iRacing supports a large variety of controllers, from off the shelf consumer gaming controllers to high end and custom sim controllers.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• Initial Setup and Calibration
  • Brakes
  • Force Feedback
  • Handbrake
• Recommended Wheel Settings
  • Logitech Wheels
  • Thrustmaster Wheels
  • Fanatec Wheels
  • Simucube Wheels
• Common Controller Issues
  • Controls reset when reconnecting controller or restarting
  • Reversed/Inverted Steering
  • Virtual Wheel is out of sync with Physical Wheel
  • Sticky/Hanging Pedal Controls
  • Steering wheel not centered
• Recalibrating Controllers
• Legacy Controllers
• Alternative Controllers

Initial Setup and Calibration

Controls must be calibrated the first time the iRacing simulator is launched, or whenever new controllers are connected. To perform initial control calibration and configuration:

1. Ensure your controllers are connected and recognized by Windows before launching iRacing
2. Launch the iRacing simulator
3. Select Configure Controls at the top of your screen and follow the on screen prompts.

Any time a device is connected to a different USB port, it will require calibration in iRacing, even if it was already calibrated on a previous USB port. For this reason it is not recommended to place controllers on USB hubs or to switch them from port to port.

No additional setup is required to run multiple controllers, such as a dedicated pedal, shifter, or handbrake controller. As long as the controller is functional by itself, it can be calibrated and assigned without any additional steps.

Controls can be calibrated at any time by selecting the control you would like to calibrate in the Options->Drive Menu:

Brakes

The Brake Force Factor adjustment adjusts the simulator's response to pedal input. By default, the Brake Force Factor is set to the recommended value of 1.80 for potentiometer pedals. If you have load cell pedals, this will need to be adjusted. The Brake Force Factor adjustment can be found in the Options->Drive menu.

If you are not sure which type of pedals you have, please consult with the manufacturer. Most pedals that are not advertised explicitly as load cell pedals use potentiometers. 

Force Feedback

Force feedback levels are highly based on personal preference. The default settings should produce good results with most wheels, but may require customization for certain users' preferences. Additional information for these and all other adjustments is displayed on the bottom of your screen when the mouse is hovering over the relevant adjustment:

If you are using a direct drive wheel, it is important to limit the wheel force to prevent potential injury. Wheel force should be set to the wheel manufacturer's specifications. Some models' specifications can be found below:

Select "Use linear mode" if you are using a direct drive wheel, leaving this option off boosts smaller forces and can make lower end gear driven wheel such as the Logitech G27, G29, G920, and G923 feel more lively.

The "auto" button can be used to set the Strength to the maximum value that does not cause clipping. Clipping is a loss of force feedback resolution that occurs when additional force feedback is required by the simulator, but the wheel is already providing maximum force and thus cannot provide any more force. Setting the Strength value higher than what is set by the "auto function" may result in a loss of force feedback resolution due to clipping.

To calibrate force feedback using the "auto" function, first drive around several laps to allow the simulator can gather information on force feedback levels, then return to the garage screen and select "auto". this works very well for lower end gear driven and belt driven wheels, but is often too strong when using more powerful direct drive wheels, and can be adjusted lower by turning down the Strength setting. If the "auto" button appears grayed out or missing, then your current Strength setting is identical to the suggested "auto" setting, or you have not driven enough distance for the sim to gather sufficient force feedback data.

If you prefer to not use the auto function, iRacing includes a steering force meter that can be enabled under Options->Option:

Once this setting is enabled, you should see a display labelled "F" whenever you are driving. The value of the display corresponds to the wheel force currently demanded by the sim and will increase with speed, steering angle, and bumps. If the display reads full and is colored orange instead of green, as pictured below, then the steering force is at its maximum and any additional forces will not be communicated through the steering wheel. Ideally, to prevent clipping, the Strength setting should be set so that the F bar is never at full force under normal driving circumstances, it is okay if the bar fills up when going over larger bumps and curbs.

If the steering still feels too strong, you may continue to adjust the Strength setting down.

If you are struggling to feel smaller forces from bumps and curbs, the Min Force setting can be increased to increase the feeling of smaller forces without affecting the steering weight or larger forces. This is often needed for gear and belt driven wheels such as most Thrustmaster and Logitech wheels as well as all Fanatec CSL wheels. To prevent injury, DO NOT set the Wheel force to a value lower than the manufactuer's specifications.

Handbrake

The handbrake control assignment can be found in the Options->Control menu. To calibrate the control, click on the area to the right of the control name as seen in the screenshot, then follow the on-screen prompts.

