Toyota GPS lost its way

[Bob12345]

So i got a 1-year old Toyota Fortuner and the GPS regularly wants me to tell him where we are. How i understand gps, he should be telling me where we are.

 

About once a week the gps thinks we drive into the sea, or off-road, as it cannot find the exact location or exact direction we are going. It is something i can adjust manually, but that takes time and is irritating (finetune on the touch screen). If i do nothing, its back on the correct spot a few days later.

 

We just got the car back from maintenance but forgot to mention this. But we will contact the dealer soon about this.

 

Anyone has/had the same problem? Did it get fixed, and how, and were you charged for it?

[fredob43]

I don't have a problem with my Tuna set up. But I did find the screen all over the place till I set it at 500mt. (Bottom of screen left hand side, then press save) That's not 500mt for the whole screen but 500mt per every ++ C/M of screen. Sorry don't know the exact amount of C/M. Have also set the screen to it's least sensitivity because when you went near the thing it would change. If any of that fails. Suggest you take it to dealer as it'll still be under guarantee.

N/B once all has been set you should press the home button, Bottom right hand side, You could try the reset set up. That should get rid of any crap.

 

Best of luck.

Edited July 13, 2018 by fredob43

[DrDave]

Had the exact same problem with a brand new Pajero Sport.  At times, it would tell me I'm 15km out in the sea or at the top of a mountain. After a while, it would eventually correct itself.

Mitsubishi dealer told me it was probably the window tint that we had them install. We had the windshield film replaced with a GPS-compatible 3M film that didn't contain any metallic particles, and the situation improved quite a bit. Not perfect, but much better.

[johnsuma01]

cut a little circle om the shield in front of the device that track sattelite, it will improve the accuracy.

toyota know that problem but if you do not ask they will not do anything...

[SHG]

I had the older model Fortuner and the GPS was less than wonderful but in comparison to the GPS in the new Fortuner it was good. The GPS in the new Fortuner is  nearly useless. Good luck searching any location in English. I suggest buying a mobile phone holder and just use the google maps on your phone. I gave up using the factory GPS.

[Golden Triangle]

I have had my Fortuner for nearly six years and I can confirm the GPS is a sack of crap, for a start the maps are now about 6 years out of date, trying to enter names, places or GPS co-ordinates for directions is a waste of space, I don't know how much it would cost to upgrade the maps but I heard it was expensive, the only thing I use it for now is to set the home location if we are staying at a new hotel and go out for the day sightseeing.

 

As SHG says above, get a phone holder and a plug in charger and use Google maps on your phone, far superior.

 

As far as I am aware the vehicle does not come with a handbook for the GPS it should, in my opinion) it's very much hit and miss to figure out how to work it. 

[Jingjock]

Ex submarine GPS left over from the war, not been updated

[Belzybob]

Attached is a page from the 2016 EU manual for Hilux/Fortuner that shows how to update the GPS files. The URL link may not be any good in Thailand, but its a start.

Nav_update.pdf

[MrBanks]

I bought one of the last the old shape fortuners 3 years ago. The sat nav worked once, when we went on a trip to Hua Hin, it even changed route and took us away and around a big accident saving us a lot of time. A week later it went on the blink, and now almost permanently shows me driving in the bay of Thailand. I have requested Toyota to fix it 3 times, each time it has come back just as bad. I even switched dealerships to try and get a better result, all to no avail. I have given up trying. As someone else suggests, I just use my iPhone now. I'm considering getting an aftermarket all singing and dancing one fitted, with reversing cameras etc. 

 

Edited July 14, 2018 by MrBanks
missed word, made no sense.

[a10ams]

1 hour ago, Golden Triangle said:

I have had my Fortuner for nearly six years and I can confirm the GPS is a sack of crap, for a start the maps are now about 6 years out of date, trying to enter names, places or GPS co-ordinates for directions is a waste of space, I don't know how much it would cost to upgrade the maps but I heard it was expensive, the only thing I use it for now is to set the home location if we are staying at a new hotel and go out for the day sightseeing.

 

We have a 2013 Camry, and from memory I think the map is 2012. Ours is one of those all in one GPS/rear camera/cd player/radio/dvd player jobs.

