Does anyone know what the nav screen displays in a unsupported area? I was looking at an 06 on a used car lot here in Alaska and they couldn't get the navigation to do anything. Is that normal?

 

Alaska has no coverage at all. I would think you ought to be able to use the voice controls for the radio and climate control, but you won't get any sort of mapping unless you drive down the Cassiar Highway into BC. At some point that road will appear, but not much else.

I'll report back in early August if I remember and if nobody else gives any info before then. I'm taking my TL to Nova Scotia next month via the Cat Ferry from Portland, and the Navi cuts off a short distance east of Yarmouth. I actually had to go to the AAA to get maps for the first time in several years.

If you drive to an area that is on the map but where there is no coverage, the Navi would just lay down a ton of breadcrumbs.

 

Thanks for the information. So what is the default screen when you are in an area without maps? Would you be able to leave it on the Audio screen, or will it be blank most of the time?

 

it wont show anything... i just moved to Hawaii and when i went to pick up my car nothing would show up and i dont get xm radio anymore either... i called the dealer and they said theres nothing i could do about it....cuz i doidnt buy the car here....$2000 bucks down the drain!

 

Will it show the "audio" screen if you are listening to AM or FM or a CD? I expect my XM will work in Nova Scotia, but obviously I can't ask you to comment on that because I know it is not available in Hawaii.

 

Yes you can display the audio screen.

 

So will the audio screen or HVAC screen become default or will it keep trying to switch back to map view? I'm sorry, but I've never had a chance to use the nav yet.

 

If you hit the "Audio" button it will normally stay on "Audio" until you hit it again. I didn't know there was an HVAC screen. How does one display that?

 

I've seen a picture of an HVAC screen on this forum. Not sure what version but I'm sure it was a TL. Anyone know about this?

 

The HVAC controls show on TSX Nav screens, but not on TL Navs.

 

Following up on this to give concrete confirmation. I'm posting this via a wireless network at a B&B in Liverpool, Nova Scotia. Took the Cat Ferry from Portland, Maine, to Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, earlier today. The TL's Navi cuts off a short distance east of Yarmouth along the Lighthouse Route (NS-3) and I drove off the edge of the map where it goes to black. The Navi then laid down breadcrumbs as I drove, until I stopped to take some pictures at a scenic church. Turned off the car to take pictures and when I got back in, hitting "OK" on the nag screen simply left the Navi at the nag screen until I hit the "Audio" button. That button works as normal until you turn off the radio, at which time the screen stays frozen wherever it was with "Audio Off" displayed at the top. (It will update when you turn it back on, and XM works as normal here.) I can display the Navi menu and setup screens and such, but not the map screen.

Just wanted to give definitive confirmation that if you DRIVE off the end of the screen, the Navi will lay down breadcrumbs, but once the car is turned off beyond the edges of the Navi coverage, it won't do anything when you hit "OK." The "Audio" screen will NOT come on by default; you must hit that button after hitting "OK." I'd consider not hitting "OK," and just leaving the Navi off, except that I like having the voice commands for the audio available.

I'll follow up in two weeks regarding whether the map turns itself back on automatically when you drive back into the coverage area. (If you look you'll see a minuscule sliver of Nova Scotia on the map.)

 

Awesome info, thank you for following up.

 

Thanks for the info.

 

Same scenario today and it occurred to me that I can hit "OK" and then go into setup to turn off the Navi screen whilst still having voice commands. I may try that. It's weird having the screen off, but it's weirder having it frozen, especially if the last song that played on XM was a catchy song and then you drive along being reminded of it so that it's stuck in your head......

One feature that is sorely lacking on the TL is that the MID doesn't have a button to switch the display from miles to kilometres: it's miles only. Since it's all electronic, it should have been easy for Acura to program the appropriate algorithms to allow you to switch it so that your odometer and trip meter will match the units on the highway signs.