A closer look at Project Obsidian

At SimRacing Expo Frankfurt 2026, we gave the community its first look at Project Obsidian, an all-new Fanatec steering wheel design featuring a large color display, extensive illumination, and SimHub compatibility, due to launch in 2027.

We're developing Obsidian as a ClubSport-level product, aiming to offer a comprehensive feature set while retaining the integration and compatibility expected from the Fanatec ecosystem.

Here's a closer look at the thinking behind the design, how its technology works, and why we've chosen to show it early.

Project Obsidian brings together technologies and design experience developed across generations of Fanatec steering wheels.

The 5-inch colour display is the most obvious new feature. It sits beneath a single piece of glass that extends across the central section of the wheel, also covering the RevLEDs and illumination for the four lower rotary switches. This creates a distinctive, integrated design that looks equally stunning when illuminated and when switched off.

The wheel uses an all-aluminum structure and RGB-backlit buttons, incorporating illumination technology already proven in the Podium BMW M4 GT3 steering wheel.

At first glance, Obsidian appears to have a modest number of buttons, but there are actually 18 push-button inputs, excluding the shifters. Alongside the top six illuminated face buttons, there are two buttons on the rear shell, two upper paddles, and eight rotary controls with integrated push functions. This provides plenty of inputs without crowding the front of the wheel.

The user-replaceable grips are shaped for comfort and secure handling during long endurance races, while naturally guiding the driver's hands into a position that provides easy access to the thumb controls.

As a prototype, the appearance is not final, and this extends to the familiar Podium Advanced Paddle Module on the rear – this is expected to receive a new design that we will detail closer to release.

SimHub has become widely used throughout the sim racing community for displaying telemetry and configuring dashboards. Project Obsidian is the first Fanatec steering wheel designed with SimHub compatibility in mind, but we are also developing our own display layouts.

The wheel receives power and standard control data through the Fanatec Quick Release, as with other Fanatec steering wheels. Detailed telemetry for the display is sent through Wi-Fi or a USB connection.

As with the Fanatec display layouts, Wi-Fi connectivity is particularly important for console compatibility. By supporting UDP telemetry, Obsidian is being developed to receive detailed information from compatible console games without requiring an additional USB cable. Like all Fanatec wheels, it will be compatible with PlayStation when attached to a PlayStation-licensed Fanatec Base.

The USB connection provides an alternative for PC users, particularly in environments where wireless connections may be less reliable.

A few more details about the display: it uses a 1280x720 LCD panel, providing sharp graphics and plenty of room for detailed telemetry information. The production version will also be brighter than the prototype shown at SimRacing Expo.

The display is not touchscreen: menus are navigated using physical controls, including a FunkySwitch and two dedicated contextual buttons.

The interface and visuals are still in development, with further refinements planned to improve readability and the presentation of information across different pages and menus.

This is an entirely new display system, developed independently of the Intelligent Telemetry Mode (ITM) used in existing Fanatec products. The new approach is designed to make it easier to support telemetry from a wider range of games, without requiring developers to implement Fanatec-specific functionality.

We know that many Fanatec customers have been waiting for a steering wheel with a large color display. While the Podium Bentley GT3 introduced this technology to our range, Obsidian brings it to a more conventional steering wheel design, with a different price category in mind.

Showing the prototype at SimRacing Expo gave us an opportunity to discuss our design decisions directly with the community and gather feedback while development continues.

The response to Project Obsidian at the Expo was fantastic, and it was great to see so much excitement around the prototype. Thank you to everyone who stopped by to see it, shared their thoughts, or joined the discussion online. We're taking your feedback on board as development continues, and we look forward to sharing more as the project progresses.