Last time I put the car into Toyota for a service I asked them to update the map for me. They told me I would have to buy a whole new system. I don't speak Thai and my wife wouldn't argue the point for me as she didn't want to piss them off.

There is an update map option on the satnav menu, however it does ask for the latest cd to be loaded. 

I suspect the best option would be to contact Garmin in Bangkok and see what they can offer.

Several years ago I bought a stand alone Garmin sat nav and they offered me a deal of a one time payment of 1500 baht for lifetime updates. Maybe they still do something similar?

I agree that the Toyota system (which is still Garmin) is pretty bad at times. We travel about three times a year between Hua Hin and That Phanom and it rarely picks the exact same route twice. I've now got to the point where I have saved two locations en route (Ikea Bang Na, and Roi Et) so that I don't end up down a farm track or in Udon Thani.

Edited July 14, 2018 by a10ams

[Golden Triangle]

13 minutes ago, a10ams said:

We have a 2013 Camry, and from memory I think the map is 2012. Ours is one of those all in one GPS/rear camera/cd player/radio/dvd player jobs.

Last time I put the car into Toyota for a service I asked them to update the map for me. They told me I would have to buy a whole new system. I don't speak Thai and my wife wouldn't argue the point for me as she didn't want to piss them off.

There is an update map option on the satnav menu, however it does ask for the latest cd to be loaded. 

I suspect the best option would be to contact Garmin in Bangkok and see what they can offer.

Several years ago I bought a stand alone Garmin sat nav and they offered me a deal of a one time payment of 1500 baht for lifetime updates. Maybe they still do something similar?

I agree that the Toyota system (which is still Garmin) is pretty bad at times. We travel about three times a year between Hua Hin and That Phanom and it rarely picks the exact same route twice. I've now got to the point where I have saved two locations en route (Ikea Bang Na, and Roi Et) so that I don't end up down a farm track or in Udon Thani.

That is exactly the same system as in my Fortuner, I didn't realise it was a Garmin unit, thanks for the info, I may try to contact them 

[Golden Triangle]

Just been on the Garmin Thailand website, it says updates are available, I put a micro SD in the slot and looked for updates, nothing. Apparently it is a process that can take more than 4 hours, but no update option on my unit, maybe I will call them on Monday.

 

Sorry, the process starts in the vehicle and then your PC and then back to your car, but the Toyota unit does not have this available.

 

Hope that makes more sense.

Edited July 14, 2018 by Golden Triangle

[Jonmarleesco]

I rarely bother with the GPS. And when I do, it's normally in conjunction with the mobile. 

[Golden Triangle]

As an example, we were traveling down the South of Thailand recently and were in the middle of nowhere, I needed the nearest ATM, satnav said 20 Kms, Google maps said 1.5, if you have something it should work as needed, not donkeys years out of date. ?

[fredob43]

6 hours ago, Golden Triangle said:

I have had my Fortuner for nearly six years and I can confirm the GPS is a sack of crap, for a start the maps are now about 6 years out of date, trying to enter names, places or GPS co-ordinates for directions is a waste of space, I don't know how much it would cost to upgrade the maps but I heard it was expensive, the only thing I use it for now is to set the home location if we are staying at a new hotel and go out for the day sightseeing.

 

As SHG says above, get a phone holder and a plug in charger and use Google maps on your phone, far superior.

 

As far as I am aware the vehicle does not come with a handbook for the GPS it should, in my opinion) it's very much hit and miss to figure out how to work it. 

Does have a hand book for Sat Nav. Front part is in Thai last part English. Does take some reading as there are well over 200 pages of same.

Edited July 14, 2018 by fredob43

[fredob43]

22 hours ago, fredob43 said:

I don't have a problem with my Tuna set up. But I did find the screen all over the place till I set it at 500mt. (Bottom of screen left hand side, then press save) That's not 500mt for the whole screen but 500mt per every ++ C/M of screen. Sorry don't know the exact amount of C/M. Have also set the screen to it's least sensitivity because when you went near the thing it would change. If any of that fails. Suggest you take it to dealer as it'll still be under guarantee.

N/B once all has been set you should press the home button, Bottom right hand side, You could try the reset set up. That should get rid of any crap.

