GPS installation By new2scooters (Read 874 times)

[new2scooters]

Do I need to do anything special to install an automotive GPS on my scoot? I've seen several 12volt weather resistant outlets on ebay such as this one that would be easy to install:

www.ebay.com/itm/110967947077?var=410144268783&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

Seems like it would be easy enough to tap off of a switched power source to provide power....

Will the charging system support this? I've not had much luck finding the amp draw on one as of yet....also, I've seen this case which looks to be an easy way to mount one off of the handlebars:

www.ebay.com/itm/ME-04B-WPCS-5D-Bicycle-Motorcycle-Mount-Case-for-5-Garmin-Nuvi-TomTom-GPS-/330677258149?pt=GPS_Holders_Mounts&hash=item4cfde687a5

Anyone have any comments on this? Comments either pro or con would be appreciated.

Thanks

[terrilee]

i just ran a fused wire to a cig lighter plug, which i had mounted
--this might drain your battery if left plugged in all the time
i thought---- so i installed a quick disconnect at the positive
battery post. and just left it un plugged until i wanted to use my GPS
10 seconds to open battery comp. and connect.
then plug into cig lighter.
i rigged a mount that you use in you car onto my windshield.
the one thing i did have to do tho,
is add a little cover/top to the top of the GPS to block sunglare,with some super glue.
total cost $0 since i had everything laying aroundlooks professionally installed and everything lol

[jct842]

I bought a cheap TOMTOM to install on my big scooter. I never installed it for 2 reasons: 1 I tried it out in the car and when I stuck it out the window in sunlight I could not see the screen. not bright enough to use in daylight, in the car it is in the shade and is fine. 2 you could not get the "big picture" like I could with my hand held. It worked ok to find a street address you knew the name of but to go exploring you could not see where you were in relation to a city or a state line etc. and my hand held could. The auto gps are not designed to do that. Or at least that one wasn't. I may still stick it on a scooter, maybe a little one but as far as I am concerned it was a waste of money.

Walmart and auto supplies store have cig. lighter sockets for a whole lot cheaper that the one on ebay too. You can leave them hooked up permanent too, they will not discharge the battery and can be used to plug a charger in when storing scooter.

[new2scooters]

Jan 3, 2013 11:10:04 GMT -6 terrilee said:

i just ran a fused wire to a cig
is add a little cover/top to the top of the GPS to block sunglare,with some super glue.

What brand is yours and what size screen does yours have? With the antiglare top you have added, is it readily readable?

[new2scooters]

[quote author=jct842 board=150cc thread=7311 post=57083 time=1357242479 not bright enough to use in daylight, in the car it is in the shade a. [/quote]

Thanks for your input. I am now wondering if that is why the motorcycle specific GPS's are so costly....that maybe the screens are designed to be legible in the sunlight....My auto gps does have a feature that lets you zoom out though so you can get a general idea on where you are in relation to nearby cities, etc...which I certainly could have used on one of my last "no end point" rides. I wasn't "lost" as I had lots of gas in the tank and was enjoying the back country ride but I certainly didn't know specifically where I was either....hence the thought about getting a gps for the scoot.

[jct842]

The tomtom I have does zoom out but only a few miles, the garmin pocket gps (legend) can zoom out to see the whole US if you want it to. With it I could start any where in the us and find where I am and how far to any where, some thing the car one can not do. but it has a go home feature so when you do think you are lost you can back track....not what I wanted it for.

What I wanted is to go for a 1/2 tank on back roads then see where the heck I was so I could decide where I wanted to go! Tomtom will take you home but I might not want to go home yet.

If you are serious just see if you could either borrow a car gps or even ride with some one who has one installed, get some sun light on it and see how far it zooms out. If it doesn't do what you want you just saved buying one like I did.

[terrilee]

Jan 6, 2013 17:56:25 GMT -6 new2scooters said:

Jan 3, 2013 11:10:04 GMT -6 terrilee said:

i just ran a fused wire to a cig
is add a little cover/top to the top of the GPS to block sunglare,with some super glue.

What brand is yours and what size screen does yours have? With the antiglare top you have added, is it readily readable?

its a tom-tom um 2in x 3in screen i think
and the top i made---lol--- i had to keep experimenting
with where it was mounted, the angle, etc
i ended up using a 'windshield' mount, like you use on a car with suction cup. titled slightly down, and i had to make the 'top' to block the sun.
BUT yes, i eventually got it to work great, w/o glare.
but took a lot of experimenting because of the angle of the sun, (what time of day it was), if i was going into the sun, away from it. etc etc

[new2scooters]

Jan 6, 2013 21:53:32 GMT -6 jct842 said:

What I wanted is to go for a 1/2 tank on back roads then see where the heck I was so I could decide where I wanted to go! Tomtom will take you home but I might not want to go home yet.

If you are serious just see if you could either borrow a car gps or even ride with some one who has one installed, get some sun light on it and see how far it zooms out. If it doesn't do what you want you just saved buying one like I did.

Thanks jct842 and terrilee for your input. I will take both of your opinions/experience and see if I can come up with a temp mount/power source to the gps before buying another so I can evaluate the screen legibility issue. No sense having one if you can't see it when you need it....

[terrilee]

i have to agree
the tom tom doesnt give you the 'big picture'

but for what i used it for was good.
id transport my Chrissy to the mountains or w/e
dont wanna ride it 400 miles to a camping site
so i just loaded it on the van, and drove the van.
then when i got to a camping site, id use the scooter
to explore the area.
id mark the spot, on the tom-tom on what was my 2nd home, the camping spot, then when id get lost.
which i always do--because i make a left , a right, go straight, and get so turned around id have NO idea on how to get back to the camping spot.
id just tell the tom tom to take me to the 2nd home.
street by street directions back to the van

[jct842]

On my garmin The big picture is really important as I use it on bull shoals lake which I believe has hundreds of miles of jagged shore line and in summer with green trees lining the shore it all looks the same by your eye. If I could have that big picture with streets marked for my scooter I could probably live with the defective brightness. Around here there are some places you just do not want to go just as in a big city there are places I do not want to go. With out the big picture eventually you will end up there while exploring. The garmin color fish finder works just as good in bright sunlight as it does in total darkness, and there is no reason a screen can not be built for a car like that. I expect the $4-500 motorcycle gps have both features under control but are out of my budget.