Worst Automotive Inventions: Chrysler's Electronic Voice Alert (EVA or "Talking Car") with Bob Lutz

[@bobtepedino5661]

My '86 New Yorker saved my life. I was jarred out of a daydream with "Washer fluid level is low," causing me to hesitate pulling away from a red light. That hesitation allowed a Jeep Cherokee to fly past - with inches to spare - instead of slamming into my driver's door as would surely have happened had I pulled into the intesection without hesitation.

[@varunemani]

See people say nagging never helps.. sure, but boy does it keep you grounded! 🍷

[@piotrmalewski8178]

Number 1 rule of safe driving: Never trust anything or anyone.

[@nhzxboi]

I was 18 y/o working at a Chrysler dealership when those came out....mostly New Yorker 2.2 Turbos it seemed. They weren't bad really. But, I desperately wanted to hack them to say something like "Driver is fat, acceleration is significantly reduced." Would have been so funny to have joke voice modules like that.

[@ohioalphornmusicalsawman2474]

I hear ya😁From what I remember of these cars, the voice should have said "severe lack of power, get in right lane"

[@johnnicol8598]

As a mechanic working on these at the time, I made a lot of money off these. They were terrible cars. The only ones with any redeeming qualities were the turbo Omni / Horizon. Still awful quality, but fun. All the K cars were complete crap.

[@josephgaviota]

@@johnnicol8598 I'm not saying K cars were good ... I don't know. But, weren't K cars famous for "saving" Chrysler?

[@ohioalphornmusicalsawman2474]

@@josephgaviota They were, yes, but if you a car crazed eighties teen who wanted to buy a nice running car with your lawn mowing bucks you earned, you could buy a nice old late 60's/early 70's Valiant or Dart for 500 bucks😁Even with the 225 slant six, you could leave Mom's new K car in the dust coming out of a light, easily do your own oil/filter, tune up, carb rebuild. You had a superior car to Mom's K car in every way except for gas mileage and luxury, and were much safer in an accident with a lot more steel around you. Basically, the old farts were mega worried about gas mileage, even though the gas lines and Arab Oil embargo were ancient history by the late 80's, an a gas was cheap, as it was until 2004

[@ohioalphornmusicalsawman2474]

@@josephgaviota If not for the Older Boomer/Silent Gen age group of car buyers in the eighties, who were mega worried about gas mileage, I think, from the gas crisis years in the seventies, I don't think any of the shoddily assembled, anemic, buzzy 80's econoboxes would have sold well. Gas was cheap again in the late 80's, but I remember my parents and their friends constantly worrying about gas mileage. Fast forward to now, and it amazes me how car buyers opt for gas hog SUV's and pickups when gas prices are so high.

[@hynestimothy411]

I remember when my 84 laser was coming to the end of it's life, it had the talking car feature. All I can say is that voice haunts me to this day with all those features dying it was pure hell

[@MisterMikeTexas]

It would be hard for me to not get emotional.

[@Unknown_Ooh]

It'd be hilarious if it's last message was "please don't let me die, I am sentient"

[@glennso47]

A boss of mine had a Dodge that would say “ A door is ajar “. I responded “ A door is a door!”😅 Once when he gave me a ride home one day.

[@PolPotsPieHole]

@@glennso47 ha ha that never gets old...."driver door is ajar", who came up with that?

[@lorriebuxton2041]

10 years in junk yard put in good battery and damn voice still would work

[@meathead585]

Years later, I'm often saying to myself...'your key is in the transmission'.

[@alanmerritt860]

Transmission? Lol

[@meathead585]

@@alanmerritt860 Just can't get it out of my head...like an old song in the brain.

[@turdferguson4124]

Ignition

[@scottross617]

🤣🤣

[@HAL-dm1eh]

Sounds like your car was a little bit of a perv. 🤣

[@chem525]

"Your engine oil pressure is low. Prompt service is required." I can still hear that to this day.

[@LordKellicos]

Some of my earliest memories involve my grandma owning a Chrysler with this feature; A New Yorker, if I recall. One day while visiting, my dad borrowed the car to run to the store and let me tag along. To get a laugh out of me, he left the door open after starting the car, and responded to the voice alert, "What? A door isn't a jar, a door is a door!"

[@red_ford23]

Came here to say exactly this

[@jdlives8992]

lol same. remember it vividly.

[@KevinOpar]

Yup. The car taught me what “ajar” meant. Since the age of seven, I don’t think I’ve ever used that word though. I’ll never forget “Don’t forget your geys!”

