If you haven't tried your hand at sim racing yet, I can say with confidence that it's about as much fun as you can have with your gaming PC without taking it to the Bahamas. I got off track there, but you know what I mean.
Trouble is, proper sim racing gear is expensive with a capital "Egads, how much?" That's a shame, as it can price out your average gamer from all those tire-burning hijinks. Luckily though, the Logitech G920 exists—and it's a variant of Logitech's budget racing wheel that, in some form or another, has been the starting point of just about every professional sim racer you can name.
Should you wish to go further, however, there are always direct drive wheels to consider. They can get expensive, mind, but luckily for you I've found excellent deals on both. So look below, as no matter your budget, sim racing nirvana is just a click away.
Quick links
- Logitech G920 wheel and pedal set -
$299.99$189.99 at Amazon (save $110) - Moza R5 bundle -
$699.99$499.99 at Amazon (save $199.01)
Logitech G920
We've found the Logitech G920 on sale at Amazon for $190, which is the cheapest it's been in the past six months. Even at full-price it's a very reasonable sum to pay for what you receive, but for $190? Well, it's a flat-out bargain.
Don't think you just get the wheel here, either. This is a wheel and pedal set that'll plug right into your gaming rig and interface with any good racing game worth its salt, all for less than half the price of even the cheapest direct drive wheel we recommend. I'll be recommending one of those in a moment, but let's talk about why the Logitech is such a good buy first.
Basically, everything your virtual car's wheels are doing is communicated to you via a helical gear and dual-motor system that provides meaningful feedback through your hands. While direct drive wheels are the pinnacle of this technology, the gear system here does a perfectly reasonable job, and it keeps the price down nicely.
You get 900 degree wheel rotation, a hand-stitched leather wheel, some chunky shifter paddles, and plenty of buttons to map for various car-related functions. Plus a pedal set that, while not being the very best, is perfectly chunky and useable for some heel-toe action and meaningful brake resistance.
That makes it the perfect starting point for sim racing on a budget. However, if you're looking for something that'll really blow your socks off, how about this direct drive set that I use on the regular...
💻 View the Logitech G920 racing wheel and pedal set - $190 @ Amazon (save $110)
Moza R5 bundle
When I first reviewed the Moza R5 bundle, it was an incredibly reasonable $460. Unfortunately prices have risen since then—but you can still find it around the $500 mark, and for that price it's still a pretty astounding deal. It's our top budget direct drive wheel for a reason, and I'll tell you for why.
What you get here is a proper, no-nonsense, seat-of-your-pants direct drive experience that can compete with the top names in the space, for less. Direct drive wheels essentially attach you directly (via the steering shaft) to a powerful electric motor that's capable of giving instantaneous feedback, and if you've ever used one you'll know it's the most realistic way of simulating a real car on your PC.
While $500 is no small amount of change, everything you get here screams overbuilt and premium. The wheelbase is small but immensely chunky, and with 5 nm of torque on tap, it's more than capable of throwing you about when behind the wheel of something powerful. It's the sheer detail of the feedback that really impresses though, as every curb, bump, road-surface change and divot are conveyed through its substantial and robust wheel.
The pedals are heavy-duty enough to be used as a boat anchor and very accurate, although I'd highly recommend buying the extra performance kit for $30 that adds load-cell resistance to the brake pedal. With that, the Moza kit is transformed into pretty much everything you need to simulate a car at a very high level—and it's a setup that's had me grinning so hard, I've got new laugh lines to prove it.
Whichever you pick, these two sim racing setups will bring hours of fun to your racing game sessions. It's one of the best ways to really get hands on with your games, and I've even found it helpful as a mindfulness exercise. How's that for a transformative gaming experience?
💻 View the Moza R5 bundle - $500 @ Amazon (save $110)
