Garmin Map Updating - Does it suck or is it me?

Hi All:

Ready to throw three Garmins and my computer out the freakin' window.

I have a brand new Zumo 665 with Lifetime Maps. Just doing the initial install and trying to get it to update with the latest maps and it won't install correctly on the SD card. Cannot find the 2016 maps.

I have two Zumo 550's with 2014 maps and also have Lifetime. Again, they won't find the 2016 on the cards.

I have not done this for two years but I seem to recall MapUpdater then MapInstall. Now there is this crappy software Garmin Express.

Can someone tell me what I am missing. I am probably doing something wrong but it has to be simpler than this.

Thanks,

Funny you should bring this up. I updated my Z660 today. Initially, Garmin Express told me there wasn't room on my unit for Canada and the US update. I ignored that and had it update anyway. Smooth as silk, and done in less than 2 hours, unlike the crappy old way that took all night to do.

No idea why you're running to SD cards or why it's giving you issues, but it installed and worked perfectly today.

Usually takes me about ten tries to successfully update my Nuvi maps. It keeps hanging up at around 33%. Garmin Express

kinda sucks. Success usually comes when I restart my computer (don't open any other apps), use a straight USB cable (no

wart in the cable) and use a different USB port. Then open Garmin Express with the GPS plugged in. That magic combination

usually works, assuming the stars are in proper alignment.

Thanks. My 665 is going again now and hopefully will work this time. Says 58 minutes total. I removed all the voices except English so hopefully I have room now.

Now to just figure out how to get Express to work with my 550's which have to use the SD cards since memory on board is too small.

Be sure you are using the most updated version of Express. Once Express is updated do any firmware updates for the Zumo. One way to fool Express into thinking that the SD card is your device is to clone the card. Part of the problem you're having is your Zumo uses a hidden .system folder and Media Transfer Protocol. You need to change the GPS to be a USB mass storage device. The issues are described here: https://support.garmin.com/support/sw/supportPage/display?locale=en_US&topicName=zumo%20665

To use this procedure on these devices, you must first set your computer to expose the hidden \.system folder. If your device operates in MTP mode (Media Transport Protocol), change it from MTP to Mass Storage mode before you continue. Note: Most of the newer devices operate in MTP mode by default. Turn on the Zumo and go to the Volume setting screen. Hold the upper right corner until a menu appears. Select MTP mode and change it to USB Storage. This lets you access the GPS folders like you are used to, and allows you to make a backup and see the map files.

To clone a SD card, insert a clean SD card in your computer. It should be formatted with FAT32. Create folder \Garmin on the SD card. Copy the file garmindevice.xml from \Garmin folder of your device into the \Garmin folder of the SD card. The garmindevice.xml file now causes Express to identify the card as the Garmin device

Leave the SD card in the computer's card reader and safely remove/eject/unplug your Garmin device from the computer.

Install and run Garmin Express or Garmin MapUpdater. You can download GarminMapUpdater for PC with this link. It should still work.

When Express or MapUpdater is finished, you should have 3 map files in the Garmin folder of the SD card: gmapprom.img, gmapprom.gma and gmapprom.unl. Rename these files to gmapsupp.img, gmapsupp.gma and gmapsupp.unl.

Garmin Express should work in MTP mode, but it's nice to make a real backup, and a lot of us want to see the files. The SD cloning trick should work for you and avoid the need to even plug in the GPS. Files transfer to the SD faster than to a GPS.

What a good answer! And I thought the problem was star alignment

whoknewit said:

What a good answer! And I thought the problem was star alignment

Click to expand...

Yeah, it's answers like that that make people throw their Garmins in the closet and use a mobile phone instead.

I've sort of decided that the lifetime maps deal with Garmin is good for maybe a year or so of updates, afterwhich there are always problems. I've had quite a few of them, dating back to 2007 when Moto Guzzi was going to bundle the Zumo 550 onto the Norge.

Admittedly I had more fun with my Zumo 550 than I had with the Norge.

I've had several of the their "car" units, but I had the BMW Nav IV bundled with my K1600 ... and again, I had more fun with the Nav IV than with the K16 ... but not as much fun as I would have liked.

Nowadays I have a remnant of Garmin on my laptop. It tells me every day that updates are available. And the unit out in the truck tells me about once a month that updates are available. But never the twain shall meet.