[@brentboswell1294]

The first talking car in the USA was the 1981 Datsun 810 Maxima, which had a phonographic recording that said "please turn off the lights". The 1982 and 1983 models added more recordings for more events. Chrysler's system was electronic and used Texas Instruments' speech synthesizer chip. Nissan literally talked to a toy manufacturer and designed an adapted mechanism from a talking toy for theirs 😅

[@rodmunch69]

Yeah, I remember my teacher in 3rd grade showing us kids his amazing talking Datsun. As a kid, I thought it was amazing that are car could talk. As an adult, I'd now think it was one of the most annoying things ever.

[@Meatball2022]

I had one. The voice recording must have been a tape because as the years went by it got slower and slower. To the point when you open your door and before it could even begin to tell you, the door was already closed.

[@brentboswell1294]

@@Meatball2022 it was phonographic. Just like a tape player, a phonograph makes lower pitched sounds if played slower than the intended speed. There's videos on KZbin where people have opened up the mechanism for show and tell.

[@Meatball2022]

@@brentboswell1294 oh wow. Yea I remember how ridiculous that voice sounded around 1991 or so….

[@skylinefever]

My mom had that in her 1985 Maxima. I said that it was the one 1980s voice chip that didn't sound like a dying cigarette smoker. That was the most reliable part of that awful car.

[@user-dn8fp7ol5z]

When I was a kid my dad was an engineer for Chrysler in our native Dearborn Michigan and as such he got a Chrysler employee discount on new cars so he got my mom a brand new fully loaded Chrysler New Yorker Landau with that cool talking digital dashboard and tufted leather seats that I sank right into it was equipped with air ride suspension and man it was top of the line for sure lol. That was really cool stuff for the late 80s lol

[@jeffreydavis9783]

Yeah…my dad had both a top-of-the-line 84 then an 86 New Yorker with those button-tufted leather seats. They sure LOOKED like comfortable cars with all those buttons & straps & handles & cushions but NVH factor was off the charts - to say nothing of the rear seat legroom. I was in high school at the time & got a (quite uncomfortable) front row seat to the perils of clever marketing!

[@MarvinHartmann452]

These cars, chrysler k cars, were underrated, they drove like full-size models, and it was very comfortable to drive for long distances. The only issue they had is with the 2.2. They were underpowered, but they were decent with the later models v6 in the Dynasty and new-yorker. I didn't try the 2.2 turbo models. But in comparison with their GM and Ford equivalent, they were better in terms of comfort. They drove smoothly. It was really innovative for the time.

[@HAL-dm1eh]

As a huge nerd growing up in the 80s, I was one of the rare ones that thought this was the coolest feature going, especially in the cool looking Daytonas. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

[@HAL-dm1eh]

@@working_country___8973 I agree. I think the Daytonas actually aged well and look better than ever.

[@Kgio-2112]

@working_country ___ compared to today's crap... Yes.

[@WRL64]

I could see this actually being useful in cars today, especially for neurodivergent people (ADHD, autism, etc). I'm ADHD and autistic and I would LOVE for my car to actually verbally tell me something was amiss. I could see how "Your door is ajar" would get old, but a lot of the other things it could communicate to you, for someone like me, would be very helpful.

[@kirksway1]

I had an '86 New Yorker with this feature. I believe that the manual called it Safety Annunciations when it spoke. I thought it was cool to show all my friends what it would say when I poked the little button in the glove box. The button made it cycle through all the warnings it possessed. If you poked the button 11 times in quick succession it would just say Thank you eleven times instead of voicing the actual messages.

[@Sublimer79]

For those especially bad days. You could make the car thank you. When you felt taken advantage of.

[@mattchristensen9424]

@@Sublimer79 ok

[@viperfukgoogplus386]

It was called electronic voice alert

[@MarvinHartmann452]

​@@Sublimer79LOL

[@MisterMikeTexas]

I can imagine the Canadian version: "Turn off your lights, eh?"

[@61rampy65]

It would add the words "I'm sorry" too.

[@doctoroctos]

How’s aboot the snake in your boot, eh?

[@7t2z28]

Mine would alternate calling me buddy, guy, and friend.

[@DL30Creations]

Eh, like .... Take off hoser. Sh*t now I need to watch the movie Strange Brew and SCTV again..... eh?

[@NicCageForPresident2024]

Or the hood version. "Aye yo B lock them fuckin doors son, do you know where you is my guy?"

[@Josie2013]

The talk with Bob Lutz was so interesting. I would like to hear more from him. I'm sure he has some really great stories.

[@HAL-dm1eh]

I would be fascinated to hear stories from some of these old time executives. They were faced with a lot of different challenges of the time.

