Thrustmaster T598 Review: Small Package, Big Offering

What a great time it is to be a sim racing hermit. Direct drive technology is becoming widespread, bringing a level of feedback and fidelity once reserved for high-end simulators to something you can clamp to a desk.

Fanatec pushed the tech with its CSL DD, while Moza has come on the scene out of nowhere with compelling rivals in the relatively affordable R3 and R5. Meanwhile, stalwarts of sim racing hardware Logitech will soon be launching the RS50, which it hopes can replicate the success of its G29/G920s that have so long been the de facto choice for pretend race cars.

Long-time rival to Logitech, Thrustmaster, is in on the action too. At the back end of 2024, it came onto the market with this – the T598. With the promise of specs that punch above its price tag's weight, is it worth considering? We’ve been hands-on.

The base

Key to the T598 is a ‘Direct Axial Drive’ motor. This is a development of direct drive wheelbases we’ve come to know over the last few years, which, in short and in theory, can be built smaller and run more efficiently without compromising on peak power.

As a result, despite the shallow form factor of the T598, it’s capable of producing a constant torque figure of 5Nm. There’s also an ‘Overshoot’ built in, which, for short bursts, can add ‘100 per cent’ of power in the words of Thrustmaster.

That’s the key to the T598 in its usage. Dialled in to full power in your chosen sim, and you do feel those occasional bursts of power when the base is pushed to its limits. It’s quite an impressive thing at the top end, giving it a sense of feedback you’d expect to find on more high-end and expensive alternatives.

The downsides are that it can be a little inconsistent and does suffer a bit in the mid-range of force without some fine-tuning, so it requires a fair bit of settings fiddling in our testing to aid that.

Worth mentioning that while the base is shallow, it does sit quite tall and in the case of our setup, covered more screen space than we’d like. That won’t be the case for all rigs, of course, but it’s something you should consider if you’re adapting yours to accommodate the T598.

Extras on the base itself include a small LCD display, which you’ll mostly interact with for on-the-fly setting adjustments. It can be used to display gears and with a rev counter, but we must admit to rarely acknowledging it, as it's such a tiny screen.

The wheel

Out of the box, the T598 comes with a 300mm diameter sportscar-style wheel. It’s detachable via a quick-release, so you’ll be able to swap it out for other Thrustmaster wheels (we ended up using the Hypercar wheel fairly often), which is something you’ll probably look to do.

Ergonomically, the wheel is fine with key buttons in reach and sensibly laid out. The overall quality is just a bit naff to be brutally honest, though.

Much of the wheel is made from hard plastic, save for some rubbery material on the sides. It’s not a pleasant thing to hold by the time your palms have gotten all sweaty from half an hour of racing, and it cheapens the whole experience.

The pedals

Where the T598 package is able to outdo its key rivals at its price point is the inclusion of pedals, which isn’t a given with Fanatec, Moza or Logitech. Bonus points for that alone.

The included pedal set is very much beginner-focused, without a coveted load cell pedal from the get-go. No shock, really, and you do have the option to add a load cell brake.

Swappable springs are included out of the box, so you can stiffen up the brake pedal. Do that, and it feels pretty good even coming from high-end, stiff load cells.

Verdict

As a package, the Thrustmaster T598 is pretty impressive at its £449.99 asking price. We’d look to budget for a higher-end wheel from the brand if you’re coming at it fresh, but that’s a minor drawback considering the performance for value tradeoff here.

Right now, we’d place this as the go-to for anyone looking to dip their toes into direct drive wheelbases without breaking the bank for the time being. Now it’s time to see how the big rivals can respond.