HondaGuy347

I try not to think of it as $2000...when I do I get heartburn. I try to think that I bought a $30k sports sedan with Nav, HIDs, auto climate, 6disc in dash changer, leather, blah blah blah. I think it really sets the car apart; a TSX without Nav is still cool, but it's $27k for a 4 cylinder small sedan. For $2k, IMO, it makes the car much more special.


Besides, what does it really cost a month on a 5 year loan? $50? Beer and Pizza money, man.

Whiskers

I said it before....People on this board spend that kind of money for more useless stuff for their TSX....

darth62

I use mine all the time around Los Angeles, even when I have a good idea of where a certain place is located. For example, a few months ago I had to meet a friend at a Thai place. I had a good basic idea of where the place was, but didn't remember specifically which block it was on. So, I get in my car, enter the name of the place. Nav found it, and got me there quickly. I'm driving along, and Nav is telling me exactly how much distance there is until the place comes up, so I don't need to take my eyes of the road to read addresses. Just as I pull up, I realize I'm a little low on cash, so then I ask nav to get me to the nearest Bank of America ATM, and it does that quickly, and then gets me back to dinner. It couldn't have been more helpful.

Another example, I'm at Manhattan Beach, and I find myself in the mood for a big salad. I figured that there must be a SOUPLATATION somewhere in the south bay area, but wasn't sure where. So, I type the name in, and Nav took me to the nearest location.

Or, I'm visiting a friend in the valley. I found my way to his house pretty easily, but I couldn't remember how I got there. It probably would have taken me a little while to find my way back to the 101, but I just hit "Go home" and nav gets me right there.

I'm coming home from the beach, and traffic on the 110 is at an absolute standstill. So, I get off at the nearest exit, and ask Nav to take me home without using the highway.

I'm on my way to Yosemite and I had car trouble (long story - but it was the dealer's fault). So, I say "Find nearest Acura dealer" and NAV takes me right to the door.

I'm in the valley, in a part of town I don't travel in much. I suddenly realize that I have not mailed a bill that is due the next day. So, I asked Nav to get me to the nearest post office, which it does rather nicely.

Or, even more simple than all of this. I'm driving north on Western, and want to know how many blocks are left until I need to turn on Wilshire. I scroll up, and Nav shows me exactly how much further I have to go.

It comes handy time after time. You don't realize how much so, until you have it.

And, btw, I suspect that most drivers don't know every exact street they are going to travel on each time they leave the house, particularly in a city as complicated as Los Angeles.


All that said, I agree with your basic premise: NAV will be great for some drivers, not so useful for others.

NorCal

I use mine pretty often and it has it's good points and bad:

Good - When I head into areas like San Francisco (one-way streets from hell) it takes into account the one-way madness and has saved my life a few times. Also handy for finding the closest banks, gas stations, and supermarkets - which is quite handy for a guy like me who bounces between SF, SJ, and the East Bay on a regular basis.

Bad - I want to find the nearest Togo's Sandwich joint (insert any restraunt, particular store here). I select restraunt and then proceed through 8 different selection criteria just to enter the keyword "Togos". Then it comes up with a Togo's Sandwich stand in Kentucky...wtf. Should I have chosen Togos Eatery instead? Almost easier to program the 5:1 surround sound on my Denon 1705 receiver.

Summary - Depends on the driver and the environment they'd be using it in.

darth62

There is a way to get around the problem you are describing, but I forgot how.

Whiskers

Find Place by Name, type in Togos (or whatever) and then choose by distance. Works sometimes...

darth62

That might have been it......

pby

I find the auto re-routing function rather useful during traffic jams; though it pisses me off when people try to use to exit lane to weasel (i.e., merge) their way into traffic.

I most likely wouldn't have gotten the TSX, if not for this option.

elduderino

This is a very slanted post, really. Reading it kinda pissed me off. I guess since I like my nav, I am some sort of impulsive, poor-planning driver who cruises around aimlessly and has poor impulse control?

I like my nav. I don't leave the house to drive around aimlessly - sounds like some sort of obsessive-compulsive thing. Helps to find alternate routes when the traffic is screwed. Helps to find friends at a restaurant that I've never been to (I'm sure we all have friends that give crappy directions over the phone).