[@tomj4406]

A true car guy & Chrysler man..unlike Robert 'Sellout' Eaton. Imported from GM mngmnt, he was the f*^%&^ that scuttled the ship, brokered the Mercedes buyiout..falsely labeled as a merger. Lee Iacocca regretted picking Eaton...& so did everyone else. Ppl belittle Fiat, but they did better by Chrysler veh & customers than anyone since the takeover. Tom Gale shudda been Iacocca's pick to hand over the reigns to.

[@mikeske9777]

Those talking cars were fun for me. I worked as a heavy line mechanic at Chrysler dealership at that time and I do the repair needed and check the work order and the vast majority of folks had an added line to deactivate the talking feature. In to the glove box I go and flip the switch. Actually it was just a mute switch as the info center would still displayed the malfunction but HAL would be silent.

[@antonfarquar8799]

In 1971 I bought a 1959 Imperial Crown Southampton 4dr. -that was a space ship - push button 727 torque flite automatic transmission, Electric antenna , floor button for tuning the radio , dual remote control outside mirrors , cruise control , power windows , power seat , swivel release front seats , factory A/C , rear view mirror mounted on the dash , ribbon speedometer , fold down armrests front & rear and the turn signal actuator mounted on the lower left side of the dash. I paid $150.00 for that car and God even with the gas prices I wish I had held on to it.

[@benjaminrobinson3842]

8:19 - I was even more impressed by the LCD diagram of the car; it had many more segments for doors, lamps, etc. than I would have expected from looking at still photos of it. Gotta love how this whole display rendered the expensive voice feature entirely redundant.

[@Brian-cr6rb]

It's so funny how back then it got old so fast. But now it's totally nostalgic, and awesome! As a kid, I got a kick out of the car talking with a speak and spell sounding voice, but I really do miss really cool looking digital readout displays, vacuum neon looks etc.

[@johnh2514]

This brings back memories of my aunt’s 1983 LeBaron sedan. The EVA module malfunctioned, and would proceed to go through the entire 11 or so messages every time the driver door opened.

[@dave1956]

I remember a Chrysler vehicle that we repaired in our body shop. It was a two door, but the computer kept telling us that the right rear door was open.

[@Unknown_Ooh]

Lmao! Sounds like a Chrysler thing. I've worked on quite a few of them and ran into several funny things.

[@user-yr1uq1qe6y]

My dads laser said this and we all looked at each other like what?!

[@mkernen]

Although mine did not have the EVA feature, I remember with much fondness my 1988 Dodge Daytona Shelby Z with the Turbo II engine. It was a great looking car with just the right balance of performance go fast features and comfort. Even the admittedly awful shifter was still fun. Sometimes cars can capture you even if they're flawed. I always felt on top of the world getting into that car and waiting for that turbo to spool up. Now I have a pair of Corvettes. I love them both, but that Shelby Z was like my first girlfriend and will always spark a feeling when I think about it.

[@RichardinNC1]

After an 85 Daytona Turbo, I traded for an 87 Daytona Shelby Z. Black on gray cloth. Such a fun car to drive, especially on mountain roads of NC, VA & WV!

[@timothykeith1367]

Those early turbo cars should be preserved. Most of the V8 muscle cars weren't that great but the simplicity can't be beat

[@HAL-dm1eh]

You made me realize that's why I have been so hung up on the (then brand new) 90 Mustang GT I had as a 19 yr old (I worked for it, just saying). Every subsequent car I had was compared to that one and never lived up in some way until I realized my perception was just off. It's because things like that (for car guys anyway) are like that "first love" and well, I said enough. 🤣

[@ZGryphon]

My best friend in college had an '89 Daytona ES Turbo, my most prominent memory of which is that it seemed like he was always either waiting for it to come back from having the turbo seal replaced, or waiting for the parts to come so he could take it in to get the turbo seal replaced. :)

[@johnjones393]

My second car after a 1981 Mercury Zephyr station wagon was a 1986 Chrysler Laser. It was a base model with the 2.5 NA engine and three speed auto. Painfully slow but I made it my own and it looked good sitting in my high school parking lot. Back then I desperately wanted a turbo Daytona or LeBaron with the EVA and digital dash. The OP compared a first car to a first girlfriend and I would agree. I still have a fondness for my first two cars even though they were awful by today's standards.

