Sim Racing Blog

Getting started in Simracing (Steering Wheels)

If you want to get started in simracing, you wheel need a wheel. There are many wheels available on the market and you can start with any wheel you like if you have no budget. However, if you have a budget, then there are quite a little choices for a good decent wheel.

Logitech G27

This wheel is the very first wheel I own. I bought it back in Dec 2017 and I paid RM700 which is about 170USD. However, there are cases where people have bought it for less than 100USD for this wheel. Now, as of Feb 2020, I am not so sure anymore, but 100USD for this wheel is definitely a bargain.

The G27 comes with a steering, shifter, and pedals as one complete set.

The steering for starters, it is okay. The FFB in this wheel is only there to exist and serve no other purpose. Driving with it feels fake, like a toy. This is partly because Logitech uses gears to drive the wheel and mostly because the motor is far too weak.

The shifter on the other hand, it is another poor letdown. Shifting is too light, feel is too toy-ish. But it is there to serve a purpose.

The pedals however, it is definitely a big step-up. The gas and clutch pedal is very good, but the brake pedal is fantastic. You can actually feel the car with it.

One other problem the G27 has is compatibility. This wheel will only work with a PS3 or PC. If you want to buy it for PS4, then you will need something called a drivehub, which is made by Chronusmax. You can buy this directly from Chronusmax themselves for 90USD in their website, but with a total of almost 200USD for both the wheel and the adapter, I am not sure if it is worth it.

Logitech G29

If you are looking for starter wheels, this is a good starters. Starting price of 195USD, without the shifter. Including the shifter which is 55USD on Amazon, you are looking at 250USD. If you are looking for an upgrade from the G27, forget it. The G27 and G29 is essentially the same on the inside. Gear driven, light motor, unchanged build quality, etc. The only thing that is different is the looks and compatibility, and also it doesn’t come with a shifter like a G27.

The same could be said the same for the shifter. It is essentially the same as the old G27 shifter, except that the looks is differet.

This wheel is compatible with a PS3, PS4 and PC.

Logitech G920

It’s the same wheel as the G29, but it is built for Xbox one.

Thrustmaster T150

Thrustmaster T150 is a close competitor to the Logitech G29/G920. The wheel will cost around 180USD on amazon. However, it only comes with a two-plate pedal set. You can spend another 70USD to buy a T150 with a T3PA pedals.

T150 wheelbase is a far superior item compared to the logitech’s variant when it comes to FFB. It is a belt driven motor, so the FFB is stronger and the way the motor feeds information to the wheel is much better.

The pedals, I am not so sure about the original two-plate pedal, but I can tell that the T3PA pedal is definitely far inferior to Logitech’s pedals. The brakes for example, it feels far too light and when thrustmaster added a stopper on the back of the brake to simulate the feel of braking the car, it’s even worse.

The T150 doesn’t come with a shifter like a G29, but AT 170USD, you can buy a TH8A shifter, which I think is the best shifter on to buy.

Thrustmaster T300

The T300 is a much better wheel than the T150. It has a dual-motor, dual belt driven wheel which feeds better info to the wheel than the T150. And the weight when turning the steering is horrifying. You can tell that it is far better than a logitech wheel.

Only downside is the pedals, which is the same as the T150. It only comes at 295USD with a two-plate pedal, but at 335USD you can buy the T300 with a T3PA pedals which again, is inferior to the logitech pedals.

It also has the same problem with the shifter, which is a 170USD add-on.

Summary

The Logitech wheels has rubbish FFB, the shifter feels like a toy, but the pedals and build quality is very promising. When I used my G27, I never have to worry about breaking the wheel as it is definitely a high quality build product.

The Thrustmaster on the other hand, the wheelbase has far superior FFB compared to Logitech, the TH8A shifter is also far superior when it comes to shifting, but their build quality sometimes is questionable and their T3PA pedals are rubbish compared to Logitech’s pedal.