RaceRoom Q1 2026 Update – 3 New Cars, 2 New Tracks & New Spa-Francorchamps This update delivers a fully rebuilt Spa-Francorchamps, three new cars including a brand-new free addition, two Italian circuits, a major improvement to steering wheel compatibility, and continued HUD modernization. Full Patch Notes on Steam. Three New Cars Alpine A110 Cup – FREE for All Players The Alpine A110 Cup joins RaceRoom as a new free car for all players. Built for the Alpine Europa Cup, this purpose-built customer race car delivers: 1.8 L 4-cylinder 280 hp 6-speed paddle shift 1135 kg race weight with driver Mid-engine, rear-wheel drive layout Lightweight and agile, the A110 Cup focuses on mechanical grip and clean driving technique. It rewards precision and momentum rather than aggression. It is an ideal platform for close spec racing and driver development. Alpine A110 GT4+ The Alpine A110 GT4+ represents Alpine’s international customer racing platform built to GT4 regulations. Key characteristics: 340 hp 6-speed paddle shift Racing limited-slip differential Full GT4 aero package with rear wing and splitter 1255 kg with driver Compared to the Cup car, the GT4+ adds aerodynamic sensitivity and setup depth. It competes directly against established GT4 machinery and is suited for both sprint and endurance formats. NXT Gen Cup – LRT NXT1 The LRT NXT1 is the world’s first fully electric junior touring race car used in a single-make championship. Developed and built by Lestrup Racing Team and based on the electric MINI Cooper SE platform, it features: 100 percent electric FWD drivetrain 226 hp Push-to-pass boost of +60 hp Top speed limited to 180 km/h 1233 kg with driver Designed for flat-out 15 to 20 minute sprint races with no power drop, the NXT1 focuses on equal performance and driver development. It also marks an important milestone for RaceRoom. The NXT1 is the first car fully recreated using physics-based rendering materials inside and out. This allows surfaces such as paint, carbon fiber, plastics and metals to react to light in a far more natural way, delivering a level of visual realism that significantly raises the bar for vehicle production in RaceRoom. It features a newly replicated real-world data dashboard and was developed in close partnership with LRT using detailed handling feedback and valuable real-world data throughout development. This represents a step forward in both visual fidelity and vehicle production standards. The NXT1 also features authentic race electronics implemented according to the official NXT Gen Cup rulebook, including Push-to-Pass and a launch mode. Push-to-Pass allows drivers to temporarily unlock additional power for overtaking, but it must first be armed before it can be activated after a short delay, preventing instant use in wheel-to-wheel situations. The same steering-wheel button is also used for launch mode at the start, allowing drivers to quickly bring the car up to the optimal power level for a strong and consistent launch off the line. Press the button once to arm the system. After a five-second delay it becomes ready, and you then have a five-second window to press it again to activate the boost. If the second press does not happen within that window, the activation is still counted as used. Each session allows only two uses, so timing it correctly is key. Two New Italian Circuits Vallelunga – Autodromo Piero Taruffi Located approximately 30 km north of Rome, Vallelunga is a 4.085 km technical circuit known for rhythm and precision. 15 corners Clockwise layout Opened in 1951 Vallelunga rewards clean inputs and momentum driving. The fast Curva Grande demands commitment, while the tight Campagnano hairpin puts focus on traction and exit speed. It is a circuit where consistency often beats aggression. Adria Raceway – 2003 & 2021 Versions Adria Raceway joins RaceRoom with both its classic 2003 circuit and the modernized 2021 configuration. Originally opened in 2002, Adria is compact, flat and highly technical. In 2003, the circuit hosted the DTM, bringing touring car intensity to this tight Italian venue. That era aligns perfectly with the character of the DTM 2002 cars in RaceRoom. The 2003 layout is short and intense, emphasizing traction, precision and qualifying performance. In high-downforce touring machinery, it becomes a relentless rhythm challenge where mistakes are punished immediately. The 2021 redesign introduced new asphalt, revised corner sequences and improved safety areas, adding flow while retaining the circuit’s tight character. Adria rewards precision, controlled throttle application and disciplined racecraft. It produces close racing where track position and consistency matter. Spa-Francorchamps Returns Spa-Francorchamps returns to RaceRoom, including all the latest changes made to the circuit. This is not a minor revision. The circuit has been redeveloped to modern standards with comprehensive updates across the entire venue. Improvements