Review: Logitech’s Pro Racing Wheel and Pedals make sim racing feel more realistic

Logitech recently released their PRO wheel and pedals for sim racers. Some people enjoy sim racing for fun, but others turn it into professional sim-racing careers. This product is also aimed at those aspiring racing drivers that want to develop and refine their skills at any time, during any weather and for a relatively low-cost.

This is a significant step up from Logitech’s G920/G923 offering, now delivering a Direct Drive wheelbase with quick-release wheel. After spending a few weeks with it, it’s time for a full review.

I’ve been enjoying sim racing at home for more than a decade and over that time my setup has evolved considerably.

To get started, I did what many do, which is to start with a cheap wheel and pedal set, in my case, the Thrustmaster Ferrari 458 wheel, bolted to a computer desk and seated in an office chair the beginnings were certainly modest. While this does provide more accurate input for steering than a controller and got me started for a low cost of entry, it lacked the force feedback required to make the experience believable.

Next, I stepped up to the Logitech G920 and eventually bolted that to a racing sim by Next Level Racing. For a modest price, I was now able to feel much more of the car underneath me, thanks to that force of feedback and vibration through the wheel. As great as that was, the G920 did have its limitations and as you gain experience and time in the seat, you evolve as a sim racer and crave an increasing amount of realism.

Over the years the display went from a 27″ Monitor, to become a 75″ 4K TV on the wall, and the racing sim is now a GT Track from Next Level Racing. While there’s no motion platform (yet), my racing sim took another big leap forward with the addition of Logitech’s Pro Wheel and Pedals set.

What’s on offer here is a direct drive motor, which provides a brilliant feeling of direct input to the wheel, to direct output on the screen. As you turn through a corner and hit that apex, glancing the ripple strip, you’ll feel every bit of the 11 Nm of force through the wheel, fighting your forearms, just like a real racecar would.

This setup offers the most realistic racing setup I”ve experienced at home so far, allowing more of your brain to be consumed by the feelings of the wheel in your hand and the pedals at your feet and imagine yourself behind the seat of multi-million dollar vehicles on screen. If you are even halfway serious about racing, a sim setup like this, is a must, a really enjoyable place to be.

Design

The Wheel

Removing the wheel from its LogitechG-branded bag, revealed a solid, professional-looking wheel. The muted greys and blacks are only broken up by the colour of the Xbox ABXY buttons, and the blue rings around the new nobs at the bottom. Keen to explore I did what many new owners will do, you pick it up, hold it as if you were racing and proceed to press each of the buttons to see how they feel.

Immediately I loved how the wheel felt in the hand and while I knew there was some discovery to go, I was immediately impressed with the new shifters on the rear, providing a very mechanical, confident click when triggered.

I was keen to move to the next phase, the quick-release mount on the rear of the wheel. This is one of those obvious differences between entry or even mid-level wheels and professional ones, these can be removed from the base and this enables the platform to be used with additional wheel types in the future (can’t wait for a full F1-style wheel).

The wheel is great, and familiar, but better than the one from the G920.. so now on to the direct-drive base.

The base

Lifting the base from the box, and removing it from the G-bag, it was clear this is where the lion’s share of the weight was contained. The base is substantial, hinting at the capabilities inside.

Mounting the wheel to the base was a piece of cake and the only job left was to remove the plastic protecting all the glossy surfaces and logos. The base also matches the muted black design, with the exception of the bright red start button. Getting ready to bolt the new wheel up to a black-framed racing sim, this would blend together exceptionally well.

At the end of the wheelbase, you’ll find a power adapter, 3x USB-A ports and weirdly a micro-USB port (for pedals), straight out of 2005, apparently, Logitech didn’t get the memo about USB-C everything in 2022. The USB-A ports will connect to your device of choice and I particularly love that Logitech gives you options here to connect to a PC and Xbox, without having to switch cables each time you switch devices.

Pedals

The pedals are quite frankly ridiculous.

Firstly, the size and scale of them really do live up to the PRO branding, but then you take a look behind the scenes at the springs and pistons that provide adjustable pressure to your driving experience and you realise Logitech isn’t playing here.

It’s a subtle thing, but I love that they decided to make the adjustable knob on the brake cylinder the iconic blue from the Logitech G branding. It’s not going to be seen by anyone, but you know it’s there. In the box, you also get a couple of replacement springs, but I don’t expect to need them anytime soon.

