Sim-racing is living its golden age. Simulation video games are becoming more and more realistic, and there is already very professional hardware that you can have at home as long as you have the right budget and the space to dedicate a room solely to your hobby. The normal thing in the world of simulation is to start with the steering wheel and gradually move forward. Only a few will get to assemble a complete cockpit , and of those, even fewer will be done with a motorized movement simulator to make the experience completely realistic. However, you may be curious. How expensive is it to set up such a system at home? So let’s go to it.
What is a motorized cockpit?
The motorized cockpit, motion simulator for simracing or cockpit in motion is a set of motors and sensors that allow the sensations of driving to be replicated through the chair in which you are driving. The motorized cockpit is usually located under the bucket seat, and will try to emulate the force of the turns, accelerations, braking, potholes and even the collisions that we have in our virtual driving.
These types of products are complex and require many safety measures, such as using a harness to securely fix the rider to the seat or even installing a safety button to stop the entire machine in the event of a problem.
What prices are we talking about?
Motorized cockpits are not cheap. Leaving aside the price of the PC —or the desktop console, but today it continues to compensate more for the computer— with which you are going to do the simulation, the screens and even the steering wheel, setting up our own G-force simulator is It will go yes or yes to four figures . In most cases, the price of the sports bucket will have to be added, which will add another 160 euros to the price in the best case.
DOF Reality Motion Simulator H2 – The cheapest model
The cheapest motorized cockpit you can find is this DOF Reality Motion Simulators model. It is worth less than 2,000 euros and contains the structure, the supports for the steering wheel and pedals, the rail for the seat and the motors, as well as the entire energy system.
This model is also interesting if you do not have much space, but as you can see, it is quite an expensive whim.
DOF Reality P3 – Full Simulator
Above the previous model we have the DOF Reality Motion Simulator P3. It is much more complex and is prepared to give more realistic feedback, although visually we will not see many differences. However, it is significantly more expensive, and we are going to 3,700 euros.
If you already have a cockpit: Next Level Racing – Motion Platform V3
You can pass. You started in the simulation world out of pure curiosity and you are good at it. You went climbing, you bought a standard cockpit and now you want to make the jump to a motorized one. Is it mandatory to buy a complete kit? No, but it won’t be affordable either.
Next Level Racing’s Motion Platform V3 allows you to convert a standard cockpit into a motorized one . It is installed under the bucket and guarantees an outstanding experience. His reviews are unbeatable. In fact, this product is even used in professional simulators. The only problem is its price, which is almost 3,000 euros.