 

Best of luck.

I have just been in another new 2.8 4x4 Tuna my friend has rented. And the Sat Nav is nothing like my Spivo one. His one doesn't 8 side buttons you can press, only 3 also no distance button. So the above info I have put in might be all over the place. Sorry about that I didn't know they had different ones according to how much you pay.

[Golden Triangle]

1 hour ago, fredob43 said:

Does have a hand book for Sat Nav. Front part is in Thai last part English. Does take some reading as there are well over 200 pages of same.

Any links to where I can view this and can you update yours if you so desire ? 

[fredob43]

3 hours ago, Golden Triangle said:

Any links to where I can view this and can you update yours if you so desire ? 

I got my book with the lump when I brought it just over a year ago. As I have said they all seem different so you will need the correct book for your set up. Can only suggest Toyota head office.

 

Re updating sorry don't know, so far it seems very accurate. As long as it keeps that way I shall more than likely never update. Sat/Nav on my old Spivo was over 8 years old, and it was still good direction wise when I sold it. 

Ok it didn't have bit's like the new extension to the M/Way going into Pattaya but if you cant work that out yourself you have to be a bit dim.

[Bob12345]

Been too busy lately but we will plan a visit to the dealer soon and I will pick up the tip to get some of the window foil removed if needed (will ask them at the dealership).

The first time the GPS went wrong was when we drove away from another place where we had front and back cameras installed (crash cam), so maybe the camera is blocking or something.

 

It might take a bit of time, but I will come back once action has been taken by Toyota.

 

 

p.s. for new locations we always use google maps, but the gps handy when you want to cut off a busy part of a road and need to know if the side road on your left leads to another big road or disappears in a tiny moobaan or something (no need to get your phone out). So i only use it driving around on Phuket island and deciding to change course or just needing an idea about where we are.

[DrDave]

In my case, the Mitsubishi dealer in Phuket Town offered to relocate the GPS antenna from its concealed position under the dash to somewhere above the dash. That seemed a little too messy, so I went with the re-filming exercise. Mitsubishi made all the arrangements with the little shop a few doors down, and I think the total cost for removal and new film was under 2,000 baht. If you look at the websites of the film manufacturers, you'll see that there are various grades of tint film - some GPS compatible, some not.

As I mentioned earlier, the situation improved considerably after replacing the windshield film. My guess is that it would have been perfect if I had all the film (side and rear window) replaced as well, as line of sight to the satellites isn't always through the windshield.

One interesting note is that my 12+ year old portable, $100 Garmin GPS with a Thai memory card performed much better that the $1,200 in-dash Mitsubishi unit. Never had the slightest problem with the suction cup mounted cheap unit, but the maps were way out of date.

[ballpoint]

Do you have a dashcam?  I've had this happen on two Toyotas and it was due to the dashcam being placed too close to the GPS receiver.

[Bob12345]

3 hours ago, ballpoint said:

Do you have a dashcam?  I've had this happen on two Toyotas and it was due to the dashcam being placed too close to the GPS receiver.

Yeah, we have a dashcam.

 

But i believe that the GPS receiver is on the dashboard (one of the little bumps where the dashboard and the window come together - another is the automatic lights sensor), and the dashcam is located behind the rear-view mirror. Thats a good 50cm distance between the two. As mentioned the first time we had trouble with the GPS was right after the dashcam was installed... so it might still interfere.

[fredob43]

1 hour ago, Bob12345 said:

Yeah, we have a dashcam.

 

But i believe that the GPS receiver is on the dashboard (one of the little bumps where the dashboard and the window come together - another is the automatic lights sensor), and the dashcam is located behind the rear-view mirror. Thats a good 50cm distance between the two. As mentioned the first time we had trouble with the GPS was right after the dashcam was installed... so it might still interfere.

Before you go to far, maybe a good idea to turn off/Unplug the dash cam and see if it gets any better. At least you'll know if it's that or not.

 

I have a dash cam, that runs from the lighter set up. Wire for same runs behind the glove box then behind the side front pillar camera also mounted behind the rear view mirror, and it hasn't caused any problems with my set up.

Edited July 16, 2018 by fredob43