2015 Corvette Gets Digital Performance Driving Coach

What if your new Corvette came with an on-board digital coach that could make you faster around a race track? For 2015, that’s exactly what Chevrolet has in store.

The company just announced that it will offer a “performance data recorder” in the 2015 Corvette Stingray. Equipped cars will be able to record driving including track laps for playback with “motorsport-inspired” telemetry recording. In other words, Chevrolet is bundling the Corvette with a computer that will record your laps to pinpoint areas where you can improve.

It will record video footage from the driver’s perspective out the front of the car in 720p while an in-cabin microphone records audio. In total, the system uses three components to offer information on any given drive route. First, there’s the HD camera and microphone. Second, the self-contained telemetry recorder uses a dedicated GPS unit that operates five times faster than the in-dash system for more precise information. It also tracks engine speed, gear selection, braking force and the angle of the steering wheel.

Third, there is an SD card slot in the glove box that drivers can use to move recorded footage and information onto a computer. Chevrolet says an eight gigabyte card will be able to record roughly 200 minutes of video while a 32 gigabyte card can hold over 13 hours of footage.

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There are three data overlay options drivers may choose from as well as a “touring” mode that only records video footage. In “track” mode, the car will show the most information including g-forces, speed, engine rpm, a location-based map, lap times and more. Fewer items show up in “sport” mode, but speed and g-force both show up. Finally, a “performance” mode shows 0-60 acceleration times, quarter-mile times and runs from 100 mph.

The car’s eight-inch screen is able to play the videos back, or the footage can be downloaded to a computer for editing. Chevrolet called on Cosworth – the British brand that provides the Corvette Racing team with its data acquisition system – to develop the performance data recorder.

Drivers who want more in-depth information than the video overlays provide can also open the recorded data with included “Cosworth Toolbox” software that offers direct lap comparisons in detail. Chevrolet hasn’t said what it plans to charge for the optional system, but that it will be offered for 2015 model year cars slated for production in the third quarter of 2014.