The RaceRoom Historic Update 2026 came out on 21 October 2026. It adds four historic touring cars, four new places to race and an updated Hockenheim, replaces the old menus and website with one new interface, and reworks the force feedback. It is a big download, roughly 80 GB by RaceRoom's own patch notes.
The cars are the headline. The FFB change is the part that changes how every car in the game feels, so read that section before you drive.
Checked on 27 October 2026 against RaceRoom's own Steam announcements: "RaceRoom Historic Update 2026 is Out Now!", the full patch notes of 21 October and the "Big Force Feedback Update" post. Everything here is from those posts.
New cars
| Car | Class |
|---|---|
| Abarth 1000 TCR | Group 2 |
| Mini Cooper S Mk3 | Group 2 |
| Peugeot 406 Super Touring 1998 | Super Touring |
| Ford Mondeo Super Touring | Super Touring |
The two small cars join the NSU TTS and the Volkswagen Scirocco in Group 2. RaceRoom also went back over the NSU and the Scirocco (physics, tyres, gearing, fuel tanks and AI) so all four can race together. They come with liveries from the "Kampf der Zwerge" series.
Low power, narrow tyres, light cars. That is the best school there is. In a car like that you cannot fix a bad entry with the throttle, you carry the speed or you lose it. If you raced karts it will feel familiar.
New and updated tracks
Image: RaceRoom / KW Studios, Steam announcement
- Spa-Francorchamps 1995. The mid nineties layout with the Bus Stop chicane and the pit lane exit at the bottom of Raidillon. Grand Prix and Endurance layouts, and the Endurance layout takes up to 99 cars.
- Laguna Seca Historic. The 1980s track before the infield section was built, so turn 2 is a fast sweeping left.
- Fliegerhorst Wunstorf. A German airfield circuit, flat, with fast sweepers, chicanes and narrow taxiways. STW and DTM both raced there.
- Glasbachrennen. The hill climb from the FIA Esports European Hill Climb Cup, now for everyone. Short and narrow. RaceRoom says the winning run at the competition was under 2 minutes.
- Hockenheimring, 2026 spec. New run-offs, a longer gravel trap at the penultimate corner, an updated pit lane and new tarmac textures.
Image: RaceRoom / KW Studios, Steam announcement
For the full map of what you can drive, see the RaceRoom track list and the RaceRoom cars list.
The force feedback rework
This is the change that matters most. In RaceRoom's words, they fixed "a significant error" in how the gyroscopic effect of the front wheels was calculated. The old error added a lot of constant steering weight in corners, which buried the detail coming from the tyres. So the wheel should feel lighter mid corner and busier, in a good way.
Other changes from the FFB post:
- The tyre contact model now uses the whole shape of the contact patch, so kerbs and sausage kerbs give cleaner feedback.
- Physics runs at 400 Hz, and the FFB output should now hold that rate even in big grids.
- The game now sends the FFB to your wheel as a single DirectInput effect instead of many.
- Power steering is rebuilt (hydraulic, electro-hydraulic, electric), and you can add it to cars that never had it.
- Stationary and low speed FFB is now pure physics. The wheel can be very heavy when you stand still. That is realistic, and it fades as soon as the car rolls.
FFB settings to start from
These are RaceRoom's own recommendations from the FFB post:
| Setting | RaceRoom's advice |
|---|---|
| Steering Rotation Mode | Auto if your base supports it, otherwise Manual with Maximum Steering Rotation equal to your driver setting |
| FFB Strength | 100%, lower if too strong |
| Smoothing | Off or low on non direct drive wheels; 10 to 25% for graininess, 50 to 75% to soften kerbs; high values add delay |
| Power Steering | All Cars; Realistic only on strong wheels |
| FFB Minimum Force | Only on lower end wheels with a dead zone |
| FFB Maximum Force | Equal to or higher than FFB Strength |
| Stationary Friction | 100% is realistic |
| Gyro Damping | 0% is realistic, raise it for hands off oscillation |
| Gyro Effect | 0% is realistic, raise it to get closer to the old feel |
| Road Noise, Engine Vibrations, Gearshift Effects | Personal preference |
Keep the filters in your wheelbase software minimal and try the in-game smoothing and damping first. RaceRoom asks you to give the new feel a proper go before you touch Gyro Effect. I agree. Do ten laps before you change anything. Your hands need time to stop expecting the old weight.
My older pages for Fanatec and Logitech wheels were written for the old FFB menu. Use the table above until I update them.
New menus, store and statistics
- The old website and in-game menus are replaced by one new interface on a new backend: menu, store, competitions, Ranked, leaderboards, profile, garage and options.
- Liveries are no longer sold on their own. Buy a car and you get all its liveries. If you ever bought one livery for a car, the rest for that car are now unlocked.
- Test Drive now lets you take any car to any track you own.
- Driver statistics are back and more detailed (time on track, laps, wins, clean laps, incident points, streaks), counted from the day of the update. The old statistics could not be moved over.
- A first set of achievements.
- A manual rolling start procedure.
- Controller profiles were reworked, with a setup wizard that binds and checks each control.
If this is your first time in the game, my RaceRoom review explains what the base game gives you for free.
FAQ
When did the RaceRoom Historic Update come out?
21 October 2026, client version 0.9.9.05.
How big is the RaceRoom Historic Update download?
RaceRoom's patch notes say roughly 80 GB.
What cars are in the Historic Update?
Abarth 1000 TCR, Mini Cooper S Mk3, Peugeot 406 Super Touring and Ford Mondeo Super Touring.
Why does my RaceRoom FFB feel different?
RaceRoom fixed a gyro calculation that added constant weight in corners and rebuilt the power steering. Use the Gyro Effect slider if you want some of the old feel back.
Do I keep my old RaceRoom statistics?
No. The new statistics start from the day of the update, and the old ones could not be transferred.