Digital navigation options

[chessie4905]

Once on the road after pre trip route check, I have wife take over routing. That way if there is a major screw up in directions, it's her fault and not mine....😊

[eagle19952]

Once on the road after pre trip route check, I have wife take over routing. That way if there is a major screw up in directions, it's her fault and not mine....😊

Another reason that makes a wife a valuable asset. 

[Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM]

Another reason that makes a wife a valuable asset. 

Well, maybe it is time to get married then. 

[chessie4905]

Here I thought you were married to the chimpanzee in your picture. 😮

[Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM]

Here I thought you were married to the chimpanzee in your picture. 😮

That is her sister.  She is available if you are interested. 

[chessie4905]

She looks hot!

[RJ]

Don -

When we're going on a trip somewhere other than what we're familiar with, I start with Google Maps on the computer, either the desktop if we're home, or the laptop when on the road. (99% of the time we have excellent WiFi onboard while traveling, so I can use the laptop. But that's another topic for another time.) I don't like Google Maps on the iPad or smartphone, because on those devices, it will not allow you to add/subtract multiple intermediate stops.

Once I've got the basics, I then go to www.flattestroute.com to see what kind of grades I'll be dealing with on the route I've chosen.  (Because Tortoise is so underpowered, this is part of my planning process.) There has been many a time we've re-routed a different way due to the terrain, as long as it's not more than a 50-75 mile deviance. I also check Google Earth, to make sure I'm not being sent down routes better suited to ATVs or 4x4 Jeeps.  When I'm done, I'll print out the directions for Patricia to follow along as we go, just to keep the GPS units honest.

We have a Garmin RV760LMT in the coach (the RV770LMT is the newer version), and a Garmin Nuvi 2555 in the VW.  Both are programmed with the LxWxH of the respective vehicles, and I've found as long as I update the units regularly, they've been pretty darned accurate in terms of low bridges, steep grade announcements, speed limit changes, etc.  They will argue with the route I've chosen vs my prior homework, but once I make a homework turn, they come around to the route I'm taking.  (At least Garmin's eliminated the annoying "recalculating" voice!)

As backup, we still carry one of the large Rand McNally Trucker's Atlas, plus several AAA maps.  (Back when I was driving charters, my AAA membership paid for itself with all the maps I used to carry in my driver's briefcase to plan my charter trips.)

Oh, another internet tool that I use for planning is www.drivingrouteplanner.com.  Plug in your start/finish address, the addresses of all your intermediate stops, what time you want to start, how long you want to stop at each intermediate point, hit "go" and it will give you all kinds of options from the fastest time to shortest distance and a bunch of options in between, including what time you'll finish. Handy tool, for sure.

FWIW & HTH. . .

 

[chessie4905]

I'm close to getting the rv770 lmt or the desl 770. Still not sure which would be better and also usable in the car.

[richard5933]

We've got the RV 760, which is the older model to the 770. I think that it could easily be used in a car if you had room for it. It's possible to set different profiles, so you could have one for the car and another for the coach, each with its own parameters.

[chessie4905]

I've read about that ability on that model, but don't know if that is an option on the Desl. Someone needs to buy both and report back.☺
Btw, I mount all my gps units in all my vehicles using Ram mounts. No more failing suction cups or pillow mounts. And precise mounting positions. They also have the cradles for most gps and phone and other items.

https://mounts.factoryoutletstore.com/?cid=278351&chid=1&campaignid=906748052&adgroupid=47859816600&creative=236421799593&targetid=kwd-298761482118&matchtype=e&device=t&network=g&gclid=CjwKCAjw14rbBRB3EiwAKeoG_5_COicWSEFmVtALd4SlQBJrujqMGCDuyBiKypsZxMMq91ZOy1JoHhoCPgIQAvD_BwE

[Oonrahnjay]

  ...  Btw, I mount all my gps units in all my vehicles using Ram mounts. ...

https://mounts.factoryoutletstore.com/ ...   

      I need something like that for my Magellan (BTW - POS) 7" GPS but the $60 - $70 - $80 price tags stopped me in my tracks.   

[windtrader]

For those using the Garmin RV760LM or RV770LMT, does it have a feature to list obstacles during the trip planning step?  Seems obvious that it should alert you that a route you entered has issues and suggests the alternate routes.

Sort of leaning back toward having one. Will dive into the user manual for details.

[richard5933]

For those using the Garmin RV760LM or RV770LMT, does it have a feature to list obstacles during the trip planning step?  Seems obvious that it should alert you that a route you entered has issues and suggests the alternate routes.

Sort of leaning back toward having one. Will dive into the user manual for details.

Here's a link to the manual for the RV760. http://static.garmin.com/pumac/RV_760_OM_EN.pdf

There is a list of things that you can choose to receive warnings about. You can also have the route created with certain avoidances. Often times multiple routes will be offered. If a route is done which includes a piece of road you want to avoid it's possible to detour around it. I believe that it's possible to add a detour around a particular road or whole section of town before the route is set as well. Once you get the manual on your computer, use CTRL + F to search for the word 'detour' to see more about this.

[windtrader]

FYI - Placed order for the Garmin RV770 plus the backup camera. Funny thing is the integrated camera is what finally pushed me over the buy line as well as reading the features details. Offers quite a bit in a single unit. While in cell data range, the link offers more real time updates and richer data. Price on factory refurb with warranty was good too.

[richard5933]

We use the camera on ours as well. I got the cable extension so that I could mount the transmitting unit inside towards the front of the coach to make sure the signal was clear. Quite happy with the quality of the camera image. We wired ours to 12v circuit separate from the reverse lights, and we added a switch on the driver's panel so I can turn on the backup camera while driving to see the car hiding behind me.