Galactic Racer vehicle switching is easy to misunderstand because the campaign can show several owned and upgradeable repulsorcraft while a Tour is still built around one active Loadout. Seeing another machine in a paddock, spending Tuning Points on it or unlocking a new class does not make the campaign’s next selection step obvious. The run structure treats vehicle choice as part of progression, so the places where that choice returns matter much more than they would in a normal garage-based racing campaign.
The confusion usually appears after a newly unlocked vehicle feels better suited to the next planet or after a difficult run makes the current class feel like the wrong commitment. Galactic Racer vehicle switching also overlaps with League Entry Tokens, Act progression, permanent Tuning upgrades and the separate Podracing mode, all of which can look like possible ways to change machines. The key is separating genuine Loadout selection points from screens that only let you customise vehicles for later use.
Galactic Racer vehicle switching: when can you change vehicles?
Image credit: Lucasfilm Games / Fuse Games
Galactic Racer vehicle switching is available at the start of the campaign, between Act I and Act II, between Act II and Act III, and whenever the current Act restarts after you lose all remaining League Entry Tokens. Once a Tour run has begun, the selected Landspeeder, Speeder Bike or Skim Speeder stays locked for that run. You cannot change to another normal campaign class simply because you reached a new planet or entered Hibi’s paddock.
| Campaign moment | Can you switch? | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Start of a new campaign run | Yes | Choose an unlocked Landspeeder, Speeder Bike or Skim Speeder in Loadout |
| Between Act I and Act II | Yes | A new Loadout choice opens for the next Act |
| Between Act II and Act III | Yes | Choose again before the final Act |
| Middle of a Tour | No | Your selected vehicle remains locked |
| New planet paddock | No | You may inspect and customise vehicles, but the active Loadout does not change |
| After losing all League Entry Tokens | Yes | The current Act restarts and Loadout selection returns |
Why Galactic Racer vehicle switching is locked mid-run
The campaign treats the vehicle as part of the run build. Galactic Racer vehicle switching is limited because Parts, temporary stat upgrades, abilities and Racer Style choices are supposed to develop around the machine you committed to at the beginning of that attempt. Allowing a free class swap before every track would remove a large part of that risk and would let players dodge weaknesses instead of building around them.
This is also why Galactic Racer vehicle switching matters: the three standard classes feel genuinely different. Landspeeders are heavier and use Drift, Speeder Bikes trade durability for acceleration and a Kinetic Burst, and Skim Speeders rely on smooth momentum and Knife Edge cornering. Choosing a class is not a cosmetic garage choice, so the game gives Galactic Racer vehicle switching to you at major Act boundaries rather than at every paddock stop.
Why the paddock can make the system look confusing
At a planetary stop, the customisation area can show more than the vehicle currently being raced. That does not override Galactic Racer vehicle switching rules. You can inspect or tune another unlocked class, but the next campaign event still uses the vehicle selected in the current Loadout. The paddock is a preparation space, not a free class-selection screen.
If you put Tuning Points or cosmetic work into another machine during the run, that progress is not wasted. Galactic Racer vehicle switching only controls the active campaign Loadout, not whether permanent work on another vehicle is saved. Permanent vehicle upgrades remain useful for a later Act or future Tour. It simply does not replace the current active class until the campaign reaches a valid Loadout point.
Can you force a vehicle change by ending the run?
Yes, but Galactic Racer vehicle switching through a forced reset is expensive in time. Losing every League Entry Token ends the current Tour attempt and returns you to the beginning of the current Act, where the Loadout screen becomes available again. If you realise immediately that a new vehicle is a terrible fit, an early reset can be preferable to dragging the wrong class through a long sequence of events.
Do not burn tokens casually just to experiment, especially after a strong build has already formed. Using a failed run as a Galactic Racer vehicle switching shortcut can cost much more time than waiting for the next Act boundary. A reset discards the current run-specific Parts and upgrades and sends you back through the Act. Permanent progression survives, but the route and temporary setup do not. If you are only curious about another class, Arcade or a later Act boundary is usually a cheaper place to test it.
How League Tokens can end a run
League Entry Tokens act as the campaign’s run lives. A normal Race can cost one if you exceed the permitted number of crashes, an Eliminator can cost one if you fail to reach the required top-three finish, and certain Head-to-Head events also put a token at risk. When the final token is gone, the run ends and Galactic Racer vehicle switching becomes available again because you are building a fresh Loadout for the restarted Act.
The exact crash allowance depends on difficulty and modifiers, so intentionally throwing away a token is not always one identical process. On Pilot, the standard allowance gives three crashes in a race before the next crash costs the token. Favors and higher difficulties can alter that rhythm. Check the current event conditions rather than assuming one failure will always end the attempt.
Can you switch to a Podracer?
Podracers do not use the normal Galactic Racer vehicle switching route. They are not a fourth standard campaign Loadout class that can replace a Landspeeder, Speeder Bike or Skim Speeder whenever the Loadout screen appears. Podracing is used in dedicated campaign story events and in its own Arcade and multiplayer content.
If the goal is simply to drive a Podracer, Arcade is the quickest route and does not require throwing away a campaign run. That is separate from Galactic Racer vehicle switching in the normal campaign Loadout. Campaign Podracing arrives through Sebulba’s progression and later story content, while multiplayer has its own Podracing mode. None of those routes turns the Podracer into a normal mid-Act class swap.
Which vehicle should you commit to?
Use Galactic Racer vehicle switching points to solve a real handling problem. The Landspeeder is the most forgiving first choice, especially while tracks are unfamiliar. The Speeder Bike is attractive once you can protect a fragile, fast machine from repeated contact. The Skim Speeder rewards players who are comfortable maintaining momentum and using its technical cornering rather than making constant corrections.
If a class is working, keep developing it instead of changing purely because a new option unlocked. If the vehicle repeatedly causes the same kind of failure, use the next Act boundary to change without sacrificing the current run. That makes Galactic Racer vehicle switching part of campaign planning rather than an emergency menu search after every bad race.
Official source: StarWars.com: Star Wars Galactic Racer
