TomTom woes... what to do?

I have been struggling with the TomTom unit in my 2012 RS since we bought the rig. I have developed many itineraries using Tyre, utilizing lots of waypoints to minimize the decision-making The TomTom would have to do. All to no avail. It seems to come down to the Fastest vs Shortest Route question when loading the itinerary, although either choice will cause it to ignore the itinerary way-points. On our last trip, I instructed it just to take us "home" by the shortest route, and while the route it developed was what I had in mind, to my amazement, it kept wanting me to get off of the freeway at a number of exits from which there are not even secondary roads headed in the direction we were traveling. Who know where (and when) we'd have ended up.

So, I’m considering replacing the TomTom/Eclipse II with a different unit with a Garmin GPS unit. Anyone tried this? Any suggestions?

PMorris said:

I have been struggling with the TomTom unit in my 2012 RS since we bought the rig. I have developed many itineraries using Tyre, utilizing lots of waypoints to minimize the decision-making The TomTom would have to do. All to no avail. It seems to come down to the Fastest vs Shortest Route question when loading the itinerary, although either choice will cause it to ignore the itinerary way-points. On our last trip, I instructed it just to take us "home" by the shortest route, and while the route it developed was what I had in mind, to my amazement, it kept wanting me to get off of the freeway at a number of exits from which there are not even secondary roads headed in the direction we were traveling. Who know where (and when) we'd have ended up.

So, I’m considering replacing the TomTom/Eclipse II with a different unit with a Garmin GPS unit. Anyone tried this? Any suggestions?

Click to expand...

We have the same TomTom/Eclipse..it's a piece that belongs on the scrap heap. It seems that it is designed to divert you through business sections instead of leading you past Towns.

We're ourselves looking for a better unit but sans GPS. Rather use a Garmin NUVI GPS at direct sign than having to glance to the right center console: Safety? There are so many on the web and all are made in China. Looking at Kenwood; JVC; etc. I've looked at these:

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1...dash-dvd-gps-radio-for-mercedes-sprinter_auto

But how will I do the re-wiring for the back up camera that is already wired above the headliner of my 2010 Roadtrek SS Agile?

cheers...

The Seican unit looks like a bigger problem than the Eclipse. Too much fiddling while driving. Expect it to last two years before breaking, like most of the other low quality mass market Chinese products.

We have resorted to using the Eclipse for listening to satellite radio, and only use the TomTom to view the road ahead. We use the iPhone for GPS.

Would like to see a better system also. I think something using an iPad Mini would work best, but then there is the problem of an amplifier for the music. Others are working on solutions, but nothing I'd invest in yet.

Sigh! And a wing flap!..... We had an Eclipse unit w/ TomTom in our '10 Ventura. It didn't work initially because the "professionals" at Thor didn't plug the antenna into the unit! But, hey! Another trip to CW! That's Thor for you.....

The only GPS system worse than the TomTom was a DeLorme laptop system and MS Streets! that I use once and promptly returned.

TomTom Functionally: difficult to use and program because it's not Garmin-friendly nor does it use well thought out logic steps when programming. Example: you have to go deep into an obscure menus to "Stop Route." It should be on the first page. As to routing, it was horrible on at least two accounts. No matter what routing you selected or what "avoidances" selected the dang thing would take you on some of the most bizarre trips... Often leading you off "hard ball" high speed highways and on to two tracks and goat paths in the most remote areas. It got me totally lost up in north central Texas on a trip to Glen Rose. I saw every goat ranch and double wide in a five county area as I hand plotted a recovery route from an ancient Rand McNally atlas in 1:world scale. The only thing useful on it was the compass function at that point.

Another item I found frustrating was the "arrival time & time to destination" computations. They were always off by a huge amount. What was a normal 1 or 2 hour drive would show some ridiculous 4 or 5 hour time frame. AND! Those times would not change appreciably until you were virtually within sight of your destination... Then it would suddenly "get smart" and wind down to exactly match my Garmin as you pulled up to your destination. Worthless!

So.... We used our "Garman-on-a-Beanbag" tossed on the dash as the "primary" nav system. The TomTom became a mobile map and gross plotting and course keeping tool. It was a bit more useful than Garmin at locating some amenities but not often. Only slightly better than my 1:world 10 year old Atlas.

The screen was also hard to see in some lighting conditions.

Updating the TomTom was a PITA. I'm still trying to get rid of the TomTom update tool from my main computer. It goes away after deleting and removing it only to re-appear months later asking if I want to update a device which I no longer have.....

FWIW, the new Rand McNally system in our 14 VP is nice. Works well and easy to use. Some nice features. It finds things! Makes good choices in routing. Still use the Garmin as a redundant GPS.

Our daughter, who for several years was a traveling social worker in the UK, refers to them as "Dum Dums". They were the "issue" GPS in their vehicles, and she hated Tom Tom with a passion.

We had one for a few months, ended up tossed in the trash after insisting we turn off perfectly good freeways over and over again. Then there was the time it showed us driving offshore for about 100 miles along the gulf coast. Garmin for me, thanks.

chromisdesigns said:

Our daughter, who for several years was a traveling social worker in the UK, refers to them as "Dum Dums". They were the "issue" GPS in their vehicles, and she hated Tom Tom with a passion.

