The direct drive market has changed a lot in the last 4 years. When I first started sim racing, the cheapest DD wheel you could get was the Fanatec DD1 (there might have been cheaper ones for PC only).
However, in the last couple of years, the prices (and the quality) of DD wheels have improved tenfold, and one of the biggest players in this new wave has
been Moza with their DD wheelbases ranging from their newly released R3 all the way to their flagship R21.
In this review, I will look into their R5 wheelbase and give you the rundown on its value for the price tag.
EXTRA: Below is a Table of Contents. Feel free to click the link to whichever part of the review suits you.
What Do You Get With The R5?
Normally, with a wheelbase, you would get the wheelbase, and that's it. You get bundles from Logitech or Thrustmaster, but those usually aren't with their DD options.
Moza does give you the option of purchasing the R5 base on its own. However, their main package is their R5 bundle.
DISCLAIMER: I want to quickly say that Moza sent me their R5 bundle free of charge to review on my YouTube channel. I wasn't told what to say, and I am not contracted with them. This review is strictly based on my experience using the wheelbase for roughly 4 months.
The R5 bundle gives you everything you need to start racing online. Here's what you get:
I received a few extras in my bundle, which I'll briefly mention during this review, but this is the standard (with a price tag of £500).
I will talk more about the pros & cons with each later in this review. For now, I want to talk about some of my favourite features that come with the Moza ecosystem.
Some of My Favourite Features
Moza's overall product is not perfect. I have some issues with it, but for the most part, I think they are one of the leading brands in the sim racing niche right now. Their wheelbases don't look the sleekest, but they do the job and have a nice compact design to them.
And let's be honest, when you're driving in the sim, whether that's on F1 23 or iRacing, how often are you actually looking at the wheelbase?
Exactly.
My favourite feature has to be their PitHouse software. As someone who used a Thrustmaster wheelbase in the past, I can tell you that it is the most barebones and frustrating software to use for sim racing.
PitHouse, on the other hand, is easy on the eyes and lays everything out in a nice, flowing way that allows you to know exactly WHERE each important setting is and HOW it changes your experience with the wheelbase.
And there's a lot that you can do with it. From changing how the rev lights operate on your wheel to tweaking how much detail you feel in the sim to even changing the throttle, brake, & clutch mapping for your pedals.
It's very useful, and that is why I recommend joining the Moza ecosystem over many other options.
NEXT, we have to look at the physical side of Moza's ecosystem. I am a big fan of their wheels. I never got the chance to test them all out. However, I will say for those who mainly play F1 23, even the cheaper ES Wheel is more than enough to enjoy the game.
For iRacing and ACC, you'd definitely benefit more from using their GS or even FSR wheels, as they give you more control over the car from the wheel itself.
Lastly, sticking with the steering rims, Moza's quick release system is one of, if not the best, on the market. Again, coming from Thrustmaster, I was used to having a quick release that, well... wasn't quick.
With Moza's ecosystem, it's as simple as pressing the back of the QR system and pulling the wheel off. Nice and simple.
Now that we've praised Moza enough with their QR systems and easy-to-use software let's break them down with some stuff I didn't like about their R5 bundle.
Cons of The Moza R5
No product is perfect, and Moza is no different from that. I think they've done as well as you could expect for the price point of this bundle (£500 for the bundle and £299 for the wheelbase alone).
Here's what I don't like about it, however.
Firstly, the pedals could be way better. Don't get me wrong, compared to the
plastic pedals I used when I first started sim racing, they are great.
However, with the niche growing more and more each year, I think we need to look at having loadcell pedalsets at this price point.
Braking is arguably the single most important aspect of racing, and having a pedalset where you can barely tell the difference between the throttle and brake pedal isn't going to cut it.
Moza offers a brake enhancement kit with their SRP lite pedals, and while it doesn't make them loadcell pedals, I think it should come standard with the pedals to at least give some resistance to the brake pedal.
The next con (which can easily be fixed) is how grainy the wheelbase feels out of the box. Moza's wheelbases come with preset settings that allow you to pick the style of car or sim title you want and get going immediately.
