Drago

I was in the dealership today and was playing around the Navi/Voice Command, I must say that in alot of situations it is quicker for me to turn the radio up or down directly than having to speak it and wait five seconds for it to happen, so I guess Im asking is it worth 3000$CDN for the Navi/voice...

thanks...

ed99

It is always good to have if you don't mind spending the extra cash. Unless your tight on budget. I chose not to have the Navi as I thought I would not need it. Therefore I use that money for my A-spec kit instead. But if I had a choice again I think I would of gone for the Navi!!!

DMZ

I don't think there's anyone here who regretts getting the Navi. To base your decision solely on the voice command's ability to turn radio volume up or down, well, that's not what the Navigation system in this car is really all about.

In fact if you do a forum search, you'll find the only Navi regrets are from those who didn't get it whishing to hell they had, and there's PLENTY OF THEM.

Make no mistake about it, the Navigation system/screen is the heart of this car.
.
.
.
.
.
.

Contivity

1 regret.... mine is 3.40A, not the C... A colleague just got a car today with a C and mine (2 weeks ago) come with A

JDM5lugHatch

Navigation has helped me out many of times. However, I doesn't work that well in Washington DC.

Jss1

Worth every cent. Not just the navi but I have used the voice control every time I have used the car in the last 16 months. I don't even use the buttons anymore. I won't buy another car without it. The mapping is great in Ontario and extends to most cities. Haven't found a street in any Ontario city it couldn't find.

sebounet2005

It depends where you live or where you travel. I think canada is not well diserved by the NAVI, except big cities.

Fl-TypeS

Navi is very useful and I use it at least once a week. Voice commands are useless. You can perform just about any function three times manually before voice command does it.

DiscoTL

It's one of those things like TiVo. Once you have it, and then you are without it, you realize how much you use it.

Perfect example, yesterday the wife and I are out running the Saturday errands with the boy (11 months), and we took the the Tahoe Z71 (love that truck...some other post). My wife is impatient and didn't want to wait in traffic for 3 light cycles, so we made a right turn and she swore she knew which side street to turn down. Before I knew it I was hitting the zoom button that wasns't there. We got where we were going but after a few "I'm not sure if that road goes all the way through." I said "If we were in the TL we would know exactly where to go."

It made me realize just how many times I have used it.

JZ

SouthernBoy

When I was in the serious hunt for a TL, I didn't want the NAV. However, the day I bought my car, the dealer had quite a few manuals on the lot and all of them had NAV. So I went with one. After closing the deal, the sales manager and I were talking about a few things (just casual conversation) and he mentioned that he has never had a customer come back in and say they were sorry they got the NAV (I know, they'll say anything.. but the deal was already history at that point).

Well I actually believe the guy. I have wound up using the thing numerous times and for so many reasons I never would have thought of before I owned it. So the $1800+ it cost me is definitely worth it and besides.. I would bet a month's pay that when it comes time to sell or trade the car, the question of, "Does your TL have navigation" will be posed and will have an affect on the saleability and dollar value of the car.

wallaceoh

I do quite a bit of travel both personally and professionally and have found the Navi to be a great accessory and have no regrets. My co-worker has an '05 TL without the Navi and asks me regularly if there is an easy way to retrofit the Navi into the car.

As for the voice commands, yes they do lag sometimes, but I find that in traffic at high speeds, it can be useful when trying to keep your eyes on the road. Same thing during recent snowstorms that we had. IMHO, the voice commands are useful if you're still getting familiar with the car or are in a situation where you need to keep your eyes on the road. We have some 70+ buttons and Navi at our disposal.

haighworld

Have to concur, you may not use the Nav everyday, but when you do use it, it's amazingly convenient to have.

I also like the touchscreen interface to the audio system, very slick (though somewhat less useful).

