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How to Soft Pedal in Iracing

Learn how to soft pedal in iRacing: quick fixes for pedal calibration, throttle curve, and hardware settings so iRacing drivers can stop wheelspin fast now.

If you’re asking “how to soft pedal in iRacing,” the quick answer is: make your throttle input progressive and predictable. Calibrate the pedals, add a gentler throttle curve (in iRacing or your pedal/wheel app), and practice ankle-feathering. You’re in the right place to fix this fast.

Quick Answer — how to soft pedal in iracing

Soft pedaling means applying throttle smoothly so the car doesn’t break traction. Fix it by calibrating your pedals, using a progressive (non-linear) throttle curve, and reducing abrupt jumps with a small deadzone or smoothing in your hardware/software. Practice light, controlled inputs in practice laps.

What’s really going on

When your throttle is “on/off” or jumps suddenly, the car spins the driven wheels or snaps the balance. That can come from hardware (dirty pots, worn pedals, or firmware settings), bad calibration in iRacing, or simply your foot technique. iRacing reads the pedal axis you supply — if that axis is too sensitive near the beginning of travel, a small foot movement equals a big wheelspin. Soft pedaling fixes both the hardware input and the driver input.

Step-by-step fix

Calibrate pedals in iRacing: Options → Controls → select your pedal device → Calibrate. Follow the prompts so iRacing knows the full travel range.
Check your wheel/pedal vendor app (Fanatec, Logitech, Thrustmaster): set a progressive or custom pedal curve that gives low throttle at the first 30–50% of travel. If you have a “smoothing” or “filter” option, enable a small amount.
Add a tiny deadzone if you see sudden jumps around the neutral point — 1–3% often helps without killing precision.
Test in a practice session: watch the car on a straight line and gradually press the pedal to see wheelspin. Adjust curve or smoothing until the initial throttle increases are gentle.
If you still see jumps, inspect hardware: clean/replace worn potentiometers or check USB cable and firmware updates. Mechanical issues cause inconsistent readings.
Practice technique: use your ankle, not your whole leg, and aim for smooth ramp-up (feathering) rather than stomping. Short, controlled pulses work on exit.

Extra tips / checklist

Start with small curve changes and test—big jumps make the car feel lazy.
Use a vendor profile per car type: high-power cars need gentler curves than low-power cars.
Turn off conflicting smoothing in multiple places — if both iRacing and your wheel app smooth, it can feel laggy.
If you run clutch and left-foot braking, make sure axes don’t overlap or create sudden throttle cuts.
Record a run and watch telemetry or video to confirm smoother throttle traces.

FAQs

Q: Will increasing deadzone make throttle feel worse?
A: Too large a deadzone removes fine control. Use a very small deadzone (1–3%) to stop spikes, then rely on curve/smoothing for feel.

Q: Can I soft pedal without vendor software?
A: Yes — you can often use iRacing calibration and its axis settings, but vendor software usually gives more precise curve control.

Q: Why does throttle feel fine, then suddenly spike?
A: Likely a hardware fault (dirty pot or encoder jump) or poor calibration. Test with another game or device to isolate hardware.

Q: Does car setup affect this?
A: Yes—too much power, low traction, or aggressive differential setups amplify throttle sensitivity. Tune car balance after fixing pedal input.

Wrap-up

Soft pedaling is part settings and part technique. Calibrate, add a progressive curve or light smoothing, check hardware, then practice ankle control. Do one change at a time and test in practice — you’ll feel the difference in a single session.