Logitech Steering Wheel Fault and How To Fix It.
Do you own one of the Logitech Steering Wheels like the G25, G27, G29, G920 and G923. If you do and your having a problem with the steering wheel constantly pulling to the left or the right. Then this guid is for you. In the past I used to own the Logitech G27 Steering Wheel and one day it started to pull to the left for no reason. I tried everything for unplugging it and reinstalling the drivers thinking there might of been a conflict. Then after some research and looking on Google I found the answer to what was wrong. I will explain what happens below. The photographs below shows the setup and steering wheel I used to have back in 2016.
What is the fault?
You are using your steering wheel and there are two motors inside. One controls the force feedback of the steering wheel the second motor controls the vibration. There is also a circuit board with components. The motor that controls steering also has an optical encoder with a flywheel attached at the end of the motor. The power is 24 volts with a rated output power of 65 watts. The rated current load is 2.7 amps. With all that voltage and the motors spinning around, there is going to be a lot of heat inside the wheel hub. What happens is the bars of the motors become hot. When metal bars become hot they expand. The encoder wheel is plastic and when the bar expands the encoder wheel starts to crack as seen in the photograph below. The crack becomes a Y-shaped crack and the encode cannot encode properly resulting in the wheel pulling to the right or the left. This can be a problem if using Euro Truck Simulator 2. This can be frustrating when it suddenly happens and you do not know what to do. You now know what the fault is and what has caused it.
How to repair the flywheel
To repair the fault it is not recommended to use super glue because if any gets on the parts it might cause other problems with the wheels like inaccurate steering. Not what you want when using a racing game. You will need to take the wheel apart being very careful not to damage any wires. The cables disconnect from the main circuit board. You will first need to Remove the six grey 25mm hex screws with a 4mm Allen wrench to remove the wheel. Then carefully lift the wheel off of the hub, exposing the 2 shifter paddle wires and PCB board. Remove the two 7.5 mm silver screws holding the green PCB board in the wheel with a Phillips screwdriver. Carefully remove the PCB board from the wheel hub. Next, remove the four 7.3mm silver screws attaching the green PCB board to the motor housing with a Phillips screwdriver. Then remove the PCB board after all of the plastic connectors are disconnected. Then, remove the white 5-pin adapter from the end of the optical encoder. Then, remove the plastic casing by prying it off with a screwdriver or a plastic opening tool. Be careful not to bend the light or the black receiver that sticks up off the board. If they don’t line up, your wheel won’t be able to calibrate at all and you’ll have a very hard time trying to line them back up. In the photograph below you can see the new brass flywheel I ordered with an original black plastic flywheel that is cracked.
Replacing the flywheel
This guide is for the Logitech Steering Wheels only and my experience with the Logitech G27. I know the G25 and G29 are the same but do not know if the G920 and G923 have the same parts and use the same type of flywheel because I only had the G27 and now use the Fanatec equipment. Replacing the flywheel is not too difficult but you should still be careful what you are doing because the brass wheel cost me £26 from a company in Germany. If you have removed the broken flywheel you will need to add a small amount of grease to the metal bar of the motor. When placing the brass flywheel gently push down on it in the centre do not push it down from the sides of the flywheel or you might bend it and it will be no good for celebration. Once the flywheel is attached you will need to line it up on the correct position of the metal bar. Use a screwdriver to push the centre of the flywheel to avoid bending or damaging it. Once you have to flywheel in the correct position on the bar it is time to put all the parts back together and reassemble your wheel taking care not to damage any wires. Once you have reassembled your wheel you are all done and ready to use your Logitech Steering Wheel.