Race Car Simulator
 

I'm in the market for a race car simulator that will work with most game system even PC which I own all of them. Well my son does. :icon17:

Which simulator is a good quality but somewhat affordable? Say no more than $700. Must have seat and foot pedals. But if there something that's more realistic that's not made for game systems I might be interested in spending a little more.

if you want something to work the PS3 360 and PC get the Fanatec CSR as for the cockpit i like and have the GTR simulator

my set up was just under $800

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Man thanks. I really like this. Oh this is going to be fun. My kid will never get a chance to play his systems.

What software are you guys using for the sim? I mean, I assume games, but what's the state of the art in games that are realistic enough to get some valid practice time in?

I'm still sorting that out. I've been out of the gaming world for awhile. There has to be some nice realistic games out there.

I'm not a hardcore sim guy but dable a bit... MC's probably the resident expert

I have pretty much the same setup as MC and recommend it... Fanatec CSR is great for xbox ps3 and pc... keep in mind that it is more configurable than logitech and so you will invest more time in initial setup, tuning it for each game (you can save 4 custom configs that you can switch to on the fly), and you may spend more time tweaking it as you use it... but these trade offs all result in better lap times and more realistic feel

You'll notice that MC has a metal frame... you can buy one of these or build one... I built mine with home depot MDF platform, 4 red swivel casters from Amazon.com, and a can of black spray paint... works great and I can roll it around super easy... I built one for my old logitech setup as well that I will use for my son when his legs get about 3 inches longer :)

Don't skimp on the chair and steering wheel frame IMO... buy one that doesn't get in the way of your feet in the middle... you'll know what I mean when you start looking around

Games I enjoy... pc = F1 series and iRacing... console = GT5 and Forza

The one I spend the most time on is Forza... iRacing is what I use to get ready for a real track day...

For real practice get iRacing. I know you run at Road Atlanta a lot so it would be incredibly beneficial for you.

The tracks are laser scanned and VERY accurate. From what I can tell VIR in iRacing is spot on with VIR in real life.

The good part about iRacing is they run pricing specials often and you only need to buy the content that you want to use. Though I happen to be one of the fools in the 100% club. :icon17:

The sim in general is just fantastic. The tire model is very realistic and like the tracks the cars are all torn down, scanned, and re-built in digital form.

I actually won't use anything else other than iRacing because it's too arcadish in comparison, granted I've been a diehard sim racer since the mid 90s.

I agree with Steve on iRacing, if you have to pick one... cover most of the major tracks in the U.S. in different configs... you will not find a nissan 370z on there but you can get pretty close in terms of weight distribution and power

I too am one of the suckers in the 100% club! :) definitely not getting my money's worth but I like to have the option... wiser money will buy only the tracks and cars they need and upgrade as they go along

Steve mentions the "tire model" in iRacing... they just upgraded the math and physics behind this and they call it tire model 2.0... it is a big step up in terms of real life feel and response

Steve, you should try forza 4... it will prob exceed your expectations in terms of realism

I need to pick up Forza 4. I like having that as an option because I find that sometimes I can take iRacing a little too seriously. A more casual driving sim would be good to have. :)

I'm still undecided about joining iRacing, no doubt its the best true simulator. Better be for the costs! Even GT5 and a decent wheel will be a decent learning tool. I use GTR2 for learning new tracks before I visit them and it's not too hard to download all of it for free (if you don't care to race online).