Our Verdict
Pros
- Fantastic replica of a real GT2 wheel
- High quality materials used
- Weight makes this wheel feel realistic
- Very bright rev lights and LED display
Cons
- Weight can make the wheel feel sluggish
- Paddle shifters not same quality as the wheel
The Design of the BMW GT2 Wheel
Like all of Fanatec’s steering wheels, the BMW M3 GT2 wheel is nicely presented in its own drawstring bag, surrounded by protective foam. We love the way Fanatec packages its products.
Once you’ve thrown away the quick start guide, because who needs them anyway? When you’ve finally made your way inside the bag, you’ll be presented with the extremely accurate replica of a real BMW M3 GT2 racing wheel.
Pictures don’t do this BMW GT2 racing wheel any justice. When you first see it in the flesh, it looks stunning. The design form is simple yet elegant. And being a Fanatec wheel, everything is where you expect it to be.
The first thing you’ll notice when you take the wheel out of its protective bag is just how good it feels in the hand. The padding in the wheel rim itself feels nice. The Alcantara finishing, which runs the whole way around the rim, is a lovely touch.
Alcantara isn’t always our favourite choice of steering wheel material, as it does tend to wear badly over time. The wear is much less prominent if you race in gloves, which we do.
To give you an idea of how long the Alcantara will last. We must have raced with our BMW GT2 wheel for well over 300 hours, in a combination of gloves and bareback. We only have slight wear marks on the rear of the rim where our fingers wrap around and our grip is the tightest.
What Controls are on the wheel?
The front of this Fanatec steering wheel has the usual set of buttons that control elements of your car while you’re driving and the menu between sessions. These all feel good to the touch, and there is a satisfying clunk when you engage each button.
As with most Fanatec wheels, there is also an analogue to the left and a D-pad-style stick to the right. These are used to adjust the force feedback settings on the wheel itself.
Towards the top of the face plate is a set of LED rev lights. These are more than bright enough for you to have no excuse for missing an upshift!
Just above the rev lights sit three LED screens. These give you telemetry readouts, such as your current speed, and can also be used to tune your wheel’s force feedback.
When you flip the wheel over, you’ll see the bright red quick-release system on most Fanatec wheel rims. This comes with an attached storage pin to secure your quick release.
You’ll also see the adjustable paddle shifters, which are nicely positioned. These are made out of a single sheet of metal and feel nice to the touch. They do feel snappy when you activate them.
Although they certainly aren’t up to the same quality as magnetic shifters. They feel just a little too sloppy for our personal preference. But they certainly do the job well enough.
So, just by looking at this wheel, first impressions are fantastic. The wheel is very well constructed, and the entire front of the wheel is made of metal. Yes, the back is made from ABS plastic, but who looks at the rear of a wheel anyway?
Which is better – The BMW GT2 vs the Fanatec P1?
Many Fanatec owners make the first upgrade to the BMW GT2 wheel, which is quite often an upgrade from a wheel rim such as the P1 wheel rim for Xbox.
The Fanatec P1 wheel rim is one of the more basic racing wheels that Fanatec produce. And more often than not, it is only purchased as part of a wheel base bundle.
The P1 itself floats between the lines of a real racing wheel and a console controller. That is exactly what it is: an Xbox controller or peripheral designed as a wheel.
Elements such as the paddle shifters aren’t up to the quality of Fanatec’s other wheels. There aren’t any true rev lights, and the digital display at the top of the P1’s wheel rim isn’t bright. As a whole, the Fanatec P1 is just OK. It does a similar sort of job as say the Logitech G29 or G923. A basic wheel to portray some racing wheel feel.
Upgrading from the P1 to the BMW GT2 is a vast improvement for sure. The face plate and front of the wheel have more definition and depth. The wheel grip material Alcantara is much nicer to hold than the leather of the P1. (Yes we had the leather P1, not the Alcantara version.)
As an upgrade from the Fanatec P1, the BMW GT2 is much better in every aspect. The cost of the BMW GT2 wheel isn’t huge, and we would recommend it as a step up the Fanatec ecosystem.
