Do you’re keen on sim racing sufficient to spend $2,499 on a steering wheel?

Sim-Lab has simply launched a brand new $2,499 steering wheel it claims is an “genuine as potential” reproduction of the wheels Lewis Hamilton makes use of whereas driving the Mercedes-AMG Petronas System One Crew’s race automobiles. It’s a beautiful piece of {hardware} to simply stare at however a reminder that getting actually into simulators might be harmful on your price range.

If that price ticket has your jaw on the ground, don’t trouble selecting it up. You’ll be able to’t simply plug the steering wheel into your PC and hit the simulated streets of Montreal. It must be connected to a wheelbase, which interprets the steering wheel’s turning motions and button inputs to a racing sport whereas additionally offering drive suggestions. These also can set you again a number of thousand {dollars}, and one isn’t included with this wheel.

What makes Sim-Lab’s new wheel so dear? For starters, it’s formally licensed from the Mercedes-AMG Petronas System One Crew, who shared the computer-aided design (CAD) information it makes use of to construct the steering wheels for its multimillion-dollar automobiles. Sim-Lab’s wheel is as shut as you may get to racing with one with out changing Lewis Hamilton because the group’s driver when he strikes to group Ferrari subsequent yr.

The steering wheel’s physique can also be a hand-crafted carbon fiber shell. That not solely helps it weigh 1,240 grams, nevertheless it additionally ensures it’s extraordinarily inflexible, so vibrations and resistance offered by a wheelbase are exactly translated to a gamer’s arms. It’s not going to creak and flex as you steer right into a simulated nook at over 150mph.

Scattered throughout the wheel are 9 rotary dials, 12 buttons, two switches, carbon fiber shifting paddles, anti-static silicone rubber grips, and 25 controllable RGB LEDs offering telemetry information at a look. If that’s not sufficient information, the middle of the wheel additionally incorporates a 4.3-inch LCD display with information layouts that match what Mercedes F1 drivers see.

To most of us, it’d look like an obscene splurge, however for racing sim followers striving to recreate an genuine F1 expertise, the one factor seemingly lacking is race engineer Bono telling them “Okay, Lewis, it’s hammer time.”