Did you recently take on (or consider) a loan of 84 months or longer on a car purchase?
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Is there anyone out there who has replaced theirs on a 2001 and if so, what have your results been?
Thank you.
My nav system sucks to high heaven and the lowest hades, and Honda nor Alpine will willingly address the issue so I am going to let my state's lemon law handle it when the extended warranty expires! Basically, that's three unresolved visits to any dealer for the same problem and Honda has to take back the vehicle. I am glad to hear that a disc update does not solve the problem, at least!! I will not spend the money based on your comments. Honda just says everything is fine from the dealer all the way to the national office in California. Alpine does not even answer letters or phone messages.
Part of the so-called problem is I live in a rural area and Honda says the maps have not been updated. That sucks because the Lewis & Clark Expedition mapped not only Kentucky but Ohio and Missouri and Indiana 200 years ago or so, and by now, Honda and Alpine should have gotten on board.
I will give the system this much -- after I go somewhere and enter that location into the unit, things are basically ok. You're just going to have to figure out how to get there first so you can tell Honda where you want to go.
I guess if I owned Alpine or Honda stock, I wouldn't complain. Or if I had so much money that it did not matter, I also probably wouldn't complain. As it is, I paid over $2,200 for something that is unreliable, doesn't work correctly, but sure does make a nice-loking cover or front piece for the CD player.
Good luck! I wish you well.
It sounds like your biggest complaint is the way it searches for POI's. I had problems with this at first as well and it turns out, it's operator error. The system is not intuitive though, which is why you're getting stores 200 miles away.
This "problem" has to do with the order in which you select different menus. Try this from the main nav menu: search places, shopping, sort by distance to travel or city vacinity, then input name. If you just search by name it pulls "Dillards" out of its [non-permissible content removed].
Another problem can be with how the names are in the system. A lot of times I'll do a city vicinity search and just type in the first letter and then hit list. You'll have to scroll through everything in that category that starts with a that letter.
What's really sad is that of the OEM systems I've owned, this one is actually the best. The system in my wife's Lexus is horrible even for my technical brain. She refuses to use it and has a Garmin mounted to the windshield. The Lexus also has a lot of limitations to features when the vehicle is in motion.
I've been putting off buying an update for quite a while. One time I came very close; but stopped cold when I read about a bug that prevented the system from letting you listen to the male voice. The female has a grating voice to me.
I'm now glad I waited though. It looks like they've added quite a few features and locations that I care about. I still have the original 2004 disc from when I bought my 2005 Odyssey. Hopefully they've improved the POI's for where I live (Riverside, CA); because this area was all orange groves at the time my DVD data was created.
I feel bad for all of you who are having issues with the navigation system. I have tried a handful of GPS units, both built-ins and portables. None have come close to the features that are offered to me on my built-in Honda Navi. I've tried Land Rover, Toyota, BMW and Ford built-ins and they are all less intuitive and did not allow for any input while driving over 10 mph. I've tried a couple megellan and garmen units and have never been quite happy with their ability to give easy access to the options I care about and have consistently taken me off the freeway just to get back on it a couple miles down the road because it's a shorter distance.
The main trick for the Honda navi (and I saw someone else mention this) is to select the options in the right order. If you want to get all of the closest Walmart's to your current location, you push Menu, Places, Shopping, then top selection but I forget the wording (something like Search Nearest), then select By Name. If you select By Name after pushing the Shopping button, you get a pretty irrelevant listing of stores from anywhere and everywhere.
Anyway, this is turning into a long post and I really just wanted to thank ocuihs for posting a link to purchase the discounted map/poi update DVD. Thanks!
I just noticed that I have a blue line that runs vertical down my nav screen has anyone else had this problem?
Thanks
Somebody please tell me I am wrong, or that there is a hack for the white disc to make it work in my 2001, or, or... is it just a losing battle? :confuse:
If you need additional North Canada coverage, you may purchase Canada DVD (gray disc).
https://store.alpine-usa.com/Hondadvdsales/naviorder.php
Note: Fulfillment is handled by Alpine Electronics of America, Inc.
A Canadian
It CAN NOTgive directions from/to any street that is not a State of US highway. You are on your own in the middle of a city except for a dotted line that shows the straight line direction. There IS NOT audible NOR visual directions to a point that is not on a State or US highway.
I drive around with a TomTom sitting in front of the very expensive Nav system.
Where is the customer outrage??????? or any HONDA concern?????
Since my original complaints, I have visited a couple of very large cities and the Honda unit works fine there. But, take it to the rest of the world and you're on your own, plain and simple. I don't care a whit about the integration that everybody talks about. The nav system is inferior and was from the get-go. There is no customer outrage and you can forget about Honda concern. I have talked with Honda national on a couple of occasions and all I get is a story about how Alpine made the system and how it's a little short on some aspects of updates and so on, but no one is willing to go the mat and get Honda to fix these things. If you write Alpine, you'll get no reply.
In short, Honda is done with you when you give them the money or send in the payments regularly. And I have owned more Honda cars than this one so I know a little about the usual practices of Honda customer service. It's usually top-drawer -- but when you have a legitimate complaint about which they are doing nothing, you get shut out in the cold. Again, though, an extended warranty is going to change that one day!!!
If I take any sizable trip today, I program the Honda and I also make absolutely certain to take my QVC Cobra with me for backup. Am I ticked off? You bet!! But it looks like you and I are about the only ones willing to tell Honda the bare truth -- the thing just don't cut the mustard for the average customer who lives somewhere other than in a major, major metropolitan area.
