Poor Routing After Software Upgrade and 2010 Map Installation

I sent off a tech support question to Garmin this AM.
Will post reply if I get one.

Here is what I received:

Thank you for contacting Garmin International. I would go to your navigation preferences and go to your Avoidances and make sure the Unpaved Roads option has a checkmark, because if not, that can cause the unit to route funny at times.

I would also run a software update and maybe do a master reset on top of that to see if that helps you out with the routing issues. To update your software on your unit, you will need to have it hooked up to your computer and then run a program that you can get for free from our website called WebUpdater.

The WebUpdater program is extremely useful in the fact that it can find and update any software that your unit will need. It is a program that is absolutely free of charge and can be downloaded from our website. If you would like to download and run the WebUpdater program, you will need to do the following:

1. Go to www.garmin.com/webupdater and click on the link that says Download and Install WebUpdater

2. Select the program that is most appropriate to your operating system, click on the links that say “I agree”, and when prompted, click on the link that says Download. If possible, go ahead and save this download in a folder that you can find later on your computer.

3. Run the program and follow the prompts to install it on your computer. You will need to place a check on the agreement screen, and when the installation is finished, click Done.

4. You should get a gray box that says Welcome to the WebUpdater wizard. You will need to have your unit connected to the computer via USB cable. Make sure the unit is powered on when you plug it in. Once plugged in, click Next. The next screen should pull up your unit in the white space underneath the box that says “Find Device”. If nothing shows up in the box, click on “Find Device”. If nothing happens then, it may be that the computer is not recognizing your unit, or you need the unit’s respective USB drivers installed. Once your unit is detected, click Next.

5. The update process comes in two stages. The first stage will check for any major software upgrades that are available to your unit (i.e. software version 3.8 to 4.1) If software upgrades are available, click Next and follow the prompts to download the upgrade. It might say it is going to take a long time to update, but it should only take about a minute or two if you have a high speed internet connection. Dial-up will take longer. Once the upgrade is finished, or if you have the latest software available, you will get a prompt to check for additional updates. Make sure the choice is highlighted (if it asks for that) and click Next.

6. The second stage will check for any additional updates. Most of these updates are completely optional, such as different languages, or vehicles, but there will be some updates that are important that will be found only here, such as firmware updates, GPS chipsets, localization data, and Bluetooth and DSP firmware. These will usually be listed first at the top. A good rule of thumb is that if the update does not start with the words Vehicle, Text, or Voice, then you should place a check mark in it to add the update to your unit. Once you have the appropriate boxes checked that you want updated, click Next. Once everything has updated properly, click Finish, and disconnect your unit from the USB cable.

7. Your unit will go through a loading process in which it will update its software and any firmware added. Once it loads, it will go back to the main menu. If you want to check and see if the system is updated, simply go to your Settings tab and tap the System button. On this page, tap where it says About in the middle at the bottom. This will show you what your software versions are.

8. In locating the program again, if you go to your Start menu, and select All Programs, you should see a folder that says Garmin. If you open that folder, you should find the WebUpdater program in there. It would probably be a good idea to run the program every month or so, that way your unit will have the latest software and will run in the most optimal and efficient manner.

To play it safe, I would also run a master reset on your unit. To do a master reset on your unit, make sure the unit is powered off, and then press and hold down on the bottom right hand corner of the touchscreen. While holding the screen, press the power button until the unit comes on, and then let it go, but keep the touchscreen held down. After a few moments, you will get a message that says, “Do you really want to erase all user data?” Tap yes, and the unit will reset and reboot.

Keep in mind this will reset all user settings and eliminate any user data, including possibly your favorites, but it should not affect the maps or operating software.

If the unit is still giving you erratic directions or routing like before, please let us know.

With Best Regards,

Robert O

Product Support Specialist

2nd Shift Automotive Team

Garmin International

913-397-8200

800-800-1020

913-440-8280 (fax) Att: Robert O, Associate #6925

www.garmin.com

Original Message Follows: ------------------------

Form Message
Knowledge Job Ticket: Knowledge Session Log
KnowledgeBase: garmin
Subject: Poor Routing
Message Body: Unit voice says turn left , then right. Map shows turn right then left correctly. Also unit directs me to go thru city even though staying on I95 is faster. Set to fastest and tolls turned off. My C320 displays none of these issues.
MarketName: On the Road
ProductGroup: nuvi 200 series
Product: nuvi 255w
Type: General Unit Operation
SerialNumber:
Full Name:
Country: United States

Just made a update firmware last night for the first time:

1. For some reason I have problems with windows 7. It stopped at connecting server, as same as I when downed load the update map when I got the unit few weeks ago. I had to use my wife's netbook XP for last and this time too. With XP, everything went smoothly.

