Navigation maps - update under warranty due to map bug?

[FalconFour]

Okay, I'm already aware that I have the option to update the maps for a whopping $179+. *choke* Sorry, I don't exactly have that much disposable income. Seriously. I have to save up for that.

I drive my Leaf around every day to new locations and new places for on-site work at my job. I start off at home, navigate to my first stop, navigate to restaurants for lunch, navigate back to the main shop, and drive home at the end of the day. No particular commute, no particular routine, and it relies pretty heavily on the nav system.

Here's the rub: the route near my house is *ALWAYS* wrong. It always tries taking me down a street that dead-ends across a train track, as if the street goes straight through. Every single time. It never "learns" the fact that the street doesn't connect. Google knows better, Nokia's maps (on my Windows phone) know better, but the Leaf's maps don't. It's also shown quite a few navigation glitches lately, like trying to have me take a left turn, then a U-turn, then a right turn to stay on the same through street (with no waypoints that would be taking me down that side street). Buggy nonsense.

Think I've got a shot at contacting Nissan and getting a map update under warranty due to these map errors? Anyone ever done that before?

 

[TomT]

The simple answer is no. The longer answer is hell no! If you read the long disclaimer that comes with the nav system and the cards, it says that they are not responsible for errors...

Think I've got a shot at contacting Nissan and getting a map update under warranty due to these map errors?

 

[FalconFour]

Well put. :lol: I figure someone's already read their thousand-page legalese document. Strange that they can claim a warranty and then turn around and say "well... if you found an error, tough luck, you get to live with the error".

Ah well. Guess it's time to start saving up and hoping they've fixed that map error in the latest version... these streets have been here far longer than the maps have, so I've gotta wonder if it'll actually be fixed. :/

(Also, geez, you'd think they wouldn't cheap out over a $20 SD card... "look guys, there's an error right at my house, can you fix this crap and give me something that works?"... "lol not our problem, gfy")

 

[mwalsh]

When I was a kid we used to use a Thomas Brother's map of LA. We didn't expect Thomas Brothers to supply us with a new map book periodically. We either made do or bought the newer edition.

 

[FalconFour]

One's printed, one's digital. Today, the trend is going towards manufacturers providing updates to digital services for free as part of a whole connected-world approach, but it seems like Nissan is still going the old-world, "mail-order catalog" route of doing things. Meh. Still the best nav system I've ever owned. Worth the update, but it's not a business model that'll last much longer against the likes of Tesla...

 

[derkraut]

Sadly, I don't even try to use my Leaf Nav anymore. I just plug in my $95 Tom Tom (on sale @ Target), which has free lifetime updates.

 

[cwerdna]

Good luck w/your claim. I've not heard of people getting a free map update due to map errors on any car.

One's printed, one's digital. Today, the trend is going towards manufacturers providing updates to digital services for free as part of a whole connected-world approach, but it seems like Nissan is still going the old-world, "mail-order catalog" route of doing things. Meh. Still the best nav system I've ever owned. Worth the update, but it's not a business model that'll last much longer against the likes of Tesla...

FWIW, I don't know of any automaker providing free map updates for their OEM nav systems, esp. one that isn't a luxury brand. If you do, let me know. Most of them seem to charge the similarly exorbitant price of $179+ for an update.

Even Tesla doesn't give you free lifetime updates for maps. The $3500 tech package that ads nav says "Onboard maps and navigation for North America with free updates for 7 years" per http://www.teslamotors.com/models/design" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;.

Yeah yeah, I'm aware of relatively cheap lifetime map updates for Garmin PNDs.

 

[TomT]

Interesting as I feel it is one of the worst Nav Systems I have owned in the last decade... Regardless, Tesla is the only car company I know of that provides constant and free updates..

Still the best nav system I've ever owned. Worth the update, but it's not a business model that'll last much longer against the likes of Tesla...

 

[cwerdna]

^^^
I own some Garmin PNDs and have only ever owned 2 cars w/nav: the '13 Leaf and my '06 Prius.

