Racing Simulators

Drive to Survive, the Formula 1 series on Netflix, is one of the hottest streaming shows out right now. In fact, more than 50% of U.S. F1 fans who participated in a 2022 survey stated that they became fans of F1 after watching Drive to Survive. As much as the series makes you feel the drama of an F1 race, most of us will never actually get to experience what it is like to drive an F1 car…at least not in person. With full-motion F1 racing simulators, however, we can enjoy the next best thing, but from the comfort of our own homes.

For those who are unaware, racing simulators are “rigs” that allow people to experience computer racing games and simulation software using controls that are as similar to real cars as possible. Good racing simulators have more than just a steering wheel and pedals, they provide feedback to help create a more realistic experience.

There are two broad categories for simulators, fixed base and full motion. In fixed-base simulators, the driver's chair is fixed in place. Feedback is still available through the steering wheel via something called force feedback, and from vibrations.

When you start adding motion feedback there are multiple levels available. How much motion a racing simulator can introduce is often discussed in terms of Degrees of Freedom, or DoF. Most motion racing simulators allow 2 DoF. This typically means the driver can feel pitch and roll, essentially rotating forward and backward and side to side.

Our preferred racing simulator comes from SimCraft. SimCraft has created the most realistic 6 DoF simulator on the market. With SimCraft the driver can experience roll, pitch, yaw, sway, heave, and surge. This allows the SimCraft simulators to create truly immersive driving experiences. Imagine virtually driving the Circuit of the Americas and feeling the texture of the track surface, the floating sensation of cresting a hill, and the pitch and sway as your F1 car becomes unsettled under hard braking.

The SimCraft racing simulators have a unique construction allowing the entire cockpit to be moved, meaning your car and you as the driver rotate together, which is a much better experience than your chair moving, while the screens do not. SimCraft simulators also ensure the mechanisms providing motion are carrying very little weight, meaning they can use all of their energy to move the simulator quickly, just as a track would move a car.

If you are looking for the best driving experience you can have 24/7, in any weather, consider reaching out to BRAVAS today to find out how you can experience the SimCraft experience in your own home.