Fanatec Porsche 911 Turbo wheel: Test

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Is it just me or is the angle of the wheel a bit weird? I feel like its tilted up a little too much, since the most comfortable position that I can hold it in is when its in my lap, or standing when its clamped to my desk.

When I fit it into my cockpit, it feels too high, and blocks my view. I can't seem to adlust the angle its pointing in because the clamps won't provide a good fit when I stick something under it to tilt it down.

I've built my cockpit custom to the G25 specs, and since the wheels don't have the same angle, it just doesn't fit right. This isn't a fault or anything, just a minor inconvenience that won't let me enjoy the wheel properly. Hmm.... make that a major inconvenience.
 
...alright

I finally found a way to enjoy this wheel! There I said it. :grumpy:

But... only the wheel and how it feels! I decided to try it with using the G25 pedals and G25 shifter, so I only swapped out the wheels, and it actually felt pretty nice!:)

The force feedback feels very natural and smooth, but I think it leaves me somewhat detached from feeling everything that's going on. This isn't a bad thing, it actually felt exactly like my real car does ('97 c230 benz.), which isn't a racing car, its a road car.

One issue, the force feedback kept cutting out with the latest drivers, but not sure if that was due to the RF signal, because the USB receiver was flashing off every 30 seconds or so. This wireless stuff is cool, but for competition racing I would prefer my wheel be plugged into the computer.


Honestly Thomas, if you guys sell JUST the wheel for $200 bucks, polish it (like not have the buttons show the electronics beneath them), resolve all issues and stuff, it will be a big win.

The cheapness of the pedals and shifter really drag down the overall quality.
 
SkillRacer
...alright

I finally found a way to enjoy this wheel! There I said it. :grumpy:

But... only the wheel and how it feels! I decided to try it with using the G25 pedals and G25 shifter, so I only swapped out the wheels, and it actually felt pretty nice!:)

The force feedback feels very natural and smooth, but I think it leaves me somewhat detached from feeling everything that's going on. This isn't a bad thing, it actually felt exactly like my real car does ('97 c230 benz.), which isn't a racing car, its a road car.

One issue, the force feedback kept cutting out with the latest drivers, but not sure if that was due to the RF signal, because the USB receiver was flashing off every 30 seconds or so. This wireless stuff is cool, but for competition racing I would prefer my wheel be plugged into the computer.


Honestly Thomas, if you guys sell JUST the wheel for $200 bucks, polish it (like not have the buttons show the electronics beneath them), resolve all issues and stuff, it will be a big win.

The cheapness of the pedals and shifter really drag down the overall quality.
Click to expand...


How did you swap pedals?
 
Skillracer so you cheat now? Deal is off you are running RBR on the porsche pedals or the challenge is off :D

I have mostly driven the 911 wheel with the G25 pedals because that allows me to better feel how the wheel performs without constantly locking the wheel which affects your driving a lot more then what different wheels does... In term of performance pedals is 90 % and wheel 10 % in term of getting the car pointing where you want it to with precision :).

I have a really hard time seeing how anyone can not see the quality of the wheel when it works and not disconnects and such... Sounds like you are the one that got a faulty RF transmitter Skillracer? I haven´t had a single disconnect yet and I am now trying with the plug in the back of my computer not in direct view :).

I would still feel more comfortable with a proper wire it´s hard to thrust wireless to perform flawlessly really but so far no problems here.

As for running separate pedals just about all sims allow multiple controllers... So you have both the porsche and another wheel or pedals attached and choose it´s throttle and brake axis very simple... A hassle having two wheels up though...

Pedals does bring things down but then buying without them wouldn´t lower the price much I suspect since they are not at all as nicely built as the wheel . Remember also part of the price is the porsche licensing... I would preferr a more anonymous wheel like the G25 lower price and wheel I am not running a porsche wheel in a Ferrari but a bit minor issue. Price should be on the same level as the G25 unless the pedals is improved a lot. I have no problems with the shifters since they will last I expect which no other shifter in this priceclass do. (And I will use the SST Lightning H-shifter anyway but still if I didn´t).