include: New terrain and vegetation across the entire circuit New safety zones New gravel traps and run-off areas New barriers and curbs New buildings, tower and trackside structures Track entirely resurfaced to match real life performances From La Source to Eau Rouge and Blanchimont, the track now reflects its contemporary configuration while preserving the challenge and character that define it. To celebrate its return, Spa-Francorchamps will be available at 50 percent discount for a limited time after release. New Steering Angle System Q1 introduces a major improvement to steering wheel setup and compatibility. RaceRoom’s new Steering Angle system significantly improves support for a wide range of hardware, especially direct drive wheels that previously required manual fine-tuning. You now set your wheel’s maximum rotation once to match your hardware. The game automatically applies the correct steering ratio for each car, ensuring accurate 1:1 steering behavior without constant reconfiguration. Supported wheels sync automatically Other hardware can be configured manually Each car loads its correct default steering ratio Drivers can still fine-tune the steering ratio in the setup menu Less configuration. More time driving. HUD Improvements The Q1 update includes an updated driver name display and redesigned input meter as part of our continued HUD modernization efforts. Note: You can move and resize HUD elements such as the input meter, data display, track map and virtual mirror by binding a key for “Move and resize HUD elements”. This is one step in a broader series of UI and HUD improvements planned throughout 2026. RaceRoom Grid Talk A new episode of RaceRoom Grid Talk aired on March 18. In this episode we cover the full Q1 2026 update, provide development insights into the new content and features, and discuss upcoming in-game activities including the DTM Esports Championship 2026.
This game update seems to have added national flags next to the drivers' names. I hope I’m worrying over nothing; let’s keep the real-world conflicts from disrupting the gentlemanly racing atmosphere in RaceRoom.
I like: - The Alpine is absolutely lovely. - New Spa feels different, the flow somehow feels better than on the previous version. Maybe a placebo, I don't know. I don't like: - New steering angles system is better for wheel users, but worse for gamepad and keyboard users because changing steering lock is not really obvious now, you need to decrease "Maximum steering rotation" in Controls and then adjust "Steering ratio" on the car setup page. - New rumble strip sound, when played from chase cam, is too loud and of too low frequency, it's unrealistic, works inconsistently and quickly becomes annoying. - Neutral lockout should've been a separate setting, not a hidden behavior that depends on if you bound the button or not. - Gamepad and Keyboard tabs in Controls should include all controls related to them, not only those that are exclusive to them. Switching to Wheel+pedals tab to change input sensitivity doesn't feel right.
I play with game pad and with the same settings that I always had now the movement of the wheel turns is crazy fast, any way to solve this?
We seem to have broken something in the way it is handled for gamepads unfortunately. The goal will be for the steering ratio setting to directly affect the steering lock for non-wheels. Working on a fix! This should already be the case, each tab should have all the settings you need for that input device. The gamepad tab has all the sensitivity settings, keyboard does not as this only applies to analog inputs. If there are any specific settings we missed, definitely let us know!
Maybe I should change my flag to Russian or Palestinian to have fun with the people who should question their personality. Edit: Or is it Israelian? I do not keep up with the media / social media hate train
You should set the "Maximum steering rotation" value to 240° in the wheel tab. In this case, the gamepad tab should still have a slider to control the visual rotation of the ingame steering wheel, because right now it uses the "Maximum steering rotation" value from the wheel tab.
No, I don't think so. I'm playing with keyboard and I remember the effects of steering curve exponent set at maximum before this upgrade: steering progressively heavy when turning and it was perfectly controllable and realistic. Now it's a joke: steering superquick and superlight going immediately to max rotation and so no turning control.
Yes, it's in my post: You want this number decreased, you do it by adjusting Steering ratio slider: By default, the game will have it set to something like 20 or even more degrees, and that can be too much. I use 11 degrees for example, as you can see on the screenshot. I don't know what value you used before, but 11 is a good for me, it's not too fast, but also big enough for all corners except a few tightest hairpins in the game.