The adjustability is great, with the ability to change the pedals with just an alan key. Being labelled Pro isn’t just about the price tag, but about functionality and personalisation, so being able to determine how your pedals are set up is definitely a key part of this.

It may not sound like a big deal, but the vast footrest on the pedals is definitely appreciated, it is also finished in a nice texture to prevent your heels from slipping in the middle of furious footwork.

Features

A product with the PRO branding also comes with big expectations and especially as Logitech attempts to move into the pro-tier of racing products they need a great lineup of features to compete with the likes of Fanatec and Thrustmaster.

Thankfully the set of features on offer here is extensive and while there’s certainly room to grow with this platform, the offering at launch is certainly compelling.

Quick Release Wheel

The first big difference between this and your entry to mid-level wheels is the ability to detach it from the wheelbase. This is typically done to enable the use of multiple wheel types, one for GT racing or drifting, and another for Formula One. So far, Logitech only offers a single wheel, but that’s likely to change in the future.

Switching wheels (when that arrives), is quite simple, this works just like a quick release in a real racing car, just pull in on the quick-release mechanism and it slides off the spindle, detaching from the base. This will make a whole lot more sense once there are alternative wheels available for the Logitech G PRO base.

Universal Clamping Mechanism

When you buy this wheel, you’ll want to bolt it to your racing sim, or a desk or any hard surface. I was keen to bolt this to my Next Level Racing sim using bolts through the bottom of the base, but unfortunately, my GT Track didn’t line up. This left me with the clamp option which historically has always been inferior to a fixed-bolt mount.

Logitech has done an amazing job with this clamping mechanism, I was amazed just how well this secures the wheelbase. Despite having much more force (11nm to be exact), the thing does not move and importantly there’s no rattles to distract you from the driving experience.

I personally don’t plan on moving the wheel from my racing sim, but if you’re someone who wants to take this to a friend’s place to challenge them, it quickly unbolts and you’d be away and racing. The pedals are, however, quite a different story.

ADJUSTABLE PEDALS

The other half of the wheel and pedals combo is the pedals and Logitech has also ensured they meet the ‘PRO’ label as well. What would you want from a set of Pro-tier pedals? The biggest feature is certainly configurability and on that front Logitech delivered in spades.

Not only can you control the pedal stiffness, but you can control the lateral positioning of the pedals and even remove pedals (like the clutch) completely. The pedal feel is controlled by two things, the spring and the dense foam elements inside the pedal mechanism, both of which can be switched out to meet your personal preference. Depending on your selection, you may need to replace these components over time.

What is fantastic is the ability to put an immense brake force in and to have nothing move. This is achieved through some serious mounting points that work extremely well with the GT Track racing sim. If you do decide to change your pedal configuration, you will need to first remove the pedals from the mounting plate, make the adjustment, then bolt it all back together. It’s not a massive effort but is also not a two-second thing to make significant changes like removing or adding a clutch pedal.

MAGNETIC GEAR SHIFT PADDLES

If you’re going to drive a manual transmission using paddle shifters, you want the feeling of pulling gears to be really satisfying and confidence-inspiring that every shift is deliberate. Shifting precisely is incredibly important as you fire into turns at speed and drop through the gears, 5th, 4th, 3rd, 2nd.. turn through the apex, accelerate out and back up through the gears, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, etc.

Having each one of these shifts processed through metal gear shift paddles feels sensational and it is far more than the material used, it’s a lot about the hinge mechanism that sits behind it, and that’s what provides the feeling of a change.

The combination of vibrations felt through the wheel, with a gear shift through the paddles, really makes for a racing experience that’s alive and dynamic and ultimately something that you’re in control of.

Technically the way this is all achieved is through a magnetic system with contactless hall-effect sensors—so drivers get a positive, mechanical feel that accurately simulates a professional race car. Having drive the Nissan R35 GTR NISMO, I can attest to the fact that the feeling you get on the Logitech G PRO wheel, is very similar, maybe even better.

DUAL CLUTCH PADDLES

Further expanding on the challenges on offer from this product, in a number of titles, you can opt for clutch paddles, rather than the regular foot peddal. This is perfect for games like F1 2022 where there is no clutch pedal for the divers, so paddles on the back of the wheel, plays this role. If you commit to this, you can also remove the clutch pedal entirely from the setup, making for a realistic go-kart/f1-style pedal setup of just accelerator and brakes.

