Sat nav (1 Viewer)

[bobble]

I'm thinking about buying a sat nav but i'm a little concerned about the overhang of the luton ( it's a McLouis 432 ) preventing line of sight of the satellites. Queries at Dixons & Halfords didn't help,they both suggested I may need an external aerial but they seem to be an extra £50. Has anyone experienced problems or am I anticipating problems that don't exist? It's an aluminium luton.

 

[Kon tiki]

Is your Luton aluminum or fibreglass? I use TomTom on my PDA with a bluetooth GPS & that works fine through the fibregalss. I have a low profile Adria & I just stick the GPS receiver in the overhead front locker. :thumb:

 

[vindiboy]

I never had a problem with my TOM TOM in my Euro Mobil that was coach built and had a luton, it was Fibre Glass construction,I notice that if I ever loose satelite connection it is usually because of thick trees in forests or heavy foliage along country roads, yet under tunnels etc. I seldom loose contact,I don't have any external antenna of any sort is this usual??

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[pappajohn]

i've just been putting co-ords in my tomtom for tomorrows trip to scun-thorpe and i was sat at my kitchen table, 6ft from a window, at home doing it.

if it can 'see' the satellites while indoors then it should work under the 'bulge'

and i mean it can see the sats, not just passively accept the co-ords....

sick of 'her' saying "turn around when possible":Angry:

 

[Harveyx]

I had problems with my tom tom receiving satalites in my c class and purchased an external aerial through e-bay approx £6. This made all the difference and lay at the bottom of my windscreen in the inside. It was magnetic but did not stick to the aluminium roof so I just left it on front of dash

 

[pappajohn]

external aerials have one primary purpose in a car/van......

solar reflective windscreens.

the signal cant penetrate these treated screens so an external twig is required.

of course theres nowt to stop you fitting one anyway.:thumb:

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[hilldweller]

the overhang of the luton ( it's a McLouis 432 ) preventing line of sight of the satellites.

No problems with our ali luton. Modern GPS receivers are very sensitive.

 

[sinbad1]

I'm pretty sure you should be ok with the modern satnavs ;but to be sure find a friend that has one and ask him if you can try it in your MH.

Regards

 

[Phil]

I find my satnav loses signal in mountainous areas so I use an external aerial when I'm driving in such areas. Milly works fine in 'normal' countryside without an external and does not seem to be affected by the Luton which is aluminium.

The main advantage of a satnav, to my mind, is it stops all the arguments that used to occur before we bought one.

I sometimes shout at milly when she gets confused on hairpin bends in the Alps, she usually answers back with a 'turn back when possible'

Phil.

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[TDH]

I'm just back from a trip to the Pyrenees, my first with a satnav. It was brilliant, especially in towns where, in the past, I've got hot and sweaty trying to find the way out on to the road that I wanted.

As I was offered the loans of two Tom Toms I took them both. One was a 500 with a Version 3 map of Western Europe, the other an XL with Version 7. The only problem we had was the XL not being able to find any satellites when we were in the mountains. The memory card slotted in to the 500 and I used that with no probs for the rest of the trip.

I really like maps and I used to poo-poo the idea of satnav. I'm converted - the safety issue is a real one, not having to worry half-way round a roundabout what has happened to the road signs; the rows it has prevented; and I can still look at my maps for planning.

My luton didn't get in the way at all, by the way.

 

[Lampie]

never had a problem with mine in rv c class with big over hang . Try it and see doubt you would need external

 

[Scout]

try Maplins tell them what its for, ask if it will work (they allways say yes ) if it dosnt take it back for a refund.

I did this recently with a pair of motorola walki talkis " it said up to 6k on the box" I was told it would give a good range, it didnt so it went back.

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[evans88]

Go into Halfords. You will see SatNavs getting a signal from inside a display case within a metal clad building.

My old Navman could hardly get a signal anywhere but my TomTomXL Europe gets a signal anywhere. I was programming mine while sitting on the toilet in the middle of the house and it told me to "Turn around where possible". I've never ridden a toilet that way but I always do as I'm told.

 

[sedge]

This is all very comforting - as SatNav virgins ourselves!

We are practising in the car but I don't think getting us home from Halfords - it's a few miles and actually in another town entirely - but it is after all actually on the continuation of the continuation etc of our own road!! - is actually the most thorough trial a person could subject such a gizmo to before embarking on a voyage of discovery.

Going to Gaslow to pick up all gubbins necessary on Monday and we deliberately haven't looked at map to see exactly where it is LOL, so Pete can bung the address in it and We'll See, LOL

The number of times we have been to France; we usually have a rough (or specific !) idea where we're going but this time it's suck it and see. All seems a bit odd to Mrs Navvy; I just lerrv the planning as much as the hols! Deciding where; getting the detailed Michelin for the area (if not in the pile already) and route planning with the rds with the green stripes and mixing the severe twisties with some straights!

And now it's just Tom, France Passion and All The Aires. Gulp ......




........ except I WILL have me trusty large Michelin all of France openly stashed too ......... and as many of the local ones as I can sneak in to a locker ............ and Alan Rogers and Another Book of sites.

 

[hilldweller]

I really like maps and I used to poo-poo the idea of satnav. I'm converted - the safety issue is a real one, not having to worry half-way round a roundabout what has happened to the road signs; the rows it has prevented; and I can still look at my maps for planning..

A nicely balanced view, though it seems your satnav has yet to take you through a farmyard. Wait till you see the smug grin on the maps when it does

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[Scout]

my pre sat nav days experance (when I was a tugger) going around paris I turned too early into Charles de Gaul airport, would have been funny if it was'nt the day the concord crashed...


honistly

 

[mickyb]

Bobble,

I had same predicament usind an old garmin streetpilot I3, wouln't pick up satalite when using it in our coachbuilt i.e Swift Sundance, but worked fine in our car. 2 weekends ago i bit the bullit after much research & brought a Garmin Nuvi 255 from Halfords, we used it last week in the motorhome while in Brighton & it worked perfectly.