RV gps

[xbr443]

Does anyone have an RV GPS? If so which one and are you happy with it?

Our car GPS kept putting us on Parkways, it was really annoying.

[AirsDream]

I'm not sure what is an "RV GPS" - I have two Garmin units, and on-road, they're as good as the road maps are recent / updated. The only real issue with either of them from my perspective is that road changes overtake the new map issuances, so from time to time I have an "adventure" when a road has been moved or an intersection improved since the last map update.

Accuracy is typically good to 11' or so, depending upon how many satellites they can "see." In this regard, I once had a very difficult time in the UK a few years ago with an older unit, where the back roads had no direction signs, and were very narrow and completely covered overhead by lots of tree branches / foliage, and the GPS kept losing signal lock. I think the newer units, with better receivers and better chipsets would resolve that issue.

On both of my units, you can specify what sort of roads you want to be on or not on ... but not clear to me exactly what is a "Parkway" or why being on one would be annoying. If this is a scenic, winding road with lots of nice views, that's just the sort of road I usually want to be on, but I don't think that Garmin's software has a setting to avoid such roads. I do know that some units allow you to specify the sort of vehicle you are driving, so if you select, for example, "Semi tractor" - they will avoid smaller back roads if possible.

[Skater]

Our Magellans have been pretty good too. But we use the Baltimore-Washington Parkway all the time...

[Denis4x4]

Several years ago there was a story in the San Diego Union alluding to the fact that some GPS routes are designed to take you past a business that may have paid for that service. Interestingly enough, if I set a GPS to take me home, it will direct me past a Conoco station and add two miles to the trip.

I canned GPS years ago and depend on Benchmark state books and specific Google maps.

[Ahab]

We use IPhone Apps. Have one for campgrounds, one for rest stops, Google Maps, and one for directions.

[xbr443]

Thanks everyone. I live in New York and Parkway bridges are to low for us so it can be a big problem.

I can't wait for Summer and our first season RVing.

[Wayne&Sam]

If you get one, choose a model that includes lifetime map updates. Usually you can opt to change the route it suggests- asking it to avoid tolls, or certain roads. I'm a TomTom fan for the vehicles and Garmin for handhelds.

[xbr443]

BTW Parkway's are for Passenger cars only. You will get a ticket if you get caught driving with a trailer on a Parkway.

[Kyle]

We use a Garmin dezl 560LMT. It's made for truck drivers, so it has route information in it that is specific for truckers (underpass heights, grades, roads with tight turns, etc) and uses that to determine a route. Sometimes there is not a route that it can determine is safe for a rig, and will notify of those sections. (You can also set it to route for car and pedestrian use.)

It also allows you to enter the dimensions of your rig. So we've set it up for our truck and trailer. It comes programmed with the location of truck stops, so you can easily find somewhere your combo will fit if that is a concern. We've also downloaded POI sets for National and State parks and RV campgrounds.

Overall, I am quite satisfied with the performance of it. There's been a couple times that I have questioned the routing, but that's just a good reason to double check the route before leaving.

[Zeppelinium]

Dissenting opinion here--read no further if you are easily perturbed.

The remark "Our car GPS kept putting us on Parkways..." is pretty revealing. The cartoon maps in most GPS units give you no idea about the wider world just a mile or two either side of a programmed trip. These units are insidious, evil machines that lull you into a misplaced sense of confidence that you know where you are and where you're going. You don't actually have a clue.

Using an I-Phone app to find the nearest Starbucks or Costco is the right idea, but asking an app or a GPS unit to get you from Denver to Omaha means you're ceeding navigation to some nerd desk jockey software developer--you deserve the route you get.

Get a real map system before you forget which way is north! Oziexplorer (for, like $100) is a terrific piece of PC software (yes, you need a laptop with a GPS dongle) that uses free maps (like Google maps, USGS maps, or even maps you scan in yourself). You can even use free satellite photos to navigate to lakes, RV parks, and beaches that don't show up even on detailed printed maps. Yes, it's a pain to figure out how to put a laptop in the front seat, but once you've got it there, with a wi-fi card, you can do a lot of other stuff, like check email, every time you stop for gas or a bite. And it's wonderful at night--the moving map keeps you oriented with just a glance. Plus, it records the track for every trip, which can be recalled years later when you can't quite remember where that last really nifty place was. Plus plus, Ozi is a great trip planning tool and you can calibrate your speedometer (most speedos are 2-3 mph high at when indicating 65 mph).