Now there is work going on with the pedals but it´s a long way to get them up to G25 standards. otherwise I would have to survive with the G25 a bit longer until the Frex FFB wheel or if Fanatecs high end wheel comes out... Since I can´t afford 3rd party pedals at the moment. Would die to beta test your new wheel Fanatec if you read this :D... G25 wheel is just an interim solution really quite clear after driving with this wheel.
 
SkillRacer
...alright


The cheapness of the pedals and shifter really drag down the overall quality.
Click to expand...

I think the shifter(s) would be fine with the better optional metal mount Fanatec is working on. Its just the wobble that bothers me the way it's cantilevered on the wheel. I actually like the firmness of the shift over the G25s sloppy gearstick. I also like the Fanatec clutch action better, but the rest of the pedals are really put to shame by the heavy and robust G25. Like

I said before, I'm jealous you can do this in PC sims and I can't use seperate pedals on the PS3! I'm making and adapter cable this weekend to run the G25 pedals (at least the left and middle one ;-)) to my xbox 360 wheel also. Maybe those who've opened up the Fanatec pedals can tell us if the pots are connected to the wireless transmitter board with wires on a removable plug (PC motherboard style) so they could be disconnected and the wired outputs from the G25's DB9 pedal connector tapped into this transmitter instead? I don't want to open up the pedals at this point however, so it's all just conjecture unless someone has seen the chip inside the pedals....
 
Yes they do have the mainboard type connections. But as mentioned they are not really made to be put apart :)...

Weekend and finally got time to do longer stints... GT Legends tried som ford Falcon at mullenbach... So clear the G25 really can´t handle these old cars... Really crappy force feedback and feel. It´s to the point it feels like something is broken with it. Can´t understand how I would even consider them quite equal though different while I first tested the 911 wheel.

However I did notice the wheel did get a tiny bit off center. Hope the FAQ to solve this get up soon :)
 
So clear the G25 really can´t handle these old cars... Really crappy force feedback and feel. It´s to the point it feels like something is broken with it. Can´t understand how I would even consider them quite equal though different while I first tested the 911 wheel.
Click to expand...


Whoa, whoa, whoa, take it easy chief! 911 force feedback is more refined, smoother, and quieter, bit its not thaaaaaat much better than the g25. You're making it sound like the g25 wheel is like a freezbee on a stick!

G25 has the best FF for this categories of wheels, and its certainly not crap. One could very well argue that the g25 has the raw feel of a race car, and the 911 gives you the refined feel of a luxury road car.

I'd say its a matter of preferrence, not so much that one is clearly better than the other.

When I isolate the 911 wheel, I really like its feel, but g25 still has that race car rawness.
 
I was so with you on that prior to using the 911... But really the G25 is rubbish now :(... Try the Ford Falcon in GT Legends maybe you will see how rubbish the G25 is in this sim. Race 07 and others have been tested with the G25 and such and is not as bad but still it´s really the same across the board more or less. these games hasn´t been tested with the 911 wheel either... And the 911 still fills better in those sims for sure and absolutely crushes the G25 in a .ISI sim that has no profiles for either wheel :).

G25 is for sure raw you can hear the gearing and it´s not smooth at all... Really it doesn´t feel like any real car I have ever used not even the sloppy feeling tons of powersteering american cars. And I am not saying this after having the wheel a day but after some weeks... Fact is the more I get to know the 911 the cheaper the G25 feels...

Everything is relative but yes the 911 wheel is significantly better maybe in two weeks I see no point in even comparing these two wheels... Kind of like comparing the G25 to the MOMO Racing ;).

But well as I said before for those that don´t want to fight with the wheel the G25 is a really good choice and it´s less tiring... When I really get back to simracing I really need to have my cockpit with the 911 wheel... But since I preferr realism the 911 does feel much much better really. In that regard it´s not a matter of preference the 911 have much more realistic feel and force feedback then the G25.
 
