Aerosoft Truck and Bus Wheel System
design
Gaming wheels always strive for realism and at first glance that’s certainly true of the Aerosoft Truck and Bus wheel – from a couple of steps away this wheel and pedal combo looks like it’s been ripped straight from the cab of an actual vehicle. It’s a big boy, the 40cm diameter wheel rim is actually quite imposing in front of you and the wheelbase behind it is equally chunky so you’ll need to make sure you’ve got plenty of space in your setup.
Mounting to my desk was simple with the supplied clamp brackets though the cables are a less than elegant solution and fall behind other, more premium options that feature an onboard hub and stop you needing to give up multiple USB ports on your PC. The external shifter also includes a beefy desk clamp with a separate USB cable. Interestingly though, while almost any other wheel I’ve tested includes the standard bolt mounting patterns for hooking up to a sim racing seat like the Playseat Trophy or RacGTing Challenger 301 – the Aerosoft Truck and Bus Wheel opts not to offer this. It’s a strange choice. Sure, this would look slightly dast in a Formula style chair but there are plenty of larger, more traditional seats in the market.
While it may look true to life from a distance, unfortunately getting closer it’s quickly clear that build quality leaves a lot to be desired. The Aerosoft Truck and Bus Wheel rim is hard moulded plastic with no rubberisation or upholstery, for something you’ll be holding for hours – that’s a major issue. It’s also formed of two distinct halves glued together with an obvious seam that leaves it looking and feeling distinctly cheap, toy-like and slippery. There is some slight texturing of the plastic to offset this but it’s certainly unlike any real world steering wheel I’ve ever felt.
Admittedly the Aerosoft Truck Wheel stalks are better and do feel like they’re lifted straight from a real truck. They offer the full range of movement you’d expect though at least on my unit they were prone to awful sounding creaks and cracking noises that were rather disconcerting. It’s childish, but the star of the show for me was the giant horn that accounts for the entire middle section of the wheel. There’s something about slamming on the horn that’s just so satisfying. The shifter feels much better across the board. Again it’s all plastic but here it’s less impactful as a result and feels far more sturdy. There’s an impressive array of inputs and a clever hidden switch for moving between sequential and H-shifter modes.
As someone more used to sitting in a Playseat Instinct racing chair with Logitech G Pro pedals I found the Aerosoft Truck and Bus pedals lacking. By this point you won’t be surprised to know they too are all plastic though this is more easily overlooked with them out of sight under the table. You’ll want to butt these up against a skirting board because I found them prone to wanting to slide about, even on carpet, though there’s a generous heel plate to rest your feet on.
performance
Reading Aerosoft’s marketing materials for the Truck and Bus Wheel it’s clear they’re selling the dream when it comes to realism. This is supposed to form part of the ultimate simulation setup that comes as close to operating a big rig as I’ll ever get from my living room. Sadly, that’s simply not the case and I struggled to enjoy my time on the road with it.
One of the main problems is quickly apparent but luckily also hopefully remedied with time – plug and play game compatibility is severely lacking. While Euro Truck Sim was quick to recognise the Aerosoft Truck and Bus Wheel as a device, it was left to me to configure every single input. Even the Aerosoft published Truck & Logistics Simulator didn’t offer full configuration as standard. It meant a load of time spent in menus and less time behind the wheel.
The same fate impacted how useful the shifter was. It’s all there on the hardware side, it feels great in your hand and there are plenty of brightly backlist buttons – they just rarely do what they say they should in game. Compatibility was even more frustrating here, toggle switches would rarely match their in-game state to their IRL one and configuring gear patterns was a nightmare I never managed to fully resolve after a few hours.
Once I had a basic configuration put together it was finally time to hit the road. Aerosoft promises “ultra-realistic force feedback with “monumental power” from the Truck and Bus Wheel but after a couple of hours of driving I felt none of it. The gear-driven force feedback is grainy and weak, often barely feeling there at all. There’s no connection with the road and no sense that you’re hauling around a big rig. The pedals offer very low resistance and with it comes a lack of finer control across both throttle and braking. It’s all just very toylike, this is an arcade controller and not a piece of simulation equipment.
summed up
Admittedly I was testing the Aerosoft Truck and Bus Wheel very early in its lifecycle and things may have changed with future firmware updates, however from my experience it’s a very underwhelming piece of hardware. If you’ve only ever used a keyboard and mouse for trucking games it’ll be a step up but it’s not the realistic experience it’s designed to be.
There’s just too many shortcomings with the Aerosoft Truck and Bus Wheel that quickly add up. From cheap-feeling construction to a lack of compatibility and a few software bugs of its own, this isn’t going to be the right investment for a majority of gamers. Instead, look further afield to the likes of MOZA and Thrustmaster whose offerings are more established and offer more.