[@JamesAllmond]

My parents had a Chrysler E-Class. Borrowed it instead os using my '69 Dart with a 340 in it...was going to propose that night, wanted to sue a gentler kinder car (my other vehicle was a Harley at the time) the damned car freaked out and wouldn't shut up. Ended up going back to my parents house and borrowing their other car, 75 Olds...man that was a nice car...oh, we've been married +37 years...she said yes...

[@leetonhorne4282]

Stop lying goof ball

[@SeanONeill13]

On what basis did you sue?

[@JordanHowellMusic]

Lol nice , thumbs up on the spelling error joke. And to the OP, I’m glad it worked out, as, if you took a talking car it might have freaked her out so much she woulda jumped out the car! Or gotten a mind of it’s own and started saying weird stuff lol..

[@mikem2179]

I'm sure that happened

[@cadillacguy1890]

My grandfather purchased a 1984 New Yorker with the EVA. About 6 months into his ownership, something malfunctioned, the voice alert ceased functioning. He called the dealership service department and requested an appointment. When they asked him what the car was doing, he said “either the car is mad at me or it has laryngitis, it quit talking to me.” The service advisor laughed and said “that’s a first for me.” The car was repaired, but other issues meant it had but a short tenure, maybe a year and a half, in his garage.

[@azaz911c]

4:30 that LeBaron coupe was such a beautiful car.

[@howebrad4601]

I was hoping you would do a segment on these! In 84 my folks ordered a new 84 chrysler E Class. I talked them into the voice alert which was a 66 dollar option if memory serves me correctly. 4 years ago I found almost an exact mate to the chrysler we had so I bought it, but it doesn't have the voice alert. Last fall I ran across an 84 new yorker that's in relatively rough shape but it does have a working voice alert. I'm going to see if I can take the voice alert box out of the new yorker and see if I can get it put in my e class. I really liked the cool 80s high-tech stuff you could get. I wish they would still make digital clusters today like they used to. Thanks for the nostalgia and cool look back in time! My new yorker is just like the light blue one you show. Later on I also had an 86 Nissan Maxiima which had the female voice alert. I couldn't disagree with Lutz more. To this day I live the voice alert and the digital dash, and the reason my folks bought the chrysler over the pontiac 6000 they were also considering was the voice alert. Lutz had a fee good ideas here and there but his taste appeals much more to buyers with more euro taste who wouldn't cross shop a chrysler anyway. Double fail. His changes left loyal chrysler buyers disappointed, and probably didn't attract anyone cross shopping a euro car or even honda and Toyota. Even my teenage son in 2022 likes the 80s hi-tech features. Nobody liked the bmw style cheap old school instruments better. Lutz major step back. Just because bmw does something doesn't make it better.

[@Fleetwoodjohn]

My grandpa had a New Yorker and would deliberately leave the door open or seatbelt off just to make the car talk for us 😎 The fact they had so many and the sensors required for them amazes me

[@hackman669]

Really my Granny had a blue New Yorker. She loved it. Kept it her entire life!✌

[@charlieroney1008]

makes me miss the Chrysler I drove in high school miss the plush seats with the inflateable cuff. The voice reminder and feeling like a badass from the 80s

[@GeorgeLiquor]

The EVA still works in my 1987 New Yorker 2.2 Turbo. Same color and model as 1:15. I only have the 11 function module, though

[@RichardinNC1]

My father had an 83 Town & Country wagon and loved his talking car. Even after hearing “Your electrical system is malfunctioning” when an alternator went out. I then ordered a loaded 85 Daytona Turbo with trip computer and EVA. As mentioned it was a bit less intrusive. I would have guessed TI was involved, with EVA sounding a lot like Speak & Spell!

[@captainquint]

My dad had one too. The talking was quite novel at the time and would get looks from passers by when it spoke up about something. The car itself was a real trooper and was particularly good on ice and snow. Only major issues I remember was a head gasket going at 80k which caused "the little man in the glovebox" to start issuing warnings we'd never encountered before.

[@Underappreciatedclassics]

My 1991’ Chrysler New Yorker fifth Avenue mark cross edition has a electronic display in the overhead console. They called it the “electronic vehicle information center or EVIC” and as you said it replaced the EVA module

[@Captain-Cosmo]

My LeBaron had that feature. Every time I hit a bump in the road, the radio muted while it told me to close my driver door. Gravel paving was a nightmare!

[@Sedan57Chevy]

Falling in somewhere between useless gimmick and an okay idea that was just too far ahead of the necessary tech to really make the most of it, these Mopar electro voices are certainly an oddity today. They always make me think of the old shuttle trains at Tampa airport from my childhood, to keep hands and feet inside the vehicle.

