Doesn't feel like the wheel, feels like the shaft. if you push and pull on the wheel, the whole shaft assembly moves slightly. Here's a vid, kind of hard to see, phone wouldn't focus. Watch in full screen to see it better.
http://youtu.be/RCgC1EQqGDU
That looks like the drive shaft is shifting. That will cause a slight shift when hitting the limits lock to lock and may affect the optical sensor. My CSR-E has no play whatsoever, so I think your wheel is not in perfect order. If it was my wheel, I'd take the cover off and have a poke around, but I also don't mind doing that sort of thing.
My take? It's a defect in assembly and you should contact Fanatec about getting it sorted.
Members here who have both wheels say its a leap forward both aesthetically and the inner electronics and such.
By that margin I feel the GT2 is over priced for old tech.
I commented on the CSR being a re skinned GT2. It was pointed out to me that, that is far from the case. If anything the GT2 is a re skin of the PWTS, which is quite old now in this niche market. The GT2 being priced the same as a CSR doesn't reflect that to the consumer.
Any know about the Rim issues but I've not heard a reason that the Base of the CSR could be considered inferior.
What makes you say that?
Aesthetically I'm not sure the CSR style is the new hotness, but that's subjective. I've read several comments from end users and Thomas that the feedback from the new wheel is faster and that it's a bit more responsive in use. I don't doubt it's been revised and improved.
I think it's safe to say the PWTS, GT3RS, GT2, and CSR are more similar than different in electronics and force feedback. ISR mentioned that the GT2 feels like the PWTS and GT3RS had a baby. I think that's accurate. The CSR is just a further refinement, and a way to sell developed and mature products at a healthy profit and at a target price point.
I had and since bartered away a PWTS, and now I have a GT2 and a CSR Elite, so I feel qualified to comment on all the rims. The PWTS and GT2 performed pretty much identically, with slight refinements to buttons and paddles. The GT2 rim is the best of the bunch, by far. It feels really good, and it feels premium. It's shaped, padded, and wrapped to feel almost like it was ripped from a real Porsche. The CSR Elite rim is perfectly adequate, but it definitely seems like the base and the internals were built to a very high standard, and then Fanatec had to find a way to provide a functional wheel with tangible improvements in some areas (buttons, paddle shifters, weight), while staying under the remaining budget.
Given that the CSR offers much better paddle shifters and refinements to the internals, and that the GT2 has a luxurious wheel rim and a wireless USB option, I think they can stay at the same price for a while.
That's the funny thing to me. I personally have NO issue with the GT2 paddles. Even though they do not have that defined "click" I never miss or double a shift. BUT, I do not use the paddles that came with the GT2. I am using ones that came with the GT3 or Turbo S. They are slightly smaller and have NO dead-zone like the larger paddles do.
In practice I agree, but since the GT2 feels so much like an actual car rim and the paddles don't, I think they let the wheel down a bit. A GT2 rim with CSR paddles would be just about perfect IMHO.