Wheel Performance
As soon as we jump into playing with the BMW GT2 steering wheel, our initial impression is that the force feedback is not as strong as with other Fanatec wheels. This all comes down to weight. Being a replica of a real-world steering wheel, this wheel weighs more than a typical gaming wheel.
This is due to the metal construction of the wheel, and the size of the wheel. Being a round wheel, it takes up a little more space, and the rim itself is padded well-meaning the rim is a little thick. The size feels good in your hand, as you have a lot to hang on to.
However, it does impact the force feedback that comes through the wheel. By being a much heavier wheel, the motor inside the wheel base, in this case, a ClubSport V2.5, has to work harder to move the wheel.
The Fanatec P1 weighs around 970g, while the BMW GT2 rim weighs 2120g—over double the weight!
Of course, you can still feel the force feedback that is generated, and it still feels great. However swapping between the P1 and BMW GT2, it is immediately apparent that the GT2 wheel weighs more.
The force feedback output feels slightly dampened, and the fine force feedback detail isn’t quite as crisp.
Some sim racers say that they prefer the weighty force feedback compared to the light and agile steering wheels. And I can understand this. The extra weight does make the car feel more realistic to drive, despite losing a little force feedback detail along the way.
How does the wheel feel when driving?
The wheel itself feels great. The hand grips are thick and weighty, making it feel like you are holding on to a real racing car wheel. Because of this, the immersion level is increased compared to wheels such as the P1.
One thing the added weight does do is make your inputs more deliberate. We found that during a play session, we had fewer instances of oversteer and spins. We think this is due to the lightness of wheels such as the P1.
When driving with a light racing wheel that moves about a lot, you tend to move with the wheel. Your inputs are often a little more erratic and less controlled.
Swapping to the heavier BMW steering wheel changes this. The weight stops you from sawing at the wheel during oversteer moments, giving you a slightly increased sense of car weight.
The wheel itself has haptic vibrations built-in allowing it to shake in your hand when you hit kerbs. This is an added extra compared to rims such as the P1 which don’t have any vibration motors. The vibration motors are a subtle addition, but once you race with them. It is very hard to go back to a wheel without them.
Console Compatibility
As with many of Fanatec’s products, the compatibility is very hit-and-miss. This BMW GT2 wheel is designed to only work on PC and PS4/PS5. You can’t use it on Xbox One or Series X consoles.
This is disappointing and would mean Xbox owners must look elsewhere to upgrade from their P1 rim. Various Xbox steering wheels and bundles, including Fanatec CSL DD bundles, are available.
Does this Fanatec BMW GT2 wheel make you quicker?
We wouldn’t necessarily find that the BMW M3 GT2 wheel makes you a faster driver. We didn’t notice any lap time gains when swapping between this and other wheels.
As mentioned above, the added weight does make your inputs a little more deliberate. Our tyre temperatures were a little lower on average when driving with this Fanatec GT2 wheel rim. This is due to the slightly less aggressive driving style than the P1.
Should you buy the Fanatec BMW GT2 wheel?
The Fanatec BMW GT2 wheel is an upgrade in quality over more budget Fanatec wheels. If you have a P1 and fancy something a little more realistic, then this steering wheel is a good option.
The weight of the wheel will divide opinion. Some will appreciate the realism of the heavier wheel, while some will complain about the less detailed force feedback.
The added vibration motors and the upgraded LED display and rev lights when compared to the Fanatec P1 are brilliant. Again, once you have raced with this wheel you won’t want to go back to the inferior P1.
Frequently Asked Questions
The only real way to add a magnetic shifter is to DIY your own. There are a few snap on magnetic adapters available for sale from SimRacingMachines.
Quite simply yes. The Fanatec BMW GT2 wheel is better than the P1 in almost every way. It has more functionality built-in and is much better constructed.
We think it is worth buying the GT2 wheel rim if you currently own a lesser model such as the P1. It is also great if you are looking for a solid GT-style rim for your Fanatec wheel.
Technical Specifications
Review written by Felix König
