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Best navigation app?

bobkatmsu
Explorer
Explorer
What is the best navigation app for a large rig, (62'+) to keep you from going down tight curvy roads or any othe place a big rig shouldn't be.
2010 Newmar Dutch Star DP
2014 Jeep Wrangler Sahara
10 REPLIES 10

Second_Chance
Explorer II
Explorer II
RJL wrote:
I bought the Magellan Roadmate RV9490T-LMB a few years ago and can honestly say it's one of the biggest wastes of money I have ever spent. Huge mistake. While enroute somewhere one of the "features" they claim is to be able to look for campgrounds near your location. Well all of them are BEHIND you. Sometimes up to 40 miles. On this current trip I pulled into a rest area and looked up campgrounds near me on google and found one 2 miles on our way, the GPS made no mention of it. Has sent us through the heart of Washington DC a few times with our 37 foot gasser and our Jeep JKU that's about 15 feet or so. Gonna stop using this piece of **** and just use old school maps and maybe a better RV GPS after some research on my part.


I bought a Magellan GPS a few years ago to replace an old Garmin for my wife. It was the biggest piece of technology junk I've ever tried - never would work correctly. Made a die-hard Garmin person out of me.

Rob
U.S. Army retired
2020 Solitude 310GK-R
MORryde IS, disc brakes, solar, DP windows
(Previously in a Reflection 337RLS)
2012 F350 CC DRW Lariat 6.7
Full-time since 8/2015

RJL
Explorer
Explorer
I bought the Magellan Roadmate RV9490T-LMB a few years ago and can honestly say it's one of the biggest wastes of money I have ever spent. Huge mistake. While enroute somewhere one of the "features" they claim is to be able to look for campgrounds near your location. Well all of them are BEHIND you. Sometimes up to 40 miles. On this current trip I pulled into a rest area and looked up campgrounds near me on google and found one 2 miles on our way, the GPS made no mention of it. Has sent us through the heart of Washington DC a few times with our 37 foot gasser and our Jeep JKU that's about 15 feet or so. Gonna stop using this piece of **** and just use old school maps and maybe a better RV GPS after some research on my part.
2010 Damon Challenger 368, F-53 Chasis
2010 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon unlimited, Toad
2018 Ram 1500 4x4, Club Cab, 6.4 bed,3.92 gears, 5.7 HEMI
2019 Dodge Challenger Scat Pack Wide Body, 6.4 HEMI

jplante4
Explorer
Explorer
Copilot RV allows you to enter the dimensions of your rig and helps you avoid roads that will give you problems. Of course, it all depends on the road data being in the database and it's not always there.

My first year RVing in a 28 foot gasser, TomTom took me down a lane-and-a-half wide road with a 13 percent downgrade in the Poconos. I didn't know it at the time, but only my front brakes were working. We went down in 1st gear and came to a full stop on the flats. Having survived that, I figured that was my 1 gimme and I armed myself with tools to make sure I don't get fooled again.

1. Copilot RV
2. Google Maps with terrain turned on to plan the route
3. Eastern States mountain guide to check where the grades are
4. Google Earth has a route profile feature. Enter your route, right click the line to turn it on.

NEVER pick shortest routes. Use the fastest route to keep you off the tiny roads.
Jerry & Jeanne
1996 Safari Sahara 3530 - 'White Tiger'
CAT 3126/Allison 6 speed/Magnum Chassis
2014 Equinox AWD / Blue Ox

Dog_Trainer
Explorer
Explorer
I use the Garmin 760 rv and put my Heighth , weight and length into the gps it keeps us out of places that are not right for the RV I also use waze on my phone. waze is what truckers and other drivers are using to see whats up ahead. It is an app that you interact with so vehicles on the side of the road, traffic accidents and backups are reported as people see them.
2016 Newmar Baystar 3401
2011 HHR Toad
Daktari & Lydia Cavalier King Charles , Annie get your guns, our English setter (fur Bearing Children)

VoodooMedicineM
Explorer
Explorer
I use WAZE or Google maps
Bill and Joey the dog

SpeakEasy
Explorer
Explorer
bobkatmsu wrote:
rk911 wrote:
bobkatmsu wrote:
What is the best navigation app for a large rig, (62'+) to keep you from going down tight curvy roads or any othe place a big rig shouldn't be.

quick response is a recent copy of the trucker's atlas and your brain.

beyond that you need a GPS and/or GPS app that can be configured for your size rig. our built-in Rand McNally does that as do a few others. but unless you have programmed a route between points A and B and are simply wandering and wondering what's around that corner or over that hill none of them will warn you (AFAIK) that you're approaching a 1-lane dirt road leading nowhere fast. for simple, free navigation we sometimes use Google maps. shows traffic too.
Google maps will show you the shorest route from A to B, which is fine for a car not so much for an rv. I hoy into a couple very tight spots on my last trip in the mountains using google to go from A to B.


+1 on that.

Google Maps got us into some trouble this summer in Virginia

-Speak
It's just Mrs. SpeakEasy and me now (empty-nesters). But we can choose from among 7 grandchildren to drag along with us!



2014 F-150 Super Crew Short Bed 3.5L Ecoboost
2014 Flagstaff Micro Lite 23LB

Second_Chance
Explorer II
Explorer II
We use a Garmin RV760 GPS and the Mountain Directory (have copies of east and west in PDF format). With the Garmin RV GPSs, you enter the type, height, length, width, and weight of your rig and it steers you around places you shouldn't go. Ours has worked well for us for three or four years, now.

Rob
U.S. Army retired
2020 Solitude 310GK-R
MORryde IS, disc brakes, solar, DP windows
(Previously in a Reflection 337RLS)
2012 F350 CC DRW Lariat 6.7
Full-time since 8/2015

bobkatmsu
Explorer
Explorer
rk911 wrote:
bobkatmsu wrote:
What is the best navigation app for a large rig, (62'+) to keep you from going down tight curvy roads or any othe place a big rig shouldn't be.

quick response is a recent copy of the trucker's atlas and your brain.

beyond that you need a GPS and/or GPS app that can be configured for your size rig. our built-in Rand McNally does that as do a few others. but unless you have programmed a route between points A and B and are simply wandering and wondering what's around that corner or over that hill none of them will warn you (AFAIK) that you're approaching a 1-lane dirt road leading nowhere fast. for simple, free navigation we sometimes use Google maps. shows traffic too.
Google maps will show you the shorest route from A to B, which is fine for a car not so much for an rv. I hoy into a couple very tight spots on my last trip in the mountains using google to go from A to B.
2010 Newmar Dutch Star DP
2014 Jeep Wrangler Sahara

travisc
Explorer
Explorer
Copilot is what we use on apple/iOS products
Winnebago Access 24V

rk911
Explorer
Explorer
bobkatmsu wrote:
What is the best navigation app for a large rig, (62'+) to keep you from going down tight curvy roads or any othe place a big rig shouldn't be.

quick response is a recent copy of the trucker's atlas and your brain.

beyond that you need a GPS and/or GPS app that can be configured for your size rig. our built-in Rand McNally does that as do a few others. but unless you have programmed a route between points A and B and are simply wandering and wondering what's around that corner or over that hill none of them will warn you (AFAIK) that you're approaching a 1-lane dirt road leading nowhere fast. for simple, free navigation we sometimes use Google maps. shows traffic too.
Rich
Ham Radio, Sport Pilot, Retired 9-1-1 Call Center Administrator
_________________________________
2016 Itasca Suncruiser 38Q
'46 Willys CJ2A
'23 Jeep Wrangler JL
'10 Jeep Liberty KK

& MaggieThe Wonder Beagle