Choosing a sim racing wheel and pedals.

Specifications on this page are the makers' own claims unless we say otherwise. Makers update their ranges often, so check the maker's current page before you buy.

Do you need a wheel yet?

Not to start. iRacing's system requirements accept an analog gamepad, joystick, mouse or touch screen as the minimum controller. It recommends a wheel and pedal set, and suggests force-feedback wheels and pedals for serious online racing. So a wheel is an upgrade you can make once you know you enjoy it, not an entry ticket.

What matters

• How the base makes force. Gear, belt or direct drive. This decides how strong and detailed the force feedback feels, and how much maintenance the base needs.
• Which torque figure is quoted. Some makers quote peak torque, others constant torque plus an overshoot figure. They are not the same measure, so compare like with like.
• How the brake pedal senses your foot. By how far it moves, or by how hard you press (a load cell).
• Platform support. A wheel that works on PC may not work on your console, or in your game.
• Where it will mount. Stronger bases need a rigid mount. See the sim cockpits guide.
• Warranty and support. Terms differ by maker and sometimes by region.

Gear, belt and direct-drive bases

The wheel base holds the motor that creates force feedback. Fanatec, which makes wheel bases, sets out the three designs this way:

Logitech describes its dual-motor, gear-driven wheels as its entry point into wheel racing. It says its direct-drive wheels mount the rim on the motor shaft with no belts or gears, which it claims means less delay and more accuracy.

Reading torque claims

Torque is the headline figure on most wheel bases, but the numbers are not always comparable. As the makers state them:

• Simucube lists three direct-drive bases on its specification page at 15, 25 and 35 Nm peak.
• Logitech gives up to 8 Nm peak for one of its direct-drive wheels and 11 Nm for the other.
• Moza: a review reproduced on Moza's own blog (3 October 2024) says Moza's bases run from 3 to 21 Nm, calls 12 Nm enough for nearly every discipline, and quotes only peak figures, not sustained torque.
• Thrustmaster quotes 5 Nm of constant torque, with up to 100% overshoot, for its axial-flux direct-drive base, according to Box This Lap.

Simucube's figures, the Moza review's and Logitech's 8 Nm figure are peak torque; Thrustmaster's is constant torque. More torque is not automatically better: the Moza-hosted review calls 12 Nm enough for nearly every discipline. Our sources do not measure feel, so treat torque as one input, not a ranking.

Pedals: travel or force

Simucube explains that a load-cell pedal measures how hard you press rather than how far the pedal moves, and turns that force into a digital signal. Its argument, as a pedal maker, is that force-based braking matches how real drivers brake and lets muscle memory learn repeatable brake pressures, which matters in a sim because there are no g-forces to feel. It also says travel sensors (potentiometers) wear because they have moving parts, while load cells have none and need little maintenance.

Simucube describes hydraulic pedals as giving a realistic feel through fluid in a closed loop, at the cost of more maintenance such as bleeding and leak prevention. It also argues that a kilogram rating quoted for a pedal does not by itself show quality.

You do not always have to replace a whole pedal set to get a load cell. Fanatec sells a load-cell kit that adds a load-cell brake to one of its pedal sets, and Box This Lap reports that Thrustmaster's two-pedal set for its direct-drive base can take a load-cell third pedal as an add-on. Logitech says an adapter lets the pedals from its gear-driven wheels work with its direct-drive bases. If you might upgrade later, check what upgrade path a maker offers before you buy.

Check your platform first

Compatibility depends on the platform and the game, not just the hardware. EA's F1 25 support page lists wheels separately for PS5, Xbox and PC: Moza wheels, for example, appear on its Xbox and PC lists but not on its PS5 list. EA also says that on consoles it cannot help with device problems and refers players to the wheel maker. Before buying a wheel for a console, check the game's own compatibility list for that console. For PC sims, see what each platform asks for on sim rigs.

Warranty

Warranty terms can differ even for one product. Simucube's own specification page gives a 24-month warranty for two of those bases and 60 months for the top one. GPerformance, a Simucube reseller, says 3 years and 5 years (19 August 2026). Simucube's page is the primary source, and regional terms may differ, so check what applies where you buy.

Our picks by where you are starting

For how sim coaches use force feedback and the brake to find the limit, see sim technique.