The BMW M4 GT3 wheel has finally gone on pre-order after over a year. Review units have started rolling out so it's only a matter of time before we get to see what people make of the new product. One thing is for certain, people have strong opinions on this one.

I've made my case pretty clear on this one. I think this product is a huge milestone for the sim racing industry. When I first started sim racing over twenty years ago I would never have dreamed that my game controller could also be used to control a real car, let alone an endurance race car, but here we are, its happened.

Having had a brief play with play with one of these wheels at Sim Racing Expo, I can tell you it's a thing of beauty. Fanatec and BMW have done a fantastic job in that respect. It is also packed full of features including a stunning forged carbon fibre body, magnetic shifters and all the buttons and encoders you could possibly need. My favourite feature though is the BMW badge which also doubles up as the D pad.

The wheel goes has gone on pre-order for the price of €1399.95. This is of course right at the very top end for sim racing wheel, but actually quite reasonable for a wheel designed for a racing car. So the question I have is:

How many people will actually use this on their sim rig and in the real car?

My guess, less than 50. So have Fanatec made the most niche product ever? Well, maybe, but more realistically they are catering for an audience that simply can afford a luxury piece of kit like this. People where money is no object or those who want something which only a handful of other people on the planet have. Make no mistake those people do exist, and there are more of them than you think.

Think about it. The likes of Simucube, Gomez Industries, Cube Controls etc. They are all making products in this price range and making successful businesses out fo doing so. As this industry grows we will only see an increase in the number of players at the top end of the market.

One argument that I have seen levelled at Fanatec is that they would have liked to have seen a version of this wheel with all of the real world compatibility components ripped out and make it available at a lower price to refresh the product offerings at the €600 - €800 price point. While I don't think Fanatec will do this I think it is about time that price point got a bit of love from Fanatec.

What do you think about this wheel? Will you be placing a pre-order?

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