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Old 07-28-2017, 11:07 PM   #21
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Originally Posted by vkb View Post
We have used Garmin products for many years...we bought the 760 with lifetime updates...it has served us well.
We, often, refer to Google maps, especially for the satellite view of an area.
We have all the settings on our Garmin to our personal preference and it serves us well.
We often lose cell phone reception...the only time we lost Garmin signal was in the middle of the Eisenhower Tunnel in CO !
At least it is hard to get lost in Eisenhower tunnel...

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Old 07-28-2017, 11:18 PM   #22
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Originally Posted by sforl View Post
I bought the Garmin 770. There are many features that I find very useful, but as a basic GPS, so far I find it lacking!
The data base seems to be limited! So far it has only been able to locate about 40% of the addresses I enter. Google maps has this info, but the Garmin does not! The navigation system on my 2006 Acura which data was updated 5 yrs ago has this info, but not the Garmin! ( yes I've download all the latest everything on the Garmin)
I've mostly used it for the moving map and the other functions like clearance warnings, gas stations and etc.
I'll be curious to see if other 770 owners have this same problem.
We have never had this issue with our 760. We have taken it for trips in the car when we first got it just to test. The GARMIN always found the destination and routed properly.

I haven't really tested the clearance aspect but I think taking it on some not high enough routes in the car might be a good test.

On ours we have already had two updates in six months, and, so far all roads have been current. We did have to add an additional SD card for the last update, but that was only 14.00 for the maximum memory.

We always confirm routes on a secondary method anyway, but so far the routes have been accurate, the voice recognition good, and the text to speech easy to understand.

Oh, and the Bluetooth is a BIG improvement over THE AXXERRA...
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Old 07-28-2017, 11:58 PM   #23
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I route by picking a point on the map, Garmin is terrible for inputting addresses and data.

Garmin will eventually correct for your typical speed traveled, and use that when determining routing.

Copilot lets you input your typical speed for generic types of road immediately, this is really good for routing specific to RV usage. I dont know if it has low clearance data or not.

Google maps is the best for current traffic and routing around issues - including stop lights, but it thinks you are a car. My older Garmin has major city traffic feeds only, newer units may have better/larger data source.
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Old 07-29-2017, 12:11 AM   #24
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I love my Garmin 760 RV. Lifetime maps. I keep it mounted above the speedometer. I can see the speed without taking my eyes off the road.Also, if I am speeding, the MPH turns red.

Either the Rand or the Garmin are good. Whatever you chose, make sure that you can input the RV's length, height, width, and weight. It keeps you from going under low overpasses, narrow alleys, and bridges that can't take the weight.
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Old 07-29-2017, 01:51 AM   #25
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I love my Garmin 760 RV. Lifetime maps. I keep it mounted above the speedometer. I can see the speed without taking my eyes off the road.Also, if I am speeding, the MPH turns red.

Either the Rand or the Garmin are good. Whatever you chose, make sure that you can input the RV's length, height, width, and weight. It keeps you from going under low overpasses, narrow alleys, and bridges that can't take the weight.
I agree with you on the speed readout. I can't see the speed on the regular speedometer without looking down instead if at the road. The 760 is great for that.
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Old 07-29-2017, 04:48 PM   #26
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Well just returned from first trip with Garmin RV660. Boston out to Utah and back the long way. 6300 miles, 23 states and the GPS was great. Even the voice control worked on the occasions I tried it! The family was using Google/Apple maps and the Good Sam app to find destinations, and then relying on the 660 to get us there. Well worth the spend.
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Old 07-29-2017, 04:54 PM   #27
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Originally Posted by robatcgu View Post
Well just returned from first trip with Garmin RV660. Boston out to Utah and back the long way. 6300 miles, 23 states and the GPS was great. Even the voice control worked on the occasions I tried it! The family was using Google/Apple maps and the Good Sam app to find destinations, and then relying on the 660 to get us there. Well worth the spend.
I'm happy to read that! I just purchased a Garmin RV660 LMT also. It was significantly less expensive than the 770/760 models, and the difference in features didn't appear worth it to me. Haven't Road tested it yet, hope to next week.
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Old 07-29-2017, 06:00 PM   #28
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Originally Posted by Mike in AZ View Post
I'm happy to read that! I just purchased a Garmin RV660 LMT also. It was significantly less expensive than the 770/760 models, and the difference in features didn't appear worth it to me. Haven't Road tested it yet, hope to next week.
Mike; I hope your RV660 works better for you than it has for me to date. There appears to be a serious problem it its routing algorithms. Some examples:

When traveling from Tampa, Fl area to Omni Resort at Championsgate on I4, it routed us off the interstate at US27, to Ronald Reagan Pkwy, to Osceola Polk Line Rd when we should have continued on I4 directly to Osceola Polk Line Rd.



It doesn't want to route me to my residence along the main road from the north even though there are no height/weight restrictions on that road. It always wants me to travel 10 miles out of my way to approach my neighborhood from the south.

Last weekend we traveled from Lake City, FL to Hanna Park in Jacksonville Beach, Fl. Even though we started from the east side of Lake City, it wanted me to travel west to US 441 to go north to I10 to go east to Jacksonville instead of just taking US90 east to I10 to Jacksonville. Since I ignored it and went that way anyway it finally caught on and changed the route, but instead of continuing on the road I was on to US90 (Baya Ave), it wanted me to take a direct left through a neighborhood to get to US90.


