After a 1 1/2 year absence since selling my 2004 RX8, I'm about to come back into the fold. I'm down to two cars, one of which I'll be buying this week. Both are Grand Touring 6 speeds, one a 2006 with Navigation, the other a 2007 without Navigation but with 10,000 less miles, for slightly more money.

I haven't used the Mazda Navigation system. I know other factory systems range from great to terrible. How is the system in the RX8? From those of you that have it, is it a must-have, or will my suction-cup Garmin do most of what the factory unit can do?

Would you choose a 2006 with the Navigation, or a 2007 with fewer miles without navigation for slightly more money?

Thanks, and I'm happy to be getting back into a rotary!

 

I have the factory Navigation on my car and it isn't a bad set up, its not great but it does the job. I personally wouldn't have the factory Nav unit be the deciding factor on getting the car. For me it would depend on how big of a price difference between the two. If its not a big difference and all else is the same I would just go with the 2007 just because its newer personally but I don't use my Navigation that much..

 

I'd go with the '07. As nice as the factory navagation is; it's way to expensive to upgrade and upgrades are few and far between.

 

i have an 04 gt one with the factory nav. It gets the job done i havent had problem with it tell me to take a left into a river. Also it runs of a dvd so if you want the latest maps you need to fork over 200 bucks to get the updated one. Im still running the 04 one lol.

 

get the 2007. The 10,000 miles and the extra time for warranty could come in handy. Never know. Besides, would you use nav?

I have an 06 w/o nav, and am putting a carputer in and getting the OEM nav housing and swtiching a touch screen in. So there are a lot of alternatives for nav, but you can't buy back 10,000 miles.

 

I would get the one without the navigation system because you can always buy a navigation system. And if you ever deciede to get a new car you can take it with you. If you get the rx8 with the built in navi you will not be able to put it in a new car.

 

Thank you for the comments guys, I appreciate it!

Both cars are comparable, both are in great shape, same colors and equipment except for the Navigation system in the 2006. The 2006 has 11,000 miles. The 2007 has 2,000 miles, and will cost $1000 more.

 

hmm now that you mention the low milage the 06 isn't looking so bad. if you don't drive the car a whole lot, then i might go with the 06. Thats a lot cheaper and you get nav. and with 11,000 miles, thats barley used.

 

Personally I hate the factory nav. I bought my '08 with it and have since swapped it out for a Pioneer.

 

it's better than bmw's idrive. most aftermarket systems are smoother and quicker though.

 

IMO, the only thing better about OEM nav over aftermarket is the hassle-free factor of not having to hide the GPS, so idiots won't bust open the windshield.

 

I don't know, I quite like my factory nav. It is much faster and smoother than the one I bought the year before. It finds nearly everything for me and is pretty easy to use (compared to some). For me, I'd give it an A. But on this car, I'd rather choose the newer version... because everything will feel new and it's just better overall.

 

yeah id get the 07 and a garmin nuvi its thin n stows in the glove until you need it unless you use it daily. I use the nuvi and it doesnt block sight lines mounted in the center of the dash to the windshield

 

I have the factory navi and I hate it. It really is the worst GPS I've ever used. I'm not being negative or exaggerating. It looks good but it doesn't function nearly as well as the 7-year-old Garmin GPS I have in my Civic. Here's what I don't like about the factory navi:

1. It doesn't provide directions directly to your destination. If you enter an address, it doesn't start navigating until you reach a main road and then it only takes you to the neighborhood, not to the doorstep. You have to look at the map on the screen and find your way from there. In contrast, the Garmin unit starts navigating from where ever you're at and guides you directly to the front door of your destination.

2. It's very picky about street names. When entering an address, you have to know whether it ends in street, road, lane, blvd, etc. The Garmin unit is not as finicky, as long as what you type in is close, the Garmin can figure it out.

3. Waypoints. The biggest advantage Garmin has over all other GPS manufacturers is waypoints. I've been spoiled by my Garmin. If I'm in an unfamiliar place and I want to get gas or something to eat, the Garmin will provide me a list of all the gas stations and restaurants within a certain-mile radius. The amount of waypoints on the factory system is a joke. Completely useless.

Bottom line: Go with an aftermarket Garmin unit. You can pick one up for $100 and it performs far better than the factory unit.

 

ide go w/ the 07 also, you can also take another route and buy the metra kit or which either of your likeings outa the dash kits and then buy a kenwood dnx5120 like i have and have the garmin gps built in. I love it! or just buy a 100 dollar stick on. good luck w/ the buy

 

I have a 2004 with Navigation. I love the screen placement and how it works. But I'd suggest getting an "aftermarket" navigation or buying just the monitor of the Nav and make your own system. I believe the price of the navigation is like 1,200? or something to that effect. It is not worth it. IMHO.

 

werd Ive never eaten better on road trips. I take about 8 a year to see the in-laws and relatives and w/ the garmin always find quality food that you cant see from the hwy usually within 2 miles of the exit vs. driving down unknown roads in hopes of finding an unknown (to you) restaraunt. Plus the Garmin goes with us in all 3 of our cars whenever we need it.

 

Thanks again everyone, I appreciate all the help.

Greyfixer, a special big thanks to you for your outstanding, detailed, explicit comments on the factory Nav unit. Your objective report on specific performance issues and shortcomings was especially helpful to me. Your experiences and these kinds of comments can only be gotten from someone knowledgable with hands-on experience.

It seems the Mazda factory Nav unit is OK, but not a reason to buy a particular car. I have a Garmin Nuvi which I use in our other cars. It works great, have only had good experiences with it. It sounds like the Garmin I already own works better than the factory unit.

Unless something goes south in the deal, I'm going to pursue the 2007 (without the factory Nav unit). Hopefully by this weekend I'll be moving under rotary power again...

 

if you get nav, you cant mount gauges in that location.