The time Chrysler made a talking car 

The fact that my Mom's 1983 Chrysler E class could talk, enabled the car to save itself. To her a red overheat light on the dash ment continue driving and maybe it will go off. This worked until her Chrysler said to her "YOUR ENGINE IS OVERHEATING TAKE ACTION IMMEDIATELY ". At that point she pulled over and called me. After a head gasket replacement problem solved. The funny thing is when it came time to upgrade to a later model, which couldn't talk, she said she missed the old E Class.

Back in the late 70's to early 80's I worked for a Dodge dealer. I got a car as part of my salary, basically any used car I wanted to drive. One late night I was driving a LeBaron wagon home. I lived out in the country and the roads were quite dark. As I was rounding a corner, some guy blurted out "your fuel is low". It scared the devil out of me even though I knew the car had this feature.

A lot of peole dont know just how many patents & innovations, inventions were made by Chrysler. They were pioneers in many no automotive applications as well. The speed selector on old record players, 33.45.78 was from a prototype transmission invented in the 1920's. The grid style rear window defroster, intermittent wipers, rear air foiler, Hemispherical combustion, cruise control, torsion bar suspension, viscus drive systems, reverse threaded lug nuts, the mini van and others I cant think of. But they always seemed to never grab the #1 or 2 spot in American automotive sales volumes. But they made some very iconic vehicles.

The first talking car on the market in the USA was 1981 Datsun 810 Maxima. It had a phonographic recording (which was adapted from a talking kid's toy) that said "please turn off the lights" in a female voice with a Japanese accent. My dad bought one, and loved to show off the talking feature...it was a one hit wonder in this car. I heard that Nissan later added more recordings for more events in later model years... my parents eventually succumbed to buying expensive K cars, and I took my driver's license road test in my mom's talking 1987 Chrysler New Yorker 😅

I was an English teacher and vocal coach for many years. My wife and I bought a talking Chrysler. I tried for months trying to convince the car that a door is not a jar, but I was having no success. I tried bribing it with full-service car washes, premium gas, and even a new garage. It became an absolute obsession. I was in the garage day and night with that car. I lost my teaching position and was put into a mental institution. While I was getting treatment my wife divorced me and the only thing she left me was that talking car. They now have me on suicide watch and want me to get the talking car off the institution's property.

Your timing is insane in this. I was just telling my wife yesterday about the Chryslers that this whole family of kids had at my school. The dad worked at the plant and they all had some New Yorkers or something.

We had a car in the early 90’s that said “a door is a jar”, and I would sing “and a horse is a horse, of course of course”.

Great show 😊 ! When I was in high-school back in the early 80s my auto shop teacher had a talking Chrysler LeBaron wagon which had the talking voice command system . I thought that it was pretty cool lol and I thought my parents Pontiac Parisienne wagon seemed old fashioned compared to my auto shop teacher's wagon .

The reason we don't have talking cars now is they would say, "CHECK ENGINE....TRACTION CONTROL OFF...RETURN TO DEALER FOR MAINTENANCE....TIRE PRESSURE LOW...CHECK ENGINE..."

I knew a person from Montreal who had a talking Chrysler - AND you guessed it - the car spoke French. Considering his primary language was English, I asked him about it. He told me the dealer could swap in a "French" module. Furthermore, by this time he figures out the translation regarding the phrases and thought his "French" car was kinda neat.

Electronic Voice Alert was not available on the larger RWD Fifth Avenue (sold as the New Yorker Fifth Avenue in 1983 alongside the FWD New Yorker, and then just called Fifth Avenue from 1984-1989). Also fun fact, in 1984, due to complaints from buyers that their new car nagged more than their wife, Chrysler eliminated many alerts, and also added a button in the glove box to disable the system entirely.

My aunt had a New Yorker in 1985, and I always loved it when it talked. I really wished they bring back that

I had a1983 Nissan Maxima that talked. I liked the fact that I didn't have to guess why it was alarming. It told me if I left the lights on or if I didn't take the key out before I opened the door. I remember once seeing another Maxima in a parking lot with the door open and engine running. The driver was Asian and the alarm was in Japanese.

