Driving Force Pro Pedal Problems
- Thread starter Arwin
- 264 comments
- 138,680 views
georgeymoneyYou know, I got a DFP the first few months it was around. I looked at those pics and you know what I saw? WAAAAAAAAYYYYY more robust pots than I have. I suppose they replaced the crumby pots that were in mine (Very small, very plastic, white covers). Still have that problem though. Jeez, Logitech sure knows how to piss me off. The pedal base is just 👎 The engineering is sub par imo. I fixed mine by unplugging the gas pot and adding thermal greese to improve the reliabillity of the connection. Worked really good for a couple of months, but now and again I have to use the shove method. I wish I could afford frex stuff
Don't feel too bad. If you read this entire thread, you'll note that I don't even have the latest revision to the pedal sets. It seems like the newer sets have weights and brackets to keep the potentiometers in place. All I have is tape...
- 132
How can you tell the latest model w/o opening the box?
I don't know if this is a related problem or not:
My pedals aren't having trouble with full throttle but they are acting up. It seems that when I go from full throttle to zero throttle to brake for a turn my throttle will "blip" randomly to full throttle and back to zero in a fraction of a second multiple times. It's started doing this more and more lately and it's getting really annoying (not to mention making it difficult to smoothly make a fast corner smoothly). It also sometimes stays at about 15% throttle till I hit the gas again though this isn't very common.
Any ideas? I found that unplugging and plugging the pedals from the wheel works but even this isn't working as well as it used to.
My pedals aren't having trouble with full throttle but they are acting up. It seems that when I go from full throttle to zero throttle to brake for a turn my throttle will "blip" randomly to full throttle and back to zero in a fraction of a second multiple times. It's started doing this more and more lately and it's getting really annoying (not to mention making it difficult to smoothly make a fast corner smoothly). It also sometimes stays at about 15% throttle till I hit the gas again though this isn't very common.
Any ideas? I found that unplugging and plugging the pedals from the wheel works but even this isn't working as well as it used to.
Thanks for all the great info and solutions guys. I got my DFP last week and already have brake issues (I'm leadfooted which is why I have GT4 and the DFP in the first place).
Imagine trying to set a fast lap on the Nordschleife with the @*&^*%@! brake coming on midcorner. Needless to say I'll be busy strategically applying tape this evening!
Imagine trying to set a fast lap on the Nordschleife with the @*&^*%@! brake coming on midcorner. Needless to say I'll be busy strategically applying tape this evening!
- 87
- Mike_Redfield
VIPERGTSR01Ok, cheers.
I picked up the foam today..i'll start the sugery after I finish eating
- 87
- Mike_Redfield
Alrighty, got it done, and it's perfect..the pedel no longer clicks, still has full range of braking power, and is actually a tiny bit stiffer, making it harder to lock up the brakes accidently.
Here's the step by step
1: The donor pillow..cost me $10CDN, and it's super comfy..(Cheap memory foam)
2: The pedel setup..this is what I meant by it's different than the other's pictures..
3: The cluprit of the clicking..
4: A close up of the same spot...(blurry..but marked)..
5: The donor has it's surgery..(Pillow is barley affected..still useable )
6: What I used to attach the foam to the base..
7: The foam attached, glued in, and the top greased with some of the extra grease from the other springs.
8: Pedels back together, a shot of the foam inside..
And that's it..the clicking is COMPLETELY gone, and it took me all of 15 minutes..I used an X-acto knife to cut out the chunk of pillow, and I was debating weather or not to glue in the piece, as it was holding itself up..but I decided I didn't want to repeat this a couple days later..so I glued it in
So there you go..15 mins, and 10 bucks fixes your clicking noise, and gets you a damn comfy pillow.
Here's the step by step
1: The donor pillow..cost me $10CDN, and it's super comfy..(Cheap memory foam)
2: The pedel setup..this is what I meant by it's different than the other's pictures..
3: The cluprit of the clicking..
4: A close up of the same spot...(blurry..but marked)..
5: The donor has it's surgery..(Pillow is barley affected..still useable
)
6: What I used to attach the foam to the base..
7: The foam attached, glued in, and the top greased with some of the extra grease from the other springs.
8: Pedels back together, a shot of the foam inside..
And that's it..the clicking is COMPLETELY gone, and it took me all of 15 minutes..I used an X-acto knife to cut out the chunk of pillow, and I was debating weather or not to glue in the piece, as it was holding itself up..but I decided I didn't want to repeat this a couple days later..so I glued it in
So there you go..15 mins, and 10 bucks fixes your clicking noise, and gets you a damn comfy pillow.