"This "problem" has to do with the order in which you select different menus. Try this from the main nav menu: search places, shopping, sort by distance to travel or city vacinity, then input name. If you just search by name it pulls "Dillards" out of its [non-permissible content removed]."
I tried this with my 2005 Honda Odyssey and the "sort by distance" or similar option was not there at this point of the process. Anyone with a 2005 Odyssey get this to work? Does the newer DVD work like this?
Now if I already have a route in, I can do a search by vicinity, but just looking for a Blockbuster video is ridiculous.
Menu, Places, Shopping, All Shopping, Input Place Name, Distance to Travel:typed in Dillards
Gave me a Dillards starting with the nearest (about 70 miles....are they still in business??) and then on from there.
One thing I have found though is the names of places are all over the place. I've searched "outback" for outback steakhouse...and some were "out back steakhouse" and others were "the outback steakhouse". But yes the Ody nav is pretty lame either way. Blackberry helps me find things and then I can put in the address to Ody nav and away we go. Usually.
Anyone know of where to get a Europe DVD?
Anyone every hear of the Alpine system being compatible with another company that might have a Europe DVD?
I just shipped a 2009 Odyssey with Navigation (EX-L R&N) to Germany in June. I have never even driven it but I did mess with the Navi in the U.S. I have actually not yet seen a Navi Odyssey on any of the Army/AF bases here yet, though there are many of them driving around without Navi. It is not sold here, in fact I think the Odyssey is ONLY sold in NA. Also the AutoExchange dealer in Germany will not sell a Navi version even if you ask.
Once it gets here I plan to go straight to the German Honda dealer (Händler) here and find out about a German Navi DVD or if it might work. If you find a solution first please post it. Thanks
Bruce
Other than Minnesota, it's been absolutely reliable all the way from Chicago down to the Keys, back up through the east coast states, across Canada from Niagra Falls and out to rural Kansas. Maybe I should just be happy that mine works (for the most part). Honda should have plugged it into the engine sensors to do mpg, though. That was the only disappointment on my EX-L.
There have not been any new posts in a few weeks, and many negative posts. In the 3 months I have been playing with the Honda Navigation, I have read the manual cover to cover. So, I would like to hear some more tips about how to get the most out of the system that we are stuck with.
I am a Magellan owner, sorry Garmin users, and love my Magellan. My Magellan always takes a long time to acquire satellites, and I have had to return it for replacement during the warranty. But, I love it, the database is great! The database in the Honda leaves a lot to be desired. And interestingly both get their information from Navteq! Go figure.
So, I hope to generate some more discussion here, and see how we can help each other.
The Honda Nav system cannot find my home which has been here for 60 years. The TomTom cost about $600 3-4 years ago and is much better than the Honda system.
What a mistake the Honda purchase was.
The Honda dealer here tells me that the German Hondas have a completely different system but the maps are still from NAVTEQ. That said, I am waiting for a discounted 2009 upgrade disc to come out for the Euro market on ebay.de, ebay.co.uk, etc. As far as I know any disc older than 2009 will not work, but I don't want to waste 300 euros to find out.
The second problem.. once you HAVE the 2009 disc for the euro market, it is region-coded for europe. The Honda Navi DVD drive under the seat (and the RES system by the way) are US region-coded (Region 1). So, once the Euro Navi DVD is in my hand, the first thing I plan to do is copy it onto a DVD-R/+R, code it as region 1, and pop it into the drive in the car. Who knows what will happen then??
Let me know if anybody has found a solution to this!! I am getting tired of driving around Germany with my TomTom sitting right next to my Navi screen on clock mode.
Anyone experiencing the same issue, or have suggestions to remedy the problem?
Thanks
Any suggestions?
I have the same problem with my 07 Ody that we took along to Germany. Can not get the Nav to work. Did someone contact Alpine Europe/Germany?
Does anyone know how to make the RES region code free?
Please email for further discussion: schunderfamily@t-online.de
Thx!
You mentioned re-coding the disc on your computer but in my experience the navigation DVDs have security protection that prevents this.
By the way, I bought a 2009 Odyssey Touring when I arrived in the States and use the video-in jacks in the rear to plug in my portable DVD player (Medion brand bought in Germany) and we watch German DVDs. That doesn't help you much but at least I can sympathize!
I wanted to know if other people have the same observations as I do regarding this vehicle.
Recently I visited a local dealer to look at and test drive the Honda Odyssey. After the visit I have several questions.
1. The digital clock. I found the clock difficult to read during the daytime. Reflections and its location way over on the passenger side of the dash and lack of contrast, made it virtually unreadable. Is it backlit during hours of darkness? Does anyone else have trouble reading the clock?
2. Electrical outlets. One in the front and one in the back! Could someone enlighten me as to to total lack of these items. There is one located on the lower front dash! The minivan that I drive now has 3 at this location.I use all 3 many times (my Iphone, her CD player and call phone.) How does one add more outlets at this location? And why the lack of additional oulets at this location?
The 2nd row passengers have none! They either have to reach forward to access the front one or reach behind them to access the only one located at the 3rd row? Again, why the lack of these outlets? The 3rd row has only one outlet wat in the rear, driver side. My 2002 minivan has these outlets at numerous locations throughtout the vehicle. Why Honda reach the decision to offer only 2 in the entire vehicle baffles me. Children and adults nowadays use many different electrical devices requiring these type of eletrical outlets.
How do people get around this lack of outlets. I was told that one can purchase an accessory/adaptor that piggybacks into 2 or 3 outlets from a single one. Is this true? And what about the then need to run wires from the 2nd row passengers to either the front or rear locations? I see images of multiple strands of wires running throughout the vehicle.
Thanks in advance,
Steve