I had a Nissan 200SX in the ‘80s that talked. Most of what you said the Chrysler could do, this model could too. I really liked it, especially because you could turn it off, but I usually had it on. I would often thank the car. A friend recorded it and sampled it for his band Happy Coat of Flesh for the song “Lights Are On” and it was played live for a neon art opening. After that car I had problems because I relied on the voice notifications and had a hard time adapting to not having them. I left my lights on and drained my battery because the car didn’t tell me to turn them off. On two occasions I ran out of gas because the car didn’t tell me “Fuel level is low.” I thought it was a great feature would like it back, actually. So much more helpful than a dash light that is easily missed. But I would want to configure which alerts were spoken and which were not and … no Alexa, Siri, or Hey Google, thank you.

Renault started to sell a talking R11 in 1983. It was also a Texas Instruments speech synthesizer. The first version of this synthesizer in R11 had a "dealer demo mode" where it talked around 4 minutes about how awesome the system is and wich functions are monitored. They also used the same system in R25 until 1992. After that the Safrane and the Laguna got a sample based system this got sold until 2001. The last Renault with speech was the Laguna 2 until 2005 (pre Facelift). I always wanted a talking car... just because. and then they stopped making them.

I can't say I grew up in the era of 80s cars, or that I had a lot of interest as a kid, but I've been learning more about cars recently, and I have a bit of a funny story about where I remember hearing the phrase "A door is ajar". Basically, there was this show I watched growing up called "Gaming Show (In My Parents' Garage)" which was all about gaming which took place in, well, a garage, and they had a couple of episodes where they renamed the show "Gaming Show (In My Uncle's Car)" in which, well, the garage has a car in it. I swear it was more entertaining than that, but basically, they have a car in the garage where the show takes place. But what I remember in this episode is them sitting in the car, and a voice says "A door is ajar", and two of the hosts of the show, Ian and Julia, try to figure out what that means, taking it as of course "a door is a jar" and trying to understand what that means, then it turns out to be the other host of the show, Jesse, doing an impression of an automated voice. It was a really funny joke to me, but I didn't know about real talking cars until this video. A very informative video on a lesser-known topic, great job!

Growing up we bought a damaged mercury cougar from our neighbor for $300. And it talked. My poor father use to try to go for a peaseful drive without my mother and it was not much different. He finally just disconnected as much of it as he could. He said the car reminded him of our mother always telling him what to do.

Chrysler wasn't afraid to take chances they came up with some of the most radical-looking cars, especially in the 60s with lots of power and some colors that were way out of the norm.

My mother had one of the talking station wagons. She told the car to shut up often. Other than the verbal annoyance s, it was comfortable and fun to drive.😁😁

My dad had a late 80's Oldsmobile Delta 88. It had the digital instrument cluster and the talking voice. I still try to find one like it, but they seem to be way too rare or just nonexistent. Such nostalgia though.

Oh memories, we had an 86 New Yorker when I was a kid and when it would say a door is ajar my brother and I would say a door is a door, it’s not a jar. But the EVA system came in quite handy when the digital dash died lol. Just like how digital dashes came back, I can totally see voice alerts coming back to cars. Everyone is too busy playing on their phones while they’re driving to glance at the dash and notice that their car is about to run out of fuel or overheating.

My Grandpa Yoder had a New Yorker back in 1985. I remember when I first heard it talk I thought it was so bad ass. I was 8 years old and I did love knight rider too.

I liked Eddie Murphy's version from Nissan. "Hey man, someone stole your battery. I say we go get the MFer!" LOL

One feature I'm glad came back was the digital speedometer readout. all new cars have that now.

In the early 80s I learned to drive on an Aries K four speed. My grandpa had one of the talking cars, I guess it was a New Yorker, and was so proud of it.

One of my friends in college had one of those Laser's that talked. It wouldn't shut up the entire time they drove to school. We couldn't figure out how to shut it up so we souped up the stereo to drown it out.

