Parts of Riverside County, California have a new area code as of this past fall. I was shocked to discover my 13-month old 04TL has updated it's points of interest database with the new area codes! How did it do that?

Now, when I bought the car in November 2003, we were all one happy 909 area code. July 17 2004, the new 951 area code was available and as of October 29, it is mandatory.

http://www.cpuc.ca.gov/static/indust...17_acsplit.htm
(Ok, not that you needed that link, but I'm trying to be complete.)

Today, I went to map to a restaurant and the place had the correct 951 area code! I still have same DVD I had when I bought the car.

I actually called the dealer on this. They said, "It came off the satellite." I asked, "Which satellite, the government GPS satellite or the XM satellite?" He responded, in the typical way small town people here respond, "It just came off the satellite. I don't know. It's kind of like big brother." Can this be true, is there another satellite connection I'm unaware of? What are the limitations to this update process? Can it send new roads, points of interest, or new Acura dealerships down to my car? How often does it do this? Am I receiving area code changes in say, Alabama in addition to those where I live? Where would those changes be stored, and do they survive a disconnected battery? Maybe I don't need to buy a new DVD every couple years?

EDIT: I just checked. The DVD in my nav system is version 3.30E. Sigh.

Nonetheless, it's a cool feature, whatever it is. I swear, the electronics on this car are the best kept secret aside from next year's AWD 350hp turbo TL. (j/k)

 

...ummm as far as I know the GPS unit does not recieve any updates via satellite... Can you please verify this?.

 

Heck mine doesn't even have the right phone number for my dealer. Instead they have the number for another brand owned (Audi I think) by the same people.

 

Mine also!

But, NO the navi does not update itself. It is very possibel that Alpine knew that the new area code was coming out and included it in that navi dvd.

 

I just called Acura Client Services.

ME: "How did my car get these updated phone numbers?"

ACS: "From the satellite."

ME: "Which satellite?"

ACS: "Your car uses something called Global Positioning System to locate it's position."

ME: "Ok, but how did the phone number for Chuck-E-Cheese get changed?"

ACS: "All POI information comes from the satellite."

ME: "Oh really. Do the roads come from the satellite too? Does the satellite know about new roads when they are constructed?"

ACS: "Sir, maybe if you could restate your question."

ME: "How did the phone numbers get changed 1 year after I bought the car."

ACS: "Please hold. <10 min> Sir, let me read page 3 of your Navi manual to you. 'The TL uses GPS to locate the car's position in latitude and longitude'. Sir, if that answer won't suffice for you, I'm not going to be able to help you."

He then gave me the phone number for ordering a new navigation DVD: 1-888-549-3798. That, of course, didn't help.

So I called ACS back, and got a much friendlier person:

ME: ".... how did the phone numbers change?"

ACS: "From the satellite."

ME: "From the XM satellite or the GPS satellite?"

ACS: "GPS, definitely."

ME: "So the GPS satellite is updating my system with phone numbers for Chuck-E-Cheese?"

ACS: "Yes, all of that comes off the satellite."

ME: "Cuz I thought I had to buy an updated DVD in order to pick up changes to roads and restaurants and things."

ACS: "Uh, that's a good point. Please hold. <3 min> Sir, your car should have the most updated DVD which would included these changes."

ME: "I checked last night and I have version 3.30E."

ACS: "Yes."

ME: "But I know that version 3.4 is available for purchase."

ACS: "Please hold. <5 min> I know the latest version available for purchase would have the updated area codes."

ME: "Ok. Any idea how I got them?"

ACS: "I'm sure that all comes from the GPS satellite."

ME: "My company does a lot of GPS work. I'm pretty sure all the GPS gives you is current time, and that the car triangulates time signals to figure out position. I don't think Chuck-E-Cheese's phone number comes off that satellite."

ACS: "Yes I agree with you, that's why this is puzzling. We don't have detailed technical information on the navigation. Please hold. <2 min> Have you had the vehicle in for service since the area code changes?"