I still think its more of a preference issue, but if you personally feel 911 is that much better thats great.

I like the feel of the 911, just because its thicker and feels nicer to the touch, but honestly, the bottom line is that I personally don't think its worth paying a $100 dollar premium for a wheel set where only 1/3 of the components is done right.

Also given that this has become such a heated debate, its fair to say that the differences between the G25 and the 911 are not black and white, but $350 vs $250 is a pretty significant price range.

Also lets not forget that there are many other factors that will play in a consumer's decision that cannot be addressed from 1 week of testing, like really how reliable is the 911 hardware? The g25 has been on the market for about 2 years and its been pretty damn solid.

The g25 may not have the refined wheel, but it definitely gives me more bang for the buck.

I feel like if I wrapped the G25 wheel to make it thicker, it would make it feel just as nice.


With all the things discussed I feel that Fanatec should think about this question when they're selling their wheel:

- Is the feel of the 911 wheel alone enough to convince a buyer to spend $100 extra over the G25 which is a more solid and complete package overall?

Given that 'feel' is something so personal, everyone would have to try it before they can make a decision, and to me it seems just easier to go with the G25 if you're looking to get into entry level sim-racing.
 
Feel is not ultimately personal... If one wheel feels more like a real racing wheel it does have a more realistic feel and better force feedback as simple as that :). If you are racing real cars you will be more alienated by using the G25 instead of the 911... Neither is ultimately accurate of course thus many preferr non force feedback wheels and can pay tons for it like the ECCI wheel.

If you preferr the feel of the G25 for sure but it´s not realistic and it kills the immersion factor a deal for me... I know I run a simulation but I want to get reminded of it as little as possible :)

As for pedals I have never said they where good but you only want to bring out the negative points of the wheel it seems? The faults you have find is very minor and it´s a beta wheel after all and will be fixed hopefully so I am not to worried about the durability of the wheel and shifter. The pedals have a long way to go for sure may require a total redesign. I wouldn´t recommend the 911 to anyone that are not using 3rd party pedals that is for sure the state they are in now. As for entry level into simracing a DFP for 50$ can´t be beaten really so... Everything is relative :).

Not saying we disagree on everything but the G25 is really not a solid product... As mentioned the shifter does brake and people get issues with the wheel it´s only the pedals that really are solid on it :) It´s cheaper yes for several reasons... Logitech have access to better factories and can massproduce their wheels, they have experience with developing cheap consumer wheels (which all have had their own issues), They do not license the wheel so you are not paying for the 911 RS branding. But 100$ is no dealbraker if you are serious about simracing in particular... For arcade games pretty much any pedals do the job.
 
Hmm I just read up. Nice discussion guys. Sure the G25 ia already 2 years on th e market. And has shown it can be durable. But what did we say 2 years ago about the G25, I hope its durable ???. Anyway as I see it, its down to feeling. I like the G25 and I like the 911 Wheel/ Is the Porsche wheel superior to the G25 ??.

Currently I don tthink so. Too many issuse to be really competitive. I do see the 911 wheel can be but currently not yet. All pointed out issuse`s can be resolved I am sure off that. But is it worth the money right now ?. I dont know. :confused:
 
You also can't post new topics there..I also noticed that they want you to fix yourself or buy upgraded fixes from there web shop.It is a good wheel...well will be when they get it all squared away.
 
At least they setup a forum that gives them some issues tracking ability.

Speaking of issues, here is something else that has been bugging me about the wheel...

It's missing thumb groves! The real 911 wheel has them, so does the G25!

Whats the big deal you ask? Well, because there are none on the 911 wheel, i keep pressing the 1 and 7 buttons by accident with my palms every so often. It gets pretty annoying when these buttons are assigned to look left/right and screw me up big time when making turns.

Also, my hands wrap the wheel at a 2 and 10 o'clock position because i can't grip any lower than that.

I didn't really understand the purpose of these thumb groves until I held a wheel that didn't have them. Given that the 911 wheel is so thick it makes this problem even more apparent.