[@craigsped]

The first talking car that I remember was a 1928 Porter in the TV show, "My Mother the Car" back in 1966. 😊

[@middleclassretiree]

SeaTac airport had the same thing but I never made that connection 😂

[@Drmcclung]

I think all this touch screen and electronic nanny garbage today is the talking car and digital cluster of the 80's all over again

[@cesarpalafox7676]

I dont get why people talk smack about american cars i mean datsun/nissan had some talking cars aswell that had terrible voice and no ody says anything about that and they came before chrysler

[@Drmcclung]

@@cesarpalafox7676 Yeah.. it's because the above stated cars actually worked.. as cars. The K platform was an underdeveloped, unreliable untrustworthy piece of sh!t for what they were charging for them (they were NOT cheap), garbage really. Expensive garage. Very expensive garbage when it was a K car model in Chrysler branded 'personal luxury'

[@72139]

In 1990 I bought the Cobra Radar Detector with the voice alert ! It would open with "Be careful !" Then go to "slow down"! And the "slow down" part would hang in and become progressively faster based on proximity to the cop ! It was neat for about 10 minutes ! Then it became a novelty attraction to my friends ! Who all thought it was amazing ! For about 10 minutes ! Then they would ask "can you turn the voice off ?" Wound up driving with it muted for most of the time I owned it !

[@appleimacdude]

I loved the talking dash on my 85 Chrysler New Yorker - for one thing, as some drivers don't pay attention to gauges, I loved the temp gauge, light, and the fact that you would be alerted if you didn't notice by the stereo cutting out and telling you "your engine is overheating" - giving you more time to deal with the situation instead of being surprised by a very overheated engine - mine had been set to the female voice, which wasn't bad.

[@PRH123]

Aircraft have female voices nowadays, as apparently it's been proven that men react more positively to alerts given with women's voices.

[@Jason-xb3jh]

My mom got a 1986 Buick Riviera when it came out. It had the GCC (Graphic Control Center) touch screen. As a kid I thought it was so cool. It was a pretty nice car.

[@89ry89]

As a kid and as an adult still I was always fascinated by robots and things that could talk. Particularly stuff from the 80’s, that compressed synthetic harsh voice is something we don’t hear anymore and yet I wish I did I love it for some reason.

[@Melissa0774]

That's the same voiceover guy from the Speak N Spell, which was made by TI. My dad used to work there in the 80's and early 90's and I think he met the guy before. I forget what he said about it, though.

[@santaclause2875]

Owned a beautiful '85 Toronado Brougham that had a similar system. It announced mostly mechanical systems issues like oil pressure, hot engine, low voltage, low fuel. Not as involved as the Chrysler system. And the Toronado system didn't offer up any 'thank you's for your attention to the impending doom. Loved that car....soooooooooooo comfortable and quiet.

[@Gudi102]

OMG how cool were those warnings at the end. So 80"s tech! Loved it!! Great video

[@itsnotme07]

I like Eddie Murphy's version of the talking car. "Hey Man, someone stole your battery! I say we go get the Mother2#$!!@!!!" Haha

[@willielarimer7170]

Just thinking about that, still have the cassette tape somewhere 🤣

[@md4331]

My Mom had an '83 Town and Country wagon with the wood paneling and the talking car feature. We called it "Cassidy." It was always telling us that a door was ajar, headlights were on, washer fluid was low etc but after a few years the comments got more exciting such as "your engine oil pressure is low". My Great uncle owned the Chrysler dealership in town and they couldn't keep that thing running even with regular maintenance and all recommended service. Head gasket blew in '89 with around 60k miles and Mom bought a GMC Safari mini van. I do remember that the Chrysler had excellent traction in the winter and drove really well in the snow.

[@jeffrobodine8579]

Same model Ferris Bueller's Mom drove.

[@klwthe3rd]

I don't know why everyone bad mouths this option. Chrysler sold ALOT of these cars with this option so they were making money off of the system. The point of the system was to warn the driver of issues that could not always been seen from the driver's seat. Do you know if your brake pads are low without checking them? Do you always look down at your guages each moment to check the temperature? By the time YOU noticed it, it might be too late. Call it what you want but i think it was a useful option. And if you didn't like it, turn it off with the switch in the glove box if you were a second owner who didn't order the car with that option.

[@RareClassicCars]

There was no switch in 1983 to turn it off.

[@klwthe3rd]

@@RareClassicCars big deal. One year only.

