VW Scandal

[Terry]

The built in Sat Nav beats the stick on the window ones, it has so many good features and clearer instructions but again is expensive as are the software upgrades.  

I hate stick on the windscreen ones - it is always such a stretch and pain getting the damned thing on or off and, if it is as low down the windscreen as I'd like, impossible to reach if I want to change anything.

In practice, it ends up far enough up the screen so as to obstruct my forward vision, which I don't like.

I have a Tom Tom with free map upgrades for life which I used in my previous Focus (02 Reg) which had a little receptacle to the left of the instrument cluster, I made up a bracket and a simple latching mechanism. The base of the bracket was a flat plate that fitted the opening and the latch dropped down behind the front edge - I could fit it and remove it in a couple of seconds. The Sat Nav was in just the right place to look down and take everything in at a quick glance.

I now have another Focus (61 Reg) which doesn't have any cavities, nooks or crannies to fasten anything to! Having the thing on the windscreen is driving me mad and I don't want to leave any permanent mark on the fascia from a permanent fixing - nor do I want to obscure any controls, switches or indicators, of which there are many!

I think I might have eventually found a solution.

There is an information display for the Radio, Phone, etc. in the centre of the dash which has a rigid plastic surrounding recessed into it.

The plate the previous bracket was based on is about 1.6mm thick and is a force fit between the top of the rigid surround and the underside of the padded dash - indicated by the red line below.

I plan to add a small lip as a depth stop so that it lines up with the edge of the dash and a right angled bracket over to the left on which the Sat Nav will clip, using a pair of joining brackets, for quick installation and removal. I've guestimated that, when swivelled towards me, I will still be able to see all of the information panel behind it ...

   

Unlike a built-in device, of course, I can still use it in any hire car I need to drive, including during a possible sunshine in Spain later in the Spring ...

[Refugee]

Those stick on the window satnavs leave a mark on the screen that attracts thieves that smash a window and rifle through the glove box looking for it.

[Nick]

I suspect that rather depends on where you park the car

Satnavs are worth so little nowadays that I'd be surprised if a mark on the front windscreen was enough to incite a car thief.

Google Maps is free, updates for free, is continually refreshed and is available on any Android phone. I've used a whole bunch of TomToms & Garmins, and frankly a decent smartphone is every bit as good, even better as you can get loads of apps that feed off the maps for cycling, off-roading, climbing whatever... I would very strongly recommend Waze (free) as it is live-updated with road speeds, cameras (including mobile ones) and traffic data.

With the Nexus 5X the satnav sensitivity is so good that in our Volvo you can leave it on the center console and it locks in perfectly and updates just as frequently - used it all over Europe and in various bits of the Middle East & Gulf States, and it hasn't missed a beat.

[Keithstv]

David
One other option, if it's available, that I would suggest is a heated windscreen. I've had this on a couple of previous cars and as an option on my present car. It's probably one of the best features ever on a car. As you say a spare wheel is essential but not everyone realised that many cars these days do not have one. If buying new it's better to specify on the order than to get it as a after market spare. One reason I like the Yeti is that it is much easier to get in and out of which is a consideration as we get older.

Whenever I buy a new car the salesman doesn't sell it to me I tell him what I want and it's up to him to supply it.

keith

[Refugee]

I agree about satnavs getting cheaper but theft was a big problem a few years ago.

[Radio Fixer]

No need for a heated windscreen here Keith: the weather is so benign and we never use the car early in the day so it wouldn't get used.

I don't have a Smart Phone Nick and don't need one so Apps on that for Sat Nav is no good to me. Does the phone talk loud enough for you to follow the directions? Nice feature on the Honda is that when you actually get to a turn off or roundabout, a detail of the centre display comes up right in the drivers line of site on the wrap around display console.

Gary

[Nick]

With modern smart phones, its exactly the same as having a satnav - the voice is loud and clear and you can select male/female voices, routing preferences etc.

It used to be that phones were slower at updating position and tracked fewer satellites than specialised satnavs but now they are just as quick and track just as many - just checked my phone and it knows about 21 of the 22 GPS satellites and can see 8 of those at the moment from my office - it handles GPS, A-GPS, Galileo & GLONASS. Note that you can buy a fully-functional GPS receiver module on eBay (or wherever) for about USD 10, including delivery, for inclusion in your own projects.

[Terry]

No need for a heated windscreen here Keith: the weather is so benign and we never use the car early in the day so it wouldn't get used.

Well, we're not a million miles apart, Gary, but I find the heated windscreen very useful.

Not so much for de-icing but it is great in damp conditions for preventing the screen from misting up ... Don't tell me it doesn't rain in Southend!

[Keithstv]

We live above the snow line here in West Yorkshire so a 4x4 with heated windscreen is very convenient. At work I used to watch everyone else clearing their windscreens. All I did was sit in the car, press the windscreen heater button, wait a couple of minutes, operate the wipers and drive off with a clear windscreen. Wouldn't be without it. Also have heated seats which are great on a cold morning.

Keith

[Yorkie]

Many years ago I had a Vauxhall Cavalier which had a heated windscreen and also had heated washer jets - excellent. I'm surprised that heated jets don't feature on cars at all now as far as I know.

What I can never fathom out is that on the little private estate where I live, all the houses have double garages, yet many of my neighbours leave their cars on the drive and fill their garages with general junk. Yesterday and this morning. their cars were frozen over and they were out there scraping frost off and leaving their engines running to warm the car up. The only time we leave our car out is if it's wet through because I don't like pools of water in the garage.

I'm sure that heated seats and windscreens are a boon to those who don't put their cars away or don't have a garage. I doubt I'd use a heated seat - I can't ever recall feeling it would be an advantage, but certainly there are occasions when a heated screen would have been useful until the car warmed up.  Car firms seem to bang on more about styling and trim than on useful features which have real benefits. Terms such as 'sleek aerodynamic lines' are just meaningless tosh. The only car that really appealed to me for styling was the Chrysler Crossfire but I'd never have bought one - too uncomfortable.