It's certainly not a super major issue, but its one of those little things that keep making me go back to using the G25.
 

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i like the h-gate shifter that comes with the 911. i'm really gonna miss the size of the wheel as well :(. I still havent gotten around to recording any videos as my life has gotten rather busy...
G25 users, how much more notchy does the G25 feel than the 911? i really like how smooth the 911 wheel feels... the shifter that comes with the g25 looks very flimsy as well in comparison.
 
G25 shifter appears to be flimsy because there is almost no resistance to shifting the gears, they just fall into place. However the shifter internals are all metal, and it withstands abuse pretty well. You can really shift hard and not get the feeling that you'll break it, but again there is no resistance and there is a loud clicking.

As for the notchiness, its a bit hard to describe. The way the G25 shifter locks into a gear is by hooking the edges of a bolt attached to the main shaft to side plates. It feels fine when you shift into 1,2 and 5,6, but when its in 3 or 4 (middle) it plays from side to side because the bolt isn't hooked into anything.

There are mods for the G25 that can help with those issues, but not much you can do since its like that by design.

Compared to the G25, the 911 locks into the gears very well, but its plastic feeling leaves me with the feeling that I'll break it if I shift hard. I find the 911 shifter resistance a bit weird, there is more side to side resistance than there is when putting it into gear, and its hard to shift into 5/6 than 3/4, which I find odd. I guess its still better than what the G25 has, which is no resistance at all!
 
i dunno, i think it depends on where the shifter is positioned. i sometimes have trouble shifting into 2nd gear, but all of the other gears give me no problem.
 
pre drilled mounting holes for the wheel, pedals, and shifter for playseat evo and I am SOLD. If I have to drive clamped to a coffee table, that is a big no, no matter how good the components are.
 
Gabkicks I have the exact opposite feelings about the G25 shifter as you may have noticed... It´s has some metal parts yes but it´s very flimsy and yes it has been proven to break. Doesn´t seem to tolerate as much abuse as the 911 shifter... 911 looks and is probably cheaper to produce as well but I am sure it will hold up longer and the feel is so much better then on the G25. You can mod that one but it does void the warranty but yes it needs to be modded... If it breaks just get a proper shifter like the SST Lightning shifter ;). Anyway I do shift hard used to it from my SST Lightning shifter and the 911 never budge at all very solid.

As for the G25 yes it´s very notchy now that I have used the 911 for some weeks... Didn´t really annoy me before but I am getting spoiled with how smooth the 911 is... This is just a matter of feel the G25 of course turns silky smooth as well but it doesn´t give you the right feel.

There is also kind of a ffb deadzone in the center of the G25 which really really annoys me.

Still the pedals are being worked upon maybe they can be made good enough for me to be able to recommend it over the G25... But as they currently are since pedals is very important I would have to recommend the G25 and then you keep a close eye on Frex or Fanatecs new high end wheel. Since the G25 is no longer to long time solution I thought.
 
The shifter goes through the gears like butter. I had some issue s getting into 5/6 like skilldriver. But now I am used to it and it is as smooth as a hot knife through butter. Nice solid resistance and always goes into the right gera. I just have trouble with neutral, its in the neutral spot but still in 4th gear. Did calibrate the 7GS was a little better but still not good.
 
Not experienced any issues at all... I have noticed though that the upper shifter engages at the same time as the clacks... The lower actually engages a fraction sooner then the clacks

btw did your H-shifters look used if you look at the ball when you got it?I think I got a veteran unit :)

I have tried rFactor a bit more seriously now... Tried playing with the realfeel and leo ffb plug ins... I first ran the champ car mod and it felt really really weird even though it has a default profile for the realfeel plugin... Running it without LEO a bit better but I really preferred LEOs ffb to realfeels... I have uninstalled realfeel now but if someone has a mod that works just perfect with it please link.