Back in high school, my buddy used to give me a lift home in his mom's '87 New Yorker once in a while. When we pulled up to my house, I used to open my car door before he stopped just to set off the "your door is ajar" voice. This used to annoy the hell out of him. One day I set the voice off one too many times and he slammed the brakes, slammed it into Park, and got out of the car to run around and get me. I quickly got out and he chased me down the street on foot about 2 blocks. 🤣🤣🤣 I never laughed harder in my life and I still laugh thinking about it 30 years later.

I had a Dodge 600 es Talking Car. Loved It. Especially on Family Trips from Buffalo to St. Lous MO. Door Ajar was annoying , but Fuel is low and digital read out and spoken words keeping track of milage was a great idea.

I am an 80's kid, and I remember a few of these cars back in those days. I personally like digital guages over analogue ones. But the cars that talked, those I remember well.

We all that was pretty cool back then. A car telling you if something was wrong. I also remember the running jokes as well, like, "The door is ajar ! The tire is a bottle. The trunk is a cookie!" 😂

My grandparents had a talking Chrysler back in the 80's. It was almost as cool as Kitt.

My first wife and I did have a talking New Yorker for a bit. And yes, when it would thank me I would say, You're welcomed. When it told me my door was ajar of course I'd tell it, No fool it's a door. For the time we had it though I did enjoy it. Before we'd had a New Yorker 5th Avenue. I have yet to find a car that could beat the ride of that nor the comfort of those double padded, button down, corinthian leather, seats. During that time I'd had an umbilical hernia and that car was the only place I could sit that didn't hurt me. I truly liked that car with the 318 engine. It was a fine ride. Thank you for this video...

My dad had a New Yorker. It was hilarious. It wasn't so much the door but the wiper fluid tank was tiny and it would constantly tell us to refill it.

My parents had a 1983 Chrysler LeBaron that spoke: "A door is a jar", to which we replied, "No, a door is a door".

Chrysler 5 Ave, Chrysler's last vestige of American luxury,a chassis that dates back to the 60,s in 1988 the fifth avenue was the very last luxury car built from the the same chassis that built the first Plymouth valiant and dodge dart in 1960.

A jar is a glass container. Ajar is something not completely closed, usually a door.

I ordered a new 1985 Oldsmobile 98 with all options, and it talked, too . . it said at least fifteen different things . . the one I remember most is "The Park Brake Is Not Fully Released" - it was a man's voice, and it sounded more like FARK brake.

Eva was a 66 dollar option on my parents new 84 Chrysler E Class. As a kid i talked them into it. Still like the idea. Later i owned an 86 Nissan Maxima that had its own voice alert. Still think this was cool stuff. I now own another 84 E Class without eva and also an 84 New yorker turbo with eva.

The father of comedian Bill Hicks owned a talking car. Bill said that he and his friends went for a drive in it one time and they got high on drugs. Bill said 'So we're high on drugs and the car starts talking to us. It says 'The door is ajar.' and we're like 'Huh? The door is a jar?' How'd they make a door out of a jar?''

„Your washer fluid is low. Your fuel is low. Your electrical system is malfunctioning“ caught me off-guard

One of my first cars was a 1982 New Yorker K car with the 2.6L Mitsubishi 4 cylinder. It too, was a talker. When the engine blew, it said, "Catastrophic loss of oil pressure detected.

My college friend drove a 1983 Chrysler E Class. The car is shown in an ad at 10:29 - 10:35. It had the electronic voice alert. Mostly, it made us laugh as it told us different things. I remember if the radio was playing, and the car had to tell you something, the front speakers would shut off while the rear speakers kept playing the song on the radio. The front speakers would go "beep beep beep!" and then say whatever message it had to say. Sometimes my friend would make a turn which caused the washer fluid in the bottle to move around. Then the electronic voice alert would come on and tell him his washer fluid was low. I definitely remember the car saying "thank you" for taking the key out of the ingition, for shutting the headlights off, and for putting on your seat belt. There were other situations where hte system activated when it really shouldn't have - like if you turned the key on but didn't start the engine. After a little while it would tell you your oil pressure was low and you needed to bring the car in for service. I think the computer should have known the engine wasn't running yet so of course there was no oil pressure yet!