- 87
- Mike_Redfield
*bump* for people who might have either problem.
- 87
- Mike_Redfield
Yeah..It was getting too annoying, every time i'd left foot brake or just tap the brakes, i'd hear this "click..clickclick"
If you do end up doing it, I hope that helps.
BTW: You've got a damn nice car 👍
If you do end up doing it, I hope that helps.
BTW: You've got a damn nice car 👍
- 20,145
- Australia
- VIPERGTS01
CanadiandrifterYeah..It was getting too annoying, every time i'd left foot brake or just tap the brakes, i'd hear this "click..clickclick"
If you do end up doing it, I hope that helps.
BTW: You've got a damn nice car 👍
Yeah it will help thanks, and thanks for the car compliment
.dudes,
I've been having the intermittent brake problem the last week or so. I've only had my dfp for about 2 weeks. I called Logitech today, and they basically told me that they wouldn't do anything for me, cause I didn't have another game for me to test it on to prove it was the wheel. I hadn't seen this thread before that, so I'll call again tomorrow. The tech I talked to said he's heard of a lot of problems with GT4, so it was probably the game that was the problem. I was pissed after I talked to him, even more pissed now that I know its a common problem. Thanks for the posts guys, I'll have to do that fix if logitech isn't gonna take care of me.
and that is a sweet Skyline *jealous*
I've been having the intermittent brake problem the last week or so. I've only had my dfp for about 2 weeks. I called Logitech today, and they basically told me that they wouldn't do anything for me, cause I didn't have another game for me to test it on to prove it was the wheel. I hadn't seen this thread before that, so I'll call again tomorrow. The tech I talked to said he's heard of a lot of problems with GT4, so it was probably the game that was the problem. I was pissed after I talked to him, even more pissed now that I know its a common problem. Thanks for the posts guys, I'll have to do that fix if logitech isn't gonna take care of me.
and that is a sweet Skyline *jealous*
Well, I have to be honest with you. I was so happy to finally get GT4, that I had to go out and buy myself the DFP. After spending a weekend building/painting a make-shift cockpit out of particle-board( mdf-board ), I was all settled in for some racing.
It took a few laps to get used to the DFP( which I have owned for all of 1 week now ). But soon, I was turning some good laps with a '91 Toyota Celica at Laguna Seca in Arcade Time Trial mode( 1:57's )
While running my laps, I noticed the Gas pedal was periodically losing the input of my foot, much like is described in the tippy-top of this thread. I would be crusing down a straight-away... pedal floored, and all of a sudden... nada, zero, zilch input registering on the pedal. I would have to let off the pedal, and then re-apply pressure before it would register.
After discovering this thread, I mulled over taking apart the pedals to attempt a repair. Heck, the entire wheel is only a week old. So I called Logitech customer support( figuring they would stand-up, and send me a new wheel when I described my problem ). Much like GT Jud experienced earlier... Logitech told me that I needed to have another game to verify the wheel was the problem, and not GT4. I told them: "This is your wheel, and it is specifically designed/marketed for GT4... how could it be a problem with the game?". The CSR just kept re-iterating that in order for him to do his job, he needed to verify that the problem existed in a different game. But I don't have a different driving game for the PS2! I told him that it was freakin' insane that I was going to have to buy/rent another game just to help him diagnose the issue. I finally told him to go pound-sand, and that I was going to return the wheel to Amazon.com for a refund.
But I WANT THIS WHEEL! It's so good... and makes the game 50x more enjoyable( IMHO ). So I decided to take the plunge, and open up the pedals tonight. Thanks to all who posted... I did exactly as was suggested. I secured the wires leading from the pedals to the pots, using two strips of electrical tape( criss-crossed at the "pinch-mark" that I chose ). By applying the tape, you are simply isolating the "pots" side of the tape-wire-pots section from any movement registering on the tape-wire-pedals section. Think of it like pressing down on a guitar string to generate a different sound. By "pinching" the guitar string, you isolate the string above your finger( with respect to the guitar's neck ) from any movement incurred below your finger( with respect to the guitar's neck ). Maybe its not the best simile, but it works for me
Anyway, after securing the wires to the base of the pedal housing, I reset all the springs( one for the gas pedal, and two for the brake ). Oddly enough, the brake pedals secondary spring( it's the black spring on my set ), was not properly seated within the pedal assembly. Consequently, before I opened the pedals to fix the wire issues, my brake pedals was waaaaaaay-to-twitchy. I could barely derpess the pedal 25% before GT4 registered it as matted-to-the-floor. Once I re-seated the secondary spring in the pedal assembly, it was like magic.
