Is there any advantages of the formula type wheel rim over rounded one when it come to racing?

[GTHell]

I wonder if there're advantages of using formula type rim compare to rounded rim. Or is it just for aesthetic only? I can't find good result on web.

 

[blekenbleu]

The basic notion with a formula-style rim is that,
with rarely more than 90 degrees rotation in either direction,
hands stay in ergonomic grips; buttons and other controls
can be reached by moving only fingers,
and any in-wheel display will be usually be nearly upright and legible.

For quicker steering,
most formula-style rims are smaller "diameter" than some rounded ones;
ergonomic grips allow comfortably applying more force more often.

 

[NeoGrotesk]

I wonder if there're advantages of using formula type rim compare to rounded rim. Or is it just for aesthetic only? I can't find good result on web.

If they're the same width then no, not really. However, if the round wheel is larger than the formula wheel, then it will definitely impact the feel. FFB will feel weaker on a larger wheel and the smaller wheel will be easier to quickly turn so the car will feel sharper and snappier. The wheel being snappier can be a benefit or a curse, having a wheel that's too small can make some cars feel overly twitchy.

The other difference is obviously a formula wheel only has two places to put your hands. So if you're driving a car that's likely to need large steering lock or will have oversteer where moving your hands round the wheel will be useful, then the round wheel will be more beneficial.

All this is assuming both wheels have the same features (buttons, flappy paddles, etc).

 

[Elaphe]

Formula cars had round steering wheels back in the 60, 70, and I think even in the early 80s. They have to be small because the cockpit is narrow and also because it is an advantage for a more direct and quick steering. I suppose the designers realized that the drivers never had to remove their hands from the 9-3 position, also because the turning ratio of that kind of cars was much smaller than other type of cars, so designing more squared wheels offered advantages, such as for instance allowing a better view of the instrumentation (not so important nowadays because everything is included in the steering wheel, even the screen). I suppose that making a more flat steering wheel and not so rounded is better so that it doesn't interfere with the driver's thighs. It also saves some weight (take a look at the minimalistic rims used in DTM). In my opinion, for anything outside the modern F1 and GT3, non-rounded steering wheels are useless, and particularly absurd (and even dangerous) for street cars. For fun driving, the more rounded the steering wheel the better.

 

[metalnwood]

Personally, I find driving with a smaller rim to be much nicer on open wheelers than using my larger rims.

I use a larger rim for gt3's and while it's not massively larger it feels very different and better (for me) for driving those larger slower cars.

If I only had one, I would get used to it for driving different cars but I certainly feel an advantage useing the smaller rim for formula.

 

[mrexcitement71]

Much much nicer to hold as the rim is customized to your hands as opposed to a round one , I have been using a Fanatec Mclaren GT3 wheel since they came out and it has the perfect ergonomics , feels really really nice in your hands.
I haven't used my round wheel since , I even use the GT3 wheel for rally , I use it for everything , love it , it's the only wheel I will ever need.

 

[GTHell]

Thank you everyone. I was thinking of getting a GT4 rim from simagic which is around $5xx and I don't know if it has a slight edge over racing a GT car in iRacing.

 

[ShinyAndy]

Round rims (both big and small) I tend to use for older stuff which generally means a manual shifter, this means you can just buy a standard rim and attach a QR to it and off you go - looks and feels more natural. If you can only have one rim then I'd go Formula/GT though as this feels more correct on modern racing cars