PCM Sat Nav - why bother to order on a new Porsche?
Discussion
Picked up my 981 from the factory in Stuttgart a couple of months ago. It's a great car but:
On the subsequent drive across northern France, I noticed that the sat nav was plotting my track across a void on the screen. While I admit that this detour may have been fairly new, this upgraded national road was old enough to be shown on a 2012 Michelin map. Having rejoined the sat nav's track, another newish detour took me into another blank area of the screen. I was not impressed that a new car did not appear to have the latest national road updates on its sat nav database. On a more recent maiden drive down to Italy, I found several more major (national) roads in France which appear on Michelin maps yet do not feature.
When I queried my observations with my OPC and Porsche Customer Assistance I was told that I have the latest data that is available and it will cost me c£135 next year to get the next sat nav update. Somehow I fail to understand how Michelin, who print their 2012 maps in 2011, can get things so right while Porsche struggle and anyway, why should I spend c£135 in 2013 to get 2012 map data?
My next observation concerns the accuracy of information on roadworks. Again, on my recent drive across France, roadworks were shown on the sat nav when they didn't exist, or they existed but were not shown on screen. Now I realise that roadworks are fluid in nature, so difficult to highlight accurately; however, I was being given sat nav re-routes in order to avoid non-existent problems, some of which could be long detours. Eventually I decided that these were best ignored, rather like my chocolate watch.
Driving across France can be very pleasant, especially if one is not in a hurry and can avoid using autoroutes. If one attempts to programme the sat nav with the option to avoid tolls, the unit responds by saying: "A route with all the selected settings cannot be calculated". However, it does produce time and distance information, plus it will route you in accordance with your selection. If the same destination is selected using toll roads, times and distances are re-calculated which I assume are correct.
Postcodes: My PCM software is v3.41. There seems to be some confusion about whether this version will accept full UK postcodes, though I note that my unit will only take 5 digits.
I notice that here: www.boxa.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=54534 another customer says that his v3.41 PCM has full postcode entry. However, in one of the threads below, there is a suggestion that a software upgrade is available at a cost of £500! What is going on?
So should one tick the PCM box when buying a new Porsche? If one is just buying it for the sat nav, the answer must surely be no; it is an expensive option which now costs c£2.5k and one that does not reflect the quality of its host. For now, my TomTom works very well thank you.
So if you haven't already, other threads that may be worth reading are:
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=119...
and maybe even more relevant is:
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
On the subsequent drive across northern France, I noticed that the sat nav was plotting my track across a void on the screen. While I admit that this detour may have been fairly new, this upgraded national road was old enough to be shown on a 2012 Michelin map. Having rejoined the sat nav's track, another newish detour took me into another blank area of the screen. I was not impressed that a new car did not appear to have the latest national road updates on its sat nav database. On a more recent maiden drive down to Italy, I found several more major (national) roads in France which appear on Michelin maps yet do not feature.
When I queried my observations with my OPC and Porsche Customer Assistance I was told that I have the latest data that is available and it will cost me c£135 next year to get the next sat nav update. Somehow I fail to understand how Michelin, who print their 2012 maps in 2011, can get things so right while Porsche struggle and anyway, why should I spend c£135 in 2013 to get 2012 map data?
My next observation concerns the accuracy of information on roadworks. Again, on my recent drive across France, roadworks were shown on the sat nav when they didn't exist, or they existed but were not shown on screen. Now I realise that roadworks are fluid in nature, so difficult to highlight accurately; however, I was being given sat nav re-routes in order to avoid non-existent problems, some of which could be long detours. Eventually I decided that these were best ignored, rather like my chocolate watch.
Driving across France can be very pleasant, especially if one is not in a hurry and can avoid using autoroutes. If one attempts to programme the sat nav with the option to avoid tolls, the unit responds by saying: "A route with all the selected settings cannot be calculated". However, it does produce time and distance information, plus it will route you in accordance with your selection. If the same destination is selected using toll roads, times and distances are re-calculated which I assume are correct.
Postcodes: My PCM software is v3.41. There seems to be some confusion about whether this version will accept full UK postcodes, though I note that my unit will only take 5 digits.
I notice that here: www.boxa.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=54534 another customer says that his v3.41 PCM has full postcode entry. However, in one of the threads below, there is a suggestion that a software upgrade is available at a cost of £500! What is going on?
So should one tick the PCM box when buying a new Porsche? If one is just buying it for the sat nav, the answer must surely be no; it is an expensive option which now costs c£2.5k and one that does not reflect the quality of its host. For now, my TomTom works very well thank you.
So if you haven't already, other threads that may be worth reading are:
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=119...
and maybe even more relevant is:
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
Edited by Oi U on Friday 21st September 19:22
I have used the Nav on a new 991 and can say it is rubbish. Not only did it take me the wrong way on the M25 on a journey, it kept trying to take me through dead ends in London and when I did get to my destination it kept asking me to drive 200 yards down the road.