On the bright side, as aggravating as Garmin can be, they've got nuthin' on Toyota's GPS. That's the worst system I've ever experienced.

For Christmas one of the kids gave me some new paper maps. Ahhhhhh .... sheer bliss......

Garmin calls them lifetime updates because it takes a lifetime to successfully apply an update....

Short answer...yes it sucks.

One would think Garmin could keep up with current tech, but sheesh, their non GPS stuff always seems to be about 10 years behind.

I agree it sucks. I think most of the suckiness is in the Express program. I had problems with Garmin Express early on and have quit using it entirely. For one thing, when you have multiple GPS devices to keep updated it becomes very cumbersome.

Instead, just download the latest version of the Garmin MapUpdater for PC (using the same link provided by TominPA above) and never use the Express at all.

Because I'm still running a couple of old zumo 550's I also use the MapInstall Utility (or the same utility embedded in either Basecamp or Mapsource) to load the maps onto the SD cards because they will not all fit on the device. Because I am updating zumo 550's that have only a (slow) USB 1.0 serial connection, when I update my maps using the MapUpdater, I tell it to just update the maps on my PC. Then I later use the MapInstall utility to put the maps onto the SD Card stuck into a USB 2.0 card reader. Makes that part of the process faster.

I think the key point about Garmin's "Lifetime Maps" is lifetime of what? The lifetime would be the lifetime of the GPS you bought... I believe Garmin's intention is that you go buy a new GPS every year or two. I mean everyone does that right? New top of the line GPS, new cradle and mounting system, new hardwired power supply...just by it all brand new every couple of years and Garmin's stuff will work fine...

Yes, it is definitely the lifetime of the GPS they are talking about, not your lifetime.

But they will continue to honor the lifetime map licenses, and allow you to continue to download new map updates, even after they have declared your device as obsolete by "no longer supporting" it, just as long as you can figure out how to get them on there on your own. As mentioned earlier, I'm still running 2 zumo 550's, both with LM licenses, because I still feel the 550 offers me more of what I want with the least added hassles. And those were declared obsolete by Garmin quite a while ago.

I find that most of what is included in the map set updates is new POIs. Roads do not really change all that often, but POIs come and go a lot. Unfortunately, they are not as diligent about removing old POIs that are no longer present as they are at adding the new ones. That is part of why the map set continues to get bigger in each iteration.

Yeah, found out a month or so ago that the lifetime maps for my 2720 were no longer supported due to memory limits. And when I could do updates, I had to have the USB cable go directly to the PC port and not through a daisy chained expansion hub.

So I took advantage of the Amazon deal on a TomTom Rider.

Not sure what the problem is. I have a few year old 665LM and I just updated the maps to version 2016.20 today. Opened up Garmin Express (not updated ever) on my computer, connected the device with the USB cable, waited until it said connected, went into advanced options to select install on both device and computer, hit the install button, and successfully installed the new map version on both the device and my computer in about 30 minutes.

ElectricFJR said:

Not sure what the problem is. I have a few year old 665LM and I just updated the maps to version 2016.20 today. Opened up Garmin Express (not updated ever) on my computer, connected the device with the USB cable, waited until it said connected, went into advanced options to select install on both device and computer, hit the install button, and successfully installed the new map version on both the device and my computer in about 30 minutes.

Click to expand...

I have NEVER had maps update in 30 minutes. Even under the best of circumstances, it has been an overnight activity.

Maybe it's faster if you have a cable modem. Out here in the boondocks, there's no cable available, so we use DSL. When we lived in town, the cable seemed to be faster, but that's been many moons ago.

mikeames said:

I think the key point about Garmin's "Lifetime Maps" is lifetime of what? The lifetime would be the lifetime of the GPS you bought... I believe Garmin's intention is that you go buy a new GPS every year or two. I mean everyone does that right? New top of the line GPS, new cradle and mounting system, new hardwired power supply...just by it all brand new every couple of years and Garmin's stuff will work fine...

Click to expand...

That's been my experience to a T.

??? This thread caused me to update my 660 and 590 (hadn't thought to do so in awhile) - no issues. I've had them both for years.

How long did it take to update? I have to admit, it only taking 30 minutes was unusually fast for mine this time, but it now shows the 2016.20 version on both my computer and device.