[VIDEO] Sam Schmidt Takes His Semi-Autonomous C7 Corvette for a Cruise in New York City

Driving in New York City is never easy, even under normal circumstances.

But don’t tell that to former Indy Racing League driver Sam Schmidt.

We’ve told you in the past about Schmidt’s crash at Walt Disney World Speedway that left him paralyzed from the neck down, and we’ve told you how he went on to found the highly successful Schmidt Petersen Motorsports soon after. We’ve also told you how Schmidt was able to drive again in a specially prepared C7 Z06, thanks to the Arrow Electronics system through which he steers the car with his head movements and accelerates and brakes by blowing and sucking through a tube. We’ve even told you how he drove that Z06 to 152 mph at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2016, averaging a speed of 108.642 mph over four laps.

But here’s a new development you may not have heard about in the amazing story of Sam Schmidt. He recently traveled to the Big Apple, where he showed off his technological wonder to the folks at NBC Today, including host Harry Smith, whom he took on a ride through the streets of New York City, including right through Times Square.

“Somebody call for an Uber?” Schmidt jokes as he pulls up to Smith in his Corvette.

“I was hoping to get a ride to work,” Smith laughs, leaning into the window.

“No problem – hop in,” Schmidt answers with a smile.

Watch this inspiring video as the two then cruise through the streets of NYC, with no hands on the steering wheel! It looks so routine for Schmidt, who says he “never, ever, ever” thought he’d be driving like that in the Big Apple when his accident happened 19 years ago.

By the way, Schmidt’s LT4-powered Z06 now features a more powerful Magnuson Heartbeat TVS2300 supercharger from Lingenfelter Performance Engineering in place of the stock unit.

Source:
Today Show via gmauthority.com

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Sam Schmidt Drives his Semi-Autonomous Corvette Z06 to 190 MPH at Nellis Air Force Base
[VIDEO] Sam Schmidt and the Arrow Semi-Autonomous Corvette Z06 on Jay Leno’s Garage
[VIDEO] Schmidt and Andretti Prepare for Saturday’s Semi-Autonomous Corvette Race at IMS