The handbrake can be assigned to a button if so desired, simply press the button you would like to assign the handbrake to when prompted:

Recommended Wheel Settings

In addition to the control calibration and customization options provided by iRacing, most wheels also have their own settings included in their provided software that can help the user fine-tune the feel of their steering.

Logitech Wheels

For modern Logitech wheels such as the G29, G920, G923, and other wheels that use Logitech GHUB, it is recommended to leave the settings at default, Logitech provides a Restore Default Settings option in Logitech GHUB if you have previously modified your settings from the default:

For older Logitech wheels such as the G25, G29, and Driving Force GT, it is recommended to use the following settings after installing Logitech Gaming Software: 

1. Open the Logitech Profiler
2. Click Options->Global Device Setting
3. Set Overall Effects Strength to 100%
   Set Spring Effects Strength to 0%
   Set Damper Effect Strength to 0%
   Enable Centering Spring in Force Feedback Games - uncheck
   Set Degrees of Rotation to 900%

Thrustmaster Wheels

Fanatec Wheels

iRacing recommends to use the default settings for all Fanatec wheels.

Simucube Wheels

iRacing recommends 

Common Controller Issues

If the following steps do not solve your calibration issues, please try recalibrating your controls.

Controls reset when reconnecting controller or restarting

This is almost always due to improper controller ID setup. Controls are reset whenever the ID of a controller changes. Windows will not save the controller ID unless the controller is set as the Primary controller.

To change your Primary controller, open the start menu, type "controller" and select the search result:

Select "Advanced" in the Game Controllers window:

Choose the controller that you would like to save as your primary controller, then select "OK":

Reversed/Inverted Steering

Ensure that you are turning the wheel to the LEFT when performing the Steering Lock Measurement. If you are certain that you are turning the wheel to the left and it is still reversed, turn the wheel 90 degrees to the RIGHT instead.

Virtual Wheel is out of sync with Physical Wheel

If your virtual wheel does not point straight ahead, you may need to recalibrate your steering.

Many wheels on the market that claim to have a full 900 degree wheel range actually have slightly less range than advertised. For example, most Logitech wheels such as the G29 usually only have ~870 degrees of actual range, despite being advertised as a 900 degree wheel.

If you find that your virtual wheel is out of sync with your physical wheel at higher steering angles, turn the wheel 360 degrees to either direction so that it has completed a full rotation, then adjust the map range until the virtual wheel is pointing straight ahead.

Sticky/Hanging Pedal Controls

It is not uncommon for some controllers, especially older ones, to sometimes "drift" and lightly activate a control. This is most noticeable as a sticky or hanging pedal control. There are many ways to solve this issue and certain controller software allows you to set a deadzone to prevent this behavior, but the following is the quickest.

1. Launch the iRacing Simulator and open the Options->Drive menu
2. Select the Pedals calibration box:
3. Calibrate the throttle by depressing the throttle fully, releasing it to ~5% activation, and selecting Done while the control is still sightly activated:
4. Repeat step 3 for the brake and clutch pedals if needed

Steering wheel not centered

This is often due to a calibration issue with the steering wheel's software. Most wheels such as Logitech and Thrustmaster brands will recalibrate themselves when unplugged and plugged back in.

Higher end wheels may require manual recalibration.

For Fanatec wheels, open the "Fanatec Wheel Properties" application, or go to the Game Controllers panel in Windows and selecting Properties for your wheel:

Select "Settings" at the top of the page, then select "Wheel Center Calibration" and follow the steps outlined:

Finally, recalibrate your controller in iRacing using the steps below.

Recalibrating Controllers

If you are experiencing issues with controller calibration, first shut down the computer, unplug your controller and plug it into a different USB port on your computer, then restart your computer.

1. Shut down the computer
2. Unplug the controller and plug it into a different USB port on the computer. Avoid using USB hubs if you are experiencing issues with your controller.
3. Turn the computer back on
4. Go to Documents/iRacing and delete controls.cfg and joyCalib.yaml files
5. Launch the iRacing Simulator
6. Select Configure Controls at the top of the screen and follow the on-screen prompts to calibrate your controls 

If you are still experiencing calibration issues after recalibrating, please contact iRacing Support.

Legacy Controllers

Please see the link here for information on setting up legacy controllers with less than 900 degrees of lock.

Alternative Controllers

Although it is not recommended, iRacing supports using your mouse, touchpad, joystick, gamepad as an alternative controller.

Instructions on setting up mouse or touchpad driving can be found here.

Instructions on setting up joystick or gamepad driving can be found here.