Another dilemma...

[Raza]

...why?

I don't need one.  I don't want one.  Why pay for something I don't need?  I can deal with maps and MapQuest and the like. 

[afty]

I haven't read this whole thread, so I apologize if this isn't relevant, but typically when dealers offer these kinds of trade-in deals, they make up the profit on the price of the new car.  You're either going to get a good price on the new car or a good price on the trade-in, but not both.

[SJ_GTI]

I don't think I'd get one in a new car if it meant fucking up the radio controls, but so long as it is an essentially stand alone unit, why not?

I've never seen an integrated nav system that fucked up the radio controls. In my GTI, it gives me a lot of control options readily available that are not on the regular radio, and when I am not using the nav system I have a much better radio display, which is especially handy when navigating satellite radio stations.

My mom has a TSX with nav, and in her car the integration is frankly better then my GTI. Touch screen, voice activation, etc...

Could you give an example of a car where the nav system messed up the radio controls?

[TheIntrepid]

Could you give an example of a car where the nav system messed up the radio controls?

iDrive.




By the way I agree with you Tony in that the Acura navs are VERY nice.

[CALL_911]

iDrive.




By the way I agree with you Tony in that the Acura navs are VERY nice.

In the E60, iDrive is there with or without Nav. But the voice commands are very good. My dad just uses voice commands for the radio. Works well for him.

[SJ_GTI]

iDrive.




By the way I agree with you Tony in that the Acura navs are VERY nice.

Idrive doesn't change the radio controls. With iDrive you can control the radio directly or via iDrive. What iDrive gives you is more options that are not available without iDrive.

How giving more options fucks thing up I don't understand. But then I don't tend to not want things "just because."

[CALL_911]

Idrive doesn't change the radio controls. With iDrive you can control the radio directly or via iDrive. What iDrive gives you is more options that are not available without iDrive.

In dad's car, you have to control the radio through iDrive, except for volume, and tuning (I think?). That is, unless you use voice commands.

[JYODER240]

I don't need one.  I don't want one.  Why pay for something I don't need?  I can deal with maps and MapQuest and the like. 

I use a portable nav. It's nice to have when I'm on unfamilar backroads that don't show up on maps.

[Raza]

I use a portable nav. It's nice to have when I'm on unfamilar backroads that don't show up on maps.

I could see how they're useful.  But the average factory nav runs for about two grand.  That's about ten times what a decent clip on nav system costs in the secondary market.  Hell, Best Buy was selling TomTom Ones for around a hundred bucks on Black Friday.

[SJ_GTI]

My stepdad and brother have aftermarket navs. They are functional, but not as nice as my integrated system.

With mine, not only do I get a bigger, clearer screen...the nav system is also built into my gauge cluster. All directions are right there between my speedo and tach. And frankly, when I use my nav system I end up relying far more on the instructions in my gauge cluster.

It was expensive, but such is the price of getting what I wanted.  My thinking was that since I was saving so much by getting a VW instead of an Audi/BMW/Lexus I may as well splurge on all the options (not to mention the aftermarket extras). So far I haven't regretted it in the least.

[Raza]

My stepdad and brother have aftermarket navs. They are functional, but not as nice as my integrated system.

With mine, not only do I get a bigger, clearer screen...the nav system is also built into my gauge cluster. All directions are right there between my speedo and tach. And frankly, when I use my nav system I end up relying far more on the instructions in my gauge cluster.

It was expensive, but such is the price of getting what I wanted.  My thinking was that since I was saving so much by getting a VW instead of an Audi/BMW/Lexus I may as well splurge on all the options (not to mention the aftermarket extras). So far I haven't regretted it in the least.

With that mindset, I see no problem with your decision.  It's just not the decision that I would have made.  There are advantages of factory systems, definitely, but for me, I see it as something I don't particularly want anyway, so there's no reason to pay such a high amount for one.

[J86]

Could you give an example of a car where the nav system messed up the radio controls?

No, I couldn't

Actually, I thought that was one of the issues with iDrive and the like, but seeing as I don't drive a BMW with iDrive I don't really know for sure...

Hey, if they're all stand alone units, great!  Technology marches forward...

I will say though, I don't much like the looks of the screen in the dash (a la Mom's Prius), I love the ones that hide away; I remember a friend had an Infiniti a few years back where it motored away, that was slick.  Don't MB ones do that too?

Personally, I'd just do what we've done already (for the cars w/o GPS); just use the marine handheld from the boat, bolt a mounting bracket to the dash, upload road maps, and proceed to never use the thing anyways