I've had as a service loaner or a free 1-week loan other Toyota/Lexus nav equipped cars (previous gen HyCam and Lexus HS).

FWIW, the Leaf's nav system is generally a step down from my Prius. It has some annoying UI quirks. Its voice recognition capabilities are very limited compared to that of my 06 Prius and has is a step back in terms of features (e.g. no way to enter an address via voice, POIs shown on the map are very limited vs. Prius, etc.)

 

[derkraut]

^^^
I own some Garmin PNDs and have only ever owned 2 cars w/nav: the '13 Leaf and my '06 Prius.

I've had as a service loaner or a free 1-week loan other Toyota/Lexus nav equipped cars (previous gen HyCam and Lexus HS).

FWIW, the Leaf's nav system is generally a step down from my Prius. It has some annoying UI quirks. Its voice recognition capabilities are very limited compared to that of my 06 Prius and has is a step back in terms of features (e.g. no way to enter an address via voice, POIs shown on the map are very limited vs. Prius, etc.)

+1. Same here. The NAV on my '06 Prius is much better than the Leaf's.

 

[Elephanthead]

You can't find your own house? I would consider this bug theft prevention. When your leaf gets stolen, they won't be able to find your house and rob that too.

 

[FalconFour]

Well, I guess I should provide some background.

By "best nav system", I mean that relative to the other systems I've used over the years. I've used TomTom on Windows Mobile (back in the day), MS Streets and Trips with a USB GPS device (definitely back in the day), as well as a handful of modern smartphone apps including Google navigation on Android devices, Waze, and Nokia Here Drive on my current Windows phone. I've never really owned an honest standalone navigation device.

That said, I know the Leaf's nav is somewhat lacking in some areas. Data entry is pretty bad, and I've had a number of incidents (mini road-rage moments, rather) when the on-screen keyboard over-predicts and shows results prematurely, causing my next letter button-tap to select a result in the unexpected list that appears. That's irritating. It's also a bit slow loading points of interest in a search. Address book access and management is also clumsy at best, even to the point of being unusable for many people I'm sure. That part needs a lot of work.

It shines, though, once you get a destination or route set. The pronunciation of street names is almost human-accurate, and there's no way someone actually read each name into the thing. The synthetic voice guidance is really quite amazing - better than most apps I've seen (except the most recent Google nav app). The "little things" that would drive me nuts about a nav app are polished pretty well - for example, when you're starting a route, it makes its best guess as to what street to start on, and which direction to turn onto. It only auto-reroutes when it sees I'm moving along a street, and actually makes a pretty good decision whether or not to re-route me - which is great for side stops and drive-thrus.

As for free map updates, the trend I'm referring to is that Google, Microsoft, etc., offer free and up-to-date maps online as part of their business framework - it's something that's practically taken for granted online, and nobody subscribes to "map services" anymore (like MS Streets and Trips, which seems pretty much obsolete today). Smartphones use this data to drive their mapping and nav functions - also for free - which are carried with most people in their car. To stay competitive, in-car nav systems pretty much have to pick up that same model, or some kind of hybrid online/offline system like Windows Phone 8 uses - downloading and storing selected regional map segments to use offline. It seems silly - to a newcomer to the "new car market" like myself (coming from an '87 Fiero) - that map updates have a price tag attached, as opposed to a "map update utility" I could do at home for free by putting the SD card in my computer.

In other words, paying for maps may have been the norm for many years, but if you've got a smartphone in your pocket, you already have a nav system that's always up to date. To compete with that, I'd think they'd have to be moving towards that "connected" approach in-car. And honestly, I'm a bit surprised Tesla has a time limit attached to their map updates... but at least they provide them with the nav system option!

(To be clear: no, I'm not expecting a free "warranty" update at this point, and I'm probably just going to call them to report it if anything. The error is just a very minor flaw, as I just have to skip the erroneous street and make a left turn instead of a right turn. No big deal, just annoying. I was just curious as to the community's experience in this matter.)