Follow the links in this post for more details on Ozi's features and examples of different maps that are available.

Zep

[richinny]

a little background. ny built parkways for non commercial traffic. they are scenic routes with low overpasses. trailers and such are prohibited.

rand mcnally makes a gps for trailers. a friend looking into getting one decided against it because of some poor reviews.

i've seen posts on here from an outfit that manufactures this type of gps. you might find it if you do a search.

[DFlores]

Originally Posted by Zeppelinium

Dissenting opinion here--read no further if you are easily perturbed.

The remark "Our car GPS kept putting us on Parkways..." is pretty revealing. The cartoon maps in most GPS units give you no idea about the wider world just a mile or two either side of a programmed trip. These units are insidious, evil machines that lull you into a misplaced sense of confidence that you know where you are and where you're going. You don't actually have a clue.

Using an I-Phone app to find the nearest Starbucks or Costco is the right idea, but asking an app or a GPS unit to get you from Denver to Omaha means you're ceeding navigation to some nerd desk jockey software developer--you deserve the route you get.

Get a real map system before you forget which way is north! Oziexplorer (for, like $100) is a terrific piece of PC software (yes, you need a laptop with a GPS dongle) that uses free maps (like Google maps, USGS maps, or even maps you scan in yourself). You can even use free satellite photos to navigate to lakes, RV parks, and beaches that don't show up even on detailed printed maps. Yes, it's a pain to figure out how to put a laptop in the front seat, but once you've got it there, with a wi-fi card, you can do a lot of other stuff, like check email, every time you stop for gas or a bite. And it's wonderful at night--the moving map keeps you oriented with just a glance. Plus, it records the track for every trip, which can be recalled years later when you can't quite remember where that last really nifty place was. Plus plus, Ozi is a great trip planning tool and you can calibrate your speedometer (most speedos are 2-3 mph high at when indicating 65 mph).

Follow the links in this post for more details on Ozi's features and examples of different maps that are available.

Zep

Attachment 157127

Come on, if you're going all in why not develop your own maps with CGPSmapper, that way your sure to include all necessary information, and you will not be dependant on "googley" or "wifi" or "cloudy" or.............oh excuse me I just had a moment.....sorry.......everyone as you were.

David

[Aage]

The Big Three in GPS units are Magellan, Garmin, and TomTom. All three place well in Consumers Reports, FWIW.

There are three things I would check on on the one you buy: (1) the voice of "announcer", because you will listen to him/her for longs periods at a time, and the ease of entering data into the keyboard. Before you yell at me, I know that some units allow you to change announcer, but not all.

(2) The keyboard: my wife uses the Magellan, and I hate her keyboard. Nearly impossible to NOT make at least one mistake and have to backpeddle to correct it. She tells me I have "fat fingers", but that's another story. The old Garmin I have, never a problem.

OTOH, her Magellan has more flexibility in the exclusions or settings. She can tell it to avoid certain items (highways, let's say) but for this route only. My Garmin, you need to change the global settings to do that.

Her Magellan "dings" right at the point where you take action. In fact, it has three different "dings": one for right turn, another for left, and yet a third for straight ahead.

That gives good confirmation of what to do at the right time, without taking your eyes off the road.

And lastly (3) I think that most, if not all of the units today have the "text to speech" feature. This simply means that it tells you the name of the road you are turning on to. Both of ours just say something like, "Turn right in XX metres". Text to speech units say "Turn right on YY Street in XX metres".

Lastly, Zep, while everything you say about Ozie is true, I could not bear to have a laptop or even a notepad in the front seat. In fact here in Canada it's only the Police that are permitted to have that setup, since you will for sure be looking at it far too much to be safe, IMHO. However, I used Ozie with our first GPS, a handheld with no real map in it, and it was indispensable, but that was for boating.

So, my last word is: be sure you can return and/or exchange the one you buy, in case it has something you don't like. They are all different, some in subtle ways, others in glaring ways. Don't buy the cheapest one, you will surely regret it.