ME: "Yeah, for oil changes and stuff."

ACS: "Please hold. <2 min> I asked one of our experts here. He says either it came from the GPS satellite, or the dealer changed them when you went in for servicing."

ME: "So the dealer has some sort of patch to update phone numbers?"

ACS: "Well I don't have the detailed information on how that do that."

(Note--- I already asked my dealer, and they said, "it comes off the satellite" so I doubt they did anything.)

ME: "Well I'm glad everyone is as confused as I am about this."

ACS: "Yes, sir. Have a nice day."


So what the hell, everyone says it comes off the satellite but no one can explain how. I think a previous poster was right, and that Alpine knew about the area code change timeline when the DVD was cut.

Sigh.

 

Yeah, they have no idea what they are talking about. The GPS satellites are run by the government and they are not going to update this sort of information. Otherwise we would have no need to spend $185 for the new DVD when it comes out.

 

Those phone date/info are stored in Navi DVD...

 

Yes, clearly. Yet today I had two Acura Client Services people telling me that stuff comes off the satellite. I'd like to see their training class: "If they ask you anything about Navigation, just reply: It Comes From the Satellite."

 

....sigh... people giving garbage answers... what's wrong with people admitting that they do not know...??...

 

Agreed.

 

ACS is a bunch of idiots

 

customer service people know absolutely nothing and your dealer knows even less. there is no way in hell that the satellite broadcasted the phone number change. first off the gps belongs to the government and are primarily used for military purposes, why would they waste their time(and satellite) broadcasting regional phone number changes. second can you imagine the amount of phone number activity that can go on? who would manage all this change on the satellite? second how would they even know you got the update? how long do they broadcast the update for? its just no a feasible idea and all POI's come from the dvd.

 

I believed that 909/951 area code split was planned long time ago, even before the first 3G TL came out. The navi disc may already have that information since 03.

 

ok so which satellite is it?

 

Hey maybe we've also got a DVD burner in the trunk and the satellites, in conjunction with our DVD burner, makes all the necessary changes! Wow!! I bet even the new RL doesn't have that!!

 

are you sure? i thought it was fairly recent, like within months. riverside county (including university of california, riverside) all was told that the new numbers (including emergency numbers) were changed with the new incoming freshman class. or thats what i heard from my friend.

 

The 909/951 split was planned long time ago until it finally went into practice last fall. Actually, there was an 752 overlay planned on 909 (east LA & SB county) and the 951 split (Riverside county) when it was first discussed...and PUC dropped the overlay area codes(same as 424 in 310).
It is good to have the correct area codes in our navi system....even without knowing where the updates really came from.

 

The new RL's Nav system is far more advanced than the TL. It actually does get its updates from the satellite.
There's no DVD at all.
.
.
.
.
.

 

05RL doesn't have DVD??? In Oct, someone did put 05RL's DVD into TL and it wouldn't work. And, this thread said it has two??? https://acurazine.com/forums/automotive-news-6/new-bmw-m3-csl-official-specs-photos-106282/

 

Yes, the 05' RL has a DVD

DMZ you are referring to the messages that comeup with the acuralink - recall notices and such. The ONLY thing that is updated is the dealer directory - if a new daeler is added, or a dealer moves, or a phone number changes for ONLY honda/acura dealers.... that is what you must be referring to.

I could be wrong, but that is what I read (directly from acura)

 

oh, and yes, the RL has TWO dvds actually, one for the canada maps, and one for US

 

are you referring to the live traffic updates? that is updated by the XM satellite and not GPS satellites.

 

using satellite as a live transmit of data is still far, far off. it is techincally feasible at this point but it would cost a buttload and as it stands, dvd works pretty darn well. too bad we don't get free updates, because each disk would probably cost acura a few cents.

 

Alpine needs to make their money when updating maps and making those databases.... unfortunate for us though.