[masjj]

I ordered my 'S' about 6 weeks ago and have been told I should get it in April 03. Since I ordered I've been plagued by the Sat Nav that I didn't order, every mini I see has it installed. A friend, who is supposedly 'in the know', told me that as I've ordered already, I can't change the order and add the Sat Nav to the car. Does anyone know if this is true? Surely as it hasn't been built yet it shouldn't matter?

[NEMINI]

you can change your specs up until approximately 2 weeks before production begins.

[AlanB]

Hey!
Look at a Garmin Street Pilot III is you have them available. I have had one for about a year and use it in ALL my cars and even rental cars when I fly! Fits GREAT on the dash of my MCS!! Portable is THE way to go!

[KenL]

I'm surprised you've found that most MINIs have sat nav. I thought the amount of people taking it was very small.

For me it was a huge expense for something I'd only use one or twice a year.

Could it be that the cars you've seen were demos at the dealers? I think most dealers got fuly loaded S's as demo cars at release.

Could be a good one for a poll to ascertain the % or MINIs with the sat nav.

Someone else said you could change the spec up to about two weeks before production which is correct. I'd be very surprised if you couldn't add sat nav if you really wanted it.

[CurtP]

Quote:

Originally posted by AlanB
Hey!
Look at a Garmin Street Pilot III is you have them available. I have had one for about a year and use it in ALL my cars and even rental cars when I fly! Fits GREAT on the dash of my MCS!! Portable is THE way to go!

Do you have any pictures of it on your dash? I've got a Garmin GPS V, and I can't find a good place to put it. I don't want to use the mount with the adhesive pad in the MINI (already did that with the Jeep, and I don't like it). I've considered the bean-bag mount, but I worry that it would become FOD in the cockpit during aggressive manuvering or in the event of an accident.

I'm seriously considering buying the HK TrafficPro and being done with it, but I'm having a hard time with the $1500 price tag, and the fact that nobody has the MFSW adapter for it yet (but is supposed to be in the works).

[D&M]

I added SAT NAv about 2 weeks before car was due - the day after the dealer said no more changes!!!

[AlanB]

I do not have a picture right now but I am using the bean bag mount in the left corner of the dash. It allows me to sort of "wedge" the unit in this spot. I have not done much wild driving with it, but it works great! The verticle nature of the windscreen makes the unit very visible and secure.

[Boris]

I use a Garmin 176 for both my sailboat & land vehicles. I use a suction mount to attach to the front glass and power throught the 12V adapter. Has worked flawlessly for 2 years. The mount is a 3" suction with a RAM connector to a plastic clip on mount for the GPS.

??:
Anyone know the specs of the "shark fin" antenna normally used for the onboard Nav?? I'd like to be able to interface with that antenna with my Garmin unit.

Regards,
Boris

[AlanB]

I use the little Garmin ancillary antenna on my big car but do not have to on the Mini. The antenna on the unit does fine close to the windscreen!

[mikeythemini]

Check out the new rac traffic master smart nav
requires 1 small hole for a small button, no screen, full uk voice guidance, full traffic info with rerouting, and your very own PA you can even order flowers from it !!
Can be transfared car to car
have a look at www.smartnav.com
used 2 am impressed
mike

[MINIVAN]

Some questions for mikeythemini

1. Does Smartnav require specialist fitting or can it be self fit. How much for dealer fit approx.

2. Is it advisable to have the optional external antennae.

I have looked on the Smartnav site and the system would appear to have many advantages over the screen based systems and also appears to be much better value for money.

[mikeythemini]

Have never been asked about the fitting before.
It has to be comisioned once installed
I suppose you could fit it and not use it then bring it to a dealer to be comiisioned
probly the hardest parts are finding a location to mount the quite big box and finding a suitable location where the internal aerial can see the sky
Never used the external aerial yet but never done a mini yet.

[wmdapple]

I mounted my Street Pilot III center top dash with oneof the "not quiet permanent" glued backs. Easy to reach, btoh sides, and you get used to having it. I find it has a more accurate calc of my speed than the speedo.

Thinking about getting the AUX in put kit fo rthe radio and seeing if I can get "Greta" (our street pilot audio) to pipe through the radios NAv input. Anybody done this/

PS. Brought "Greta" with us when we rented a Mini One in Wales. Software worked great, and got turned on to the Drivers side shelf. Installed one in my MCS when I got home.

[Spookyfish]

Quote: Originally Posted by wmdapple

Thinking about getting the AUX in put kit fo rthe radio and seeing if I can get "Greta" (our street pilot audio) to pipe through the radios NAv input. Anybody done this

Same question here: has anyone connect an external NAV system (iPAQ, Garmin, etc.) to the boost or H/K NAV input? I think you should be able to use an additional AUX input an change the wiring (plus its mono of course).

[jwardell]

I just got an old ipaq from ebay and for about $375 total I will have my own nav system with tomtom's awesome 3D interface. Looks to be a lot nicer than mini's nav software, not to mention $375 vs 1700, and I can have my HK stereo and sirius too. Let's face it, the mini system looks like a square peg in a round hole anyway.

[speacock]

Garmin Street Pilot 2610. The touch screen makes it worth it.
Also the passenger can grab the unit and enter a route while you are driving.



Sean

[Ibb]

Garmin looks good there.

I personally liek the look of the SAT Nave console in the Mini, looks nice and modern.
And there is an opportunity to get it TV Tuner\DVD enabled (at extra cost from non-mini dealer).

But because it is soo expensive, I would much prefer to get an aftermarket flip out screen which is more than likely to have more features like watching DVD for the same or lower price.

Good luck