In a vehicle control apparatus, one or more control units, each configured to perform an arithmetic operation process in accordance with a program stored therein in advance to individually control an operating state of an activator mounted in a vehicle, are connected to a network communication path to form a vehicle network. The vehicle control apparatus includes an external communication unit and a monitoring unit. The external communication unit is connectable to or disconnectable from the network communication path and is configured to allow the vehicle to communicate externally. The monitoring unit is configured to determine a state of each of the one or more control units while the external communication unit is disconnected from the network communication path.