Inside Sim Racing just dropped a new video, and this MOZA R25 Ultra review makes one thing clear right out of the gate. This isn’t a traditional spec-by-spec YouTube review. There are already plenty of those out there, and they’re good. This video is more about how the R25 Ultra actually feels right now, how it behaves in real driving scenarios, and whether it makes sense for real sim racers to buy one.
The short version? Dave likes it a lot. He recommends it strongly for enthusiasts who don’t already have a high-torque wheelbase. But he also spends a lot of time explaining who shouldn’t buy it, and that’s where this video really earns its value.
MOZA R25 Ultra Review: Core Design and Hardware
The R25 Ultra is MOZA Racing’s flagship wheelbase, delivering 25Nm of continuous torque. That word continuous matters. A lot of wheelbases advertise big torque numbers, but those numbers are often peak torque, meaning they can only hit them for a split second before backing off.
The R25 Ultra can hold its torque consistently. That means it doesn’t just spike when something dramatic happens. It stays composed, detailed, and controlled no matter what you’re driving.
Under the hood, it uses a 21-bit magnetic encoder with roughly 2.1 million points of resolution, an aluminum alloy housing and coupler, six accessory inputs, and a 1000Hz USB polling rate. All of that translates into extremely fine detail and fast response, not just a bigger number on a box.
What 25Nm Really Gives You
Dave is very clear about this. No one actually needs 25Nm of torque.
What you’re buying isn’t brute force. You’re buying headroom.
Headroom means the wheelbase isn’t operating near its limits during normal driving. Instead of running a lower-torque base at 80 or 90 percent just to get realistic forces, you can run the R25 Ultra at a much lower output and still get every detail the sim is sending.
That matters because when a wheelbase isn’t straining, it doesn’t clip. You don’t lose detail. You don’t get compression when forces stack up. Whether you’re driving a shifter kart, a rally car, a GT car, or a high-downforce vintage monster, the wheelbase always has more to give.
Dave compares it to powerful audio systems or high-horsepower cars. You’re almost never using the maximum output, but having it available makes everything smoother, cleaner, and more controlled. In this MOZA R25 Ultra review, the biggest takeaway isn’t strength, it’s consistency and control across every type of car.
Who the MOZA R25 Ultra Is Not For
This is where Dave gets refreshingly honest.
If you already own a MOZA R16, R21, or a similar high-torque wheelbase from the last few years, upgrading to the R25 Ultra probably won’t change your life. The gains are real, but they’re incremental. In that case, it makes more sense to wait for the next generation.
If you’re coming from a weaker or older wheelbase and you’re deciding between the R21 and the R25, Dave’s advice is blunt. Buy the R21 and save the money. You’ll get the same core experience and keep a few hundred dollars in your pocket unless you specifically want the flagship and the bragging rights that come with it.
And finally, if you’re easily startled or not physically prepared to deal with a wheelbase that can absolutely fight back, this isn’t a toy. Mistreat it and it will correct you fast.
Who It’s Actually For
Pretty much everyone else.
Dave doesn’t hold back here. The R25 Ultra delivers an enormous amount of detail even with effects turned off. He runs a very clean setup focused on rack force, meaning he only wants to feel what the front tires are actually doing. Even then, the amount of information coming through the wheel is substantial. That focus on meaningful feedback over artificial effects ties directly into a bigger question we’ve explored before around what actually carries over from sim racing to real driving.
The wheelbase is sensitive enough to communicate subtle differences between cars without touching settings. You can feel differences in steering racks, power steering behavior, and vehicle character from car to car. That’s the kind of nuance that makes sim racing feel alive.
Setup, Settings, and Real Use
Setup is straightforward, especially if you’re coming from another MOZA base like the R21. Physically swapping it in is simple, and software setup follows the usual process through MOZA Pit House.
Dave runs Pit House force feedback at 100 percent and adjusts strength per car in sim. That way, the sim always sends full detail to the wheelbase, and the wheelbase always has the headroom to deliver it cleanly. He keeps effects minimal, favors low-frequency forces, runs a linear FFB curve, and sets maximum torque output to full.
Hands-off protection is one area where Dave makes a personal choice. He doesn’t use it, largely because of drifting and rally driving where letting the wheel self-align is critical. He’s clear that others should enable it if they need it. The option is there, and it exists for a reason.
MOZA R25 Ultra vs R21 Comparison
Physically, the R25 Ultra is more compact than the R21, but it’s actually heavier. Build quality is solid, and while most users will never notice it, the unloaded cogging is smoother on the R25. Powered on, both are extremely smooth, but the difference suggests this isn’t just an overdriven R21. There’s genuinely new hardware inside.
That matters because it shows MOZA didn’t take shortcuts. The focus is clearly on improving the driving experience, not just chasing bigger numbers. We saw a similar approach recently in our hands-on look at the MOZA CS Pro steering wheel, where the improvements weren’t flashy, but they were clearly focused on feel, refinement, and long-term use.
The Bottom Line
The MOZA R25 Ultra isn’t about excess. It’s about control, detail, and reserve. It delivers more information faster and more cleanly than lower-torque bases, and it does it without forcing you to run everything at the edge. That’s what makes this MOZA R25 Ultra review worth paying attention to if you’re shopping in the high-torque category.
If you’re shopping for a high-end direct drive wheelbase, it belongs on your short list. If you’re deciding between the R21 and the R25, the R21 still makes a ton of sense. And if you already own a recent high-torque base, you’re not missing out by waiting.
The video is a great reminder that we’re firmly in the golden age of sim racing. Hardware like this exists because the sims can actually take advantage of it.
If you want to see exactly how Dave runs the R25 Ultra and hear his full breakdown, check out the video on Inside Sim Racing. And if you’re thinking about picking one up, you can find the MOZA R25 Ultra on Sim Motion, with preorder and notify options available.