As far as the database goes, the fact that new discs cost a lot is documented as an issue, but if you don't have actual experience of an old database goiving you trouble, you're just expressing your opinion without facts, right? You just seem really biased against it.

Accroding to your statements, that's how Japanese drivers are in Japan, since nav is a staple there...

VeniceBeachTSX

Guess I must be crazy. I tend to know the alternate routes to most of the places in LA that I'm likely to be going to (which is to say -- for the most part -- alternates to most of the major freeways and boulevards). Those I've mostly got in my head, along with the freeway exits in any part of town I'm likely to be in. Possibly a function of where I tend to go. As I have said elsewhere, if I tended to find myself spending lots of time in unfamiliar areas, there probably would be much greater benefit.

And I guess I must be even crazier for never leaving the house without a pretty clear idea of where I'm going. I never take directions from friends. I ask for an address. Must be the pilot in me, or maybe the project manager (I find the two are very closely related in many ways). I'm used to flight planning, including research, alternates, etc. Comes as a second nature. If I've got to stop somewhere mid-route or mid-plan to figure something out, then I figure it's probably because I missed something up-front.

As I stated early in the thread, on one of the three cases where I tried to use the nav to find a location (an airport hotel) it couldn't.

Worth noting that many Japanese cities have a feature that makes some sort of automatic mapping very desirable (well, certainly Tokyo, the only one I've spent substantial amounts of time in). The house numbers were established in order of the houses' construction. Number 1 was the first house built. Number 2 was the next. They aren't necessarily anywhere near each other on the street. As a result, it's impossible to know where any given address will be. They've straightened this out a lot in newer suburbs and expansions, but it's still a major pain in the older cities and towns. Japanese "calling cards" typically include a rough map on the back to show where the address is located, and everybody has one to hand out. I used to go nuts trying to find places in Tokyo.

Surprised you find LA complicated. I find the grid is fairly consistent and easy to sort out. Probably one of the reasons I don't need nav very much. So long as you know where a street is compared to one of the major thouroughfares, I think it's always pretty easy to find. Compared to someplace like Boston or DC, and certainly compared to any European city, it's a snap.

Like I said, I have nav on my car. After six months of doing little with it other than watching the moving map, I can honestly say it wasn't worth the money to me, given the way I drive and the places I tend to go (or not go, for that matter).

darth62

The Los Angeles basin is something like 100 miles wide and, like many people who live here, I have friends spread out all over town (basically from Orange Country to Ventura) and find myself spending a lot of time in the car. Anybody who says they know where they are going all the time under such circumstances (and, again, I'm not saying those are your circumstances) is not being very honest with themself.

I still agree with your basic point: Nav is very useful for some drivers, and not for others. And, unlike some others who dismiss NAV, I find your take to be quite credible. You've lived with NAV for six months and know what it does and does not do for your lifestyle. Hard to argue with that!

Basically, I think that each driver has to evaluate value of the system to them. For me, I love it and wouldn't buy another car without it. But, I completely respect your alternative perspective, which (IMO) is reasoned and thoughtful.

elduderino - I'm not sure what you found offensive about VBTsx's post. I always get annoyed when drivers who have never owned NAV make all these outlandish statements about it. But, this VBTsx HAS NAV, knows what it can do, and doens't find it useful. I don't agree with him, but have to acknowledge that his take is very reasonable.

VeniceBeachTSX

I think that's probably the difference. I rarely have much reason to go outside of 310/323. And that section of LA is pretty easy to figure out (excepting the Hills, and I only know one guy up there at the moment). Occasionally I have to go up to the Valley, downtown, or Pasadena, but usually those trips are to very obvious and familiar locations that don't require me to even consult a map.

I agree that if I were traversing everything in the LA basin, I'd need a lot more help, but that's just not the case. I think I fit into the large majority of drivers who do something like 70-80% of their driving on the route to and from work, with stops along the way. For somebody who fits into that kind of "normal, boring" routine, nav is likely to be of minimal use. (Note that I'm older and possibly more settled than the majority of you guys here.)

Now, if they integrated traffic condition reporting, that would be a huge difference for me and worth double what Acura is currently charging. I'd be able to actually listen to music, rather than being perpetually tuned to KNX for the traffic report every six minutes.

