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NASCAR Heat Mod Manager

A lightweight, mod management tool for NASCAR Heat 5.

Features

  • Per-profile saves: Deploying a named profile parks the outgoing save and restores that profile's progress. New mod profiles start empty so the game generates compatible saves. Starting with Default/Vanilla adopts the existing live save instead of shifting profile ownership by one. The original save is kept separately.
  • Profile-Based Asset Management: Create distinct mod profiles for different overhauls, physics tweaks, or custom paint schemes.
  • Automated DLC Unlocker: Toggle Auto-Unlock DLCs to automatically apply the IL patch to Assembly-CSharp.dll every time you deploy mods.
  • Safe Reversion & Backups: Automatic original vanilla file backups prevent dirty installs and make reverting to stock effortless.
  • Drag-and-Drop Support: Drag .zip archives or uncompressed folders directly into the window to assign them to your active profile.
  • Conflict Detection: Visual indicators highlight overlapping or duplicated active mod files.
  • Direct Steam Launching: Option to launch NASCAR Heat 5 directly through Steam immediately after deployment.

Installation

NOTE: Please make sure your current game files are in a CLEAN unmodified state otherwise, disabling of mods will not work correctly.

  1. Download the latest release from the Releases tab.
  2. Extract the archive to any directory on your system.
  3. Launch NH5ModManager.exe.

For any issues, please visit our Discord server

Usage Guide

  1. Set Game Folder: Click Browse and select your root NASCAR Heat 5 directory (e.g., C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\NASCAR Heat 5).
  2. Create / Select Profile: Choose an existing profile from the dropdown or click + New Profile to set up a new layout.
  3. Add Mods: Drag and drop mod archives (.zip) or individual mod folders into the app list view to add them to the selected profile.
  4. Configure DLC Settings: Check Auto-Unlock DLCs if you want the season pass check patched into your deployed assembly files.
  5. Deploy: Click Deploy Mods. The manager will swap the active assets, run the DLC patch (if enabled), and prompt you to launch the game.

Save profiles

Create a separate named profile for each incompatible mod/driver roster, then use Deploy Mods to switch. Selecting a dropdown item alone does not switch game assets or saves. Deploying the same profile again preserves its save. If you replace a roster inside an existing profile, create a new profile for it first.

The live save folder (where NASCAR Heat 5 reads/writes) defaults to %USERPROFILE%\NASCAR Heat 5. To change it, right-click the profile dropdown and select Choose game save folder.... Choose the save folder, not the Steam installation directory.

Inactive profile saves are stored inside each mod profile by default:

  • Profiles/<profile name>/Save/ holds that profile's progress while another profile is active.
  • Profiles/.SaveStore/Original/ preserves the save that existed before the first managed deployment.
  • Profiles/.SaveStore/state.json maps profiles to those folders and records ActiveProfile.
  • The active profile's save remains in the game's normal save folder, so eleven profiles normally mean ten Profiles/*/Save folders plus one live save.
  • Empty profiles are not archived as misleading empty save folders. Copy/export of a profile skips its Save/ folder so packages stay mod-only.
  • Older installs that used %USERPROFILE%\.NASCAR Heat 5.NH5ModManager are migrated automatically into Profiles/ without changing profile ownership.

For a genuinely clean retest, close the game and manager, then rename the live NASCAR Heat 5 save folder and the manager Profiles folder (or at least Profiles/.SaveStore) to backup names. Clearing only the live folder is not a clean reset because the previous profile mappings remain in state.json.

Close the game before deployment. The manager blocks deployment while NASCAR Heat 5 is running, and only offers to launch after deployment succeeds. Interrupted switches are recovered on the next deployment. If recovery cannot proceed, the manager stops and reports the backup location.

Renaming a profile retains its save identity. Copied profiles start with a separate fresh save; save files are never included in exported mod packages. Deleting a mod profile retains its save archive; reusing the exact profile name reconnects that progress. There is one shared save per named profile, not per individual checked asset file.

To manually recover the pre-manager save: close the game and manager, copy Original to a separate safe location, move the current live save folder aside, then copy Original to the normal game save path. Do not delete the archive or index. Redeploy a profile before using automatic switching again.

Technical Details & Project Structure

├── Profiles/                      # Saved profile configs and asset structures
│   ├── Default/
│   └── <ProfileName>/
│       └── NASCARHeat5_Data/
├── NH5ModManager_Data/
│   └── Vanilla_Backup/            # Original unmodified game backups
├── app_settings.json              # App configuration (e.g., Auto-Unlock DLC state)
├── DeployedManifest.json          # Active deployment tracking
└── vanilla_map.json               # Indexed vanilla directory structure cache

Requirements

  • OS: Windows 10 / 11 (64-bit)
  • Framework: .NET 10.0 Desktop Runtime (not required for the self-contained build)
  • Game: NASCAR Heat 5 (Steam)