2. Good navigating is based on the map or firmware? I tested running in stimulating mode last night and it took me longer route to get there. Before it did not.

I suppose there is no way to down grade the firmware.

I use Windows 7 and I had no issues. Check your firewall settings. Also, are you using Explorer, Firefox?

I upgraded my firmware and I have had no issues, in fact, the routing got better.

You may want to check your settings as many have reported that the settings have changed. Check the avoidances too.

Many have also reported that a hard reset may be required right after an upgrade, then look into your settings.

Just keep going your way, eventually the GPS will learn and remember your preferences.

If you are suggesting that the Garmin will "learn" routes based on your driving history, that isn't correct. I wish it was. TomTom has the IQRoutes system where it uses history accumulated from many users on specific road segments and day of week / time of day patterns to adjust routing. But so far no Garmin models have anything comparable to this.

You may be thinking of the average speed learning that is on some newer Garmin models where ETA and simulation travel speed are learned from individual driving history. These changes are applied globally by road classification and not by specific road segments. Also, there is no evidence that this learning affects routing ... only ETA and simulation speed.

This happened to me on 4 occasions.
Has anyone else experienced this? Only happened after I updated the firmware. The routing got better by 10 fold.

I just did a stimulating test run, running on a straight road and just about 1000 ft to the destination, I "could" see the destination ahead, it turned right on a small street, left, left, then right back on its route, what!!!. I am going to give it a hard reset see what happens. Really wish that I can down grade.

Another thing on a different subject (wouldn't want to create another thread to crowd the site ):

I see on my garmin the icon of speed limit when in stimulating mode, let's say 40 mph but no sound. Is it from original map or from custom POI? IIRC, I never loaded the poi speed limit on it (loaded rl &speed camera from this site only), not that I complain (love it). If it is from original poi, where is it so I can acess and create a sound?

are part of the map data.

I wish there is a way to create sound. It is pointless because symbol is small and it's dangerous looking and driving at the same time.

I wrote to Garmin AGAIN and this is their reply:

Thank you for contacting Garmin International. Per your reply the reason you are getting two different routes on your different units is because of the learning mechanism from within the GPS devices. The devices over time will learn the driving habits of the driver. Whether you like highways more then side roads, or interstates more then highways. It is impossible to get the same route on two of the same devices as they would have different levels of detail and data that it has gathered. Remember the unit is trying to build a route that it best knows how. It will not take you the exact route that you are wanting to go. There are no preplanned routes. It takes into account the current location, destination, learning mechanism, and navigation settings you have put into the device. As long as it gets you to the destination the unit has performed it job. Remember there are multiple ways to get to one destination. I hope this better clarifies the issue.

I didn't think any nuvi model had the ability to "learn" driving habits.

I agree, Coincidence or not, without fail my Garmin likes street lights. Shorter distance, faster time, less fuel doesn't matter, route stays the same when plotting a route at home here. These are relative short routes mind you. If i were going on a trip i wouldn't know the difference, not sure it would matter to me then either. BTW google does this to me also. Normally my nuvi wants me to go north then west as an example. I mostly choose west, then north because west has less lights. The distance isn't any longer but it has far less street lights which means less stops and less fuel.

I don't buy that Nuvi learning mumbo jumbo for a minute. On my old iQue M5 there was a selectable feature called "Use Habits". THAT was the learning mode from Garmin. I have had several different Nuvi versions and none of them have a use habits feature.

I use my Nuvi on the way to and from work every day for the traffic alerts. For years I have taken the same route, and for years Nuvi keeps trying to change the last few turns. It wants me to make a left on 7th St and a right on Biscayne, then a left on Port Blvd (5th St). I instead take 1st Ave all the way to 5th St and make a left, then go straight across Biscayne where 5th becomes Port Blvd.

If the Nuvi is learning, it's the slowest learner I have ever seen. A 5 year old would pick up the route after 20 drives or so, and know where to turn.

Thanks for getting that information. I my gps is learning, I think it needs to be held back a grade.

Next

I received my 255W for Xmas. Have used it every day to work. If it has learned anything, It's learned to say RECALCULATING.

You just have to take that word out of its vocabulary.

Download Turbo's TTS Voice editor and give some new things to say.

I just recently updated my Nuvi 755t. No problems so far...

I have a 1690 with FW v3.0 and 2010.4 maps - mine works great and I get optimal routes. I think it does a better job than the 760 I used to have.

I also run all the updates and downloads with no issues on a Win 7 64-bit machine.