CarX Drift Racing VR Review
CarX Drift Racing Online is the casual drifter's paradise. It bridges the gap between arcade accessibility and simulator steering, making it the best place to learn how to drift in VR.
February 13, 2026 admin No Comments
CarX Drift Racing VR Review (2026): Still The Drift King?
Quick Verdict: CarX Drift Racing Online is the casual drifter’s paradise. While the VR implementation requires specific tweaks to look clear, the sheer volume of online lobbies and the accessible physics make it the “Fortnite of Racing.” It bridges the gap between arcade accessibility and simulator steering, making it the best place to learn how to drift in VR.
Drifting in flat-screen games has always been difficult for one reason: you cannot see where you are going. When you are sliding sideways at 80mph, your car is pointing at the wall, but your eyes need to be on the track exit. In VR, drifting becomes instantly natural because you can physically turn your head to look out the side window. CarX capitalizes on this mechanic perfectly, allowing you to judge angles and proximity to other cars with a level of precision that is almost impossible on a single monitor.
Despite the confusion surrounding the mobile release of CarX Drift Racing 3 and the upcoming CarX Drift Racing Online 2, this original title remains the active hub where the entire PC VR community lives.
KartVR Rating: 8.0 / 10 (Best for Drifting)
Visuals: Fixing the “Milky Haze”
Out of the box, CarX in VR suffers from a strange visual issue where the world looks like it is covered in a white fog or “milk,” making distant corners look blurry. This isn’t a limitation of your headset; it is a bad default setting.
How to Fix It:
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In-Game Settings: Go to Graphics and completely disable Motion Blur and Bloom. These post-processing effects do not render correctly in VR and cause the “smearing.”
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SteamVR Tweaks: If you are using SteamVR, go to Video Settings and disable “Advanced Supersample Filtering.” This feature tries to smooth out jagged edges but often just blurs the entire image.
Once these are fixed, the Japanese “Touge” mountain passes look crisp. While the textures are simpler than Gran Turismo, the stylized look ages well and ensures you hit a solid 90 FPS even on mid-range PCs.
Physics: The “Assist” Debate
CarX occupies a unique “Sim-Cade” space. It doesn’t have the punishing, tire-shredding difficulty of Assetto Corsa, but it is far more realistic than Need for Speed. The physics engine features a hidden “drift assist” that helps the steering wheel self-align during a slide.
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For Beginners: This is a blessing. It makes you feel like a professional drifter within your first hour. You can feel the weight of the car transfer as you flick it into a corner, and the wheel counter-steers almost telepathically.
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For Pros: Hardcore sim racers might find the steering feels “numb” or disconnected compared to the raw force feedback of iRacing. However, this accessibility is exactly why the lobbies are always full—you can hop in and have fun without needing 100 hours of practice.
Community & The “Kino” Mod
If you are playing on PC, you will eventually hear about the Kino Mod. While the base game is great, Kino is a community-made plugin that adds features the developers left out.
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Visual Upgrades: It allows you to change the weather, lighting, and even add underglow neon lights to your car, which looks incredible in VR at night.
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Social Hubs: The multiplayer in this game functions like a virtual car meet. You will often find 16 players in a lobby, with half of them just parked up at a gas station, opening their doors and showing off their liveries. In VR, seeing other drivers nod their heads adds a hilarious layer of social immersion.
Kino Mod: The modding community keeps the game fresh with new lighting and features.
Customization: Insane amount of body kits, engine swaps, and vinyls to unlock.
Online Community: Thousands of lobbies 24/7. Always someone to drift with.
VR Drifting: Being able to look out the side window makes drifting 10x easier than on a monitor.
No Cockpit Interaction: You can't use VR hands to shift gears; you must use a wheel/controller.
Physics: It is "Sim-Cade," so don't expect 100% realistic tire data like iRacing.
Graphics: The "Milky" fog issue requires specific settings tweaks to fix.
Conclusion: The Social Drifter
If you just want to hang out with friends, talk trash, and slide cars sideways without spending months learning complex physics, CarX Drift Racing Online is the game to buy. It is essentially the Fortnite of racing games: accessible, social, and massive.
While we are all waiting for CarX Drift Racing Online 2 to launch on PC/Console later in 2026, the current game remains the undisputed king of the genre. The fun factor of hitting a perfect tandem drift in VR—door-to-door with a stranger—is unmatched by any other title.
Where to Buy
For PC VR (Steam): 👉 Buy Steam Key via CDKeys Cheap and instant delivery.
Essential VR Headsets:
🥽 Meta Quest 3 (Amazon)The best all-around headset. Works wirelessly with your PC to drift without tripping over cables.
🥽 PlayStation VR2 (Amazon)Required if you want to play the console version (when supported) with OLED visuals.
Recommended Gear:
Handbrake 🛑 Moza HBP Handbrake (Amazon) Drifting is significantly harder without a dedicated handbrake. This one plugs directly into your PC via USB and feels like the real thing.