So, I ensured the springs were seated, cocked, and ready to go. I double-checked my "tape-job" on the wiring mechanism... and then proceeded to put back the pedals with the screw( 9 I believe ).
When I fired up GT4, it was awesome! I ran over 35 laps at Laguna Seca during 2 sepearate instances. I never had one "hic-cup" in the gas pedal, and for the first time... had full travel in my brake pedal.
This is how it should feel for everyone. The wheel is very good with the game, but like others have stated above... Logitech's decisions on the pedal assembly could have been better. But it's a simple fix. The hardest part was re-assembling the pedal base( with the screws ), and that wasn't really tough... it just takes some patience to line up the springs in their asssigned plastic grooves.
It really wasn't a big deal, and I do feel like it is a solution that will last( whereas simply trading in one wheel for another might just have the problem re-appear on another set of pedals ).
Thanks to all, I hope that my posting gives some people confidence to do-it-yourself. We all wish Logitech would have done a better job in the first place, but with a simple fix( 20 minutes - tops )... you can be off and racing.
Good Luck Everyone... Enjoy the Game( and Wheel ).
BTW - I just turned in a hot-lap/time-attack at Laguna Seca( with that old '91 Toyota Celica ) at 1:47.xx. That's 10 seconds better than during my first DFP experience. Way Cool!
It took a few laps to get used to the DFP( which I have owned for all of 1 week now ). But soon, I was turning some good laps with a '91 Toyota Celica at Laguna Seca in Arcade Time Trial mode( 1:57's )
While running my laps, I noticed the Gas pedal was periodically losing the input of my foot, much like is described in the tippy-top of this thread. I would be crusing down a straight-away... pedal floored, and all of a sudden... nada, zero, zilch input registering on the pedal. I would have to let off the pedal, and then re-apply pressure before it would register.
After discovering this thread, I mulled over taking apart the pedals to attempt a repair. Heck, the entire wheel is only a week old. So I called Logitech customer support( figuring they would stand-up, and send me a new wheel when I described my problem ). Much like GT Jud experienced earlier... Logitech told me that I needed to have another game to verify the wheel was the problem, and not GT4. I told them: "This is your wheel, and it is specifically designed/marketed for GT4... how could it be a problem with the game?". The CSR just kept re-iterating that in order for him to do his job, he needed to verify that the problem existed in a different game. But I don't have a different driving game for the PS2! I told him that it was freakin' insane that I was going to have to buy/rent another game just to help him diagnose the issue. I finally told him to go pound-sand, and that I was going to return the wheel to Amazon.com for a refund.
But I WANT THIS WHEEL! It's so good... and makes the game 50x more enjoyable( IMHO ). So I decided to take the plunge, and open up the pedals tonight. Thanks to all who posted... I did exactly as was suggested. I secured the wires leading from the pedals to the pots, using two strips of electrical tape( criss-crossed at the "pinch-mark" that I chose ). By applying the tape, you are simply isolating the "pots" side of the tape-wire-pots section from any movement registering on the tape-wire-pedals section. Think of it like pressing down on a guitar string to generate a different sound. By "pinching" the guitar string, you isolate the string above your finger( with respect to the guitar's neck ) from any movement incurred below your finger( with respect to the guitar's neck ). Maybe its not the best simile, but it works for me
Anyway, after securing the wires to the base of the pedal housing, I reset all the springs( one for the gas pedal, and two for the brake ). Oddly enough, the brake pedals secondary spring( it's the black spring on my set ), was not properly seated within the pedal assembly. Consequently, before I opened the pedals to fix the wire issues, my brake pedals was waaaaaaay-to-twitchy. I could barely derpess the pedal 25% before GT4 registered it as matted-to-the-floor. Once I re-seated the secondary spring in the pedal assembly, it was like magic.
So, I ensured the springs were seated, cocked, and ready to go. I double-checked my "tape-job" on the wiring mechanism... and then proceeded to put back the pedals with the screw( 9 I believe ).
When I fired up GT4, it was awesome! I ran over 35 laps at Laguna Seca during 2 sepearate instances. I never had one "hic-cup" in the gas pedal, and for the first time... had full travel in my brake pedal.
