OK, so, way back in 1980, Steve Jackson Games released Car Wars, a post-apocalyptic vehicle combat simulation board game. It came in a baggie, as was the way of things back then. You might think it was inspired by Mad Max (1979), but it actually came out of an Alan Dean Foster story, “Why Johnny Can’t Speed.” Car Wars is cool, and I will probably cover it eventually, but as a board game, it kind of falls apart after it introduced vehicles that weren’t cars or trucks.

Autoduel (1986) has no such problems. While Car Wars was limited by maps and table sizes, Autoduel, like most tabletop RPGs, just needs space inside your brain. Mostly.  

In Autoduel, you get the setting background (a post-apocalyptic America, where autoduelists roam the highways looking for adventure), character creation rules, vehicle creation rules and a super robust system for vehicle to vehicle combat. This allows you to participate in all the vehicular manslaughter you could possibly desire.

Funny thing, though: Autoduel holds up as a solid campaign setting even if your characters never take the wheel of a car. The world, with is clones and competition circuit and political factions, does more than just provide an excuse to play chicken on a ruined highway. SJG thought so too, publishing seven regional sourcebook over the years as well as a pile of scenarios. It is easy to see how this would hold up on its own, or be an invaluable component of a custom post-apocalyptic game.

Bonus: this is a GURPS book with pretty good art, too!