Thank you for your reply and I hope you find a fix. It does affect it now, the issue is only in the range in which steering lock changes unless you reduce Max. steering rotation drastically. Ah, yes, Gamepad tab seems to have all that's needed. But it also has "Throttle release rate" and "Brake release rate" which I doubt affect gamepad since they are called "Digital Throttle Release Deceleration" and "Digital Brake Release Deceleration" in .rsc files. (Upd: But if someone uses an old/weird/faulty gamepad with on/off triggers or uses buttons for throttle/brake, they will need these settings. Don't know how to solve it, there are no pop-up tips for controls to describe these nuances.) But Keyboard tab misses sensitivity settings and they do affect keyboard, in .rcs files there are these values: "Keyboard Steering", "Keyboard Throttle", "Keyboard Brake", "Keyboard Clutch". In the game, the same "Steering sensitivity" slider will affect either axis sensitivity value when Steering is bound to an analog input, or "Keyboard Steering" value when it's bound to an on/off switch; same for throttle, brake, clutch sensitivity. Also, while we're at it, I want to once again ask if it's possible to create "Steering release rate" and "Clutch release rate" settings? They both seem to work at the same rate as 0.5 for other inputs, but the game doesn't have any way to change that, even .rsc files don't have values for that. ---- Also, somewhat related to controls - the new HUD, just like the old one, has an issue with input visualisation when digital controls are used: Throttle, Brake, Clutch sliders move 3x slower than they actually do when you look at input meter while driving; Steering slider moves 1,5x slower. This seems to be a small issue with scaling, I hope it can be fixed easily.
Adding the ability to test drive on new tracks I think would be a great addition like you can with any car in the store. Maybe only allow the free cars to test on any track before committing to purchasing.
As someone pointed out to me yesterday, you can participate in the Raceroom competitions, reachable from the main menu screen. This is a time attack mode that allows you to hotlap particular car and track combinations. The premium competitions require you to own the content, the free ones do not. Currently there are free competitions where you can set lap times on new Spa, Vallelunga Classic and Adria Raceway 2001.
Yes, what is missing now @Thomas Jansen is the option to select steering lock car per car in the setup menu. As @Maskerader said there is a workaround to reduce the max steering in wheels and pedals but this was far from obvious since it is not in the keyboard settings menu. Ideally there should be a lock setting in the keyboard settings menu in game controls or one in the car setup menu as was the case before.
First off, thanks for this update! I haven't really played Raceroom since last year because I changed to Simagic and encountered the steering lock issue. Although, I still purchased everything you guys put out to support the Sim. I have been a single player Raceroom fan for about 10 years. I'm glad to see the Sim evolving into something special. Keep up the great work .
@coolwhip21 I have Simagic based and wheel and it's working really well with RR. I'm mostly a single player myself, but I must say, every time I did multiplayer races with friends on private servers, it's been a flawless experience.
I'm not sure whether the updated damage model is a good idea. I fooled around in the FR-X 22 and it's pretty hard to damage your wheels / suspension, and losing a wheel is almost impossible. I think damaging your car should be way easier. Is it possible to disable the new driver tags above opponent cars? The old setting doesn't seem to work anymore. The new HUD warnings need a semitransparent background for better readability. Also, the Umlauts there are somewhat broken in German localization. By the way, the patch notes mentioned that localization issues in menus should be fixed, but I can't see a difference?
I use a Thomas Superwheel (TSW Evolution Digital). It has only 270 (135/135) degrees of rotation, and it's configured as a "Custom Wheel" in the Controller Profiles. In the car's "Setup" menu, it shows my wheel as having 360 (180/180) degrees of rotation. Both the "Steering Rotation Mode" and "Maximum Steering Rotation" fields in the Options menu are grayed out. Therefore, my on-screen wheel doesn't match the rotation of my wheel. Before this update, I could match my wheel's rotation with the on-screen rotation. I'd appreciate any advice or help. Thanks!