In the 1986 movie "Tough Enough" with Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas, the Kirk Douglas character got exasperated with one of those talking cars saying (paraphrase) "When will this broad shut up?" (referring to the female AI talking car voice). 9:57...If commercials must have caveats, THIS is how to display them, with not more than 3 lines of clearly legible print. What a contrast to today's TV ads showing a multitude of disclaimer lines requiring one to get up and get close to the screen, or else freeze frame it in order to read it.

"A door is a jar" always a classic.

My neighbor had the talking Chrysler. My family had an Aires K. I always loved going for rides in the New Yorker with my friend and laughing at the voice. When I was in college I had a Dodge 600 which had the indicator lights for all the things the New Yorker would say; every time I saw the “Door Ajar” light on the dash I would read it out loud in a robot voice, “A door is ajar!”

I’m a car guy and while I like technology I find most of the stuff on todays cars very distracting and make for WORSE drivers !! Touch screens IMO are very dangerous and cause you to take your eyes off the road. All these blind spot warnings and cameras make for lazy inattentive drivers that are less defensive etc. Give me cruise power windows seats locks, trunk opener, auto climate control and a good stereo and keep all the other crap that becomes obsolete tech within a few years and breaks

I had a Speak and Spell when I was a child. It was amazing. I am still a terrible speller.

That car for the thumbnail. Dude you drug up so many memories...😢

Interesting comments ! I had a 1985 New Yorker with a 2.2ci turbocharged engine . The car could excellerate like a bullet , faster than the Olds Cutlass 350ci I traded in . It had the most luxury leather interior equal to a 1974 Imperial i still have , just smaller than the Imp. I still have a shop manual for the NYr and it lists all the messages that were available , i believe a total of 39 . You could run a test and it would voice every message in the order shown in the manual . It also had a digital desplay just above the console that had several readouts similar to todays cars like instant or total gas milage , estimated arrival time , etc. It was a very enjoyable car to own . BTW , i still have (for 35yrs of its 37 yr life) , a 1986 Dodge Omni . Its my every day driver with 142000mi and i love it . Quick and easy handling in parking lots and has just the equipment i enjoy , super AC , delay wipers , cruise control , and updated premium radio/cd from a late model T&C van that dropped right in . Im now 87 and had several gorgeous cars starting with a used 46 Cadillac sedan , then one of my favorates , an almost new (while in high school) 1950 Olds 88 2dr ht . What a bomb that was with its new Rocket V8 and 4sp Hydramatic . The young friends all had Fords and were envious of the new "go power" of the famous Rocket Olds . What great memories -- the 50s !!! In my estimation , never another decade to match -- but maybe being in teens and twenties helps -- lol !!

I was just a kid when these cars were made. Growing up in a Buick dealership too. My father wasn't mad at me when I told him how much I loved that system. Even still, it deserves respect! I think today, it's super cool!

It's fun tech until you're working under the dash and it says it the 100th time

My mom had a 1984 New Yorker E class, 2.2 turbo. That thing was a blast. The washer fluid monitor was broken, so it would always, every start, proclaim, "YOUR WASHER FLUID IS LOW." I didn't hear it say anything else for ages, then mom said "oh it says other stuff too, watch." So she unbuckled her seatbelt and the fucker shouted, "PLEASE FASTEN YOUR SEATBELT!" I laughed and said it would be great if it thanked you upon buckling. She said it would be, but she didn't think it did. She buckled up, and sure enough, the fucker opened wide and screamed "THANK YOU."

We had an 80’s Oldsmobile Ninety Eight growing up that did the same thing, I distinctly remember “Your keys are in the ignition” “Divers door is ajar”

I remember driving my mom's Chrysler Lebanon convertible when i was a kid and just got my license. it had the talking feature.. I remember it was cool at first but quickly became really annoying! I think everyone will remember "A door is ajar" I also think it displayed the same message on a little LCD panel in the dash as well. just in case you didnt hear it I guess..

Ooh... that not-so-subtle dig at Doug towards the end there...

Love that you're doing car videos as well 👌

We need cars that tell the driver to get the hell out of the left lane

I had an '85 New Yorker with the Turbo I engine and was a talking car. What I remember most about it was how unreliable the transmissions were. The car was in my family for a little over a decade and we replaced the transmission four times. But that's Chrysler for you.