As for voice commands, I'd say 90% of the time it's easier to use the physical controls, but it's nice to have access to -- for instance if you are navigating through some rough traffic you can still do things without taking your hands off the wheel or your eyes off the road. And it's an easy way to play a specific track of a specific disc.

jazzpicker

Drago,
Is the navi worth the 2K US/ 3K CDN?- Hell yes BUT your situation maybe be a little different depending on how the coverage is in Canada. I would make an effort to find out how much of Canada is digitized in the navi's software and make your decision from there. If you are rich, screw it and just go ahead, the voice commands are worth the money but just realize you will not have coverage in the NW territories and in many other places also.
I have 2 TLs, one navi the other non navi (wife's car). I wish I had bought Navi on both.
Bottom Line: "There are only 2 types of TL owners- Those that own navi cars and those that wish they owned navi cars"..(just put on flame suit)

FugittiveTLS`03

No regrets.....i use it all the time.
Orlando rush hour starts at 3pm so i use it 2 find alternate ways to my Destinations other than I-4

gsxr60097

I also found ths out the hard way in DC. It got me within 2 blocks and then had me doing circles so I just parked and walked the 2 blocks. Although, I must say I wouldn't have been able to find the hotel without it. Love it. Especially in those situations. Get the navi. I also considered the nonnavi but knew I would regret it. It has so many cool features. Calculator, Calender, addrerss book and so many other.

jazzpicker

Are you serious?? This thing has a calender, address book, calculator y others???
Where??
Guess I 'd better start reading manuals...

Repecat

I use at least one, if not more, of the Navi features every day. I wouldn't have this car without it. I might skip the Navi if I had a Yugo, however.

Drago

Wow, seems like everyone seems to thinks the Navi is a must have feature, perhaps I will revisit the dealer and give it another shot!!! Thanks for the inputs guys...appreciate it..

cjw2001

Had the TL for one month, love the Navi. Last week was headed to drop off a friend and due to road construction the primary route was closed. Hit the "detour" button on the Navi and the TL guided me through the streets of several subdivisions to get back to the destination. Never would have had a clue how to get there via this shortcut without the Navi.

While to voice control can appear to be a gee whiz feature, it does allow you to keep your hands on the wheel and your focus on the road, which is a true benefit in heavy traffic or bad weather situations.

gsxr60097

On the setup screen where you can adjust the voice etc there are four tabs at the top of the screen with different menu's. Explore and enjoy. Love the Navi.

bluenoise

I am so glad I have the navi, too. On Friday, I had to go down to the Monterey area for work. While I'm familiar with the area, I was specifically looking for various addresses. The navi got me to each of them in the most sensible order. Also, I needed gas before heading home and I was able to see where all the gas stations were.

As far as voice control goes, I use it all the time for XM channels. I can say, "XM channel 50" and have it understand me faster than I can dial it up with the knob. I like to move through more XM channels than I have presets, so only my very favorite channels are available with a button press or two.

mickey3c

I live in and around boston.. To me navi is a waste of money since many streets with the big dig change so much. If I had to travel all over to different locations that i was not familiar with, that might be anoher story. When I had it I did not use it...

BTL05

have navi on my BMW and ordered a TL with navi..I am never getting a car without one again...like it should be said...once you have the navi...youll never go back

rets

I cannot live without Navi... Although I may not use it all the time, I'm glad there is a device there guide me to most of places I wanna go.

gochan

i agree with everyone here. great to have though it's not a EVERYDAY necessity. good to find atms, restaurants, gas stations. and detours. plus you can always do a navi dvd conversion if you drive enough with passengers. and it's asethetically (sp) pleasing.

mio

the navi is really help!

Contivity

I like the "Detour" feature.... not sure if anyone else use it often, but I use it quite a lot...

Yaesumofo

Not only do i love the Navigation system in My TL I will never buy another car without one.
Oh yes the re routing feature.... I love being able to tell the navi not to use a street. Like robertson is allways busy so when the navi tells you to use it just tell the navi not to use robertson. It calculates a new route....Cool
Having a map in the car is a must!! Being able to do voice commands is wonderful.
The ability to look for a restaurant find it and call them within 1 minute is incredible.
Just last night i wanted a burger from "THE SHACK" on the way home. I searched for it on the navigation system found it called them and ordered my food all within moments of the thought of the hamburger. I arrived 7 minutes later to pick up the hot food ready to go.

On a road trip last year I was driving through TUCSON AZ. I wanted a carne seca burrito from a place called El Charro. It turned out to be a nightmare because I couldn't remember the name of the place. I was traveling with no navi. Had I had the TL at the time it would have taken just a moment to find and make the call. It is amazing at how great it works. As for the difference between the a b c versions ...is there a Major difference? I doubt it. The version you will want to make sure you get is 4.0.
BTW I saw a XM radio that lets you pick a few (20)stock symbols and it will scroll them on the screen. Now That would be a great feature for the Tl.
Yaesumofo

DarkWraith33

As little as i actually use the Navi... I too will never have a car without it. That first time it saves your butt from being late/lost... You'll be sold. Get it....