The good news is: it was smart enough to route us around downtown Jacksonville on I295. BUT!! it insisted we needed to take the ferry across the St. Johns river to Mayport instead of taking I295 across the river and 116 directly into Hanna Park.


It also wanted us to take the ferry home even though we were already on 116 west. The ferry would have cost $35 each way and added 30 to 45 minutes to the trip.

So use it as an input to your trip planning, but get other inputs as well.
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Old 07-29-2017, 06:39 PM   #29
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Tfryman
I've had similar issues with my Garmin 770. On those occasions where it actually recognized the address I entered, instead of routing me the same way back it routed me a totally different way. Sending me miles out of the way! Why??
I would never depend on the Garmin along. I always use Google maps as well.
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Old 07-29-2017, 09:26 PM   #30
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We use the Garmin RV660LMT and overall has been good to us so far. Also, I like the speed read out as it is more convenient to read than speedometer.

I do use Google Maps to compare and keep the Garmin honest. If I see a large discrepancy in arrival times between the two than I review both routes. The Garmin has tried to loop me around an area when I know the area is okay to travel through.
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Old 07-29-2017, 09:31 PM   #31
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I would be very careful to make sure that the RV dimensions and weight that you enter are correct. Ignoring the Garmin may be disasterous. I remember driving north on I-5 into the Portland area. My Garmin told me to take the truck bypass. I couldn't figure out why until I saw the underpass that the regular road used. I would have lost my air conditioner.
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Old 07-29-2017, 09:37 PM   #32
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Thanks for the info on the 660. Great advice on using Google Maps or another source as a check, I do that when on long trips n my F150 also!
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Old 07-29-2017, 11:13 PM   #33
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I've also have a 760 and have had no problems with it until today......when it routed me into a very small parking lot for a water park in Dodge City, Ks. Grrrrr......the road used to exist but a building now stands there. Luckily I could circle around the lot and get out the way I came in, using the entrance as the exit was too tight a turn. What fun!

Typically I use Basecamp to plan and review my route on the 760. But unfortunately as of late my laptop won't recognize the gps. I also like to review each route using google maps satellite views. And if I would have done this I wouldn't have ended up in parking lot.
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Old 07-30-2017, 01:25 AM   #34
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I've also have a 760 and have had no problems with it until today......when it routed me into a very small parking lot for a water park in Dodge City, Ks. Grrrrr......the road used to exist but a building now stands there. Luckily I could circle around the lot and get out the way I came in, using the entrance as the exit was too tight a turn. What fun!

Typically I use Basecamp to plan and review my route on the 760. But unfortunately as of late my laptop won't recognize the gps. I also like to review each route using google maps satellite views.
You need to do the map updates on a regular basis to keep everything current. Also, don't depend on satellite views, some of those can be years old.
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Old 07-30-2017, 02:38 AM   #35
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Originally Posted by SuperD View Post
You need to do the map updates on a regular basis to keep everything current. Also, don't depend on satellite views, some of those can be years old.
I did a complete map update yesterday. I guess my point is use all resources available to plan your route. Technology is great, but it's not perfect.
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Old 07-30-2017, 12:46 PM   #36
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I've had issues with every GPS on every vehicle I've ever had from time to time. I don't think any of them are perfect. Seems like the GPS in my phone is about the most reliable, but obviously not RV friendly in regards to height and weight restriction, etc. My wife's nuvi in her jeep sometimes comes up with some pretty stupid routes. LOL
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Old 07-30-2017, 01:32 PM   #37
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Originally Posted by Tfryman View Post
Mike; I hope your RV660 works better for you than it has for me to date. There appears to be a serious problem it its routing algorithms. Some examples:

When traveling from Tampa, Fl area to Omni Resort at Championsgate on I4, it routed us off the interstate at US27, to Ronald Reagan Pkwy, to Osceola Polk Line Rd when we should have continued on I4 directly to Osceola Polk Line Rd.



It doesn't want to route me to my residence along the main road from the north even though there are no height/weight restrictions on that road. It always wants me to travel 10 miles out of my way to approach my neighborhood from the south.

Last weekend we traveled from Lake City, FL to Hanna Park in Jacksonville Beach, Fl. Even though we started from the east side of Lake City, it wanted me to travel west to US 441 to go north to I10 to go east to Jacksonville instead of just taking US90 east to I10 to Jacksonville. Since I ignored it and went that way anyway it finally caught on and changed the route, but instead of continuing on the road I was on to US90 (Baya Ave), it wanted me to take a direct left through a neighborhood to get to US90.


The good news is: it was smart enough to route us around downtown Jacksonville on I295. BUT!! it insisted we needed to take the ferry across the St. Johns river to Mayport instead of taking I295 across the river and 116 directly into Hanna Park.


It also wanted us to take the ferry home even though we were already on 116 west. The ferry would have cost $35 each way and added 30 to 45 minutes to the trip.

So use it as an input to your trip planning, but get other inputs as well.
Could you have set the GPS to avoid ferrys.
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