I've been wading through the various Nav posts. Here is what I understand:

- If you have the newer Nav Disks, you can't do certain functions when the vehicle is in-motion (above a specific speed).
- To "fix" this you can:
-Swap some wires in the control head.
-Solider a switch in the speed line going to the control head.
-Create a "hybrid" disk with a control file from an older version of the software, but with current maps.

Is this right?

Most importantly, what features do you lose when driving? Can you still do bluetooth voice dialing and speeddials, like on the non-navigation unit??

Thanks!!

 

Voice dialing and speed dialing work while in motion.

The things that don't work are the things that take a lot of visual attention. Manually dialing numbers on the 10-key pad doesn't work. And, you can't program a new destination into the navigation system.

I mostly agree with the design choices -- When the driver is reading and interacting with the computer, he/she is not looking out the front window. Anything that causes a driver not to look out the window for more than a fraction of a second at a time while the car is in motion is inherently unsafe.

 

It's about time somebody stepped up and said that. Most people seems so ticked off they can't interact with the NAV while in motion, but in point of fact, we're all probably better off.

On the other hand, it's a genuine annoyance that the front seat PASSENGER cannot, either. There should be some way for the system to recognize when someone is sitting there (separate from the "seat belt sensor system") and allow NAV input by THAT person. Of course, some wise guy would figure out a way to beat that and thereby cause more driver distraction.

Don't get me wrong; I am frustrated by the lockouts, too. But Steve's statement errs on the side of safety which is almost always a good thing.

 

When my parents got their Toyota Sienna with Nav last year, I was absolutely convinced it was worthless because the only time we tried to use it was while taking family trips with me in the passenger seat. It wasn't until several months of ownership passed that I happened to be toying with it when my dad came to a complete stop in some bad traffic and it started working the way I expected. I haven't tried making a disc to get around the issue. We just got used to seeing it as a map of our current location.

It did influence my decision to go non-nav on my new TCH this April though. Due to the safety aspect, I would never use it alone while driving and if I've got a passenger, they can just use a paper map or a portable GPS that costs MUCH less.

--A2K

 

If there was a way to allow a passenger to interact with the computer, but which would not allow the driver to do the interaction, it might be useful. But I don't see how that could work. It is easy to trick a car into thinking that the passenger seat is occupied -- just put a package or a dog in the seat. Now, here's the crucial question: How does the car know whose eye is actually reading the screen, and whose finger is actually touching the screen?

On a couple of trips with a passenger, we have not had any difficulty with the restrictions. We just did each piece of navigating before we start driving.

I have noticed that when my cellphone is linked to the car, if I dial the cellphone itself, the car speaker-phone still works. I normally don't talk on the phone while driving. But on interstate, in rural areas between cities, and with little or no other traffic, I sometimes relax that rule a little.

 

I already made the hybrid disc and it works fine. As for the safety factor this is really silly. I took a long driving vacation and my wife needed to frequently use the nav. If we had to pull over we would have caused an accident.
If the issue was truly safety then you would not be able to use the hands free phone and anything in the console. Oh yes let's not forget that you have full access to the hybrid cartoon show for the drive train.
Is locking the nav. really creating a dramatically safer car when drivers are talking on the phone and drinking a Starbucks?
You can't create safety by locking out features....Sorry!
If you want to create safer roads make a truly difficult drivers test and have everyone take it every 3 years.

 

Thanks guys. This gives me a pretty good idea of the "boundries" for the Nav system. I also found the on-line manual which helped me walk through the system.

 

I have to agree with the crowd that thinks the NAV controls should not be locked. There are many situations where my wife (who is always the passenger, since she doesn't drive) could have used the NAV to find our next destination, except that it's locked out.

I'm not an idiot - I'm not about to use it myself, just because it's available. It's a sad thing to see that the presumption is that people have to be constantly protected from themselves. Whatever happened to the concept of personal responsibility? Oh yeah, it's not needed anymore, because we can just solve the problems by imposing further restrictions.

 

You mean you're not supposed to play with the NAV system while driving? What else is there to do while driving those long distances? I need something to keep me busy until I can figure out how to play video games or browse the internet on the screen on my trips! It is either that or figure out how to fit my laptop between me and the steering wheel as it is a pain to reach through the wheel to use the mouse on the dashboard.