LEOs FFB I read was tweaked around the formula BMW so I tried that and yes it did feel really really nice... However the ffb on f1 99-02 seem to be more informative... Interesting to see how much easier F1 99-02 was to drive then champ car... Wonder what´s more realistic actually :)

Anyway here is quite some power required to drive these cars something the 911 is very suitable for... That it´s a sports car wheel don´t disturb me since I don´t see only feel it while racing I only see the F1 wheel in the game... I use to disable the wheel in cockpit but I think it does have a purpose actually even if you have two wheels as a result lol. I have quite large hands so I have no real problems with the grip of the 911 though as mentioned thumb grooves could help some people I guess... But then the G25 would be much better without the thumb grooves so you would get a thicker grip... You can´t please all regarding this I guess... However it´s easier to add width by taping it then to carve the wheel.

But selfishly I don´t want a thinner grip at all. I very seldom hit a button though it happens one or two times... If you just don´t assign it to ebrake or ignition or something it´s not something that matters much to me.
 
ChadWarden
pre drilled mounting holes for the wheel, pedals, and shifter for playseat evo and I am SOLD. If I have to drive clamped to a coffee table, that is a big no, no matter how good the components are.
Click to expand...
I have a Playseat and am a tester for the 911. I drilled four new holes in the Playseat wheel plate to secure the 911 wheel for testing. Works fine.

I wish I didn't have to drill though, but of course this wheel wasn't out when the Playseat Evo was designed. For the shifter, Thomas at Fanatec says they are working on a metal accessory to hold the shifter with mount points for cockpits. I asked him if they could match the G25 shifter's hole pattern (no more drilling!) and he said it was a good idea, so hopefully that will happen. I have the Playseat Evo optional shifter holder on the way so it would be sweet if it would work with either shifter (whichever wheel I decide to keep!)

As far as the pedals, yes, I agree whatever they come up with for round two on the pedals, or optional better pedals, should have mount points for the Playseat evo (match the G25 pedal mount points there too please!)
 
oqvist
Gabkicks I have the exact opposite feelings about the G25 shifter as you may have noticed... It´s has some metal parts yes but it´s very flimsy and yes it has been proven to break. Doesn´t seem to tolerate as much abuse as the 911 shifter...
Click to expand...
This isn't directed at you, but why the need to abuse it? I shift gears on the G25 with my fingertips. I don't miss gears, and there is no danger of me breaking it.
 
Because I am used to it from real cars ;)... I don´t want to have to think about being really careful about it... A solid shifter it should be quite hard to move it with just your finger tips. Not while racing race cars where you dont even use the clutch and shift gearboxes each race ;) A good shifter for me should give a solid feel when engaging the gears... I shouldn´t have to fear it braking. Not the big clack of the 911 shifter don´t really like that but the feel when you engage the gears should be solid and move about the gates. I am not talking about excessive force like to attempt to break it but firm grip on the wheel, a quick and decisive shift not giving it a second thought if the G25 will break then on the throttle again.





I guess there is more people like me thus these G25 gearbox failures :).
But the durability and the mushy feeling is what I don´t like about it. And the fact I can´t use it as a sequential because I mount it to the side lower about where most standard cars have their gear boxes and that makes me press down on it :(... But the sequential also have to little resistance...
 
This isn't directed at you, but why the need to abuse it?
Click to expand...
In the heat of battle, some of us shift hard *shrug* :)

Gabkicks I have the exact opposite feelings about the G25 shifter as you may have noticed... It´s has some metal parts yes but it´s very flimsy and yes it has been proven to break. Doesn´t seem to tolerate as much abuse as the 911 shifter... 911 looks and is probably cheaper to produce as well but I am sure it will hold up longer and the feel is so much better then on the G25.
Click to expand...
Oqvist, I've taken apart the g25 shifter a dozen of times and have been modding the crap out of it, and I really don't see how you can break the steel plates inside, or how the g25 shifter could break at all!

Where have you seen or heard of the g25 shifter breaking? (Youtube video of guy throwing the G25 shifter on the ground until the little plastic cap pops out doesn't count as the g25 shifter breaking ;))

It seems a bit of an odd statement to make unless you're telling everyone that plastic is stronger than metal...
 

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