We had one for a few months, ended up tossed in the trash after insisting we turn off perfectly good freeways over and over again. Then there was the time it showed us driving offshore for about 100 miles along the gulf coast. Garmin for me, thanks.

Click to expand...

OK, I hear you... now what do you suggest I replace it with? Don't need a GPS build in but still would like to have a good radio/dvd/cd... backup camera with angle finder, etc.

Kenwood(http://www.crutchfield.com/p_613DDX271/Kenwood-DDX271.html?cc=01); Pioneer; MBenz(china); Becker; etc....

Can one reuse the existing coax cable in my 2010 Roadtrek SS Agile for the back up camera by splicing the ends for the new radio and backup camera instead of having to route the new coax cable that comes with the new radio? Very problematic going through the roof liner!



cheers....

Mein Sprinter said:

OK, I hear you... now what do you suggest I replace it with? Don't need a GPS build in but still would like to have a good radio/dvd/cd... backup camera with angle finder, etc.

Kenwood(http://www.crutchfield.com/p_613DDX271/Kenwood-DDX271.html?cc=01); Pioneer; MBenz(china); Becker; etc....

Can one reuse the existing coax cable in my 2010 Roadtrek SS Agile for the back up camera by splicing the ends for the new radio and backup camera instead of having to route the new coax cable that comes with the new radio? Very problematic going through the roof liner!



cheers....

Click to expand...

We use a mid-level Garmin Nuvi on a beanbag, never have liked built in GPS as they go obsolete too fast. Declined that option when we bought our coach but did go for a Pioneer flat panel unit with sat radio and backup camera. You should check camera specs for any unit you consider, but I believe most of the aftermarket head units will work with a variety if cameras. Existing camera likely will work. I do know Pioneer lets you select how the camera is wired (polarity) and whether it stays on all the time, or only in reverse. All in the setup menus, if a bit hard to find.

We are happy with the Pioneer, screen is bright enough to be useful and function selection via touch screen is easy.

I do have to reset the camera polarity setting after disconnecting the vehicle battery for storage, though other settings seem to persist. Only takes a few seconds once I can remember where in the menu tree it hides...

I can't imagine why you would need to pull new coax, even if you did replace the camera. I'd try existing camera first in any case. Bet it works fine.

chromisdesigns said:

We use a mid-level Garmin Nuvi on a beanbag, never have liked built in GPS as they go obsolete too fast. Declined that option when we bought our coach but did go for a Pioneer flat panel unit with sat radio and backup camera. You should check camera specs for any unit you consider, but I believe most of the aftermarket head units will work with a variety if cameras. Existing camera likely will work. I do know Pioneer lets you select how the camera is wired (polarity) and whether it stays on all the time, or only in reverse. All in the setup menus, if a bit hard to find.

We are happy with the Pioneer, screen is bright enough to be useful and function selection via touch screen is easy.

I do have to reset the camera polarity setting after disconnecting the vehicle battery for storage, though other settings seem to persist. Only takes a few seconds once I can remember where in the menu tree it hides...

I can't imagine why you would need to pull new coax, even if you did replace the camera. I'd try existing camera first in any case. Bet it works fine.

Click to expand...

Likewise prefer the Garmin mounted in the corner to my left(window). Better line of sight compared to having to glance away from the road looking at the center console.

Mind telling me what model your Pioneer is? Thank you..

cheers

We have a Garmin. It freaks out on us completely sometimes.

One of my habits before long trips is to look at Mapquest or Google maps to jot down an orderly list of the route numbers and cities we'll be heading too. that habit saved us from our first Garmin total meltdown which happened in a complex area of our travel route. All of a sudden the Garmin was showing us off the road on the screen and then began spitting out what seemed to be totally random street names and suggested turns. We never did see any of the streets it spit out at all.

Many people have fancy phones and a good data plan these days. My suggestion would be to research and choose a phone app. They are relatively cheap (free?) and easy to use. I use mine sparingly though because I keep my data plan costs very low.

vic

I've used a GPS or navigation in my RV's for years. The problems that occur are usually caused by one of two errors:
1--The map database that the GPS makers use has errors. The biggest problem being gaps in the roads. You will also see exit ramps not connected. The GPS will then not route through these errors but around them. That's why it will send you way out of the best path.
2-- When the receiver has a glitch in reception and loses it position the automatic reroute will think you are not where you should be and try to get you back on track. This results in weird directions.

My favorite GPS system is the Delorme Street Atlas on my laptop. On my previous 'class A' MH I had a custom laptop mount. This allowed a large screen for convenient viewing. I did my routing the night before and checked it for errors. If there were any the program allows you to draw corrected route-able streets. If I saw I wanted to go a different way I could add via points to alter the route. I also turned off the auto-reroute option. If I happened to get off route I could look at the screen and figure it out myself.
You can also add your own POI's easily. Discovery Owners Forum has pre-programed lists available to download. Everything from all the Walmarts, restaurants and Flying J's, etc.
A program with all these capabilities requires a bit of learning and time to get used to.
In my Roadtrek I am now using a Garmin Nuvi. I don't like it as well but it's small and does reasonably well. If I have a complicated route I route it on my laptop with Street Atlas and then transfer it to the Garmin. It is a lot more work that way but can be done.