GPS Value

[gus]

I got something I said I never would, a GPS. I always considered them expensive toys for autos when they were $400-700 but my wife got a Garmin c330  from WM for less than $200. I used it today for the first time and am now a believer. Right away I decided it is worth the money if only used for three things,

1. It shows a very accurate speed which the bus speedometer does not because it jumps all over the dial.
2. It shows the road so accurately that it can be used in foggy weather or darkness to anticipate the roadway just ahead.
3. It will show us the locations of WM stores as we travel, some of them are not easy to find because we don't carry street maps. We've spent a lot of time chasing around towns trying to find them even they were listed as near the interstates.

It even shows our tiny dirt road to the farm, amazing! Such a deal.

[Dreamscape]

Good for you Gus!

I use them a lot as I travel a lot for my job. I don't really know what I would do without it, they are very handy as you have found. I am hardly ever in the same town twice in the same year, so I know I could never remember where anything was. Now I depend on the help I get from Garmin.

Now, what was the other toy you said you would never get? 

Have fun,

Paul

[Kwajdiver]

I agree with Paul,,,, In fact, I found his house with my GPS.  I also work a lot of places and would never travel with mine.   I find it is a good toy to play with on long trips.  As Paul said, great for watching your speed.  The more you use it, the more uses you will find for it.  Need a Wal-Mart parking lot in the middle of the night, punch in Wal-Mart, of course the GPS doesn't know, that a Wal-Mart has been closed.....

Bill
Gulfport, Ms

[jjrbus]

I could never see the need for GPS on land. The air,or on a boat made sense. But as the price of fuel went up and the GPS came down I purchased one. I have streets and trips on my PC with a monitor by the driver.
If we miss an exit with 35 foot of bus and a toad, we can go an extra 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 miles out of the way. At $3 plus a gallon and 12 MPG a wrong turn or missed exit can eat a lot of money up quickly. To my way of thinking it is no longer a toy, but an investment that can pay for itself.
My last trip to FL I lost my speedometer, I figure no problem, I've got the GPS. Well it worked for a while and then lost the satellite, go figure! Gremlins, karma, bad luck?
                                     Jim

[Songman]

My GPS saved me a lot of times. We got caught in a blizzard in New Mexico last year so needed to stop for the night. I told my GPS to find me a hotel and it showed me a complete list with address and phone numbers. I was able to call one nearby that I liked and got a reservation. The GPS led me right to the door.

GPS is not just about finding your way from town to town. You can also search by type of business you are looking for and many other uses. I've got the portable and also a USB receiver for the laptop using Streets & Trips. I absolutely love mine and think they are invaluable. Definitely not just for sea or sky.

[Lin]

Well, I for one have a complaint about GPS.  When I bought my bus two weeks ago, I was driving home on Hwy 99 in central California.  The bus was cruising nicely and l looking down at the speedo which said we were doing 80 mph.  "This is great," thought I, "80 mph, smooth, something in reserve."  The whole experience was screwed up by the GPS which disdainfully said I was only doing 70.  Some friend!

[gus]

My speedo has always registered 3-5 mph fast and I have had to use my mathmatical brain to figure out my exact speed, now I don't have to strain it anymore!!

I don't care as much about the fuel wasted looking for WM parking lots as I do for just getting parked and rested after driving all day. I hate all that searching around in heavy traffic.

My buddy called today and said he had found it for $179.99 (Mine was $198.99) at another WM in a larger store. I hate it when that happens. My guess is it will be even cheaper after Xmas and that it will soon be discontinued.

It does have some downsides since it is Garmin's cheapest road model.

Some roadways locally now have bypasses, none of which are on the map even though they are 5+ years old. The gps shows me cruising across the boonies!!

There is no voice saying the name of the street to be turned to. I can live with that.

The map is not current and a newer version is $70+, more than a third of the original cost! I'm not too sure the newer version is much more correct.

In spite of all this I am happy with what I have for the amount of money spent.  I''ve owned a couple of aircraft GPSs and they cost thousands.

[Songman]

Well, I for one have a complaint about GPS.  When I bought my bus two weeks ago, I was driving home on Hwy 99 in central California.  The bus was cruising nicely and l looking down at the speedo which said we were doing 80 mph.  "This is great," thought I, "80 mph, smooth, something in reserve."  The whole experience was screwed up by the GPS which disdainfully said I was only doing 70.  Some friend!

Where do you live, Lin? Sounds like you came right by me.

[Barn Owl]

After getting lost 2x at night in unfamiliar towns a GPS has moved up on my list of must haves. I have turned my bus around in places that I shouldn't have because of some poorly marks streets.

The map is not current and a newer version is $70+

Link; $56.37 + free shipping, for 2008 Garmin software update at Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000TZFL3M/ref=nosim/?tag=fatwalletcom&linkCode=as1

Where I heard about it:

http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/messageview.php?catid=18&threadid=779014&highlight_key=y&keyword1=garmin

Laryn

[pvcces]

They're also a big help warning when you are approaching a windy part of a route. This means that you can plug right along on the straighter stretches. I do quite a bit of night driving, so I really appreciate this feature.

Tom Caffrey

[Lin]

Songman,
     I live near Santa Cruz and we bought the bus in Fresno.  Patrick Young, who posts here sometimes helped me by checking it out mechanically before we came.  He then spent some time with us fixing enough air leaks to get it roadworthy and showing me how to double clutch.  My other bus has synchromesh.  The plan is to get the new one, a 1965 MC-5a that is already converted but in need of some overdue maintenance, and then to sell the present one, a 35 foot, 1967 GMC Superior.  Where did we pass you?

[muddog16]

The sons and I went to a Race out of town and on the way in the traffic was backed up for miles it took me longer waiting in line than it did to drive the distance to the race track.  After the races we were again sitting in line on the road waiting for traffic out of this place. I passed several roads while waiting in line, I started thinking where does this next road coming up go to, no one was taking any side roads out. I decided to hit destination home on my gps and follow it at 12 midnite, in about 10 minutes i was totally out of traffic and had found a alternate route to the interstate and home..............it was totally worth it!   I never leave home without it now when we take trips.  One other item is if your hungry on need a pit stop you can find a resteraunt by just entering "find" and selecting your needs! It is well worth it!

[Songman]

Songman,
     I live near Santa Cruz and we bought the bus in Fresno.  Patrick Young, who posts here sometimes helped me by checking it out mechanically before we came.  He then spent some time with us fixing enough air leaks to get it roadworthy and showing me how to double clutch.  My other bus has synchromesh.  The plan is to get the new one, a 1965 MC-5a that is already converted but in need of some overdue maintenance, and then to sell the present one, a 35 foot, 1967 GMC Superior.  Where did we pass you?

Nope, you weren't far enough South. I'm in Bakersfield. I just always like to keep current on bus nuts that might be fairly local to me. I've met quite a few so far and made some good friendships.. not to mention good sources of information as I continue on with my conversion.

[HB of CJ]

Songman, you probably already know that I also am from the pretty city of Bakersfield.  Now I love and live in God's Country of SW Oregon.  A general question?  If all us old Coots get GPS things, what excuse are we going to use for always getting lost?--because now we CAN'T!!  AAAHHHHHHH!   Ain't technology great?