That sounds great in concept, but their presets are not very good.
It took me asking another content creator what his settings were and tweaking his baseline to reach a feeling I liked. I think it just took way too much work to reach that point.
Someone who is new to sim racing isn't going to know how to get the most out of their DD wheelbase, and I think Moza should review their presets to offer a better out-of-the-box experience.
Another con is the lack of compatibility. To put it simply, it only works on PC. Considering how big sim racing is on console as well, I don't think this is good enough.
Console players lack options regarding the DD market, and yes, I know that their R3 option should work on Xbox and PlayStation. 3nm isn't a lot of force compared to the 25nm of force that the Fanatec DD2 offers.
I think console players deserve more options, and this R5 bundle would have been perfect for that.
My last con with the wheel is the size of it.
Yes, I did mention earlier how I like the compact style of it. However, it's too small. This means any current and past sim racing cockpits cannot fit this wheelbase easily.
You have 2 options at this point. Either do what I did and only screw in the rear bolts or if that's still not good enough, drill new holes into your cockpit. It's a massive inconvenience to most of us since we will likely have a cockpit that doesn't have the screw pattern for the R5 wheelbase.
Pros of The Moza R5
So, we've broken down the Moza R5 a little bit; it's time to pick it back up. This wheelbase is very good and is definitely one of the best options for new or experienced drivers.
The price has to be mentioned first here. If you've been sim racing for at least 3 years, you'll know that back then, a DD wheel cheaper than £700 was basically as rare as a unicorn.
So the fact that you can now get an entire DD bundle to get off the ground with for £500 is a massive pro to Moza.
I mentioned it before, but the next pro is their PitHouse software. Even compared to Logitech, I still think Moza's is better. I like how easy it is to import somebody else's settings into your own wheelbase.
If you'd like to use the settings I had, feel free to download it here.
Pro number #3 is the level of power and detail you get with this wheelbase. 5.5nm isn't a lot, but it's enough to really pack a punch and deliver great detail within the sim.
You can feel the car's weight at high speeds, and the level of detail you get from the road is miles better than anything a gear or belt-driven wheelbase could give you.
Pros
Cons
Extra Stuff
ES Wheel
There isn’t much to say about the steering wheel and the pedals, as they are both on the basic side, but starting with the wheel.
The ES wheel is a D-shaped wheel and is Moza’s cheapest product. However, as you can see, I have the formula mod on it, which is an extra £40.
Switching between the two is very easy and only takes a few steps, so it’s a great alternative if you don’t have the money to get the GS V2 or the FSR wheel for Formula/GT driving.
My only issue with it is the handgrips.
Because of the lack of grip they provide you, if you don’t wear gloves like me, you’ll find your hands slipping as time passes, and you start sweating.
That can make it very easy to lose control if you’re not careful.
The buttons are decent quality (roughly the same as the TM Openwheel from Thrustmaster). As I mentioned before, Moza’s QR system is amazing and a significant part of the reason I’ve been enjoying the wheel as much.
Though Moza has many high-quality wheels to offer, their ES wheel has been more than enough for me, and its 280mm frame allows for easier control when driving F1 cars; its smaller frame means you feel more FFB compared to the GS V2 wheel, which is 300mm.
Conclusion
Moza R5 Summary
Overall, I think this bundle is perfect for PC players looking to get a solid DD wheelbase for cheap and get straight into racing. Some things can be improved (and should definitely be looked at); however, for the price, there isn't much better on the market right now. I HIGHLY recommend the Moza R5 bundle, and I will give it a 4 out of 5-star rating.
Wheel
Force feedback of the wheel is great and the detail and smoothness are better than any belt or gear-driven wheel. The only issue is that 5nm might not be strong enough for some people.
Pedals
The pedals are better than most you receive with bundles, however, without the brake kit, they lack any substance. Loadcell is the way to go.
Cost
A few years ago, getting a direct drive wheelbase, wheel, and pedals would have cost more than £1,000. The R5 bundle from Moza is an excellent balance of price vs performance.
Check out my video review for more detail, and let me know your thoughts on the wheelbase in the comments below.