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Comments
The clarity during calls is pretty good. I can hear and be heard quite clearly. The garmin automatically captured my cell phones phonebook, and all recent calling activity. That way I can place calls or redial numbers with ease, and without touching the phone. I like the touch screen, and that I can voice dial, and if necessary input any pin#'s on the touch screen.
This gadget has a lot of ways to customize it's usage. And it's portability is invaluable. It will be a great asset in the Avalon even though it's primarily for my car that doesnt have a GPS system. Whats your status with the reps at Toyota or your next move in regards to getting another ECU on your own???
I'm very excited about the prospect that this unit will allow me to utilize the built-in NAV screen for something really useful in my opinion ... video! However, I do not find any reference on this topic so I'd appreciate any information about this product's performance etc...
Thanks.
Then consider the type of screen you have? Is it touch screen compatible, and will it support Nav commands? Or will you have a joystick? Even the joystick has to be integrated with the display in order to command the ECU in the trunk.
I'd say, find out what needs to be done to add Navigation to the car. That info might give you some insight into whether an audio shop could do the installation instead of relying on Toyota. You might find that installing a Toyota Nav in that car is more problematic for you, than it's worth.
But if you decide not to put the Toyota Nav in, and still want Nagigation.....I recommend the portable Garmin Nuvi 660. It has a lot more features than my Toyota's Nav. And it's maps are a lot more accurate and detailed.
One thing I like about my Garmin, is that it shows the name of each street as you approach. When the Garmin has been programmed for a destination, it announces the name of the street, road, etc at each turn. The points of interest info ( food, atms, banks,shopping centers etc ) is very detailed. You get their names and addresses, the distance to these places.
Hope things work out for you.
Again, thank you so much for the heads up...Saved me from bying the ECU and then not being able to use it. Have a great weekend.
I agree with you regarding the "feel" of an integrated unit. I'm sure thats why I bought the Toyota Nav off of Ebay, even though I already sprung for a portable unit too. I hope your research will help you find a workable solution. If there is an in-dash unit out there, could you share what you find here? Thanks, and good luck.
I just replaced my old garmin c330 with the new Garmin c550 and am very impressed with the new features in this unit, especially the Bluetooth, mp3 player and jpg photo viewer. But the most important enhancement is the sunlight-readable, anti-glare display that is even readable in bright sunlight. It's easily transportable for multivehicle use and comes with an easy-to-install windshield mount. I just detach the unit from my windshield and lock it in my glove box or take it with me to deter thieves.
I paid $669 Canadian (GPS City) which is about $598 US.
I've loaded my mp3 music unto a SD card and insert it into the slot but I want to play these through my 06 Avalon speakers. I have a little used cassette deck in my Avalon and understand that there is an adaptor that can be inserted in my tape deck that can play my Garmin's audio through my Avalon speakers. Has anyone have experience with this and have any advice?
Your Garmin c550 should have a headphone jack on the side, right? Most of the time, the cassette adapter you are refering to is for a portable CD player that has a headphone jack, and someone wants to listen to the player through their speakers in the car instead of the headphones.
As long as you have the same headphone jack on your Garmin as a portable CD player, you can use the cassette adapter the same way. Just remember to set your car stereo to TAPE DECK mode in order to hear the music/sound from the Garmin or portable CD player ).
Most retail electronic stores and even some "dollar discount" stores sells these cassette adapters. Anywhere from $5 to maybe $20??? Sometimes you can buy a portable CD player that has a car kit. In the car kit, will usually be a cassette adapter and a power cord for the cigarette lighter. Hope this helps.
I have a 2005 Avalon with Navigation....
I was wondering if there a way to display the arrival time for a trip instead of the default "trip duration X hr Y min"
I find that displaying arrival time is better information than duration. (Of course, there is always a danger of speeding to see if one can arrive earlier than the estimated time :P )
TIA.
I have seen a few DVD's on ebay, mostly for Lexus but some of the Toyota models are lsited too. But they mention certain generations for compatability.
I had talked to my dealer, but that didn't get me any useful info. They said I had the latest update in both cars. I thought 6.1 is ther latest?
Thanks for any feedback.
Tony
Did I hit a wrong button or is it something else? Yes, I read the manual but could not find a page to tell me how to correct this problem. And, oddly, the NAV screen picture in the book (contrast, color, etc.) does not exactly match the screen I am looking at in the dash. I am missing a button :confuse:
Any ideas appreciated.....
Me: "previous destination"
Screen shows list of previous destinations correctly
Me: "Three" or "Number Three"
Avalon: "Are you sure you want a route to PREVIOUS
DESTINATION number 3 ?" (question also displayed on screen)
Me: "Yes"
Avalon: "Calculating a route to PREVIOUS destination number 3."
The issue is that the destination it takes us to, is not what was displayed next to the PREVIOUS destination number 3 as shown in the list. It isn't the PRESET destination number 3 either. This is a bug. I have an 06 Avalon with software 05.1. Perhaps someone with newer software can tell us if it works correctly on their car.
Do you know how to make the Day Mode button re-appear? The position of the headlight switch makes no difference. Is this an electronic failure? :confuse:
Try this again, just to make sure:
1. Make sure NAV is displaying the normal MAP display.
2. Turn your headlights on
3. Push the Display button
4. Now I bet you will have the "Day Mode" button?? If so, push it.
5. Exit as usual back to the normal MAP display.
Now see if your display dims automatically?
All along we have known that the NAV screen has a control panel to operate it. All the regular dash stuff is one system, the NAV is another. Right? Nope....
If the dash brightness button, on the left side of the dash, is turned to MAX, that is, all the way over to the right, then the NAV screen goes to DAY MODE and cannot be set to night mode. The Day Mode button vanishes.... Back off the max brite setting, the Day Mode button re-appears when you press the DISP button. Needless to say, this explanation is not in the NAV manual or the regular manual.
Not only that, three different local dealers had no idea how to solve this problem. All suggested bringing the car in for a service check. Rediculous. Never doubt that most of the members on Edmunds.com, regardless of the car make, know a lot more than most service departments.
And thanks to *samsks*. Your ideas will eliminate other issues that might have come up later. Still love the car, 5k miles, and perfect so far.
My dealer basically told me that they agree it is a problem, and that they have no solution. I am hoping to find someone with a newer DVD software version to see if that takes care of the problem. It isn't a big problem for me because I just use voice commands to get the screen to display (easier than using the menu) and then I use the joystick to select the entry I want.
I have a 2006 with DVD software version 05.1. I am trying to get my hands on a newer version, but my dealer hasn't came through yet.
So does the destination that is being set look familiar at all? Is it nearby the intended destination, some place you've set before or just completely random?
Original Message (lbs1):
The local technician solved the problem-after calling the California gurus who said they they weren't famil;iar with the problem. he figured out that the chosen destination number refers to the five "previous destination" addresses appearing on the screen, not the numbers next to them. So, if you scroll to the destination you're looking for and site its position on the screen, the correct directions will follow. I hope that's clear. It's amazing that this info is not in the instruction manual