GT5′s New Thrustmaster T500 RS Wheel Goes Upmarket

Accessories December 2nd, 2010 by Jordan

Kazunori Yamauchi has continued to reveal interesting bits of information on Twitter about the new official Gran Turismo 5 steering wheel, the Thrustmaster T500 RS. Unlike the last “official” wheel, the Logitech Driving Force GT, it seems Polyphony Digital will now be endorsing a premium product which commands a considerably higher price tag. According to Yamauchi, the T500 RS will sell in the range $500 (keep reading…), with the separate gated shifter sold separately for a still undisclosed amount of money.

Before you grumble, keep in mind that it’s not clear if the $500 price actually refers to the US, EU, or Japanese regions. As noted by Shirakawa Akira in our forums, the Logitech G27 already sells for around $450 in Japan (it’s $299 in the US), so it may not actually be that much more expensive. Other “premium” wheels, such as the Fanatec Porsche 911 GT3 RS, sell for as much as $349.95, so there is clearly enough demand in the higher end of the market and it is very encouraging to see Polyphony Digital supporting enthusiast hardware with the T500.

Kazunori reinforced this notion with more tweets, stating that the “T500RS [...] is a high-quality, premium steering [wheel],” and “you can feel the delicate and rich feel of the steering.” It will feature three pedals, a “high-power motor, belt drive backlash-free, [and] high-speed processing at low latency.”

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79 Comments

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  1. December 4th, 2010 at 12:32 pm - #
    AyushG

    Will the TS500RS be compatible with Playseats or any other racing seat??

  2. December 3rd, 2010 at 7:46 pm - #
    Peterjford

    The only experience I have had with Thrustmaster products is their joysticks from a long, long time ago. They were very accurate, comfortable, and well made. The only problem was programming them but that has been fixed. If this wheel is anything near the quality of their old joysticks it will be well worth the money.

    • December 4th, 2010 at 3:15 am - #
      Sin

      Is there a photo of the shifter out there yet? wonder if we will be able to mod a handbrake to this.

  3. December 3rd, 2010 at 7:03 pm - #
    OmniusGT

    After using the Driving Force Pro with GT4 and upgrading to the Driving Force GT for GT5 (which didn’t arrive as we all know) so the wheel was used for Prologue and other driving games, its a shame to see Logitech ‘losing’ the GT licence…

    The question is, if this T500 is the new official wheel, why has the ‘on the fly’ extra buttons been dropped? The Plus and Minus buttons, scroll wheel and menu button? It seems strange that if you go for this wheel, you can’t do that anymore, you can tell this if you go into the options to configure the T500 in GT5, there is no option to configure any of the unused buttons for these Driving Force GT only buttons.

    Also looking at the T500, how would you attach it to a desk (I have my Driving Force GT clamped to my desk using the internal clamps) but I can’t see anything on the photos of this new wheel?

  4. December 3rd, 2010 at 5:40 pm - #
    Kyle

    I don’t possibly see how I could enjoy this wheel more than my G27. Especially for what will close on $600 for the shifter and base unit. Wow.

  5. December 3rd, 2010 at 5:10 pm - #
    J. Hayden-Kart Racer

    wow thats ridiculous! who would pay $500 for a wheel and then pay another $50-100 for a shifter? just get a g25/g27!

  6. December 3rd, 2010 at 1:44 pm - #
    Madman Apex

    I think that the reason PD and Kaz have teamed up with Thrustmaster is because the official wheel must be a better “fit” with GT5. GT5 is one hot horrible mess, alot of hype leading up to a big dissapointment. PD and Kaz figure the Thrustmaster T500-RS is going to be the same way. 500units of money from whatever region for a really dissappointing “standard” wheel with blocky shadows and no option to be racemoded.
    i cant hate on Kaz though because it is not my business who he sleeps with behind closed doors in the privacy of his home. but i hope he wasnt too busy or blinded by this hot new romance to miss seeing all the faults being released in GT5. i wouldnt be surprised all the cars on display at the madrid launch party where actually owned by him. i cant hate i can only be envious.
    i dont understand why people bought the G27/25 for GT5, and are now mad that it isnt working 100% with GT5. not that this is acceptable, but the DFGT was the “official” wheel for GT5.
    i see a lot of faults with this new wheel, a lack of buttons jump out at me first, but its the same for G27/25.
    i love my DF, DFP and DFGT as i still have all three and will continue to use DFGT for GT5, DFP for FIA GTR2 and RACE-07 and my DF is now resting in the hall of fame after clocking in more then 50,000kms on GT3

  7. December 3rd, 2010 at 1:02 pm - #
    Dme

    As much as I try to defend Polyphony and GT5 they keep doing things that really grind my gears. From delaying the game, to a really clunky menu system, to something as simple as not having fast foreword or rewind in replays. They continue to fumble.

