Thrustmaster T248 Wheel and T3PM Pedal Set Previews Released

Thrustmaster 01 New T248 Wheel.jpg
Thrustmaster has revealed their new T248 wheel and new T3PM pedal set via select content creators.

Shortly after sim hardware manufacturer Thrustmaster revealed their roadmap for unveiling new products through the remainder of 2021, a select few influencers have been releasing the first images and videos of the new T248 wheel and T3PM pedals.

The new T248 wheelbase is compatible with Playstation 4 and 5 consoles and PC. The product appears to fulfill the “Hybrid Drive” wheel teaser from Thrustmaster’s reveal roadmap earlier this week. Thrustmaster has defined their Hybrid Drive system as using both belts and gears to produce force feedback. The shift paddles are magnetic, and the wheelbase uses optical technology to sense the wheel’s position.

The T248 is equipped with a wide array of Playstation buttons, which are nicely integrated into the wheel design. There is also a small display above the centre of the wheel. Thrustmaster has also included a removable desk clamp with the T248.

While many in the sim racing community thought Thrustmaster would prioritize taking aim at Fanatec’s impressive and popular CSL DD, which offers consumers Direct Drive technology at €349, this wheel appears to be aimed more toward the extremely popular Logitech G29/G920/G923 market. The G923 is the latest Logitech wheel, and retails for closer to €300 including wheelbase, wheel and pedals. Pricing could not be confirmed at the time of this writing, but Thrustmaster's T248 could be expected to be competitive with Logitech's offering.

Thrustmaster 02 New T3PM Pedals.jpg


The T3PM pedals, like the T248 wheel, appear to target the low-to-mid tier budget sim racer. The aesthetic design is similar to the T-LCM load cell pedals. Most of the product is plastic, though the pedal faces are metal and wider than the Thrustmaster T3PA pedal set. There are four resistance levels offered for the brake, with the stiffest offering 200kg of resistance at its peak.

Pre-orders for the new batch of Thrustmaster products will be live at the end of this month. At this point the pricing and release dates haven’t been made available.

Let us know in the comments below if either the T248 wheel or the T3PM pedal set interest you.

Images courtesy of the K3BAB YouTube channel.
About author
Mike Smith
I have been obsessed with sim racing and racing games since the 1980's. My first taste of live auto racing was in 1988, and I couldn't get enough ever since. Lead writer for RaceDepartment, and owner of SimRacing604 and its YouTube channel. Favourite sims include Assetto Corsa Competizione, Assetto Corsa, rFactor 2, Automobilista 2, DiRT Rally 2 - On Twitter as @simracing604

Comments

Are you sure the highest spring is 200kg, and not just 20kg ? 200 seems stupid, especially with that plastic arm and bracket.
 
The actual wheel looks, well, a bit cheap really, but that's to be expected given its price point.

I was actually more interested in the pedal set, but having seen it I don't think it's going to be as good as the T3PA with the brake mod, despite it appearing to be all hall effect sensors. Unfortunately it uses a spring on the brake and not a rubber stopper. I have the T-LCM pedals and quite frankly I've gone back to the T3PA - load cell is not all it's cracked up to be and the T-LCM pedals are so spongy, even with the hardest springs, I almost want to bleed the brake system of any virtual car I'm driving.
 
I hope they will do fine - Thrust Master company, but Fanatec kicked their ass a lot, and who is going from g29 or t300, I had t300 and went to v2.5 man it was day and night , no it was like from Earth to Mars difference! Not kidding, ffb and strength and now this csl DD Fanatec released, nobody cares about theustmaster, guys do not best wishes ;)
 
200kg of resistance? Seems high, can someone what the CSL elite pedals have (normal brake pedal&loadcell)?
 
For everyone wondering: having a 200kg load cell doesn't mean the hardware will use them all.
It's like having a 300kmh speedo on a car that can't even pass 120 while going downhill.
 
Premium
When I sim race, I like the idea that I'm driving an actual real race car. The wheel is part of that immersion, so not sure if it's just me and my very sheltered life, but this looks absolutely nothing like any real racing steering wheel I've ever seen. It just looks a little toy-like to me. Just my opinion and all.
 
Still no rotary encoders. Frustrating.

I have a TM TS-XW and it provides a good and strong force-feedback but the lack of buttons, rotary controllers, the ministick and the quality of materials itself are nothing less than ugly.

The buttons are certainly worse than 0,10$ ones you find in any electronics supplier shop and also worse than Logitech's 1/3 of price. Cheap plastic everywhere. C'mon.
 
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This is aimed squarely at Mum and Dads to buy for their kids at Xmas, it’s a shiny toy that’s got some lights, TM will make money no doubt as it’s made of cheap lightweight materials and is plug and play for all the kids playing Forza and GT on their console.
this is also why TM have bypassed your better known YouTube sim racers it seems, because it’s not aimed at sim racers, and will only be critiqued . There’s little functionality in its design for more serious users, the buttons aren’t very user friendly and the way the cables are hidden and you have to remove it just to check a cable is secure is pretty useless.
but your kids will love it ..
 
This is aimed squarely at Mum and Dads to buy for their kids at Xmas, it’s a shiny toy that’s got some lights, TM will make money no doubt as it’s made of cheap lightweight materials and is plug and play for all the kids playing Forza and GT on their console.
this is also why TM have bypassed your better known YouTube sim racers it seems, because it’s not aimed at sim racers, and will only be critiqued . There’s little functionality in its design for more serious users, the buttons aren’t very user friendly and the way the cables are hidden and you have to remove it just to check a cable is secure is pretty useless.
but your kids will love it ..
You do realize not everyone can afford Fanatec right? This just seems like an arrogant take
 
T3PM looks as weak as the T3PA, on which I broke 2 springs in 1 year 1/2. So 200kg resistance? Give me the same **** TM takes, I gonna be high AF.
 

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