I own an 82 LeBaron Convertible! Unfortunately, it is not a talking model. I still love that car! Great video!

My parents had one of these. The grandkids were always answering the car voice.

Had it in my 83 Dodge 600. 5 speed 35 MPG. Loved it. Was like having the Starship Enterprise computer give me updates. Never ran out of gas etc... in that car. Niece who was 4 would argue "A door is a door, not a jar." Much better than my Toyota touch screen that only reads 40% of taps. OPEN THE POD BAY DOOR, HAL!

Cool video although it really wasn’t THAT annoying I remember Electronic Voice Alert well my uncle is a retired Chrysler dealer and we had 4 cars with it. The first, was the very first one with it my Dad had a 1983 New Yorker that was the most gabby one, they refined it afterwards. In the first ones it always said a door was ajar when it opened and keys in, fastened your seat belts too. They changed it right away. The car had to be in gear for it to go off door open, and in drive Without driver death fastened. You show the Fifth Avenue in this video that did NOT talk… he got an 85 Fifth Avenue after the NYer, but my mother had a 1985 Chrysler LeBaron GTC, that was a talker too. By 1987 they put a switch to shut it off behind the unit under the glove box and it’d only say a couple things then. My dad brought my mother a 1988 LeBaron convertible for Christmas and that one was one of the ADVANCED systems you spoke of. Then I had a used 1987 New Yorker myself when I learned to drive in the late 90s, I absolutely adored my New Yorker. Not sure if anyone is still following on the feed. You asked for any experience with it so I bit! ❤Oh PS. You REALLY had to school everyone on Speak 🗣️ N’ Spell??? You made me feel really old, I had them all as a kid 🤦🏻‍♂️ 🤣

I had a Chrysler Turbo Laser with the talking computer. The turbo was so hot my husband accidentally melted plastic on it pouring in power steering fluid and it caught on fire. My kids (ages 3&1) were inside and I was right next to where children waiting for the bus. Nobody was hurt in the end. The car saved our lives because the computer started talking garbled and I knew there was a problem and I shut it off. According to the fire department if I hadn't shut it off when I did, the car would have blown up with us inside. The engine wires were fried and the gas line was almost burned.

"Life is a journey, time is a river, the door is ajar."

5:12pm. My dad bought a 1983 Chrysler E Class. It did that talking. He had it until he passed, then my mom drove it for a while until she bumped a transit bus. Did a little damage to front, but still usable. My brother drove it for a few years and he still has it in his barn.

"Your uh bloo-uh-tooth de vice is redy tu uh pear"

'the door is ajar' I have a very early memory of a talking car... this connects. Breakthrough!

My dad rented an E class in 1983 to take us to Chicago. My mom was quite annoyed by it.

I remember back in 1985 I had two talking Chrysler New Yorkers one was 1985 and 1987 but this car was so fun too drive. I once drove it in between two 18 wheelers and my dad almost had a shit fit. The second car was back up. I love that car cause of all the reminders it let you knew what was happening. Wish talking cars were still around. Later on I brought a voice micro chip board and put it into a 1995 Mitsubishi Montero sport . It would say Attention please this vehicle is backing up. Also I brought a talking horn that played different songs I had set when I would pass by a friend or relative it also had a microphone . But all this is gone now. Those were indeed the good old days.

Your channel reminds me of Ed's auto reviews. Good job !

Chrysler did not aquire Plymouth. It developed it in-house. GM also had models that talked in the 80's after Chrysler. Olds 98 comes to mind.

I’ve got a talking motorcycle. It’s says BRAAAAAAAAP!

My Aunt got one and used to joke "you're door is ajar" - "hmmm....looks like an ordinary car door to me!" corny but cute :)

My grandpa had an 1988 Chrysler New Yorker . I loved that car super luxurious. Digital and automatic everything plus it talked

I got to drive an '87 Le Baron in 1998 and 1999, I found out too late that the voice feature had been disabled by the previous owner. I would have had a blast with a talking Le Baron. I named it Dolly, after a pet mutt of mine.

