So I regret for not getting the navigation with my TL. I want to have navigation so bad that I went and bought one on Sunday. I picked up the TomTom GO 720 because it's black, and the finishing matches with the dashboard surface. Moreover, it's got a USB charger stand that's also in black and can be placed in front of the clock. The USB charger stand holds the GPS tight to the base. You'll notice the black cable in the photo. That's the USB Cable. I've take it out for now because I really don't like cables, and the battery on that thing lasts 5 hours anyways. So I'll just bring it home and charge when needed. After I get my short shifter and during the installation, i'll take out the buttons for the clock, run the USB cable through, down the panel, and into the cig charger compactment. That will hide the cable and keep it charged all the time! One thing I like about the TomTom is that it has a built in 2 GB memory and a slot for SD cards. The thing has a jukebox for playing MP3 through FM transmition, which is great. Now I can play MP3s. The other cool feature is that it gives you traffic details.

So there are still 2 things I need to do to make it very OEM:

1. Hide the cable through the clock buttons
2. Print Acura over the TomTom logo

 

Nice. Post some pics of the final install after you've hidden the wires.

 

Very nice. Looking at the install pic, is the GPS unit sitting in the TomTom "Desk Dock" that is included with the unit? If so, how did you attach it to the dash (velcro, screws, etc.) Thanks.

 

That looks pretty clean! Reminds me of the pop up navi screens on the G35's. Post pics once you complete the install!

 

nice, i will probably be doing the same thing soon with either a tom tom or a garmin. i was upset mine didnt come with nav either, but for the price i got mine, stock price with the full aspec pretty much free, the aspec was more important than the nav. i cant wait to see your finished product.

 

I thought about buying the original nav unit and do the swap like others did, but it's too costly and too time consuming and I am not that good with electric and mechanics. So this is the solution for me.

Yes, the GPS unit is sitting on the desk dock. It has the USB connector, and 2 sticks to hold it firmly together. The desk dock is taped using 3M double sided tape. It's pretty firm and doesn't move around!

I try to avoid drilling holes at all cost because it's simply not right The cables run down the panel through the holes for the clock buttons. The car clock is hidden behind the GPS unit so it's useless. So I thought, why not run the wires through those holes !!! Works perfectly.

I wish I can get my hand on the clock/fan panel so I can cut a hole that matches with the stand so that I can hide the stand and just have the navigation display sticking out. That will look so sweet.

 

I'm of the frame of mind that a portable GPS unit is a better investment. First of all, it's alot more inexpensive than Acura's OEM Navi unit. Secondly, it's portable. You can take it with you on trips, etc.

Anyway, another question for you. I've been looking at the TomTom models, particularily the TomTom GO 920 T. Is the USB cable hard wired to the desk dock? If that's the case, you have to take out the desk dock from the car every time you want to connect the unit to your computer.

Thanks.

 

The USB cable is hard wired to the desk dock, but you don't have to take the desk dock every time in order to connect the unit to your computer. It's just a regular USB cable, so if you have a spare USB cable, it will work with the TomTom unit. This is the reason I bought it because it charges with USB and it comes with the desk dock but can be used as a car stand.

I tape the desk dock to the car, and use a regular USB cable at home.

 

Besides the temp display, what type of info is also displayed, which is now blocked by the TomTom? Mine displays A/C mode, radio/XM/DVD/CD info etc., and I would not want to have such info blocked.

 

Mine only displays the time information so it's pretty useless as the GPS has the clock as well, so nothing is missing as far as I am concerned. It's a pretty easy mod. The hardest part is removing the clock panel so I had Acura done it for me for $22.

 

Is it too late for you to get a smaller unit like a Garmin Nuvi? That just looks too bulky for my tastes. Over time, that might prove to be a nuisance. Do you have tint, or does the screen have that daytime-type display like the Nuvi?

Looks nice tho, and nice use of the dash bro!

 

I have Garmin Nuvi 660. It is the best GPS right there. And Yes, i also regret getting stock NAvi. Garmin has everything i needed.

 

you probably already have navi, right?? for those of use without navi, that top area only displays the time. so it really wouldnt apply to you.

 

darksom1, I actually love the big screen. I've tried smaller ones but they just don't look right to me. I would have gone for Garmin if it offers a stand charger like what's included with TomTom 720 so I can mount it perfectly on the dash board and not on the windshield. The only annoying part is turning it on and off, which I am still trying to figure out if there's a way to trick the system to go on and off according to external power source.

TomTom does offer day time or night time displays. It switches automatically. But I have it set at day time all the time because I love the brightness

blkaspec, you are right. It just displays the time. But TomTom already has time on the screen so I don't lose anything. Moreover, for non-navi, there's no "direction" display. TomTom offers that, so it's another great addition for our non-navi cars

I'll post more photos later today as I've done the cable hiding and it looks much better now.

Thanks for the comment!

 

to follow up my earlier post, i actually just purchased the TomTom 920 a few days ago and it should be here very soon. i will probably end up installing it in the same place. i am also glad to hear that there is a clock on the navi, i thought there should be but wasnt sure. i cant wait!!!

 

920 is much better than my 720 !!! Congratulation ... I think you'll like it a lot ... oh yeah ... plus it's got MP3 player through FM transmission ... so ... another cool feature I like ...

 

that looks really nice mounted like that!

i got a magellan maestro 4000 for xmas. im enjoying it very much!

