Steering Wheel: Setup

BeamNG.drive supports steering wheels and controllers that are PC-compatible. Here’s a list of some devices that have been tested: Controller Support.

Driver configuration

Always install the latest drivers and firmware for your device. It doesn’t matter if things appear to work okay, you must still install the drivers. If unsure how to install them, you can read its instructions or contact its manufacturer.

Once installed, open the manufacturer configuration tool:

• Pick the highest possible steering angle and set the same angle in-game.
• Use separate (non-combined) pedals if there’s such an option.
• Some driver settings can impact the responsiveness and detail of the wheel. The default configuration is often aimed at safety and smoothness, preventing the use of the full hardware capabilities. The exact setting names vary from one manufacturer to another. At your own risk, you may want to tweak them, by removing or reducing filters (such as centering spring, damper, inertia, weight, friction…), and by increasing limits (such as speed, torque, acceleration…).

Simulator configuration

Once the drivers are installed, configured and running, you can tweak the BeamNG settings.

Our sim includes in-game configurations for some steering wheels: in these cases you can just drive.

For devices without a premade in-game configuration, you need to assign the controls in Options > Controls > Bindings > Vehicle:

• Click the plus sign to bind new controls (such as throttle, brake and steering).
• You can click an existing binding to tweak it.

Force feedback configuration guideline:

When tweaking the ‘steering’ binding, the force feedback settings will appear below the normal settings. Configuring force feedback can be difficult to get exactly right. Every driving style favours different force feedback settings.

Here’s some steps to use as a starting point:

• First of all, configure your steering wheel drivers (see the relevant section above).
• If you have previously modified the force feedback options, you may want to start fresh, by deleting the “steering” binding and creating a new one.
• Choose an official rear-wheel-drive car, like a K-series Kc6. Disable mods and do not use a custom setup to be safe, avoiding misleading suspension geometries.
• We recommend at least 60fps. The higher the framerate, the more responsive ffb will feel. For that, you may want to sacrifice graphics and traffic.
• Temporarily set Smoothing to the largest value. The wheel will feel very vague and slow, but this is only temporary.
• Go for a drive with your usual driving style (be it racing, stunts, offroading…), and tweak the “Strength” until the overall amount of force feels good to you (not too weak, not too strong).
  • Ignore forces while you are parked.
• If car crashes feel too violent: you should lower the torque in your steering wheel configuration tool, and then bump the in-game strength to compensate. This will have reduced the maximum peak torque during crashes.
• Once you are happy with the “Strength”: go for a drive, and gradually decrease the in-game “Smoothing” to improve details and responsiveness.
• If or when uncomfortable rattling and vibration starts to appear, dial “Smoothing” back a bit.
• Finally, enable the “Reduce strength at low speeds” checkbox to reduce oscillations while parked.

This is your basic staring point. Feel free to tweak the rest of settings now. Note: If you modify the driver configuration, you may need to re-adjust the in-game configuration.

Response correction curves

Response correction curves are an advanced option that compensates for steering wheels whose force feedback response is not linear. To learn how they work and how to generate, tweak and verify your own curve, see Steering Wheel: Response Correction Curves.