La novità più interessante annunciata dalla Fanatec alla fiera Gamescom di Colonia è la nuova modalità di vendita che verrà applicata ai nuovi prodotti di alta qualità prodotti dall'azienda tedesca: grazie allo sgancio rapido che sarà presente nei nuovi volanti, sarà possibile acquistare una base con un volante specifico (esempio F1) e poi in seguito acquistare altre tipologie di volante da applicare sulla stessa base. Fanatec ha infatti annunciato di essere al lavoro su diverse tipologie di volanti che riprodurranno le fattezze di volanti GT, Nascar, Rally e Drifting, potremo cosi usufruire di un volante diverso a seconda delle gare che decideremo di affrontare. La Fanatec, con la prossima linea di hardware dedicata, punta, oltre che sulla robustezza e sull'elevata qualità, anche sull'alta percentuale di personalizzazione (regolare l'angolo della leva del cambio, la distanza tra base e volante, la tensione della cinghia senza dover aprire la base, ecc...). La nuova linea Clubsport arriverà sul mercato tra novembre e dicembre e avrà un prezzo di 450 dollari più IVA. I vari volanti intercambiabili si aggireranno invece tra i 150 ed i 300 dollari a seconda del modello.
Surprisingly, it will be available this year in November or December and the base will cost 450€ in Europe (incl. VAT) and 450$ in USA (excl. VAT). F1 wheel rim which can be seen in the video will cost 150€/$ and other rims will be priced between 150 and 300€/$.Details about the base:
- Fully made of CNC-machined metal, plenty of ball bearings, anodized surfaces
- Quick release mechanism for exchanging wheel rims allows you to hot-swap a rim without exiting the game
- 2 different rims will be available at launch (F1 + a larger diameter GT-styled rim that will be announced in mid-september)
- Plenty of other wheels will be available later (Nascar, rally, drifting & more)
- Compatible with all games on PC and PS3
- Main target group for this wheel are the hardcore sim racers and it was said that because of that it has no limitations in the electronics, so they can do a lot of (software?) upgrades later on
- This base does not use toothed belts like previous Fanatec wheels, belts inside have lengthwise grooves instead (Does this mean this wheel will move 100% smoothly?). He said that even if a belt gets a bit loose, it can not get damaged
- Belts are high-quality made by Gates and Optibelt
- Belt tension can be adjusted from outside without taking the base apart
- Inside the base there is a mechanism that reminds us of the worm drive present in Frex wheels, but is actually a limiter made out of durable, good-gliding material and physically limits wheel rotation to 900°
- Code wheel for the sensor is mounted directly to the steering axis rather than being mounted to the motor, eliminating any slack/lag that is present on the wheels with sensor mounted to the motor. This makes the wheel very precise and eliminates any wheel shaking on the straights.
- There are two motors in the wheel (we don't anything about their power yet), making it faster, stronger and smoother.
- Significantly reduced cogging force when turning the wheel.
- Tuning options are the same as on previous Fanatec wheels, but they added better control over all 3 types of "effects" that games output to achieve different force feedback effects (force, spring, damper).
- There are four screw inserts on the front of the base that will be used to mount optional attachments. They already developed steady shifters, but there will be many more attachments available (iPhone or Android phone holders for telemetry data, different shifters, etc).
Details about the F1 rim:
- Made out of metal with alcantara grips
- Rev-indicator
- 4 way D-pad, that can also be pressed and turned
- Analog joystick for free-look which can also be pressed
- 11 standard buttons
- Precise shifter paddles with short travel and good haptic feedback. Angle, distance, travel are adjustable and paddles are easily replaceable with different ones.
