Innovation
The ultimate guide to the Formula 2 and Formula 3 steering wheel
by Samarth Kanal
8min read
Driving a Formula 2 or Formula 3 car is challenging in multiple respects, and perhaps the most obvious is the steering wheel, with buttons and dials peppering its face. But what do they do, how are they different from Formula 1 steering wheels – and how do the 52 F2 and F3 drivers use them to extract race advantage?
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Every F2 and F3 driver has the same steering wheel - a component made specifically for the two championships - with the only differences being whether there’s tape on the grips, labels on the buttons and dials, or what’s displayed on the screen.
Raceteq explores the workings of this key piece of equipment to produce this comprehensive guide to the F2 and F3 steering wheel.
Who makes the F2 and F3 steering wheel?
The steering wheel used on all 52 F2 and F3 cars is a bespoke component for both championships, produced by French manufacturer XAP - which has experience in single-seaters, sportscars, karts and simulator hardware.
This generation of steering wheel was first introduced on the F3 car in 2022 and then on the F2 car in 2023. However, in 2023, the grips were made smaller to fit different hand sizes - something that sounds trivial, but when it comes to accessibility and feel, is vital.
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A photograph showing the face of the F2 and F3 steering wheel
The wheel is very light - one could easily hold it with one hand - and is primarily made of carbon fibre with polyurethane handles that are often taped over so drivers can grip it better.
In the centre of the steering wheel sits a 4.3-inch transflective liquid crystal display (LCD) with a brightness sensor.
The wheel clips onto the steering column through which power is provided to the screen, dials, and paddles on the rear.
Unlike F1 cars, F2 and F3 cars do not have power steering due to cost and simplicity.
The cost of the F2 steering wheel isn’t publicly disclosed, but manufacturer XAP sells one similar to the previous specification of F2 steering wheel for just over €6,000 as of 2025.
What do the paddles do?
F2 and F3 cars have six paddles on the rear, and between them, they perform three primary functions.
The bottom two paddles control the clutch, which engages the transmission. They stick far out of the wheel and have long travels, almost like a clutch footpedal on a performance car, to give the driver plenty of control and find the perfect bite point for an ideal launch off the grid.
It might seem odd to have two clutch paddles, but some drivers prefer holding the clutch with their left hand and upshift with their right hand rather than using their right hand to do both. Each driver of course, uses different techniques depending on their dominant hand and muscle memory.
The F2 and F3 steering wheel (in this case being used by Trident’s Sami Meguetounif) derives power from the car
The middle two paddles shift gears: the left paddle shifts down, and the right paddle shifts up.
Either of the top two paddles triggers the drag reduction system (DRS), which is an overtaking aid used by a driver when they are within a second of the car in front at the DRS activation point. Drivers in F2 don’t receive an audible alert to use DRS as some F1 drivers do; they can however be alerted by a symbol on the screen.
Again, there are two DRS paddles on the steering wheel to account for drivers who want to use either hand while upshifting or downshifting. Furthermore, having two paddles allows drivers to reach one in case the wheel is rotated.
Removing the wheel is easy: drivers just press the clips behind the wheel, and it pops off the steering column.
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A photograph of the rear of the F2 and F3 steering wheel, showing the paddles that trigger DRS (top), the clutch (centre), and the transmission (bottom)
Car, Innovation
What is the plank assembly and skid block and why are they so important in F1 and F2?
What do the buttons do?
F2 and F3 steering wheels are not as complex as those used in Formula 1: there steering wheels vary from team to team, with button and paddle combinations bespoke to a particular driver.
Ferrari F1 driver Lewis Hamilton, for example, has a slightly different steering wheel configuration to his teammate Charles Leclerc with different positions for certain buttons and the paddles on the rear.
In F2 and F3, the wheels are almost the same from car to car but teams sometimes label the buttons for drivers. Incidentally, one team’s tongue-in-cheek labels led to erroneous ‘boost’ and ‘nitrous oxide’ buttons making their way onto the steering wheel model for its car in Codemasters’ F1 2018 videogame.
Here’s what the buttons do on an F2 and F3 steering wheel:
A diagram showing what the buttons do on an F2 and F3 steering wheel - buttons without labels have been left un-programmed by F2 and F3
Rain Light turns on the red LED at the rear of the car.
The VSC Display button shows on the screen the delta time drivers need to meet under Virtual Safety Car conditions.
The Race Start Practice button logs data to help drivers nail practice starts to get away quickly from a start or pitstop.
Page Up and Page Down change the display in the centre of the steering wheel.
Fuel Out Pump is not used by drivers, but by mechanics to pump the fuel out of the car and leave it dry for storage, maintenance, or freight.
Radio engages the radio for communication with the pitwall.
Reverse engages the reverse gear.
Pit Limiter turns on the speed limiter as drivers enter the pitlane.
Engine Map Selection changes the torque output of the engine to match the throttle and engine speed, which can be useful in conditions of lower grip.
Clutch Map Selection changes the relationship of the clutch position relative to the throttle and can be used to nail a race start.
Drivers must press the two Start Set-up buttons to engage anti-stall and the start sequence - or risk stalling at the start of a race.
Drivers press a button to limit their speed before entering the pitlane. Otherwise, they risk a penalty
What do drivers see on their steering wheel display?
F2 and F3 drivers process an impressive amount of data, from braking points, the movements of other cars, instructions from marshals, and communication via radio, as they navigate the track at high speed.
The screen at the centre of their steering wheel adds to that cacophony but it also helps convey crucial information: laptimes, selected gear, tyre-pressure monitoring, and lap deltas.
Laptime deltas are programmed by the team to show the driver how fast they have gone in a specific sector compared to their target laptime.
However, teams can decide what a ‘sector’ comprises. While you may have seen track sectors light up yellow, purple or green on a television broadcast, these sectors differ from what the teams use. A race engineer might want a driver to be able to focus on a particular set of corners or separate a track into different segments.
Lap deltas during Virtual Safety Car (VSC) periods are also displayed on the screen, as are digital marshal flags to show drivers if a caution has been deployed by race control.
2024 F2 runner-up Isack Hadjar preparing for a race. The screen shows pertinent information, including lap deltas
Another screen can be configured to show whatever the team wants. It’s generally left blank or filled in with a track map.
Drivers don’t generally look at onscreen data apart from the gear and lap delta - they’re more concerned with the gearshift LEDs above the screen in their peripheral view.
LEDs will also denote when double yellow flags are shown, or for other marshalling cues such as red flags.
Mechanics also use the screen of the steering wheel to display diagnostic pages. While the car is sitting on its jack stands in the garage, mechanics can look at parameters concerning engine voltage, hydraulic pressure, fluid temperatures and other measurements to make sure everything is running as expected – and ensuring that the steering wheel is fully leveraged as a vital component in the race-winning technology available to all teams.