[@scoman73]

Chrysler was trying to innovate back then with the digital dashboards and EVA system, the 80s were an optimistic time after the first couple years of the decade and in my opinion tech like this reflected that in cars. The 87 Lebaron EVA even included a transmission alert (pressure sensor), along with charging system, low fluids, oil pressure and overheating warnings. These systems Id say were pretty useful/innovative for the time period and were OPTIONAL including muting the voice after 1983 yet abandoned because some people were annoyed and rather not know when something required their attention! Chrysler eliminated the option (Lutz) by 1988.

[@DSP1968]

A great overview of something that most folks are likely not aware of. FYI. Thunderbird offered an Electronic Voice Alert in 1984. I saw one on a dealer lot once when new -- it didn't say nearly as much, thank goodness. It may have been available on the Cougar as well. I know the take rate was very low.

[@scottreal7787]

The Cougar and Thunderbird talked to people.

[@GenX_-um2ct]

1987 Fall Day Grandpa picks me up for school in his brand new Chrysler New Yorker. As he drops me off I open the door before the wheels stopped and the car starts talking to me. The Door is AJAR! Mind blown! Grandpa was always a gadget man. He would have loved and hated the 21st century all at the same time! LOL

[@alsguitars5127]

I still remember my uncles new New Yorker when he bought it. The talking car was so cool….it thanked me for putting on my seatbelt. I like normal gages but the talking car had its day and made the car seem so futuristic in the showroom. I have no doubt it helped sales for a while. In 84’ I wondered why the new Corvette didn’t talk when a Chrysler Laser could.

[@jtal19]

I'm so glad you had Bob Lutz on. I had a k car , 1982, and my dad worked at Chrysler for 40 years in Tech/engineering highland park and then auburn hills and worked on those same automobiles. Bob was a great leader. Nice to see him after a while

[@wilcharl]

Love your content - so many memories of my childhood in your car documentaries - Would love something on the Cadillac Catera

[@thebrain7065]

My mom and step-dad had a 1985 Nissan Maxima..that mom drove mostly. It also had the voice alerts and It had a "repeat" switch on the center console..so you could hear the last alert. My mom being the comedian she was would keep pressing the switch secretly as my step-dad drove "Driving" him crazy talking back to the car in his Alabama accent....especially on trips when the "fuel level is low" voice would alert...over and over and over. Eventually he caught on, but not after several trips and laughs.

[@youtoobe169]

You are nuts for saying this is a "worst" invention. I actually owned one of these and this EVA system actually saved my engine. One day it said something to the effect of "please check your coolant level" which helped me to catch a smallish problem before it turned into a really big problem. it alerted you to many things that even today's cars don't do.

[@prjndigo]

" Hey man, someone stole yer battery - I say we go get the mother..." ~ Eddie Murphy, 1982.

[@turdferguson4124]

I had a 1985 Chrysler Laser XE with the digital instruments and voice systems monitor. I thought it was neat, but I’m shocked that it was cost $600 to Chrysler to add. This on a $14,000 MSRP car was insanely expensive.

[@selfdo]

What's amazing is that we both can remember an upscale scale that retailed for $14K!

[@tytotheler92]

Great video. Loved hearing Bob Lutz talk about EVA.

[@Max_Mustermann]

While probably annoying on a daily basis, it seems like a cool feature technology wise. Especially considering that the system is fully electronic and doesn't use tape or phonograph recordings like some other cars.

[@mlaprarie]

One of my friends had a silver '84 T-Bird with Ford's copycat Electronic Voice Alert. "The key is in the ignition" "The door is ajar" etc. They are still burned into my memory nearly 40 years later. He made up a little rhyme - "A door is a door, a car is a car. But in my car, the door is a jar."

[@geoffreypiltz271]

Drivers don't want to be told about problems, they just want to ignore them. This explains "Just Rolled In".

[@jv8296]

My dad had a New Yorker with this feature. As a 9 year old who was obsessed with Knight Rider, I thought it was the coolest thing ever. 40 now and still obsessed with Knight Rider.

[@tocsa120ls]

Fun fact the later Chryslers used the exact same system (even the same chips) as the TI Speak And Spell. Also yup, 'ze Germanz' call those gimmicky displays "Mäusekino" - a cinema for mice.

[@patriot-dv6dh]

Conducting an interview in 2023 with a cigar in your hand! You know the man's a boss! Love it!

[@joshuagibson2520]

It's absolutely absurd that we can't get actual gages. Been this way forever. Tach, voltage, and oil pressure are required to operate a vehicle in my opinion.

[@SFox-if9id]

'Your door is a jar...' 'No it's not, it's a door, shut up!'