This is how it should feel for everyone. The wheel is very good with the game, but like others have stated above... Logitech's decisions on the pedal assembly could have been better. But it's a simple fix. The hardest part was re-assembling the pedal base( with the screws ), and that wasn't really tough... it just takes some patience to line up the springs in their asssigned plastic grooves.
It really wasn't a big deal, and I do feel like it is a solution that will last( whereas simply trading in one wheel for another might just have the problem re-appear on another set of pedals ).
Thanks to all, I hope that my posting gives some people confidence to do-it-yourself. We all wish Logitech would have done a better job in the first place, but with a simple fix( 20 minutes - tops )... you can be off and racing.
Good Luck Everyone... Enjoy the Game( and Wheel ).
BTW - I just turned in a hot-lap/time-attack at Laguna Seca( with that old '91 Toyota Celica ) at 1:47.xx. That's 10 seconds better than during my first DFP experience. Way Cool!
- 11
mine is more than a half years old and i dont have eny problem whith my brake and gas pedal!
I love my DFP and my GT4
sorry for my english....... :S
edit, more
I love my DFP and my GT4
sorry for my english....... :S
edit, more
I posted this already on the big DFP thread:
you have a 2 year warranty on your DFP. I had the same problem friday, I called logitech and they are going to send me a new set of pedals. Since Logitech cannot afford to loose it's "image", I assume they have the same policy for each country.
So, call, get a new set and only then start repairing your old set ( I did not have to send my old pedals in...)
you have a 2 year warranty on your DFP. I had the same problem friday, I called logitech and they are going to send me a new set of pedals. Since Logitech cannot afford to loose it's "image", I assume they have the same policy for each country.
So, call, get a new set and only then start repairing your old set ( I did not have to send my old pedals in...)
- 115
- JeroneNL
Damn i have the same problem... my pedalset has broken it wont give gas properly.. gonna call logitech tomorrow here in the netherlands..
it wont give gas properly.. gonna call logitech tomorrow here in the netherlands..
- 351
I was annoyed by how light the spring was in the gas pedal, so what I did was remove the base of the pedal unit, took out the spring, and bent it wider to increase the rate.
It feels way better now.
Actually thinking of doing it to the brake pedal.
Another thing I noticed was how when you first turn on the PS2 and enter a race, you have to press the brake pedal all the way in to sort of calibrate it. Otherwise you will be applying maximum braking power when you so much as touch the brake.
Just test it out an you'll see what I mean.
Like, reset/turn on the PS2, enter practice mode, then apply a little braking pressure and pay attention to the brake pressure meter next to the speedometer.
You will notice that it will max out when you push it to however far you pushed it previously, so the only way to fix it is to push it all the way in before you start racing.
It feels way better now.
Actually thinking of doing it to the brake pedal.
Another thing I noticed was how when you first turn on the PS2 and enter a race, you have to press the brake pedal all the way in to sort of calibrate it. Otherwise you will be applying maximum braking power when you so much as touch the brake.
Just test it out an you'll see what I mean.
Like, reset/turn on the PS2, enter practice mode, then apply a little braking pressure and pay attention to the brake pressure meter next to the speedometer.
You will notice that it will max out when you push it to however far you pushed it previously, so the only way to fix it is to push it all the way in before you start racing.
www.wingmanteam.com is always the place to go for Logitech gaming control support
- 87
- Mike_Redfield
shingle
Yeah, after making my brake pedal stiffer, the gas pedal feels like there's nothing holding it up...I'm gonna have to rip it open and make it stiffer as well
Had my DFP three months, had issues after 1 month, did the disconnect and reconnect thing with the cable but no long term gain.
Rang Logitech here in Australia, and had to return both wheel and pedals to EB GAMES, where they are replacing the whole lot under warranty. Hopefully this new set will have no hassles. Figured free replacement is better than 'surgery' and voiding the warranty....
Rang Logitech here in Australia, and had to return both wheel and pedals to EB GAMES, where they are replacing the whole lot under warranty. Hopefully this new set will have no hassles. Figured free replacement is better than 'surgery' and voiding the warranty....
- 629
- South Texas
- RRoD#9799827.3
I've only had the DFP since January. This past weekend, I started having problems with the throttle. My ghost was leaving me way behind on a license test and I realized that I was not able to give 100% throttle....only about 80% when fully floored. I also had gas mapped to the -Shift Knob, and this would go to 100%, so I opened up the pedal set. I have this model:
I don't know if this model ^ is the new version or the old version, but somehow, the following system looks more 'substantial'.