INTEGRATED GAME SETTINGS AND LED DISPLAY

One of the massive benefits of racing simulation is that you can easily walk between different cars and between whole games. This means you’ll likely want different wheel settings and thankfully Logitech enables you to quickly change settings and switch between profiles.

If you’re someone who shares your racing sim with other racers, then you’ll also appreciate being able to switch between profiles.

It is also comforting to see the inputs be recognised through the LED display in front of you and one of my favourites is the shift lifts, but these do require it to be connected to a PC, disappointing if you’re on team Xbox.

The shift lights can be customised to suit your personal preference. Either have them build outside in, left to right or right to left, ranging from green, through yellow/orange to Red and blue when it’s absolutely time to shift. Being able to predict where the optimal shift point is, is critical in optimising the performance of the car on track, so while it may not seem like much, this is a really important inclusion.

Many other racing setups require 3rd party add-ons to achieve this and often even consume a whole device like a phone mounted on top of the base to achieve. Other titles also offer a digital representation of the shift lights on screen, but there’s something far more realistic about having a set of shift lights on your wheel base, in reality.

GAME SUPPORT

By this point in the review, you’re probably making some decisions about this product fitting in your life, but one of the biggest determiners will be the supported game list. If you’re favourite racing title isn’t supported, then you’re likely to look elsewhere.

Thankfully the list of supported titles is extensive, but there is a difference between supported and Trueforce supported. Those titles that support Logitech’s Trueforce technology will provide a much more immersive, real racing experience than those that don’t.

Trueforce allows racers to experience in-game physics, road conditions, and motor vibrations near-instant precision.

Combined with a powerful Direct Drive motor, PRO Wheel delivers unrivalled racing realism with higher frequencies than ever before.

Issues

One surprise was the lack of interoperability with their own Logitech manual H-pattern shifter. For replicating the driving experience of modern supercars, or formula one cars, the padel shifts are great, however, if you’re trying to drift a Nissan R34 Skyline and want to shift down, grab the handbrake, dump the clutch, smash the accelerator, and slide it sideways, you’ll want the manual shifter.

There are also plenty of pro setups that offer a physical handbrake lever, again replicating the real setup inside a car, to help trick your brain into believing that you’re actually driving your dream car.

With Logitech’s PRO wheelbase offering 3 USB ports, it feels incredibly likely that we’ll see these add-ons in the future.

Price and Availability

The Logitech Pro Racing Wheel is available now for PC, PlayStation and Xbox. In the box, you’ll find the PRO Wheel Rim, PRO Wheel Base, Table Clamp, USB cable and Power supply.

While the Logitech G923 wheels and pedals are available at a lot of retailers, the Logitech G PRO Racing Wheel and Pedals are only available from a couple of retailers so far. Naturally, you can buy directly from Logitech’s own website, and the Gamesmen also stock them.

The price of this is representative of a serious, professional-level racing setup, and those familiar with the technology differences will understand that direct-drive wheels regularly land in a higher price bracket than belt-driven wheels.

The Logitech Pro Racing Wheel costs A$1,499.95 and the wheels cost an extra A$599.95 for a total bundle cost of $2,099.90.

Overall

I definitely have a lot more racing to do before writing my full review, but my initial racing has been on the Xbox Series X, across a number of racing titles. Forza Horizon 5, Forza 7, Dirt 5, Assetto Corsa and the most recent, F1 2022.

What I learned from racing is that it definitely requires each game to be told you’re using a different setup. The wheel has a different set of capabilities, so this should not be surprising, but it took some time to refine the settings to get comfortable.

Once I had it dialled in, I fell in love with sim racing all over again (and that’s before connecting it to a PC).

The ability to feel the car in a much more precise way and seriously adjust the way your pedals work gives you an unbelievably better sim racing experience than the 920. The whole simulation game is all about tricking your brain into thinking that you are behind the wheel of a car, but not just one car, many different cars and having your hardware adapt to the software experience on screen, really helps achieve that illusion.

The configuration on the wheel hub can be accessed by the button next to the shift lights and here you can configure multiple profiles, great for either multiple racers or different setups between F1 and GT titles.

Overall, there is no doubt that what Logitech has assembled here is a seriously compelling offering and I can’t wait to spend more time behind the wheel.