I remember looking at and test driving a Dodge 400 in 1983. The car was fine, the voice alert was novel, but I ended up buying a 1983 Mercury Marquis Brougham. It woul be another 40 years before I would buy a Chrysler vehicle. I bought a used 2020 Pacifica at the end of January, 2023. I love it!

This reminds me so much of the austin maestros. They featured a voice in the Vanden Plas / MG trims

I have a 1985 Oldsmobile 98 Regency Brougham that talks to me. "The charging system has failed!" Cuts out on the parking brake warning. It is ultimately quite useless, but very cool to have. Every time it warns me about the parking brake I say, "Shut it old man!"

Friend's mom had the New Yorker with the Texas instruments voice. It was pretty gimmicky but at the time it was really cool. As I recall, the car drove pretty nice and was fairly luxurious for what it was.

I have one of these cars a 1986 Chrysler, New Yorker Fifth Avenue. I finally found out how to disable that annoying talking and dinging

Our new yorker always said" you engine oil pressure is low, propt service is required " every time we started it lol

Imagine that was brought back today with Siri, Alexa or Google's Voice Assistant saying all of this stuff?

We used to talk back to our car "no it`s not a jar ,it`s just a door" !

"A door is a jar" no, it's a door

My favorite K car accessory was the visor phone. I still have one somewhere.

My grandmother had a silver chrysler in the late 80s and early 90s that said, "Your door is a jar, and please fasten your seatbelts, etc.

I knew it was related to my old Texas Instruments TI99-4A personal home computer with optional voice modulator!

The New Yorker was probably the most reliable and economical downsized luxury automobile in America in those days. I loved it!

I had a 1983 Chrysler Lebaron convertible that I would always argue with. I thought it was a fun feature. I miss that car.

I had a 1987 Chrysler New Yorker with all the options and can say that it had the most comfortable seats ever and since (I have had French cars, of which Citroen has the best seats, German cars, Italian cars, Spanish cars and American Cars). It was quite simple to drive from Mount Pleasant, Iowa to Greensboro, North Carolina - close to 1500 miles - stopping only for fuel and food as it was so easy on the body. Great car although underpowered in spite of the turbo.

Great video. My grandparents had a 1985 Oldsmobile 98 that would talk. It would only say that the lights were on and the door is ajar but I don’t think it said anything else.

Driven a few Chrysler's that talked. Sold one to my niece and it was the only car she ever had that she never ran out of gas with. The girl didn't know what a fuel gauge was apparently. I was convinced this video was recorded with EVA or Ai when the narrator pronounced oscilloscope. Strangest pronunciation of that word I've ever heard.

My aunt had a car that talked as well. Whenever it said "a door is ajar", she'd reply "Actually, it's a potted plant" My 14 y/o self at the time thought that was hilarious! 🤣

Had a dark blue one… first car!!! Still love it, even with the odd talking module!!!

My parents borrowed a friend’s 1980s Datsun sedan for a while in the late 90s when we’d just moved countries. My mom and I were going somewhere one evening and I got her all wound up with my bad kid attitude or something. She was busy (rightly) telling me off when the car started telling her that “a door was ajar. Without so much as taking a breath from her she looks at the steering wheel and screams “SHUT UP!!!!” That was decades ago and I still laugh about it to this day.

I had a talking car from the '80's. Unfortunately, I was the only one that could hear it..... 😜

My dad had one as a kid and my uncle would always say “the door’s not a jar it’s a door ya idiot”

I have a 2011 Corolla with voice controls that talks to you. It’s the only way to pair phones to the car actually, lol. The talking cars haven’t died off completely yet.

I used to know someone who had a mid '80s Chrysler New Yorker Turbo. It didn't talk. I can only assume that6 system had been disabled. If it had been my car I would certainly have disabled it. I didn't think much of the styling back then. It looked like a large luxury car that had been shrunk. But looking at the trash on the road today, I would love to have a car like that, as long as it didn't talk.

... ice try, Chrysler - but that horrible 4 cyllinder mill in most of them - Oh my - thanks for the fine Corinthian video!!