eddie snax:
We don’t need truck sat navs, we need drivers with common sense, when did it all go wrong
IMO around 8-10 years ago when navs became common place and the then new drivers thought they were the be all and end all of navigation. If the 12volt/ cig light socket is bolloxed some wont/cant take a truck out for fear of getting lost.
A car nav is fine as an addition to a map and ill use mine occasionally to good effect. As you say we certainly dont need truck navs, common sense is what we need but unfortunately it isnt available mail order or at Argos…
eddie snax:
We don’t need truck sat navs, we need drivers with common sense, when did it all go wrong
IMO around 8-10 years ago when navs became common place and the then new drivers thought they were the be all and end all of navigation. If the 12volt/ cig light socket is bolloxed some wont/cant take a truck out for fear of getting lost.
A car nav is fine as an addition to a map and ill use mine occasionally to good effect. As you say we certainly dont need truck navs, common sense is what we need but unfortunately it isnt available mail order or at Argos…
I do remember having my first satnav, tomtom car one and like you said, I got in the Wagon one day and found the lighter wouldn’t work so I panicked and pulled my bag apart thanking the heavens I hadn’t taken my maps out and tossed them, turns out I didn’t need either cos I impressed myself and actually read the road signs all day…amazing things they are… [emoji6]
As chance would have it, and because after about five years the old one was getting a bit long in the tooth, I actually bought a new nav thingy a couple of weeks ago: by someone called Philips and it cost £3.99.
It’s the same issue with any driver - whether it is a car, van, caravan, truck, or coach. Sat nav is advisory only, and you should be double-checking its instructions against road signage. Unfortunately, many people seem unprepared to ignore satnav, or drive on and let it re-calculate the route.
I’m especially aware of this when I was on a van job up to Oslo, make myself a route in Google maps to take me via the Oresund crossing. Halfway up Denmark, get towards Kolding, it’s directing me north. Lane marking shows ‘Aalborg’. Err, no thanks. Ignored it, went East to Copenhagen, when I was in the toll queue, looked over and it was trying to get me to use the Frederikshavn-Oslo ferry. I love how it assumed I’d already bought a ticket…
iomex:
I’m especially aware of this when I was on a van job up to Oslo, make myself a route in Google maps to take me via the Oresund crossing. Halfway up Denmark, get towards Kolding, it’s directing me north. Lane marking shows ‘Aalborg’. Err, no thanks. Ignored it, went East to Copenhagen, when I was in the toll queue, looked over and it was trying to get me to use the Frederikshavn-Oslo ferry. I love how it assumed I’d already bought a ticket…
Didnt need the nav but it was on when i came south of Karlsruhe in Germany on M3 and instead of directing past Rastatt to take the next junction onto the A500 tried to direct me through Rastatt and across the ferry to cross the Rhine It gets ignored on a regular basis…
iomex:
I’m especially aware of this when I was on a van job up to Oslo, make myself a route in Google maps to take me via the Oresund crossing. Halfway up Denmark, get towards Kolding, it’s directing me north. Lane marking shows ‘Aalborg’. Err, no thanks. Ignored it, went East to Copenhagen, when I was in the toll queue, looked over and it was trying to get me to use the Frederikshavn-Oslo ferry. I love how it assumed I’d already bought a ticket…
Didnt need the nav but it was on when i came south of Karlsruhe in Germany on M3 and instead of directing past Rastatt to take the next junction onto the A500 tried to direct me through Rastatt and across the ferry to cross the Rhine It gets ignored on a regular basis…
Well, on the next trip it stopped working on the German border. Couldn’t find the list of motorway numbers I’d written down so thought “bugger this, I’ll just do this the old fashioned way” and navigated by road signs, until it popped back in Malmo. I don’t bother with satnav half the time now, only useful around towns.
I can’t remember the last time I looked at a paper map, I’ve never looked at Google maps or their equivalent, I do have an old sat nav (so old that it still shows the roundabouts on the A1 between Doncaster and Stamford) but I rarely turn it on.
What I do have however is an inbuilt sense of direction that all living beings come issued with. This sense of direction is like a muscle, the more you exercise it the stronger it becomes. I’m no trucking God, we all have this ability but reliance on satnavs dilutes it. I know this as fact as I used to use the sat nav on every trip and could not give coherent directions for regular drops to anyone who asked.
I also have common sense apparently as I’ve never (unless deliberately) been down an unsuitable road nor have I ever hit a bridge. Like I say, no trucking God, just an ability to utilise what we are all born with.
