What is the sweetspot for torque output on a wheel base?

The sweet spot for torque output on a sim racing wheel base depends on several factors, mainly considering the type of simulation, individual race car and personal preference. However, general guidelines can be offered:

The first thing to consider is the simulation that you are driving in. Different sims provide different Force Feedback signals and this leads to different driving sensations. In combination with each physics model this results in a very individual feeling per sim. Fanatec offers a great variety of Wheel Bases and each with many adjustment options to find your perfect settings for every sim. There is no general setting you can use across all sims and you should create different profiles for every sim you want to drive.

Once you are sure which sim you want to drive, you probably also have a racing discipline or specific race car in mind. We take iRacing as an example here – it offers a great variety of different racing disciplines to explain the key things to consider.

Let’s say you want to drive a GT car, specifically a GT3, which is one of the most popular race car categories in the current age. These cars offer close racing and are easy to learn but hard to master. GT3’s are relatively heavy by racing standards and have a good amount of horsepower – that means they move around a lot in different driving situations as they have relatively low grip.

To feel this in the steering wheel, a good benchmark to start is around 5 – 8Nm. The CSL DD QR2 is the perfect fit, and you can also chose between the 5Nm or the 8Nm version. This usually delivers all the details you need - you can feel when the car is losing grip, you feel the curb strikes, the bumps in the road and the steering weight through corners. However, do not take this as a general rule, instead use this as a starting point and adjust to your liking.

Once you find a baseline in your favorite sim with your favorite car that you are happy with, try other disciplines and cars and see how they behave.

Let’s take the example of a Formula Car here. These have a lot of aerodynamic grip, which means that you feel quite some force in high speed corners through your wheel base. This offers a great driving sensation but can be exhausting over time. Usually, you turn down the Force Feedback in these cars a bit. But again, don’t take this as a rule – if you like how it feels and it gives you great immersion, leave it like that.

All in all, there is no specific value to define the sweet spot for torque output. It depends on the simulation software, racing discipline and personal preference. Generally, most people are happy with a torque output between 5-12Nm. It is recommended to experiment with different settings to find your individual sweet spot that gives you the feeling of constant control over the car, great immersion and consistent lap times without extensive fatigue.