Back in December, we profiled a few of the more interesting apps out there for the motor-minded. Now, it looks like VW->ke94 is getting in on the action with its own branded software/hardware combo. Using an OBD II reader called a LogBox on the 2016 Golf R, which sends a Bluetooth signal to your dash-mounted smartphone running the Race App, users are treated to a variety of recorded performance parameters. These include acceleration figures, Google Maps-based tack outlines, lap times, horsepower, torque, boost pressure, g-force readings, and distance measurements.

In my opinion, the coolest feature is the ability to record live footage of your track experience and overlay it with data. This should make improving those lap times that much more efficient. Exactly what line did you take to get onto the front straight? How early did you get to full throttle? How fast were you at the exit? These are the questions you can run through back in the pits between sessions to start eating away at those tenths.

As track days get more and more popular, these kinds of apps are popping up with increasing frequency. Finding the best is really a matter of preference; tuners like the mechanical data, racers want the performance figures. It’s a great way to casually put numbers to the thrills of speed. Just be warned: once you get a taste for it, odds are you’ll be back for more.

Click past the jump to read about the Volkswagen Golf R.

Volkswagen Golf R

Prepare, for the super hatch is about to be among us. First revealed at the 2013 Frankfurt Auto Show, it was announced late last year that the new Golf R was finally coming to U.S. shores in four-door trim only. That hardly matters though, as this 4MOTION all-wheel-drive rocket ship comes with a 2.0-liter, turbocharged, four-cylinder engine that makes 290 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque, making it the fastest and most powerful Golf->ke164 ever sold in the U.S. Add in a six-speed manual gearbox, and 60 mph is achieved in 5.3 seconds, while the DSG cuts it to a mere 4.9.

There are 18-inch wheels, 13.4-inch brake rotors in the front, 12.2-inch brake rotors in the rear, and a new multi-link rear suspension. For about $40,000, you can get the top-range R with leather, Alcantara, navigation, and enough R badging to satisfy a frigate of pirates. Throw some sticky tires in the hatch, install aggressive compound brake pads, and we’ll see you on the grid.