Introduction
We are certainly familiar with Thrustmaster here at PC Perspective. I have done more than a few reviews of their products through the years, and it has been very interesting to see the changes not only in the company and its products, but also with the sim market in general. Thrustmaster at one point had relatively little competition in the affordable sim gear market, but now we have several pretty solid manufacturers all competing for those sim dollars.
Not only are there more manufacturers, but we have seen the move from a majority of base units being gear and belt driven to direct drive. This has increased the power that these base units can apply to the wheels and sim racers themselves. We now see the 10 to 12 Nm mark being the sweet spot of the market with other units offering up to 26 Nm of force. This requires add-on wheels to be far more robust than what they used to be.
Any market that exists for decades will see an evolution of products that improve overall capabilities and quality. The now ancient wheels and joysticks of the 1990s have now transformed into parts that could easily be modified to work in real race cars. Inexpensive plastic and rubber wheels have progressed to units featuring Alcantara (ultrasuede produced in Italy), leather, aluminum, and forged carbon fiber.
My first force-feedback wheel was the Thrustmaster F430 that retailed for around $115 back in 2009. It was a limited 270 degree base with a non-detachable rim. The feedback was weak, but it served its purpose in getting me more interested in sim racing. The two products we are looking at today are priced higher than that initial set of base and pedals that I purchased exclusively to play DiRT 2.
The Hypercar Wheel Add-On retails for $399.99 in the US. I realize inflation has played a part on prices over the past 16 years, but the add-on rim alone is almost 4x as expensive as the full, beginner kit that the F430 represented. Once we consider the construction (multiple premium materials, high stiffness vs. injection molded rim with a rubberized surface) we can see where exactly that money was spent and how it impacts the sim racer.
I will be digging deeper into this unit which is the latest product introduced into the Thrustmaster ecosystem.