> a simulated race car has almost nothing in common with the real experience other than your hands are turning a wheel and your feet push pedals.

Real life engineer made a data analysis between a virtual F3 car vs real F3 car, keep in mind rfactor is an old sim from 2005, sure you can't (Yet) replicate the g-forces of the real thing but everything else is pretty close.

https://drracing.wordpress.com/2014/01/03/how-close-is-close...

"From lap time simulation to driver-in-the-loop: a simple introduction to simulation in racing"

http://racingcardynamics.com/lap-time-simulation-to-dil/