I believe I was a little harsh in using terms like "aimless," and I apologize for that. My perspective -- as I said -- is that of a pilot, guide and project manager, for whom the idea of planning, considering alternatives, and always having a known "out" before even starting is second nature. I rarely find myself in a situation where I "suddenly" need a restaurant, or an ATM, or much else. But that's just me.

elduderino

VBTSX, thanks, I appreciate your differentiating between your criticism of the system and potentially pejorative statements about the people whom the system would benefit.

I had indeed missed that you owned a system, and I apologize for that error on my part.

I tend to research trips before I take them, and I am one of those people who believes that if you have a map, you aren't lost. At the same time, I have a somewhat active social life, and I don't find it plausible for me to never take vague directions from friends (or downright wrong intersections). I was on a honeymoon in BC, Canada, in August, and the Nav saved my butt in a strange traffic tieup that apparently even stumped the locals. I was able to re-route on the fly and let the nav do the work as I drove to find the alternate route.

I don't know about the ROI on it, but I like the unit. Of course, having an 8" in the dash to hijack is a big deal too...

yuhoo22

Finding everything is so much better. Most of the time I don't use it for the directions, instead I use it more to go to places I have a general idea. (basically, I know i have to turn soon, but I am not how much further)

One of the coolest feature is that I can find get to a restaurant if I know the phone number! Calculator, scheduler, and trip computer come in handy also.

murphjuice

I'm currently debating whether or not to get the nav as well. For the most part, I'm sold on getting nav, but I keep reading post stating that some of the a/c and radio controls being totally absorbed by nav, and I've seen some people refute this. So my question is, what is unavailable to change manually w/out using the LCD touch screen? One more question I have is will Acura continue to keep this current nav system up to date for let's just say ~8 years. I don't want to go w/ navi and not have full functionality of it 6-8 years down the road.

GIBSON6594

The only functions that you must use the touch screen to perform are the more complex function of the radio and A/C. For example, you change the stations, adjust the volume, or play CD's without the touchscreen, but you could not progam a preset station or adjust your bass/treble settings without it. You could turn on/off the climate control and adjust the tempature, but you could set the vent direction or fan speen of the A/C. The common, most used functions are available as buttons, but it is true that the touch screen is required to perform all of the radio and A/C functions. You can however access all of the functions when in the map display screen using the voice commands. I believe the system to be very well set up and easy to use.

As far as the updates, the navi is DVD based and updated DVD's come out every year (i think), and that should be all you need to have an updated Navi. You have to buy the dvd (around $180 usually) of course.

Hope this helps a little

tsxhondatuner

you update the navi with the dvd rom. so yes it will be accurate and up-to-date.

the navi system is the best thing about this car.

i also use the phone number search to business' and it gives there address which is coo. and i always used the trip computer cause it comes in handy a lot.

and nearest gas station in frisko is perfect i swear i never can find one anymore since my cars been gone : once you have the navi system you won't want to drive without it. trust me with experience, having it for 3 months and then not having it can say if its worth it and it is.

darth62

You can change the channels or use the preset without using the touch screen. There are redundant controls on the steering wheel. The "next disc" button on the far right of the CD player also lets you forward to the next preset. As for the HVAC, you can adjust the fan speed by simply lowering or raising the temp. I'm able to accomplish most adjustments without ever using the touch screen. I'd still rather have more buttons though.

bigwilliestyle

Only on Auto though. And the only reason it adjusts depends on how far away the current temperature is from the set temperature.

If the HVAC is on manual, you do have to flip to the screen or use voice. It's really not a big deal. How often are people really changing all this. It's really kinda nitpicky.

To me, the nav really completes the car. All its benefits really outweigh the minor annoyances which are typically only things people aren't used to (because other cars always have the buttons.)

murphjuice

thanks for all of your replies they helped my understanding greatly. by the way, i realize that they sell update dvd's, but I was mainly wondering if they will contitue produce them for this system as it becomes dated. i'm not too worried about this, however, just curious. i believe i'll be getting navi.

jojo77

I don't travel much but I suck with directions and it works great. My wife loves it and gets to play with it when she is in the car. Also look at it like this it's 2000 dollars more but if you break that down to your payments, it's about 30 bucks more a month. If 30 dollars more a month is worth it to you, get it.

One more thing it looks sweet at night too.