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Race like Vettel at Jims

<b>MAKE LIKE SEB:</b> WesBank will feature an F1 driving simulator at its stand during the 2013 Joburg motor show. <i>Image: JIMS</i>
<b>MAKE LIKE SEB:</b> WesBank will feature an F1 driving simulator at its stand during the 2013 Joburg motor show. <i>Image: JIMS</i>
Johannesburg - If you want to become a Formula 1 driver, the 2013 Johannesburg International Motor Show is offering the closest thing you’ll probably get with a super-fancy F1 simulator.

WesBank will feature a F1 simulator when the show opens to the public on Friday (Oct 18) at the Nasrec show grounds, south-west of Johannesburg.

The simulator, which weighs 2200kg and is worth over R2-million, will be operating at the motor finance group’s display in the link between Halls 8 and 9 at the grounds for the show’s 10-day duration.

DRIVE LIKE A F1 PRO

Simulator owner Roland Senekal said: “This is a Cruden Six DOF simulator, meaning that it offers six degrees of freedom. The Six DOF system offers the most accurate simulation of motion. Most of the simulators in the country offer only two or four DOF, which means they roll and pitch in either two or four directions.

“So instead of moving just forward and backwards or side-to-side, it gives you a full rotation of the seat. So you get that transition, when braking and turning into a corner, of a rotation exactly like you would in an F1 car.

“The first examples built by Cruden went to Ferrari World in Abu Dabi. There is also a facility in France that uses them. Jeremy Clarkson from Top Gear reckons this is the most accurate simulator he has ever used. And indeed, Red Bull uses one for its drivers for winter training.”

Senekal says the tracks used at the Johannesburg International Motor Show will be Monza, Monaco and Kyalami.

The owner also added that the simulator is a development of simulators used for fighter-pilot training, and can be dialled in to varying degrees of fierceness in terms of its reactions. Word is that most people on full F1 settings simply spin off the “track” before even getting to the first corner.

If you fancy seeing a real F1 car though, you can head over to the Infiniti stand in Hall Sixand check out a Red Bull F1 car replica.

Keep up with the Johannesburg International Motor Show with Wheels24.
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