I love technology and cars – even more so when the two are together.
I just read about Cadillac’s V-Series line up, I am not sure how many of you are aware of the V-Series, but it’s Cadillac’s performance line up of vehicles. There are three models, the ATS-V Couple, ATS-V Sedan and then the beast, their CTS-V Sedan. The V-Series has an added feature called Performance Data Recorder (PDR) that is build right into their CUE system on the dashboard.
I need to share some prior history with Cadillac that will put everything into perspective:
A few years back, I had the luxury of driving (really should say beating the cr@p out of) the CTS-V at Monticello Motor Club in NY at the Cadillac Driving Academy. It was an amazing day of adrenaline and power pushing the cars to the limits on a professional race track. Cadillac really did a nice job of blending luxury and pure performance and power into cars that handle so well.
The best part of the day though was that the car I was driving had cameras installed recording not only me but capturing the track. There were also microphones inside the cabin and engine compartment. Several days after the event, I was able to view myself on my final laps, track and vehicle data and performance.
So what is PDR?
It allows drivers to record their driving experience by capturing real-time video (through a front camera), audio and performance metrics. (Check out the video)
You can record the information via an SD card inserted into a slot in the glove box, and then scrutinize your performance on a Windows-based computer using the Cosworth Toolbox application, which is a free download from cosworth.com.
Everything is built into the car making it very easy and accessible to record and analyze all data and footage from a day out having fun!
Rob’s Rating: 10/10