[@blakedawson2129]

I worked for a Nissan store through the late 80s through the 90s. I liked the voice alert systems. The Chrysler one was went well with the digital dash. We always got a giggle when we got a lebaron or a 5th Ave in on trade and got thanked. I had a 300zx turbo with the voice and big corney digadash. The 300 had a female voice and the 200sx had a male voice. I think the 87 88 maxima had the option too.

[@Bergstaller01]

My mother had a turbo New Yorker with one of those. "Your engine oil pressure is low...prompt service is required." Was the sound you didn't want to hear.

[@xail1047]

Renault at the same time (1983) had also developed with Texas Instruments their own voice synthesis systems for the renault 11 electronic, renault 25, Safrane and Laguna except that the voice had been developed in French, Spanish, German but also in English and Italian/Russian (for the Safrane and Laguna I and II). And in both sexes female and male. Being French, this electronic counter and this voice was really revolutionary ! The option was unfortunately abandoned in 2005 with the Laguna II phase 1.

[@paulparoma]

I wonder why they thought they needed a Russian version, too. Back in 1983, Renault, along with other foreign brands, was not yet selling in Russia.

[@jeffrobodine8579]

Did it sound like the Texas Instruments Speak and Spell I had as a kid back in the early 1980's? 😄

[@david.mcmahan]

I remember a relative getting a New Yorker with the talking car feature. I thought the car had a female voice, but it has been long time. There were definitely jokes about "Your door is ajar."

[@jetsons101]

The voice was creepy but was some pretty good tech for the day, now "Greeting Cards" talk and sing. It was better than the early BUZZERS... I always liked the Dodge GLH and the Carroll Shelby Omni GLHS hatchback. Adam, thanks for your time and work...

[@jabbahursty]

i find it profound to learn that my door was not actually a door, but a jar.

[@MrCarguy2]

In Mexico it was kept until 1993 where it founds it way on the then new cloud cars. You could get the Chrysler Concord with it as an option.

[@hackman669]

Does the car speak in Spanish with an accent?✌

[@MrCarguy2]

@@hackman669 Not really. it sounds similar to the actual english EVA. There are a few vids about it

[@PolPotsPieHole]

I really like this channel.....so informative ,so mellow, so nostalgic, so kool

[@nerradnosnhoj5122]

A lot of sadness was realized when my Dad bought one of those 86 New Yorkers. His dealer had poor mechanics and that dealer no longer exists , I tried to encourage a 5th ave with possibly a 360 engine but it was too late I did get in on its replacement though , talked Dad out of a 95 Camry and into a 1995 supercharged Olds 88, The Olds was great, got 40 miles per gallon( Canadian 4.5 litres) and it hauled the mail adequately thanks for the videos , I like those Old Pontiacs you have there , the Aqua Catalina is a beauty

[@turnne]

@Nerrad Nosnhoj And think how much better of a car the Camry was.....a few hundred thousand miles later it would probably be on the road

[@crookedtool]

40 mpg 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤡🤡🤡💩💩💩 biggest load of (supercharged) BS ever. Yourself being so woefully ill-informed or ignorant about MPG, it makes perfect sense that you would recommend an Olds over a Camry.

[@crookedtool]

Sorry, I don't mean to spoil the punchline or anything, but 17/26 MPG is the best you'll see, if lucky. 40 MPG? What an incredible fantasy! Your life is full of infantile wonder!

[@skyylow]

My talking Chrysler Laser would talk real sloooow when it was very cold outside.

[@noodlebomber4847]

My grandpa had one of these new yorkers a few years ago. Think it was an 88. Could be wrong. He named the talking car Hamilton. They owned him for about ten years, and around the end of that decade, Hamilton seemed to have slurred speech, uttering Random gibberish whenever a command was supposed to be said. Unique and interesting idea, way to ahead of it's time.

[@RoCkShaDoWWaLkEr]

I remember being in elementary school a friend of mine's parents had a New Yorker that had this feature, I thought "the car is a jar" was the one of funniest things ever as a 7 or 8 year old.

[@corralescruiser8957]

I used to own an 86 Chrysler Laser Turbo XT back in 96. Was a great car. I dont remember it talking though. Maybe it was disabled by previous owner.

[@lazerusmfh]

Your door is ajar… your door is ajar… Remember this when I was 4

[@pcno2832]

I can actually see the usefulness of this feature for a presumably rare critical condition like a hot engine, low oil pressure or a serious safety hazard. But for anything else, it might have ultimately lead to a bashed-in speaker grille and thus would have been self-defeating.

[@theclearsounds3911]

I agree. But it tells you to check the coolant level, which involves removing the radiator cap when the engine is boiling hot. I'm surprised nobody sued Chrysler after getting burned by steam.

