NAVI acting up almost all the time now
 

I've notice that my navi system loses my location very often now, I have the latest upgrade from mazda with the mazda logo at the start up. Is anyone having the same issue? are they any options I should turn off or on? Does the window tint cause any problems? I've also notice that my "GPS" sign come on here and there should it be on most of the time or all the time to specify im getting a good GPS signal? WTF is up? Can anyone advice?

Thank you.

You should have a GPS sign all the time, some people have said on this forum that some window tints will effect signal.

Really? window tint will mess it up? My GPS sign is off most of the time it comes in and out. Do other people here have there GPS sign up all the time? or does it come in and out like mine. By the way I'm in open areas like freeways and open roads.

Yes-Metallized window tint (the kind most shops install for high-end material) will most definitely block your GPS signal... the antenna is on your rear deck between the 6x9's. I tested this when I was shopping for tint, and which is why I bought the non-metallized (dyed) stuff. My GPS symbol only goes in and out when I'm downtown in Chicago or on a heavily wooded road in the country. My guess is you tinted your rear window with metallized tint?

Thanks all of you for the input, I do believe I got a reflective tint, that can be causing the problem. I’m going to have it removed and redone with a regular tint. Any recommendations on which tint I should get?

I went with Madico Charcool- it's dyed tint (no metal) that has a lifetime warranty. It comes in limo black (5%) to barely noticeable (55%). Here's a pic of mine:

So the GPS sign goes on and off all the time your saying. It shouldn’t stay on when receiving a good signal? Mine seems to be off most of the time but flashes on and off mostly. Are there any options in the secret menu I should look at or change?

The GPS icon should only flash off if you lose signal- which if you're in a open area should almost never happen. If anything, it might blink off very briefly, but should be on the majority of the time. If yours is off most of the time, there are no software options that will help- your GPS reciever simply can't 'see' the satellites.

I have a mettalized tint and do not seem to have a problem with my connection. I have GPS on most of the time and only lose it while driving through downtown area. It takes more than a metalized (if you can see through it so can the signal) tint to block your signal. The GPS is only aiding the position. The primary sensors on the car are the wheel-counter and sensing gyros. Have you noticed that when you are in a parking garage it senses your heading even though it can't see the satellites?

Solar Guard High Performance (HP) true Grey tint, 18%. It has a lifetime anti-fade guarantee. Shouldn't turn purple. It doesn't effect GPS signal either.

Not exactly. There are obviously different levels of metallic content in tint... just because you can see through it doesn't mean a radio signal can travel through it. I tested this by taping a sample sheet of metallized tint to my rear window, and instantly lost my GPS icon. Took it off, and it came back.

You've got it backwards- the vehicle sensors and dead-reckoning logic are a secondary aid to the GPS system. They work fairly well in keeping you on the road when you lose GPS, but not for very long- and they certainly wouldn't work as the primary method to keeping you on the map. It jumps you around as it tries to guess where you are, and after a while it will have you on the wrong road.

Well I’m calling the guys that did my tint and I’m going to ask them which one they used. If it's metallic in any way I will change it all to a non metallic. But if that does not solve the problem I guess I have to take it into the dealer. By the way is the new MAP disc out?

G8rboy,

I am not going to say that you are wrong about the metalized tint test. You are right about the amount of metal in the tint. But the amount of metal in your tint is really very little. Anyway, I have worked with Megellan/Ashtech and have also worked on the car NAV systems. Your GPS on factory installed NAV system is the secondary source for navigation but is used as a primary source only in a cold start (eg. if you take a ferry ride acroos the sound and reach your destination your car is 'lost' until GPS pinpoints your location).

Please explain to use all how a satellite triangulation is less accurate then a speed sensor and a gyro that knows nothing but direction. and why you only need GPS for start up?
Without GPS your nav knows its going north at 60mph.
"your car is 'lost' until GPS PINPOINTS your location" your own words.
Your GPS on factory installed NAV system is the primary source for navigation.

The triangulation has an error of approximately 10m at this time. Your car has Gyro sensors that checks the direction of motion. And your whhel counter keeps track of your speed and distance. The GPS will aid in your location and the mapping software will put you on the street closes to that location brought out by GPS. As long as GPS is available it will correct any drift in the inertial system in the car (crude system but very slow drift). This concept is very much the same in commercial aviation navigation that uses GPS to correct the slow drift of the INS. But GPS is not the primary means of navigation yet. This will be the case when the GAlileo constellation comes up and running by 2012.

It is hard to explain everything here but I will try if the above is not very clear.

PS: Pinpoint was not an accurate terminology earlier.

Ok sweet it worked, The metallic based tint I had was in fact interfering with my navi, now It works like a charm. So for all you RX-8 owners with navi out there thinking about tinting your windows make sure you go with a non metallic based tint. Thanks again all of you for your input.

Glad to hear you got it solved...