of the higher salary (increase: 3%) for completion of a valid delivery.
• Rank 4: +12% of the higher salary (increase: 3%) for completion of a valid delivery. +20% (growth: 3%) of the higher salary for completion of an urgent delivery.
• Rank 5: +15% of the higher salary (increase: 3%) for completion of a valid delivery. +25% (growth: 3%) of the higher salary for completion of an urgent delivery.
• Rank 6: +18% of the higher salary (increase: 3%) for completion of a valid delivery. +30% (growth: 3%) of the higher salary for completion of an urgent delivery.

Saving fuel

Fuel costs, apart from the purchase of a truck, are the biggest long-term expense of any transport company owner. With these skills you will significantly reduce fuel consumption. Do not invest in them when you work for someone.

• Rank 1: Saving up to 10% of fuel while driving with a trailer. Saves up to 10% of fuel when driving without an order.
• Rank 2: Saves up to 15% fuel when driving with a semi-trailer. Up to 15% fuel savings when driving without a trailer.
• Rank 3: Saves up to 20% fuel when driving with a semi-trailer. Saves up to 20% fuel when driving without a trailer.
• Rank 4: Up to 25% fuel savings when driving with a semi-trailer. Up to 25% fuel savings when driving without a trailer.
• Rank 5: Up to 30% fuel savings when driving with a semi-trailer. Up to 30% fuel savings when driving without a trailer.
• Rank 6: Up to 35% fuel savings when driving with a semi-trailer. Up to 35% fuel savings when driving without a trailer.