About all I did after opening up the set and finding a greasy mess was to apply tape to the wires in order to try to keep the pots within the ill fitting brackets. It worked alright, but I suppose that I didn't do a good enough job the first time, because after several hours of play, I had the same throttle problem, and I had to do it all over again. I don't know if I saw this in this thread or another on this site, but someone suggested using Super Glue to keep those plastic pots in their brackets. I haven't tried this yet, but if this keeps happening, I will call Logitech to complain, and if they offer to send me a new set, I will use the Super Glue on my present set.
I don't know if this model ^ is the new version or the old version, but somehow, the following system looks more 'substantial'.
About all I did after opening up the set and finding a greasy mess was to apply tape to the wires in order to try to keep the pots within the ill fitting brackets. It worked alright, but I suppose that I didn't do a good enough job the first time, because after several hours of play, I had the same throttle problem, and I had to do it all over again. I don't know if I saw this in this thread or another on this site, but someone suggested using Super Glue to keep those plastic pots in their brackets. I haven't tried this yet, but if this keeps happening, I will call Logitech to complain, and if they offer to send me a new set, I will use the Super Glue on my present set.
I have investigated the problem with the pedal assembly for the Driving Force Pro steeing wheel. My experience with these types of problems always makes me look at connections and their reliability and indeed in this case the problem is the same. This repair is for skilled people otherwise call logitech.
The connection to the potentiometer (position transducer) used for the throttle and brake position sensing is made using a fast-on connector. The connection needs what we refer to as an "oxygen free connection". This is typically accomplished by a metal to metal connection that digs into the metal, very slightly, between the two mating surfaces. The fast-on connector is too loose to accomplish this correctly and so oxides of the metal form in the connection and bottom-line fouls up both transducers operation with a variety of erratic behavior.
The solution is simple enough but difficult to implement. You must dissassemble the base of the unit as others have stated. Then you must either remove each fast-on, tighten the clip and re-connect it to the potentiometer or you must solder it to the potentiometer leads. Either solution will work. If you tighten the faston clip this simply means using a pair of pliers and compressing the fast-on terminal such that when it is re-installed it will mate tightly to the potentiometer terminal.
The final step is to reassemble the pedal assembly when completed - that's the hard part so don't try unless you're skilled mechanically.
I believe that the reason others feel they are solving the problem is that they are moving around the terminals and temporarily scraping off the oxides which restores the operation for a while - it won't be permanent though.
I am posting this as an FYI and don't really want or need feedback from other posters. If you don't like my solution don't use it.
Thanks,
pwreman
The connection to the potentiometer (position transducer) used for the throttle and brake position sensing is made using a fast-on connector. The connection needs what we refer to as an "oxygen free connection". This is typically accomplished by a metal to metal connection that digs into the metal, very slightly, between the two mating surfaces. The fast-on connector is too loose to accomplish this correctly and so oxides of the metal form in the connection and bottom-line fouls up both transducers operation with a variety of erratic behavior.
The solution is simple enough but difficult to implement. You must dissassemble the base of the unit as others have stated. Then you must either remove each fast-on, tighten the clip and re-connect it to the potentiometer or you must solder it to the potentiometer leads. Either solution will work. If you tighten the faston clip this simply means using a pair of pliers and compressing the fast-on terminal such that when it is re-installed it will mate tightly to the potentiometer terminal.
The final step is to reassemble the pedal assembly when completed - that's the hard part so don't try unless you're skilled mechanically.
I believe that the reason others feel they are solving the problem is that they are moving around the terminals and temporarily scraping off the oxides which restores the operation for a while - it won't be permanent though.
I am posting this as an FYI and don't really want or need feedback from other posters. If you don't like my solution don't use it.
Thanks,
pwreman
- 1,373
pwremanI am posting this as an FYI and don't really want or need feedback from other posters. If you don't like my solution don't use it.
Too bad, I'm giving you feedback anyway! Your solution's bang-on, but I'm not sure I'd say it's the root cause. The old-style pots didn't have those fast-on connections and still had problems.
And I forgot to put it in my list of things I did (Post #20) but I also noticed the floppy push-on connectors on my pedals and soldered them. I'm an electronics tech by day, so I had no concerns pulling apart my pedals - much easier to piece back together than a cellphone!