[@triptheroad]

I have an 87 Lebaron with the EVA in the same color shown in your video, I think it's a very cool feature, I think if they made it easier to turn it on and off it would've been more accepted. Mine is also a five speed so it's probably a pretty rare optioned car!

[@combatking0]

I find the idea of driving a Mr Speak & Spell interesting, although I can see how it would be annoying in practice.

[@robertharris7027]

Lutz was right: Here in Germany digital dashboards were called mouse movies (Mäusekino).

[@Dr_Reason]

$750 per car is serious money. I remember hearing the guy who invented the coat hocks had to argue for years to get them installed because they cost 10 cents per car.

[@bulgingbattery2050]

My dad had a Chrysler New Yorker with the voice machine.

[@NIGHTOWL-jf9zt]

I had this in my Laser before it was totaled and have been looking for the voice. Thank you for doing it.

[@6mtzhp55]

My dad told us about this system in a rental he had. For decades he loved mocking it, especially the "Thank You!" for just closing the door, turning your headlights off, even removing the keys after parking.

[@santaclause2875]

Yep, I remember my mom's car had that, and after we'd have lunch at Taco Bell, on our way home it would say "I'll thank you to please lower all the windows in the car". It was pretty neat.

[@fytghggyungf7601]

Oh this brings back memories. When I was really young my mom had a Chrysler Laser, and I distinctly remember that robotic voice.

[@dropleckk4404]

William Daniels - starred in the 1967 comedy “Captain Nice”.

[@Henry_Jones]

Kitt is voiced by Mr. Feeney

[@loveisall5520]

I bought a 1984 Dodge Aries coupe in college and it was one of the best new cars I've owned. Nothing fantastic, but it never, ever broke in over 100K miles, never left me stranded, and I loved the 4-speed stick shift. Fortunately it didn't talk!

[@Underappreciatedclassics]

Can I repost this on my TikTok page Under appreciated classics? I will give credit as I do with all KZbin documentary’s

[@scoman73]

There are plenty of other youtube videos about Chryslers EVA you could search and share that have a more positive vibe to them and the cars that featured them are pretty much unappreciated classics.

[@markman7]

Chrysler was trying to turn a K car into a Cadillac. They did the same thing turning the '70s Volare and Duster into the RWD LeBaron and 5th Avenue of the '80s. They probably figured GM turned a Nova into a Seville, so why not give it a whirl.

[@AlexanderWaylon]

My 85 Toronado has this. It repeats the message twice then dings. My car doesn’t say Please or Thank you however

[@Mrs.Doubtfire007]

Wow such rudeness outta those GM rednecks. LOL!!!

[@andyk6796]

Speak and Spell at its finest!

[@agostinodibella9939]

This was a a fun video! I remember a guy from work who had a Chrysler Laser with this feature. It’s a novelty at first, but eventually I can see or hear it being annoying to have to hear that crazy voice.

[@scottbogfoot]

You didn't mention the 84 E class. It also said "service engine soon", like a lot.

[@aaroncrawley540]

I had one .but it didn't bother me with the voice.i thought it was cool.i like it better then that buzzing sound that cars had

[@SilverBullet93GT]

4:20 the LeBaron should have been voiced by Jon Voight

[@cycleguy666]

A friend of mine had an 80s Crysler/Dodge Daytona and it was very entertaining at times because most warnings were false.....but after hours driving 🚗 you tend to start talking back to the cars insane warnings!! We called it the Car Possesed!! Eventually the car was wrecked and our need to talk back ended!! On the plus side the Daytona turbo was pretty quick and handled pretty well!! Hahaha!!

[@Mrs.Doubtfire007]

It needed an exorcism!! "By the power of of 'Chrys-ler' I compel you!" LOL!!!

[@andypittman9850]

My '85 Le Baron GTS had this, the message that generated the most laughs "Pleasze faszten your szeat beltsz"!! And yes, my neighbours were ones who demanded their car speak in French!!

[@rightlanehog3151]

Adam, Did you say EVA was a gimmick? Chrysler's whole lineup was a gimmick in 1983😁

[@genericsomething]

Car: "Your door is ajar." Me: "No it's not! It's a door!"

[@TheEclecticHandyman]

5 minutes in and no real case made for 'worst invention.' Click bait title.

[@oops1952]

Nothing irritated me more than the buzzers mopars used in the "70s. Every car needed to be equipped with side cutters!!!!

[@TopolskiOpinion]

My grandparents had one of these 85 New Yorker. Brings back memories