I had to resort to my iPhone googlemaps to get me where I wanted to go.
On contrast the two year old Nav on my Pioneer unit has been flawless on every single journey I have made. I would never spec Porsche Nav on any new car, and would rip it out on any used car I buy.
I had to resort to my iPhone googlemaps to get me where I wanted to go.
On contrast the two year old Nav on my Pioneer unit has been flawless on every single journey I have made. I would never spec Porsche Nav on any new car, and would rip it out on any used car I buy.
Google maps works fine in OS6 - used it today 
Was never overly impressed with PCM2 and I'm amazed Porsche haven't got it right yet!
In contrast, the £3k(!) Lux pack on my Alpina is brilliant - full postcode, 3D, hard drive, two zone climate... etc.
It even pops up pictures of your destination on the screen..
Was never overly impressed with PCM2 and I'm amazed Porsche haven't got it right yet!
In contrast, the £3k(!) Lux pack on my Alpina is brilliant - full postcode, 3D, hard drive, two zone climate... etc.
It even pops up pictures of your destination on the screen..
Most built in Sat Nav systems are out of date due to the offline nature of the maps they use.
I don't quite understand why they can't offer a hard drive / flash based system which has a WIFI or 3g connection and can update on the fly. You can certainly get this feature on a handheld unit.
Roadworks / Traffic are really dependant on the TMC system used, this is updated by the police and traffic agencies but not always in a timely manner. As the IT saying goes: Garbage in, Garbage out!
I still love having a built in system though, much more convenient than a portable unit with flapping wires, suction cups and batteries that run out constantly.
At least they are quoting a more reasonable price for the updates, on the older cars it was around £500 a year for the new maps!
I don't quite understand why they can't offer a hard drive / flash based system which has a WIFI or 3g connection and can update on the fly. You can certainly get this feature on a handheld unit.
Roadworks / Traffic are really dependant on the TMC system used, this is updated by the police and traffic agencies but not always in a timely manner. As the IT saying goes: Garbage in, Garbage out!
I still love having a built in system though, much more convenient than a portable unit with flapping wires, suction cups and batteries that run out constantly.
At least they are quoting a more reasonable price for the updates, on the older cars it was around £500 a year for the new maps!
jsmjsm said:
Zyp said:
Google maps works fine in OS6 - used it today
Sorry but a bit off topic.I cant get streetview in ios 6 as it keeps saying it doesnt know my location and I cant find the setting.
Any ideas?
http://heresthethingblog.com/2012/09/20/ios-6-tip-...
JPJPJP said:
free and continually updated sat nav software on phones is the way to go imo, I am liking waze just now
haven't seen a car with a nav pack worth the money yet
I tried wave too but thought it was poor for the area I was in at the time. haven't seen a car with a nav pack worth the money yet
Navfree is brilliant - as good as tomtom I would say.
And yes, you can get Google still if you go to the browser. But the default has switched to apple's version.
I didn't spec PCM for my new 981 firstly due to the silly costs, and secondly the one that was fitted in my old 987 was nowhere near as good as a cheap tom tom unit, which is what I'll use when needed.Perhaps you should put the £130 for an update disk towards the tom tom! Same as climate control,why pay extra when you can just drop the roof?? Good luck with the PCM.
Agree with last post, climate pointless expense in a soft top as the base unit works perfectly well if you have to have the roof on. Also a Tom Tom 1000 live transferred between cars beats the hell out of any fixed unit, and at a fraction of the cost price and any subsequent updates!
Sat nav was a must 5 years a go for resale
These days who cares, built in ones are so s
t and expensive, and only use main routes.
I would say I use nav 3x a year and only to find inner city address.
And for that a smart phones does its job.
As for most not doing full post code lol, it's a joke IMO.
And using a nav on long runs, not a chance, I like to choose my own rought, not sit with every one else like a row of sheep.
These days who cares, built in ones are so s
t and expensive, and only use main routes.I would say I use nav 3x a year and only to find inner city address.
And for that a smart phones does its job.
As for most not doing full post code lol, it's a joke IMO.
And using a nav on long runs, not a chance, I like to choose my own rought, not sit with every one else like a row of sheep.
Personally I think this is the future:
http://www.mybecker.com/enUK/hauptnavigation/becke...
Just bought a new C350Cdi Wagon and bought the Becker unit separately for £400, it works brilliantly, integrates totally with the car and can be updated via the internet. So far we've used it in France and the UK without fault.
PCM by comparison is a complete waste of money, I would never spec it on a Porsche again.
Miopyk
http://www.mybecker.com/enUK/hauptnavigation/becke...
Just bought a new C350Cdi Wagon and bought the Becker unit separately for £400, it works brilliantly, integrates totally with the car and can be updated via the internet. So far we've used it in France and the UK without fault.
PCM by comparison is a complete waste of money, I would never spec it on a Porsche again.
Miopyk
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