This thread is in response to the thread entitled "NAVI UPGRADE - A collective effort." If you would like to contribute to the petition, please refer to this thread and reply according to the instructions given in bold.

This thread is for disagreements, discussion, or otherwise non-petition related discussion ONLY.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Dr. B

 

Personally I think you are a bit overboard on the issue.

The disc is coming out this month right? $180? I think that's a bit pricey. That's almost 10% of the system cost.

What I think should be done is that all these navi makers should just all share a standard map disk. They can all have different features to make one "better" than the other but they should all be able to interchange the map disc.

As far as feeling that Acura has a responsibility to keep the system current. I don't agree with that. That's like saying that they should allow us to purchase an upgrade to the 270HP engine because that's now current. Car companies are not about keeping their old cars current. That's how they keep selling new cars. Also, selling software is not something they know how to do.

I also like when people use the term investment when talking about cars. Cars are depreciating assets that are a drag on your net worth. An investment is supposed to grow your net worth. Just ask all the people that "invest" in mods for their car. They are lucky if they get 10-20% of that money back when they resell the mod. A dealer won't give you sqwat for them on a trade in. So, depending on your age, remember that the next time you drop over 30k on a car that its probably costing you over 100k in a retirement nest egg.

Now where's my damn upgrade!?

 

Thanks for the reply. I agree with some of what you are saying, but perhaps my presentation was lacking in a few points:

1) The Navi "Upgrade" lists the same cities as was previously on the old disk, with a proposed price of $285.00 (which cannot be confirmed by Acura sales staff).

2) The purpose of producing and marketing a DVD navigation city was to allow a system amenable to upgrades, and was stated as such in the brochure I read before I purchased my car. Further, the sales pitch included an "Annual" upgrade with "constant improvement".

3) The intent of my proposal was not to state that I expect to be kept current. My point was that even though we can see on TV and in current brochures a navigation disk with clearly updated features, which would be considered an "upgrade" when compared to our system, I find it amazing that acura did not engineer a general "DVD" that could be compatible with both the voice activated and non-voice activated system. R&D has produced the new navi and put ours on the backburner, when they could have incorporated both into a universal upgrade. Further, Acura is not "giving" us the current product, they are (or should be) making it available for us to PURCHASE, no different than buying a new engine for your car. The big difference is that nobody would buy a car with the intention of upgrading the engine in a couple of years, they would, however, buy a DVD Navi and upgrade that.

4) I completely agree with your investment philosophy - I would never purchase because, or suggest to anyone else that an automobile is a good investment (unless I was buying a mint condition 1962 ferrari with 0 miles and had a garage to keep it in). For me (and I assume some others out there), I purchased the NAVIGATION as an accessory to my car with the intent that I would be traveling around the nation and that I could keep my Navigation system current. To me, that is a worthwhile "investment".

Sorry if my wording was a bit confusing, but after trying at least 12 times to purchase a promised upgrade, I'm a little but frustrated to say the least.

 

Please don't post misinformation.

You might want to call (888) 549-3798 to get the real scoop. $185 gets you the new release, shipping next week, which is a MAJOR upgrade to the existing software. Now full coverage of the US and new listings for Points Of Interest, plus new interface. It should be obvious (but seemingly not to some people) that voice commands (ala 2004 models) are not possible with the older systems - the hardware simply does not support such features. Otherwise, however, the software features are on par with the latest model.

Yes, it was frustrating to wait two years for this release when an annual update schedule was promised (and in fact is still mentioned in the navigation FAQ on Acura's website), but before attempting to garner support from others to petition/sue/etc Acura on such an issue it would be good to have your facts straight.

 

I apologize, but I suppose I was getting my pricing sources from misinformation posted earlier on this forum. I have tried to call Alpine twice, but to no avail. Perhaps I should keep trying... However, my perspective could be changedmuch easier if Acura and its Sales representatives would educate themselves on this matter, instead of having us hunt down the facts they should be prepared to give us...

I have checked the upgrade list and, as I travel from Columbia, SC, to Savannah, GA, and other points of the southeast, I was very disappointed to see that several "major cities" were not included in the latest "upgrade". Perhaps my situation is unique, but I am aware of many previous posts on this forum addressing the "not on digitized map" message, and by reading Alpine's update list, it looks like I still have that message to look forward to.

It was not my intention to give false or misleading information, only to compile and reason through the multiple posts that have already been made in this forum. Sorry for the confusion

 

When you say that you are checking the latest upgrade list, are you referring to the small pop-up window that you can access from the Acura site (I believe you have to log in to your Acura Owner profile)? If so, don't sweat it - that information is two years old and lists the upgraded city information that was added at that time.

As of last week Acura Navigation sales has been answering the phone with a live operator (finally!) at (888) 549-3798, and they are accepting orders for the new discs to be shipped starting Nov. 17th. I would imagine that they would be able to answer specific questions you have in regards to coverage in your area. I'll bet you'll be pleasantly surprised.

 

My beef is that I just bought an '03 TLS in September, and my NAVI disk is 3 years old, and the '03 MDX already had the new disk.

I think i should get a discount or a free upgrade, since my car is only 3 months old, but Acura says no.

 

I dunno if this helps or not (moderator, feel free to can this post if it's no good or OT), but I just spoke with an operator at the (888) 549-3798 (Nav Disc Ordering Line) number, and she said the following (that is, she said it, not me):
1. The new disc is $185, plus shipping, and state tax.
2. The release date is still on, or around, November 17th.
3. The new disc is only available for order from the Navi Ordering Website, or through the phone number above.
4. The new disc interface was purposely (yep, she said "purposely" - she read it word for word from some book she was looking at) designed to look just like the old disc.
5. No Canada
6. New disc will cause the Navi to operate slower due to the increase in road data.

Again, this is what the operator said. I know some of this stuff is old news, and some of it looks incorrect, but I'm just messenger... Personally, I'm going to wait and see how others like the new disc… Also, I’m not crazy about the idea of our Navi taking even longer to (a.) determine a route and (b.) track the vehicles progress on the screen (if this turns out to be true).