 

Here are some photos after I've hidden the cables. I think the TomTom GPS project is finished. Now I can move on to the next one!

 

that's a good place for navi. way better than dash mount and window suction cup mount. actually, it's easier to see the screen than OEM location since you don't have to look down. it is pretty bright also.

what's the size of the screen?

 

Thanks! Yeah I find so too. It's as though it's sitting on top of the road. it's 4.3"

 

Hihenry.com - im not following how you wired this. You used the USB connected to the TomTom and the Desk unit and then also the car charger that you ran to the cigarette lighter? Or did you splice the usb and tap into the lighter?

blkaspec - what color is the 920 you purchased? Im looking into buying the 920 as well but can only find it in a grey color that doesnt look like it matches the dash black?

 

Basit06TL. Here's how I wired it.

I just use the USB that's connected to the TomTom. I bought a cig charger to USB converter. And just plug the USB to it. I didn't use the car charger because the desk unit doesn't have a place for you to connect it to anyways.

 

Gotchya, thanks for clarifying.

 

Damn that looks beautiful.

 

That looks great! I too regret not getting a navi, but I am definitely going to do what you did.

 

It looks really good. I don't really understand how you have hidden the wires and ran them down to the compartments below though.

To take it to the next level, I would try and find a way to make that a flip-out. As in, when you don't want it, it folds down and goes in to the little place where the clock is and then you would have the ability to release it with a button. That would be insane. However, would the unit even fit in that little place.

 

oh please ...... shut the f--- up !!!

 

aspectl06, haha ... that's kind of hard for me to do .... i ran the wire through the holes where the clock buttons are ... by the way, i took out the clock unit in order to run the wire through

 

It was just a joke so be easy.

 

i did soemthing just like this. I actually mounted it on the left side of the driver dashboard. It sits right next to that hump for the odometer. However, i did not hide the wires.

 

it is a grey/dark grey color, not black, but it still looks pretty good. i will try to get some pictures of my setup sometime today or tomorrow.

i did a similar setup but i totally removed the USB cable hookup from the base. i used a dremel to remove the stock hookup but created enough space to insert the stock cig charger if and when i want to charge in my car. the only bad thing about this is that the USB connection was the primary tool to hold the tomtom to the base, with it removed it just falls off. to solve this i used some velcro to hold it in place. i also used velcro to attach the base to the car. its not as clean as stock, but i think it looks alot better then the suction cup option.

 

That's a very nice look man. Looks clean bro!

For a second there, the date on your pic had me feeling like "Rip Van Winkle"

 

 

haha ... that's funny ...

blkaspec, why not just use the USB cable as the charging source?

 

well, first off i didnt know there was such thing as a USB to cig charger converter, so i didnt think keeping the USB cord attached to the base was going to be helpful. i also didnt want to have any cords attached if i didnt need them. this way i can choose to use the base without a cord, or the base with the cig charger attached. and by using the velcro i can remove the gps from just the base and/or the gps and base from the entire car.

the only bad thing about my setup is the velcro that is left behind when all the items are removed. but its black, and not super noticeable, so it doesnt really bother me. the one thing i do like is that i used enough velcro in the car that i have some options to where i place the navi and to what angle it is facing me or my passenger.

BTW: i drove around with it at night for the first time last night and i found out the tomtom has a blue themed night color, which looks really cool with all the stock blue lights.

 

blkaspec, now i understand! that makes sense! Yes, i use the night color at nights. it looks really nice. I want to paint the grey area on the tomtom matt black so it looks even more oem. is there such a paint that creates a matt type of look? then i want to print "acura" over "tomtom" ... haha

 

For the folks that have TomTom, how is it? I thought about picking up one, but I don't like the cartoonish look when displaying maps....also, I did see alot of good reviews on the Net. I thought about getting the Magellan 4250 or Garmin Nuvi 760, but I don't think they come with the desktop cradle which is vital for me to do something like what you guys have.

 

well first off, i have only had this thing for a few days so there may be others who are better informed, but i really like mine so far. i know what you mean about the maps, but it is not that bad, and its only like that in 3D mode. if you do a 2D view it will look at the map from a top down display, just like the stock nav and many other aftermarket ones. they both have their ups and downs. the 3D view is good if you are looking for a street that is nearby, like you are driving through a downtown and you need to turn right down a specific street. the 3D allows you to see every street name that is in front of you, but it does not show a large area. thats where the 2D comes in. this view takes away some of the street name detail, but is better for when you dont know street names but just know that you need to get to lets say a freeway or something. you can zoom out and see all the streets and how to get there. right now i drive in 2D, but the 3D will come in handy when i actually need to find a specific location.

i bought mine, it was not given to me, and for the $ and options i thought the tomtom was the best choice. garmin seems way overpriced, but i think they are a little smaller. plus, i can download gary busey's voice to give me directions, which is always cool

 

I've had the 720 for a bout 4 months now and it's great. My only complaint is with the TT software for the PC called TomTom Home. Rather buggy, but they did just release 2.2 which as taken care of some issues (but not all).

Also, the 720 can now accept voice input for addresses, so update it to 7.221 and be sure to have Map NA710.

 

I've had the 720 for a bout 4 months now and it's great. My only complaint is with the TT software for the PC called TomTom Home. Rather buggy, but they did just release 2.2 which as taken care of some issues (but not all).

Also, the 720 can now accept voice input for addresses, so update it to 7.221 and be sure to have Map NA710.