I wasn’t going to post anything about this topic, but here goes.
I have been using a ton tom one, car sat nav for about 10 years now. All its cost me is a new power cable and one update a couple of years back. It’s now overdue another update to be fair and I might think about replacing it.
Anyway I use it “purely as a guiding instrument”. Sure enough, it tells me to turn left or right into a weight restriction, but I have an unusual gift. I am able to THINK for myself and common sense will tell me that if there are restrictions for weight or height or width or whatever, I turn my brain on and actually use it, just like most of us on here do. I also have one of those pre internet paper manuals called a road map and I also have a stash of a to z in my cab.
being a map + a-z man myself for 27 years of truck driving, I thought i give on of these new tom tom car sat navs a go on a trip to Aston, working great, even told me what lane to be in, how many miles to go, so far great 1 mile to go went round a corner bugger 15 bridge with a 15.3 trailer!
After I sweated a bit scratched my head, managed to turn round then found a way to the drop.
Now if I been I bit bright I would have left the sat nav turned off, but no off to a reload at Cannock I decided to use it again, was going to go back the same way to the M6 but that be to easy, the sat nav woman said turn left but I was going to turn right, didn’t want a ear bashing from the sav nav I followed what she said straight to another 15 foot bridge and this time no where to turn round. caused a big Queue had to get to the other side of the road and reverse back for about 1/2 mile to turn around, got called a ■■■■■■ by a charming van driver and I thought he did have a point!
After that thought it be best to put it back in the box and only use it in the car
We have tomtom truck sat nav supplied by the company. They are approved by our insurance, so as long as we input the correct measurements, particularly height, they are happy. I’m on car transporters and in 3 years it hasn’t taken me anywhere I shouldn’t be. What it cannot do is advise of low trees! Still have my bridge map and if I go somewhere I don’t know I check the route the nav has chosen. Ours are also linked to the truck and pick the most fuel efficient routes.
If the relevant authorities are that bothered by the issue, pass a law forcing the manufacturer to put sat navs in the truck as standard. They’ve all got them as options now, then within say 10 years, the problem will be shifted onto them. Then you can just ban plug and play sat navs
Which is fine as long as they are kept updated. I asked a dealer about updating the sat nav in my car.
They wanted £900 and it would take a day. Aye right!
Looked into it a bit more and found not only did I have to pay for the update I would probably not get
the disk it came on, oh and make sure the car has a full tank as it takes 5hrs and the engine needs to be running.
I can’t see anybody who owns a truck having it off the road for a day, idling while an update is done. Assuming the same
process is required.
Decided not to bother as the car sat nav recently developed Regensburg syndrome, so sticking with Co-Pilot on the phone.
Colingl:
Which is fine as long as they are kept updated. I asked a dealer about updating the sat nav in my car.
They wanted £900 and it would take a day. Aye right!
Looked into it a bit more and found not only did I have to pay for the update I would probably not get
the disk it came on, oh and make sure the car has a full tank as it takes 5hrs and the engine needs to be running.
I can’t see anybody who owns a truck having it off the road for a day, idling while an update is done. Assuming the same
process is required.
Decided not to bother as the car sat nav recently developed Regensburg syndrome, so sticking with Co-Pilot on the phone.
Which is why the likes of Google Maps and Waze need truck support. When the A380 bypass went up, it was on Google Maps in the space of a few days. Good thing about Google Maps is that if you’re unsure, you can pull over, put it on satellite mode or check out a turn or a bridge on streetview.
ive only ever used the car satnav i bought about 12 years ago.never updated it or replaced anything and it still works ok.it tells me theres roundabouts where theres now a bypass,and various other things that are easily identified as outdated,and just wangle round it accordingly and mostly gets it near enough to be ok.couple that with a bit of common sense,and happy days.id never have the time ,interest or patience to be parked up playing with street view,or satellite view versions as anytime you head for a low bridge theres usually a sign somewhere telling you about it anyway.id rely on it more someplaces abroad,but in the uk,then i can wing it till the last few miles and have a look at it then if nothing obvious pops up on the roadsigns…satnav is an aid,not a replacement for gumption and your brain…it cant even show you how to tie a dolly knot or a barrel hitch,and its best finction is to give you someone to argue with when your in a bad mood with the usual mealy mouthed condescending english voiced ■■■■■…alternatively i just call o2 and argue with the similar voiced cow on that.
It gets ignored on a regular basis…
Aye right!