The best money in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City is Sunshine Autos, bought for $50,000 in Little Havana once you have completed the mission Shakedown.
Finish all four of its import lists and it pays $9,000 a day, which is close to the game’s top-earning property for less than half the purchase price.
How Sunshine Autos Pays
Buying it is only the start. The daily income scales as you complete car lists at its Import Garage.
| Lists completed | Daily income |
|---|---|
| First | $1,500 |
| Second | $4,000 |
| Third | $6,500 |
| Fourth | $9,000 |
There are four lists of six vehicles each, 24 in total, posted inside the office. You find each vehicle in the world and deliver it to the garage.
The jump from list one to list four is six-fold, which is why buying Sunshine Autos and then ignoring it is the most common mistake. The purchase alone is not the investment. The deliveries are.
Why It Beats the Alternatives
Most of Vice City’s properties cost more and pay less, or pay comparably but demand far more capital up front.
Sunshine Autos sits at $50,000 and tops out near the best in the game. Once its lists are done, the showroom income alone can fund the rest of your playthrough without you doing anything else for money.
Buying it early and working the lists between missions is the single highest-return decision in the game.
What Else It Unlocks
The purchase also opens six street races, which are worth doing in their own right and give you a reason to be driving the kind of cars the lists want anyway.
Little Havana is near the airport on the Mainland, so it is a convenient base for the vehicle hunting the lists require.
Tips Most Players Miss
- Buy it as soon as Shakedown is done. Every in-game day after that is compounding income.
- The lists are the point, not the deed. A purchased Sunshine Autos with no lists finished pays nothing.
- Deliver opportunistically. If you spot a listed car while doing a mission, take it in rather than making dedicated trips.
Vice City rewards property investment more directly than most games in the series, and stacking assets early changes how the back half plays. Our guide to changing clothes covers a trick that saves you money every time the police get involved, and our full GTA guides cover the rest.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the fastest way to make money in GTA Vice City? Buy Sunshine Autos for $50,000 after the Shakedown mission and complete all four import lists.
How much does Sunshine Autos pay? $1,500 a day after the first list, rising to $4,000, $6,500 and finally $9,000 once all four are done.
How many cars do the import lists need? 24 in total, across four lists of six vehicles each.
Where is Sunshine Autos? Little Havana, not far from the airport on the Mainland.