Relic Of The Past: The Infamous JDM Speed Chime

If you’ve ever driven an older Japanese Domestic Market (JDM) car, you’ve probably heard a weird speed chime coming from inside the dash. This unique feature, which some absolutely loathe and others find charming, was available only on vehicles made to be sold in Japan, so you won’t get it on Japanese rides shipped to US dealers.

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The speed limit in Japan in the 1980s was set nationally to 100 kmh, or about 62 mph. To help Japanese citizens not speed unintentionally, the government regulated that every car sold in the country had to have a chime device which was set off as soon as the speedometer hit 104 kmh or 65 mph.

If you see the actual chime device, it just consists of a spring-loaded striker which his two different metal plates in rapid succession. Each plate produces a different pitch, hence the distinct sound some find maddening and others love.

Japanese citizens are for the most part very into following laws, so people didn’t get all riled up about this feature like Americans would.

But as Americans have imported JDM vehicles as they reach 25 years old and can be legally brought into the country, they’ve learned about the speed chime feature. While the Japanese just accepted it, opinions here are split.

Some will take apart the dash and remove the chime device entirely. While that’s not a super difficult task, it is tedious, but they consider it a necessary job to preserve their sanity. After all, get on any highway in the US and you will be going over 62 mph, so the chime will sound the entire time.

Unlike the seatbelt reminder chimes in some newer vehicles, where the dinging noise eventually silences, the JDM speed chime won’t shut up, ever, until you start going 62 mph or slower.

Beware this feature if you’re looking at buying a 1980s or early 1990s JDM car.

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