Fanatec Podium Wheel multiple issues
Hello guys. I have had my Fanatec Podium Wheel with the V2 Claasic wheel rim and the V3 inverted Clubsport Pedals ever since the start of 2022 and things have started to go wrong. I've probably used it on an average of once every 2 or 3 days.
So first of all, my brake pedal is going a bit strange. I used to run with a brake force pressure of about 50% in the Fanatec wheel settings, but then one day, it just decided that it won't go to 100% brake input anymore and I had to change the brake force pressure to about 20-25% in order to achieve 100% input. Another issue is that the brake pedal 'sticks'. When my foot is way off the pedal (like, at least 1 foot clear), the brake input hovers around 2-5%. This is a common issue with all wheel types from all brands, as I have used a Thrustmaster and Logitech wheel before and this issue occurred. However, the Thrustmaster and Logitech were not load cell type pedals. I have remedied this by putting a deadzone on the brake pedal to 5%, but this means I can only use 95% of the brake travel.
Second of all, the wheel fan will not shut off. Before, it would turn on every now and then to cool the components. However, about a month ago it just hasn't switched off. I looked for a solution online and they said to download the latest firmware, but I have already done that and I even switched to an older version but again, it would not turn off (I switched back to the latest firmware and the issue still persists). This is bad because you cannot hear your co-driver properly without turning the TV to a high volume. One of the reasons I bought Fanatec wheel was because it was silent, so this sucks.
The most jarring issue (and the one that makes it impossible to drive), is that the pedals and buttons on the wheel randomly go off whenever they feel like it. You can be driving on a stage and suddenly you'll be stuck in x gear and you have to restart (this also makes online racing impossible since you can't restart and any issue you get is terminal). This issue has happened on every sim I've played. EA Sports WRC, KT Racing WRC, Assetto Corsa, F1 2021. Again, I had to remedy this by switching to the gearstick, but recently, the wheel now randomly has what I can only describe as a brain aneurysm. Every 1 to 3 minutes, the wheel will no longer become the 'primary device' on the sim you are playing, thus causing the game to pause. However, what is very annoying is that the wheel hasn't turned off or anything. Nothing is broken and you can just carry on as normal. You have force feedback, pedals work, even the buttons and paddles work (until they decide to not as aforementioned).
If you take time to read this pretty long log of issues, thank you very much for taking your time. If you would like more clarification, I can send videos and/or images so you have visual reference.
Comments
But these are EMI! If it has constant pedal input with Thrustmaster, Logitech and Fanatec, if the buttons activate themselves, it's EMI.
Maybe 100% fan is not EMI, but everything else is.
Connect the rig, pedal, wheelbase and gearbox to the electrical ground of your system, if you have a valid electrical ground at home, use ferrite cores, a UPS, USB cards, or anything that can eliminate EMI.
You can do a search, here too, to find a way to eliminate EMI.
Thankyou very much.
The buttons don't activate themselves. They simply cease to work. The reason why the game is pausing is not because the wheel is pressing buttons on its own, but the game says that 'the primary input device has changed' suggesting that it believes that it has switched off. There are no unwarranted button presses.
As for the pedal issue I'm pretty sure it is not EMI in this case. The pedal sticks. If you place you foot under the pedal and push it up, it will revert back to 0%. If it was EMI then the pedal position in real life would still be completely still. However, the pedal position is both at 2-3% in both real life and in the game, as adjusting it solves the issue, albeit temporarily.
Fanatec Wheelbase DDs have 2 Windows USB IDs, they work with both, but if for some reason the device disconnects, Windows may reverse the 2 USB IDs. You may check this in Assetto Corsa Competizione, sometimes the wheel is identified as "Fanatec Wheel", sometimes as "Fanatec Wheel 2", in the control setup screen.
In my case this phenomenon was due to EMI, but in your case it could simply be a loose internal connector or a more serious hardware failure.
In any case, brake, fan and disconnects, there are too many things that don't work. You can't solve it by simply asking for advice, I think you should contact support.