Oldsmobile’s Guidestar GPS arrives to spare men the indignity of asking directions

It’s easy today to take GPS navigation for granted and, particularly, to underestimate its importance in saving couples’ relationships. Back in the mid-1990s, however, when factory navigation made its first U.S. appearance in the Oldsmobile Eighty-Eight, the exciting new technology was pitched in this infomercial with the enticement: “Wouldn’t you guys love it if you never had to admit to your wife that you were lost while you were driving?”

GM called the miracle technology Guidestar, and it was a $2000 option on the Eighty-Eight. The hard-disk-based system had data for just 17 states. The unit was mounted on a flexible stick and featured input buttons below a color screen. Turn-by-tun directions were displayed on the screen, and audible directions were given as well. As the video shows, however, the electronic voice synthesizer was about on a par with a Speak & Spell.

The execution may have been rudimentary, but the idea was revolutionary. Clearly, a new age was dawning — and in a rather unlikely car. For guys, the promise was clear. As the video says: “You’ll never hear the words that strike fear in the hearts of all men, ‘Honey, let’s pull over and ask for directions.'”