You do get a closer look at the models when you win, but I agree, they don't get much 'show' given the camera distance.
The car steering being confusing is a really good point I didn't think about. Maybe it'd make more sense to have it relative to the camera so 'up' is up on your screen, 'right' is actually to the right on your screen etc.. I really didn't think of this, when you play your own game a lot and are used to it, these kinds of 'first play' issues just don't come to light.
True that it's a very chaotic game, but it's typical of a 'derby' type race if you look at games like Wreckfest. But maybe there are too many cars on the map, that could be a factor.
Thanks for playing and leaving some helpful feedback!