I use default buttons except for air brakes: L1 & R1, the analogue sticks and no motion control. Tried the D-Pad, and although it has it's good spots in some tracks, I found switching between the two a bit confusing. Switching might be something for the future though.

I sit in the middle of the room on a kitchen chair. This position is about 2.5 metres from the tv screen and right in the middle of the 5.1 surround sound speakers - AWESOME !!!! Fully immersed in the game!!