Oh, another Last Word: get one with "Lifetime Maps". This mean that you will always have an up-to-date map in your unit, and not have to pay $60 to $100 every two years or so. They update about 4 times a year, I think. Well worth a bit more...

[mojo]

I have been happy with the RVND with about 4,000 miles of use. It is designed for RV'ers with all the major camp grounds and dump stations loaded in. But I still look at maps to make sure I know where I want to go and plan my own routes. Computers and Iphones won't work in many areas of UT, NV, AZ & NM. No phone signal.

[Eric 28]

I use theMagellan Road Mate Pro 9165T. Made for RV's So far on problems. You can check it out at Camping World.

[Aage]

Another suggestion:

If you want great info on campgrounds as you travel, get a software designed specifically to do that: Woodalls.

You buy their big fat book, and you also get a CD that allows you to search by more parameters than you would believe (rating, features like 50 amp service, a pool and so on) AND does by proximity to where you are, or where you are heading.

No guesswork, no piece of information left unanswered.

The fact that you get the book AND the CD seems overkill at first, until you get on the road, and your co-pilot isn't a computer type.

I have no connection or affiliation to the Woodalls company, but I haven't seen another work that can compare.

[xbr443]

Thanks again everyone. Lots of research to do.

[exthemius]

Originally Posted by mojo

I have been happy with the RVND with about 4,000 miles of use. It is designed for RV'ers with all the major camp grounds and dump stations loaded in. But I still look at maps to make sure I know where I want to go and plan my own routes. Computers and Iphones won't work in many areas of UT, NV, AZ & NM. No phone signal.

We've recently gotten rid of our TomTom (after being an avid TomTom user for at least 7 years) because although it was great when not towing, we hated it while towing. It didn't allow multi-stop trips/itineraries, it was hard to use (the way we wanted to, anyway).

Anyway, this one is nice (regardless of what reviewers might say) because it factors in your height, length, propane etc, and figures out whether or not you'll be able to make that left-handed turn, or if you should take the longer way around via a right-handed turn. Also, from an RV'ers perspective, the POI's are nice and updated, as well as easy access to things like dump stations, overnight parking areas, truck-stops with RV islands, etc (all things you "can" do with custom POI's with the other units, but here they're just built in and work) Also, everything is coordinated with the printed version (you can easily locate the map page and grid from within the unit) -- you can easily find your current location as the mile-marker is listed in front of you, you can "pad" your estimated arrival times based on how you drive (meaning not everyone drives the posted speedlimit while towing). Also there are campground reviews, photos and what not built in.

We've put around 5k or so on it, and are now using it exclusively for our trip up the east coast.

[Skater]

Originally Posted by xbr443

BTW Parkway's are for Passenger cars only. You will get a ticket if you get caught driving with a trailer on a Parkway.

I see busses and RVs on the B-W Parkway all the time. In fact if you go to the NPS website for it, you'll see a commercial bus in the picture! Oddly enough, the warning below the picture says commercial vehicles and trucks are prohibited. However, there is nothing about privately owned RVs.

Perhaps other NPS parkways are different, but I know RVs are also allowed on Skyline Drive - that's the only way to get to the campgrounds they have.

As for the guy going on about how GPSs are making us dumber or whatever, I check the routes before going and use the GPS as a backup, and to let me know if there is traffic ahead. Haven't had a problem yet. You wouldn't blindly rely on your chosen mapped-out route and ignore the signs on the road, right? I'm not sure why people assume that everyone who uses a GPS is doing that.

[xbr443]

Robert Mosses created the Parkways on Long Island, the parkways lead to State Parks. He didn't want people to come by the bus load to the parks from New York City so they made the bridges very low. Long Island is not the only area around here with low bridges and around here you will get a ticket if you drive on a Parkway with an RV or trailer of any type. We know what to avoid on Long Island but we went upstate this weekend and ran into the same problem. My husband knew the roads well enough to keep us out of trouble but we need a more permanent solution. Some of the parkway bridges are less than 9', we can't fit.

If anyone comes to the New York area you need to be aware and make sure to stay off the Parkways. Tractor trailer drivers often aren't aware of the issue or just ignore the signs that warn of low bridges. It's a fairly frequent occurrence to have tractor trailers hit bridges or need to be backed off of a Parkway.