ARC Raiders Patrol Car Key — Location and Loot Breakdown

The Patrol Car Key is a single-use key in ARC Raiders used on the Blue Gate map. It unlocks the rear compartment of an armored patrol car inside the checkpoint tunnel vehicle area on Blue Gate.

On ARC Raiders’ initial release, this was widely considered the worst key in the game. At that time, patrol cars did not contain a weapon case — opening the trunk yielded a single low-value container, often basic materials only.

The key has since been updated. Patrol cars now contain one weapon case, which gives the key a narrow but clear use case.

Before attempting to use this key, equip an augment with a Safe Pocket.

How to get the Patrol Car Key

The Patrol Car Key is a random drop.

It is most commonly found while looting:

• residential areas and apartment buildings

• searchable furniture and containers

• backpacks

• other players’ inventories

Loot quality in ARC Raiders scales strongly with Night Raids.

Night Raids increase overall loot value and also improve key drop rates, making them the most efficient time to both find keys and spend them.

High-loot zones (amber and red areas) contain denser searchable furniture and storage, which further increases the chance of finding keys during Night runs. These same conditions also improve the loot rolls of locked rooms once opened.

Keys are still RNG — Night and high-loot zones don’t guarantee a specific key — but they significantly improve both key circulation and the value of the rooms you unlock.

If you don’t want to wait on RNG, we provide ARC Raiders key delivery as well as a full ARC Raiders boosting service covering keys, blueprints, and other progression items.

Where the Patrol Car Key is used

The Patrol Car Key is used on the Blue Gate map, inside the checkpoint tunnel vehicle area.

Patrol cars spawn throughout this tunnel zone, alongside buses and other vehicles. Not every patrol car spawns with a locked rear door. You must visually check each one and look for a rear compartment that explicitly requires the Patrol Car Key.

Important details:

• patrol cars are located inside the checkpoint tunnels, not the Headhouse interior

• some patrol cars are already open or unusable

• you may need to move through the area and check multiple vehicles

• the area is open, exposed, and heavily patrolled by ARC units

This zone frequently contains Bombardiers, Bastions, Rocketeers, and drones. There is no safe enclosed space while searching.

Using the key opens the rear compartment instantly.

What it unlocks

Opening a locked patrol car yields exactly one weapon case. There is nothing else in the car's interior.

There are:

• no secondary containers

• no additional rooms

• no guaranteed rare spawns

Once the case is opened, the interaction is complete and the key is consumed.

Final Thoughts & Ranking

The Patrol Car Key is a simple, situational key. The Patrol Car Key sits firmly in Tier D. It’s best used only if you are already moving through the checkpoint tunnel area and can quickly check multiple vehicles without committing extra time.

It unlocks a single exposed container, requires searching an open, hostile area, and offers no follow-up loot or room control. Even with the added weapon case, the time-to-risk ratio is the lowest of any key in the game.

That said, if you already have this key and happen to be moving through the checkpoint tunnels, opening it for a quick weapon roll makes sense. If you need a weapon case and got the key by accident, this is exactly what it’s for — just don’t plan a run around it.

If you want to see how this key compares to others across all maps, check out our ARC Raiders Keys Ranked from Worst to Best tier list. Each key there links to a dedicated breakdown explaining where it’s used and what it unlocks.

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