WheelMates Gadgets: All 5 Abilities, Where to Get Them
Data checked:
| # | Gadget | Found in | Owners who have it | Controls | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grapple | Kitchen | 75.7% | Hold D-pad up to aim, left bumper to fire; drive backwards while latched to pull a lever | A pneumatic tether that latches onto surfaces, triggers buttons and sensors without anchoring, and pulls heavy levers using the car's drive. It retracts automatically at maximum extension. |
| 2 | Magnetic Grabber | Garage | 34.2% | Toggle on and off (changed from hold-to-grab in the May 8 demo patch) | Lifts covers, picks up objects such as batteries, cogs and even non-metal items like oranges, presses distant buttons and drags pieces into place. |
| 3 | Magnet Wheels | Neuro-Void: Fragments | 16.6% | Drive onto a metal path; the car sticks regardless of orientation | Follow magnetic paths up walls and across ceilings as long as there is a metal surface to hold. |
| 4 | Phase Shifter | Shed | 5.2% | Not yet documented from footage | Listed as the fourth gadget by unlock order; the Steam API identifier for its achievement is PARTICLE_DASH, which suggests a short dash through barriers. We have not seen it used on screen yet. |
| 5 | Paintgun | Shed | 4.4% | Aim and shoot at targets | Shoots paint at targets and buttons, including timed target runs. |
Gadget by gadget
Grapple Kitchen · 75.7% of owners
A pneumatic tether that latches onto surfaces, triggers buttons and sensors without anchoring, and pulls heavy levers using the car's drive. It retracts automatically at maximum extension.
- Controls: Hold D-pad up to aim, left bumper to fire; drive backwards while latched to pull a lever
- Two-car use: Levers usually come in pairs; both cars latch and reverse at the same moment.
- Source: In-game data record read on screen in full-release footage
Magnetic Grabber Garage · 34.2% of owners
Lifts covers, picks up objects such as batteries, cogs and even non-metal items like oranges, presses distant buttons and drags pieces into place.
- Controls: Toggle on and off (changed from hold-to-grab in the May 8 demo patch)
- Two-car use: One car carries while the other drives the crane, lift or door; caps on pipes must be placed from the far side of the glass.
- Source: Demo patch notes May 8, 2026; The Co-op Company review; Steam bug reports
Magnet Wheels Neuro-Void: Fragments · 16.6% of owners
Follow magnetic paths up walls and across ceilings as long as there is a metal surface to hold.
- Controls: Drive onto a metal path; the car sticks regardless of orientation
- Two-car use: One car takes the ceiling route to reach a switch while the other waits on the floor to catch or press what drops.
- Source: Steam store feature list; The Co-op Company review; achievement rates
Phase Shifter Shed · 5.2% of owners
Listed as the fourth gadget by unlock order; the Steam API identifier for its achievement is PARTICLE_DASH, which suggests a short dash through barriers. We have not seen it used on screen yet.
- Controls: Not yet documented from footage
- Two-car use: Unknown until documented.
- Source: Steam achievement list and API identifiers
Paintgun Shed · 4.4% of owners
Shoots paint at targets and buttons, including timed target runs.
- Controls: Aim and shoot at targets
- Two-car use: One car shoots targets in sequence while the other holds a position or leads the way through a maze from above.
- Source: The Co-op Company review (Sept 1, 2026)
Abilities every car has from the tutorial
- Jump (A on an Xbox pad) with a recharge delay: jump, brake on the platform, wait, jump again.
- Mid-air strafe and slow-down with the triggers, and B to kill speed on landing.
- Roll over by holding a left button when the car lands on its side or back.
- Teleport back after a long fall: a prompt offers to return you to the ledge you fell from (short falls do not get the prompt).
- Headlights (Y), which switch off between rooms, and the horn on the right stick, which is also how you signal a synced button press.
- Self-destruct from the pause menu ("I'm stuck") when the car is wedged; you respawn nearby.
Gadget questions
Do both cars get every gadget?
Yes. Both players have exactly the same abilities at the same time, which reviewers point out as the main difference from It Takes Two: there is no reason to be player one rather than player two.
What order do the gadgets come in?
Grapple (Kitchen), Magnetic Grabber (Garage), Magnet Wheels (between the Garage and the end of Neuro-Void: Fragments), then Phase Shifter and Paintgun (Shed). The first three are confirmed on screen; the last two are placed by their Steam unlock rates.
Is there a jump booster gadget?
Not as a pickup. Early press material mentioned jump boosters, but the release build gives every car a jump from the tutorial (with a recharge delay), and the five achievement-tracked gadgets are the ones listed here.
Why does the magnet not grab something?
The Magnetic Grabber is a toggle since the May 8 demo patch: press once to grab, once to release. If a part sits behind glass or a grate, the puzzle wants the other car to place it from that side. Cogs that fall into the acid or over the steam trap in the Garage do not respawn yet; Firevolt is patching that.