New Garmin 285w...satellite problems

1. Did you have any other GPSrs before or is this your first one?

2. What vehicle are you driving?

3. Where/how do you have your unit mounted, does it have a clear view of the sky?

P.S. Do a search on this subject as there are already many such threads on slow sat. aqusition.

1. No, this is my first GPS unit

2. I drive a Volkswagen Passat. Is this pertinent information? Sattelite acquisition was quick when i first purchased the system, and it's not now. My car hasnt changed.

3. I dont have the unit mounted for security reasons. I or my passenger just hold it while driving.

I did a search and it looks like i may need to reset the unit, or something about letting it defrag. Although i havent uploaded anything to it yet so i dont understand why it would need to defrag the memory structure.

Thanks for your input.

You just need to get it up on the dash where it can get a clear signal. If you are worried about security, then get a bean bag mount, but put it up where it can see the sky.

Beside for getting the unit into the windshield you should also wait for a fix before rolling, you will get the fix faster, and it will be more accurate to boot!

Wow, such quick replies. I'm impressed! Thanks, I'll definitely give this a shot. Have a great weekend.

Forget the defrag stuff; as you suspected, it is hogwash.

Tiny changes in position within the car CAN be significant, however. In my pickup, it doesn't seem to work well near the windshield, above the dashboard.....where it would "normally" be mounted.

Holding it is probably not a good plan. In one of my cars, it works good sitting in a cup holder; in the other one it doesn't. Consider a bean-bag mount or a vent mount......if you are really paranoid about the little circle on the windshield.

As an engineer myself, I would have to say that would be extremely poor design if such minute changes in position really affects the performance of the unit. Not saying you are wrong at all..I'm just really surprised that would be true.

Shouldn't I be? I've heard stories of burgulars looking for that suction cup ring as a tell tale sign of units stored in the car. I've also heard that the dead of summer can melt the plastic / rubber and leave a very hard to remove ring on the windshield. Is this not true?

Trying all your suggestions when I get home from work tonight. Thanks!

If you are concerned about leaving behind the suction cup, you may want to look into the beanbag method. If you use this mount you can easily remove it when you leave your car, and no rings to worry about. I use one an just find the ease of use (well easy).