Electronic voice alert (EVA) was an option available on many

Chrysler Stellantis North America (officially FCA US and formerly Chrysler ()) is one of the " Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is the American subsidiary of the multinational automoti ...

K-car-based vehicles in the mid-1980s. Chrysler and Dodge used technology of the

Texas Instruments LPC Speech Chips The Texas Instruments LPC Speech Chips are a series of speech synthesizer digital signal processor integrated circuits created by Texas Instruments beginning in 1978. They continued to be developed and marketed for many years, though the speech dep ...

, that were also used in the Speak & Spell toy. The EVA would automatically lower the radio volume and deliver eleven different spoken warning messages to drivers using a

speech synthesizer Speech synthesis is the artificial production of human speech. A computer system used for this purpose is called a speech synthesizer, and can be implemented in software or Computer hardware, hardware products. A text-to-speech (TTS) system conve ...

in 24 certain models. A similar system was used in 1984 to 1986

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, and the

Nissan Maxima The Nissan Maxima is a full-size car manufactured and marketed by Nissan and offered as Nissan's flagship sedan primarily in North America, the Middle East, and China — and currently in its eighth generation. Having debuted for model year 1 ...

GL and GLE models. The messages are played from a miniature

phonograph record A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English), or simply a record, is an analog sound storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove. The groove usually starts nea ...

, similar as used in speaking

doll A doll is a physical model, model typically of a human or humanoid character, often used as a toy for children. Dolls have also been used in traditional religious rituals throughout the world. Traditional dolls made of materials such as clay and ...

s. The EVA was available on the

Chrysler LeBaron The Chrysler LeBaron, also known as the Imperial LeBaron, is a line of automobiles built by Chrysler from 1931-1941 and from 1955-1995. The model was introduced in 1931, with a body manufactured by LeBaron Incorporated, LeBaron, and competed wit ...

(and the optional Mark Cross Edition),

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Wagon A wagon or waggon is a heavy four-wheeled vehicle pulled by draught animals or on occasion by humans, used for transporting goods, commodities, agricultural materials, supplies and sometimes people. Wagons are immediately distinguished from ...

Chrysler Fifth Avenue The Chrysler Fifth Avenue was a trim level/option package or model name used by Chrysler for its larger sedans from 1979 to 1993. The Fifth Avenue name was no longer used after 1993 when Chrysler introduced its new LH-platform New Yorker and simil ...

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, Chrysler Laser,

Dodge Daytona The Dodge Daytona is an automobile which was produced by the Chrysler Corporation under their Dodge division from 1984 until 1993. It was a front-wheel drive hatchback based on the Chrysler G platform, which was derived from the Chrysler K platfo ...

, and

Dodge 600 The Dodge 600 is a mid-size car that was built by Dodge. It was introduced in 1982, as a 1983 model, based on the Chrysler E platform and was discontinued after the 1988 model year. It was Chrysler's answer to the GM A-body, whereas the M-body ...

between 1983 and 1988. Models sold in Canada accommodated both English and French. Models sold in Mexico spoke Spanish. Generally paired with a digital instrument cluster and considered the height of technology at the time, many drivers grew weary of the system constantly admonishing them to fasten their seatbelts and turned it off via removing a fuse, which sometimes deactivates the

fuel gauge In automotive and aerospace engineering, a fuel gauge is an instrument used to indicate the amount of fuel in a fuel tank. In electrical engineering, the term is used for ICs determining the current State of Charge of accumulators. Motor vehi ...

. Later models had the option to be turned off via a switch in the glovebox.

References

{{reflist

External links

Stan Watkins's EVA page
Automotive accessories Chrysler Texas Instruments