AutoGirl

I never thought I would rely on the Navi so much...but I've learned all sorts of useful short-cuts in the city where I live and also getting to places I've never been nor know well... I used to think of myself as my own navigator, but I can't deny that I love having this option!

I would have regretted not getting Navi..

ayethetiense

when i was purchasing the car, i wasnt considering it. i know my way around my area well enough and i have the internet to get me directions before i go somewhere ive never been.

but i got a sweet deal on the nav. it was only a 1000 more then the non navi.... so of course i got it.

they worked me out a dela on the nav so that it would only be that price difference.

thank god that worked out. i use it so much more then i thought i ever would

its pretty cool cause now i can just jump in the car with some friends and if we dont now where to go eat, we can use the nav to find some place weve never been to.

its deffinitely worth it.

i also found other routes that turned out to be a lot shorter to the places that i always drive to.

aw1

navi is worth every penny in my opinion...

VTECboy

A major consideration for me was that I was not going to buy a car in this price range and in this day and age without a built in LCD display. The navigation unit is one of, if not the best in the industry. I use the touch screen for all the radio,CD, and XM functions....they are big and bold and easy to see at a quick glance. But with all these new technologies available to us these days and the days to come, there are many periferal items that it can be used for also......rear camera, TV, DVD movies, guage clusters, etc...and who knows what else is coming. I may or may not get any of these, but without the cleanly integrated screen I would be limited to crappy looking after market add-ons cluttering the clean look of the interior. When you go to sell the car later, people will be looking this option. It will be expected as it becomes more and more common. It helps bring the TL up to the level of all the other higher-end cars....that's what makes this car such a great buy. Besides, I just like gadgets.

socal16

GET THE NAV!!! You will not be disappointed. Even if you are good at directions and don't use it often, the screen itself makes the car look SO much better. My friend bought it without the NAV, and he still regrets it.

05TL6MT

I drive about 3,000 miles a month for work, and I can't imagine not having the Navi. As others have said, I will never buy a car without it. My boss has a TSX non-Navi and he wishes he had gotten the Navi. It's money well spent.

Intox1221

go for the navi...
its like a big ass screen in the middle of everything...

on a serious note... it is helpful and quite a tool, u just dont know when you gotta get somewhere urgent, doctor's appointment, and ur running late, the navi comes in really handy....

yes i dont use it everyday... but when i have the need to look up a place, get somewhere quickly... the navi compensates for all of the 'unused' days....

1995hoo

I use the voice commands reasonably often to tune the radio when I am dealing with rush-hour traffic. I've become particularly fond of "Radio Select [band]" where [band] refers to XM-1, FM-1, etc. It's a lot easier than hitting "MODE" when driving in traffic.

As others have noted, "Find nearest gas station" can be quite useful. It's also useful when you get stuck in traffic even when you don't have a route mapped out--you can always use the display to confirm whether there are alternate routes. This is one of my favorite reasons for having it--I've discovered various connector streets that I didn't know about before, including a nice new shortcut to one of the golf courses.

The other nice thing is that you don't have to remember to print out directions on Mapquest when you're going somewhere new or where you haven't gone for a long time and don't remember how to get to.

To the person who asked about the calculator and calendar--use the "INFO" button located next to the joystick (the lower part of the button you use to access the "Setup" menu). There are some utilities in there, and the calculator will convert gallons to litres, F degrees to Celsius, etc.

1995hoo

Something else I just remembered is that the integration of the Navi and the Bluetooth is EXTREMELY cool. You can display the information for a place and then have the system send the phone number to your cell phone to call it. I've occasionally put places into my "Today's Destination" list when I knew I was not going to drive there (for example, a ski resort in Idaho when I was flying out to Boise the next week) specifically so that I would be able find their numbers and easily call them on my cell phone to avoid paying long distance at home or at the office.

(It wouldn't let me edit my message because it said I had taken too long to try to do so, hence the multiple posts.)

jazzpicker

This is not an intended hijacking but since the subject has been brought up, what are you talking about 3.04A, C etc..? Is this a difference in the navi unit or the software? (or something else)
Duh, sorry..

Drago

Guys THANKS for all the input, considering that all of the 38 replys were in favor of spending the extra dought to purchase the Navi, I am on my way to the dealers to pick up a 05 Pearl White TL WITH NAVI !!


Thanks guys cant wait to get the car in a couple of hours...