I have to admit that when I first heard about the G-Tech Pro Performance Meter, it sounded a little far-fetched. After all, it’s just a small box that plugs into your car’s 12V powerpoint, and sits on your dash. But it thinks big.

The G-Tech Pro calculates your elapsed time from 0-60mph (96km/h); quarter-mile time and speed; engine horsepower; longitudinal and lateral G’s, and your 60-0 mph braking time.

Don’t you have to be Roger Penske to get that kind of information?

Apparently not. Los Angeles based Tesla Electronics specialize in anti-collision technologies and intelligent highway systems. Their research into acceleration led to the development of the original G-Tech, and the new G-Tech Pro. The device works because it contains a clever instrument called an accelerometer, which measures acceleration over time.

It turns out most of the phenomena in the known universe are related to acceleration. Once you’ve got a handle on this, you can calculate a vast array of interesting facts and figures.

For instance, adjust the G-Tech Pro to your vehicle’s weight; hit the gas, and the G-Tech will calculate your engine’s current delivered horsepower. The formula for horsepower is speed times acceleration times the weight of the vehicle, you see. This means that accurate numbers can be generated without the use of a dynamometer, or other expensive equipment.

While measuring Lateral or Longitudinal G’s, the user has the choice of Instantaneous or Continuous mode. Instantaneous G’s are great for analyzing when tires lost traction during braking and cornering, or measuring any other kind of G-load. Continuous G’s are designed for standard skidpad handling measurements, and are typically what the car magazines measure as Lateral G’s.

When measuring braking distance you don’t have to start at exactly 60mph. You can start a bit higher and the G-Tech Pro will only calculate from 60-0 mph. Similarly, if you’re calculating your acceleration times the G-Tech Pro is pre-wired to record your elapsed time at 60 mph or one quarter-mile. In other words, you don’t have to stare at this thing while you’re driving your car.

Obviously, this is not the kind of activity in which you should engage on public roads. Parking lots set up for slalom and racetracks are the proper places for the G-Tech, and although it sounds like a fun toy, you have to ask how much you’d really use one over time. Once the novelty’s worn off, it may just sit in the glovebox.

That’s why I think car clubs would be great customers. Buy one, and let the members share it.

The G-Tech Pro costs US$139.00 plus the normal extras for Canadians, and is advertised for sale in all popular car magazines. It’s also available online at, you guessed it, gtechpro.com.