Fanatec Podium Pedals: A Hands-On Overview

Fanatec have finally released their Podium Pedals, and we've had a set in for testing for a while now. Honestly, they've been pretty great so far.

But first, a bit of upfront honesty: we're a Fanatec ambassador, so there's an obvious conflict of interest here. That's why we're not calling this a full review. Think of it as a product overview instead. We'll still walk you through everything, show you the features, and tell you why we think these are a really solid set, but you should know where we're coming from before we start.

How Much Do the Fanatec Podium Pedals Cost?

Let's get the elephant in the room out of the way: these pedals are expensive. Nowhere near the cheapest thing you can buy. But the pricing works in an interesting way, so it's worth breaking down.

We're looking at the Podium Pedals Formula, the two-pedal version, which comes with carbon fibre pedal faces and carbon fibre heel cups. Price is €699.95 / $699.99. Premium territory, no question.

Here's the part that makes it interesting: the two-pedal Formula set and the three-pedal set cost exactly the same. So why would two pedals cost the same as three? One word, carbon fibre. The Formula gets those carbon faces and heel cups, and that's where the money goes.

A few pricing notes worth knowing:

• Launch promo: buy the Formula set at launch and you get free aluminium GT-style pedal plates thrown in, worth €75

• Clutch upgrade: if you grab the Formula and want to add a clutch later, the clutch module (plus the small GT face plate) is €234.90

• The maths: if you already know you want a clutch, it probably makes more sense to just wait for the full three-pedal set at the same €699.95

That said, plenty of drivers won't even need the clutch. If you've already got a clutch paddle on your wheel, you may barely touch it.

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Throttle: Tool-Free Adjustment and Software Curves

One look tells you this isn't your average pedal set. You can tell these have been in the works for a long time.

Starting with the throttle. Underneath those carbon fibre faces and heel cups, the main structure is a mix of CNC-machined and die-cast aluminium, running a factory-calibrated Hall sensor on industrial-grade ball bearings. Because it's a Hall sensor, nothing physically wears down and you don't get calibration drift over time.

The big upgrade here is the software. Fanatec have finally added curve and dead zone adjustments right in the software, and those settings save to the pedal's internal memory, so your custom profiles carry over to the console too. That's a massive step up from older Fanatec pedals. If you don't like a perfectly linear throttle, you can dial it in within seconds.

There's plenty of hardware adjustment too, most of it tool-free:

• Pedal travel adjusts by rotating the cylinder at the bottom

• Preload adjusts so you can tune resistance off the top

• Pedal angle adjusts, though this one needs you to loosen the mounting bolts (a one-time install job, so we don't count it against them)

• Heel cups slide forward and back, and the faces adjust vertically

None of this is groundbreaking on its own, but having all of it is great. The flexibility actually came in handy during testing.

The Brake: Elastomer Compression Control Is the Star

The brake is the most interesting pedal in the whole set.

First, the pedal plate and heel cup both have raised side edges and a big contact surface, so your foot basically can't slip off, even when you're stamping on it. If you want even more grip, Fanatec include optional anti-slip strips (basically sandpaper). Stick those on and your foot is locked in place. In some cases it felt like almost too much grip.

The brake uses a custom load cell rated above 200 kg and calibrated up to 150 kg at the pedal plate. The structure is forged aluminium, and flex under load is basically nonexistent. The whole thing feels incredibly solid.

But the real party trick is the patented Elastomer Compression Control System. You can tighten or loosen the elastomer compression chambers without any tools. Rotate one of the chambers and you restrict movement in that section, which makes the other elastomers compress differently, changing both the feel and the travel.

So you're not just changing stiffness, you're changing how the whole brake behaves under load:

• Fully compress all chambers for an incredibly firm brake with almost no movement, all about pressure

• Go the other way for far more travel and a much more progressive feel

You can build a lot of different braking profiles this way, and then fine-tune further in the Fanatec software with deadzone and curve adjustments.

One important tip: lock the threaded cup positions by tightening the gold locking rings every single time you adjust the brake stack. The package also comes with some strange little tools for the compression mechanism, and they genuinely come in handy when a chamber won't rotate on its own.

The Pedal Plate: Worth I?

There's one thing worth flagging with the heel cups. Driving in just socks, you may not get quite enough height to press the pedals comfortably, with your foot landing in the middle of the pedal face instead of the top. For most people that's probably a non-issue, but it's worth knowing.

Switching to shoes fixes it, the extra heel height lines your foot up with the top of the pedal face. The catch is that the faces are already at their lowest setting, so if you race without shoes, that's where the pedal plate makes a real difference.

The plate has height adjustment, so you can set everything up exactly how you want. To be clear, you can absolutely mount the pedals straight to the rig, no issues at all, and move them up and down through the mounting holes. But the plate takes it to another level. It's even got a dedicated mounting spot for the electronics box, with pre-installed T-nuts so install is quick. The extra range lets you position everything so your feet sit perfectly on the faces, and that makes the whole thing feel way more natural.

What's Not Perfect

So we're not just sitting here telling you everything's amazing, a couple of genuine drawbacks.

When it comes to brake customisation, you only get three recommended presets, using a mix of elastomers and two different springs. You can mix and match them, but this is the one area where something feels missing. If you like a brake with more travel, right now there's no optional tuning kit to get you there. The pedals can be adjusted a huge amount overall, but the kind of expanded spring-and-elastomer kit that's become common lately just isn't in the box.

We tested this and ordered a few extra springs ourselves, which got things much closer to a longer-travel feel. To be fair to Fanatec, the spring dimensions are industry standard, so you can find them online. But since every driver is different, more options out of the box would be a nice addition.

The throttle is also a touch stiff. That one's personal, what's too stiff for one driver might be perfect for another, but an extra spring in the box to soften it up would be welcome.

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Final Thoughts

Overall, the design is excellent, the price is steep, and there are some genuinely clever ideas in here, the Elastomer Compression Control brake especially. A few small drawbacks, the limited spring selection and the slightly stiff throttle, but nothing that takes away from what is a really impressive package.

We'd love to hear what you think about these pedals.