ptbarnett

If you don't already know, the 2016 update to the Acura Navigation System is available, at least for the 2014 RLX Hybrid. They are currently offering a promotion: $99, instead of $149. I think it lasts until the end of June, but I can't find the original email...

I ordered it, and received update version 12.210.1, with DB version ST004.03.00. The installation process takes a while (about 60 minutes), and you must leave the car "running". But, with a fully charged battery and everything else turned off, the RLX Hybrid leaves the engine off. :-)

Once the firmware is updated and the database is loaded, it starts a background update process that takes about 5 hours. It only does the update while the car is running, but there's an icon at the top of the screen that shows the progress (in %).

I haven't driven much in the past few days, so the background update is only about 50% complete. But, every time I started the car, the E1 error message popped up briefly:

The map data on this disc is invalid. Please confirm you have the correct map database and try again.

The message only appeared briefly, so I didn't give it much thought. But today, it remained on the screen and blocked everything behind it.

I called the Acura Navigation Center (which is actually a company named "HERE"), to try to find out: is the DVD bad, or do I need to try again, or do I just wait until it completes the background update? At first, he didn't appear to even understand the process, asking questions I had already answered, or he would have known if he knew the procedure.

When I asked for someone that actually understood the problem and could answer my question, he got pissy and said I had to wait until the background update completes. I pointed out that he didn't give me that "answer" earlier, but I realized I wasn't going to make any progress with him. I thought about calling in again to see if I got a different person that would actually be helpful, but decided to post here instead to see if anyone else had seen the problem. And that's when I figured out what was wrong....

I tried to pull the DVD out of the sleeve to get the version numbers (posted above), and realized it wasn't there. The instructions do not tell you to eject the DVD after installation -- it simply says you may do so "at any time", once the background update starts. I happened to be in the middle of an errand when the database load completed, so I didn't take the time to eject the disc.

After I ejected the disk, the error message no longer appears when I start the car. I know it seems like an obvious thing now, but if you don't use the CD/DVD player, you may not find a need to remove it right away.

So, to end this story: I called HERE/Acura Navigigation Center again, to let them know that was the source of the problem, and they could tell the next person that made my mistake. I got a different person this time, and as soon as I told him the error message, he knew exactly what was wrong. So, calling them again may have found the solution!

I'm hoping this firmware update fixes the repeated system reboots. I'll follow up in a couple of weeks to let you know if I've seen any since installing the 2016 update.

sri_gondi

Here is the link for the update. It asks few questions to get you the correct DVD update.

The Official Acura Map Update Site | Acura | 2016 Brown DVD Map Update | HERE

fsmith

Thanks for the info, ptbarnett. I'm a bit confused, though, because the 2015 Brown update for my 2014 SH-AWD appeared only in late summer, so I wasn't expecting a new one so soon. Had you applied that one previously? That update definitely fixed some functionality issues. There is little information on the web site about what this update does (of course!), so I will be especially curious to know what you find out about the reboots and/or anything other functionality that it changes. Thanks.

ptbarnett

FYI, this update does NOT fix the reboots. I didn't see them for about a week, and then saw it happen 3 times in the same day.

fsmith

^^^ Sorry, ptbarnett.

Ward78079

Hey guys,

This navagation update thing seems like such a rip off. First let me say I love my RLX but for such a high end car the navagation is complete garbage. I have used it maybe twice since I bought the car before I realized cell phone gps apps are much much better and user friendly.

I was reading through the mdx forums and came accoss posts talking about something called Navtool which is basically a hook up to make your factory Nav screen mirror what you see on your iPhone I.e. Navagaton apps such as waze or google maps. Plus you can play videos :-). Probobly a safety hazard but still pretty cool. Anyway just wondering if anyone here has seen this or installed this because I'm really considering it. It's on sale now for the month of May half off for $300.

ACURA RLX 2014-2017 NavTool VIDEO INTERFACES

Pug

Thanks, ptbarnett for solving this. Btw, did you use Disc 2 for anything? My green update came with disc 1 and disc 2, but I only used disc 1.

ceb

Danger Will Robinson, Danger. You might want to read that before you flush your money down the NavTOOL toilet. They've been banned here also.

miner

I did the brown disc update and it took about 80 minutes to download. Once downloaded it took a few days of driving to finish the loading/initializing. I was still able to use navigation while it was updating. I now have roads where I live.