Fanatec Club Sport Pedals V3 Inverted Review by The Simpit

Shaun Cole of The Simpit reviews the recently announced Fanatec Club Sport Pedals V3 Inverted pro pedal set.

As usual, Shaun takes us on a detailed tour checking out all the details of the product and shares his initial thoughts regarding the good and not so good features of the unit.

While the standard CSP V3 pedals will suit most sim racers, CSP V3 customers often asked how they could invert their CSP V3 or V2 sets or inquired if there was an upgrade kit available. Fanatec looked at all the possible solutions and decided a conversion kit was not an option because it would be complicated to assemble.

In order to deliver a quality solution, Fanatec now introduces the new ClubSport Pedals V3i. The added letter i stands for “inverted” meaning the pedals are hanging down instead of being mounted on the floor. Thomas Jackermeier who is the CEO of Fanatec explained that the inverted pedal set was originally developed for use in their in-house driving school simulator, but are now becoming a part of the Fanatec product catalog.

Inverted pedals are not new in the sim racing scene. For instance, Thrustmaster has been marketing their T3PA-PRO add-on pedals for quite a while now. Out of the box, the T3PA-PRO pedals can be both floor-mounted or suspended depending on your personal preference.

However, Fanatec took the suspended pedals idea a little further. The Club Sport Pedals V3 Inverted unit is designed as two hanging pedals and one floor mounted pedal, as opposed to the more common pedals systems which invert all three pedals. Thomas explains that they did not just invert the original CSP V3 set, but re-designed the CSP V3i to feature exactly the same ergonomics as in a sports car.

Changes to the regular CSP V3:

• Clutch and brake pedals are inverted
• More travel and different mechanics used on the clutch pedal
• The CSP V3i comes with damper kit pre-installed on the brake
• A longer heel rest
• A wider distance between the individual pedals

All the other pedal features are the same as with the CSP V3. Fanatec decided to use the PU foam and damper kit instead of the Eladur springs. This will give the pedals a more realistic travel and feel. For those who want a stiffer or ultra stiff feel, Fanatec can provide you with an optional brake performance kit. The CSP V3i unit should fit easily into most sim racing cockpits because it has the same footprint as the original  CSP V3.

Price and availability:

The ClubSport Pedal V3i (inverted) are on sale for 599.95€ Incl. 19% VAT. Orders are ready to ship in the EU and USA/Canada. Customers from Australia and Japan will have to wait a little longer. We will keep you posted when we receive more info or a shipping date.

Fanatec ClubSport Pedals V3i Features List:

• Turning points of brake and clutch on top side like in real cars
• High-resolution pedals with magnetic and contactless sensors on gas and clutch for a long life and maximum performance
• Pressure sensitive brake with custom made 90 kg load cell sensor
• Adjustable brake stiffness and travel without tools
• 12bit resolution (4096 values) on all axis
• Alternative D-shape race plates in curved design
• Pedal extension to adjust the angle of the pedal plate and to change the angle of the whole pedal arm
• Brake sensitivity can be adjusted through the tuning menu of the wheel and during the race
• Vibration motor on throttle pedal indicates rear wheel spin and oversteer (control by games is possible via Fanatec Wheel SDK)
• Vibration motor on brake pedal to simulate ABS and indicate locking tires (controlled by Fanatec wheels: Compatible to all games. Dynamic control by games is possible via Fanatec Wheel SDK)
• The design of the gas pedal allows quick exchange of the springs. Two springs with different strength are included
• Damper Kit assembled out-of-box at brake, optional damper kit for gas sold separately. The hydraulic dampening resistance can easily be adjusted with a knob
• Full multi-platform compatibility, depending solely on the platform compatibilities of the connected Wheel Base/Racing Wheel
• Full metal construction of CNC-machined aluminum
• Ultimate adjustability: Position of pedal plates in all directions, angle, spring strength at throttle, brake sensitivity, brake-travel
• Compatible with the color kits to allow perfect optimal customization (Note: color kit footrest is shorter than standard V3i footrest!)

Compatibility

• Compatible with any Fanatec Wheel Base or Racing Wheel with RJ12 Pedals connector. To connect Fanatec Wheels with PS/2 Pedal Socket, you need the additional PS/2 to RJ12 cable.
• Compatible with ClubSport Pedals V3 Brake Performance Kit
• Compatible with ClubSport Pedals V3 Damper Kit (Throttle Pedal)
• Dedicated plug for the ClubSport Handbrake

The pedals are not compatible with the ClubSport USB Adapter. Please use the included USB connector (PC only).

Platforms:

PC: If you connect it to a Fanatec Wheel Base/Racing Wheel it will be compatible with all the supported racing games. Please check the compatibility details on the product page of the connected product.

It will work with any racing wheel, also of any other brand (Logitech, Thrustmaster, etc), if the pedals are connected to PC via USB and if the game supports a second controller. E.g. these PC games support a second USB controller.

• iRacing
• Assetto Corsa
• Project Cars
• GTR 2
• Race 07
• rFactor
• Live for Speed
• …and many others

Consoles: This pedal set can be used on gaming consoles when connected through a Fanatec Wheel Base / Racing Wheel. Please check the Fanatec product info page The It will not work on consoles using the direct USB Connection or a ClubSport USB Adapter.

Official Webpages – www.fanatec.com  –  www.thesimpit.com