Buick 2011 Regal - Manual (Page 346)

13-14 Customer Information
Vehicle Data
Recording and
Privacy
Your GM vehicle has a number of
sophisticated computers that record
information about the vehicle’s
performance and how it is driven.
For example, your vehicle uses
computer modules to monitor and
control engine and transmission
performance, to monitor the
conditions for airbag deployment, to
deploy airbags in a crash, and to
provide antilock braking to help the
driver control the vehicle. These
modules may store data to help
your dealer technician service your
vehicle. Some modules may also
store data about how you operate
the vehicle, such as rate of fuel
consumption or average speed.
These modules may also retain the
owner’s personal preferences, such
as radio pre-sets, seat positions,
and temperature settings.
Event Data Recorders
This vehicle has an Event Data
Recorder (EDR). The main purpose
of an EDR is to record, in certain
crash or near crash-like situations,
such as an airbag deployment or
hitting a road obstacle, data that will
assist in understanding how a
vehicle's systems performed. The
EDR is designed to record data
related to vehicle dynamics and
safety systems for a short period of
time, typically 30 seconds or less.
The EDR in this vehicle is designed
to record such data as:
. How various systems in your
vehicle were operating
. Whether or not the driver and
passenger safety belts were
buckled/fastened
. How far, if at all, the driver was
pressing the accelerator and/or
brake pedal
. How fast the vehicle was
traveling
This data can help provide a better
understanding of the circumstances
in which crashes and injuries occur.
Important: EDR data is recorded
by your vehicle only if a non-trivial
crash situation occurs; no data is
recorded by the EDR under normal
driving conditions and no personal
data (e.g., name, gender, age, and
crash location) is recorded.
However, other parties, such as law
enforcement, could combine the
EDR data with the type of
personally identifying data routinely
acquired during a crash
investigation.
To read data recorded by an EDR,
special equipment is required, and
access to the vehicle or the EDR is
needed. In addition to the vehicle
manufacturer, other parties, such as
law enforcement, that have the
special equipment, can read the
information if they have access to
the vehicle or the EDR.