    I bought a G27 a month before the scheduled Nov 2nd release of GT5, and it seems many followed suit as everystore that was selling them sold out as the date got closer when a few of my friends tried picking one up.

    Now I see they worked to tailor the game to a wheel thats not even available?

  8. December 3rd, 2010 at 12:41 pm - #
    what

    Jack you should probably read the article again, It’s unknown if $500 is the US street price.

  9. December 3rd, 2010 at 12:16 pm - #
    Jack

    Sounds like a really stupid marketing move. the Logitech Driving Force GT goes for about $130, and designating it as “the official wheel of GT5″ probably encouraged thousands of people to buy one. Nobody but the hardest of the hardcore are going to buy a $500 wheel to play video games with, so the endorsement is a complete waste of time.

  10. December 3rd, 2010 at 11:39 am - #
    tyl0r_r

    And it’ll have the stupidest name for any gaming accessory I’ve ever considered owning. Thrustmaster 500 coming to a porn set near you.

  11. December 3rd, 2010 at 10:18 am - #
    Corey

    I’d consider getting it at some point if they do it in right-hand drive.

    • December 3rd, 2010 at 10:58 am - #
      occasionalracer

      Since the gearbox is sold separately I’m sure it will be like the G’s an 911′s where the shifter isn’t fixed to the wheel.

  12. December 3rd, 2010 at 10:13 am - #
    Yui-San

    I’ll buy it if its cheaper than the G27 :)

  13. December 3rd, 2010 at 9:49 am - #
    ghostrider135

    I wont be buying it i’ve bought thrustmaster peripherals before and funnily enough they all broke within a few months/weeks/hours and the bulid quality is on par with a shantytown

  14. December 3rd, 2010 at 8:55 am - #
    robert

    Thanks Kaz, ive just wasted £85 on a steering wheel thats not the official 1 for GT5, im over the moon, I DONT THINK

  15. December 3rd, 2010 at 8:48 am - #
    Paulo

    Sticking with G25.

    • December 3rd, 2010 at 10:36 am - #
      wrighton

      I have currently owned a DFGT for over a year now and its had quite a lot of hammer from playing Prologue, is it worth upgrading to a G25 or G27 because my DFGT is rather noisy now compared to one that’s new. I like the button support on the DFGT but I would like to know how much better the feedback from the wheel is on the G25 or G27.

    • December 3rd, 2010 at 11:19 am - #
      Paulo

      I have never owned a DFGT, I did have a DFP before getting G25, and I have found the playing experience to be better with the G25, along with quality.

  16. December 3rd, 2010 at 8:31 am - #
    neema_t

    That H.E.A.R.T. logo and acronym really makes me feel like this is going to be a cheap, plasticky feeling affair with an unjustified high price tag. Belt drive? I’m not sure but do the Logitech wheels use belts? That doesn’t exactly fill me with confidence either, but time will tell I suppose. The shifter is separate too? Well, I think I’ll run my DFP into the ground (which will be soon, probably) and see how much G25′s go for…

    Of course, if this turns out to be the very, very best wheel ever made then I’ll eat my words, but my experience of Thrustmaster hasn’t been as positive as it has been with Logitech. I’m not sure how well this will do against the G25/27 seeing as those in the market for a wheel won’t mind sacrificing a little functionality and saving a lot of money.

  17. December 3rd, 2010 at 7:58 am - #
    Rios

    Wheels! I dont need no stinking wheels!

    • December 3rd, 2010 at 9:08 am - #
      Dashers

      Where we’re going etc etc

  18. December 3rd, 2010 at 7:53 am - #
    Benny44

    I had to save just to get my $95 DFGT, so I can’t possibly rationalize getting a wheel for $500. I don’t think my wife would appreciate it either. She was good enough to let me build a cockpit in the living room, I’m not going to push my luck any further.

    • December 3rd, 2010 at 8:51 am - #
      Paulo

      I hear ya bud… I had to explain to mine how long I’ve been waiting for GT5 so she could understand why I bought the more expensive collectors edition. Still don’t have a permanent setup for cockpit though, need to set it up every time I want to play.

  19. December 3rd, 2010 at 7:41 am - #
    dearlybeloved

    It seems that this t500 wheel will be the most amazing piece of kit to play gt5 with and the demographic it is aiming for is the serious trackday guy who is into GT. Also for those with disposable income I would say it is going to be an amazingly built piece of kit. Looking at it it seems to have carbon fibre bits, anodized aluminium and whatever else a premium wheel has. Still way out of my league but for those who can afford it, you lucky sods.

    Peace out!

  20. December 3rd, 2010 at 7:25 am - #
    Bolg

    Sounds great I’ll be buying one of those then, my DFGT is slowly falling to bits.