Columbus satnav way off target

[snafu]

Hi all

 

We had a trip to London yesterday, so to help with directions set the satnav to Shepherds Bush and set off. About 5 miles from home the satnav decided we were off the road and driving in parallel through a field, though I could have sworn it was the A329. After that it abandoned all sense of reality and insisted we were heading north, mostly across fields but occasionally up a river or flattening whole villages, so while we were actually heading east up the M40 it was showing our progress as northwards, eventually trying to persuade us we were near Flitwick rather than our actual end location of Westfield Shopping Centre.

 

Any ideas? The weather was shocking with lots of cloud around but it's never been a problem before, and indeed on the way home it was fine. My phone's satnav was 100% accurate. Maybe it just doesn't like London (who can blame it) but I can't put up with this sort of technical insolence, what can I do? We might really need to use it sometimes!

 

It has done this to a much lesser extent a few weeks ago, but it recovered. Is there a reset so I can force it to look for more satellites? Or could it be something else? The "compass" was wrong but I daresay that's part of the satnav itself.

 

Cheers

[Frenchtone]

Might be trying to save you money with the new distination 

0)) -  ;

On a more serious note try pulling the main fuse on the radio supply out for a couple of mins, its in the box ​​in the engine compartment - that has worked for me in the past!

[175GDY]

I had the sharkfin antennabase replaced to solve the issues with GPS reception.  Sometimes a few hundred meters off, but after a while constantly indicating some area in mid-Germany.

[ddyer79]

Sometimes a few hundred meters off, but after a while constantly indicating some area in mid-Germany.

Often referred to as

Volkswagen RNS 510 Regensburg syndrome

Home of Volkswagen I believe

[skoda1982]

Reset to Factory settings in Settings

[snafu]

Might have to contact the dealer, after all it's still in warranty, but with an intermittent problem like this I don't really have much faith that they can fix it. I'll have a look at the reset/remove fuse options but as it's working again today I don't know if that's going to help.

[Ryeman]

Or buy a TomTom...........now now put that down!.

[Snowdog]

I have the Amundsen satnav but had exactly the same problem, sometimes showing many miles away across fields and rivers from where I was, and other times working perfectly. Mine was also in warranty at the time so took it to my local Skoda dealer. On the drive there it was all over the place but just as I pulled up outside, frustratingly it started working again. I spoke to the service engineer who said he had come across this issue several times and even though it was working at the moment he would change the roof antenna unit. That was over a year ago and I've had no more wandering satnav problems since. 

[snafu]

It's booked in for a checkup next week. If Columbus had been using this satnav he'd have discovered the Arctic rather than America. I hope they can find the problem or at least know about it.

 

Thank you all for your advice!

[JulieD]

Mines just started doing the same - did you get yours resolved?

[Sad555]

Had the same on my Octavia Blackline with the Amundson, appears to be quite common and a simple fix of a new antenna under warranty.

[eribaMotters]

Sat navs need to be updated, not just the maps but the software. The Maps for Life on my present Garmin work a treat. It will re-route very quickly compared to my last model, that did not have this facility. Since your Columbus was installed the position of the satelites has in real terms changed and I would guess your unit is searching and getting a bit confused. Or could I be talking a load of rubbish?

 

Colin

[Ryeman]

Any strong (geostationary) ones and triagulates resolving variations to indicate displacement.

[Austin 7]

Hi all.  This is how satnav works.  The first task is for the unit to calculate its 2D position (latitude and longitude) from GPS satellite radio signals. The 32 satellites aren't geostationary but are in low earth orbit so if you were able to see them by eye they would appear to travel across the sky from horizon to horizon taking several hours to do so.  At any one time there are at least 6 and often more satellites in view, and as some disappear below the horizon others pop up and take their place.  The minimum number of satellites in view for a 2D position fix is 3, but if the receiver can see more that improves the position accuracy. This position finding task isn't usually affected by software or map updates and even a very old satnav will still work.  To get an accurate position you need good enough signals, so any problem with the antenna or cable which weakens the signals will give either poor position accuracy or complete nonsense.

The second task is for the unit to reconcile its calculated position with its map database.  Units for road use will "assume" that you are on one of its known roads, so the displayed position will "snap" to the nearest road and small position errors are therefore usually ironed out invisibly  If you have a big position error, you may find the unit "thinks" you are on a parallel road and will show you there.  This effect is more common in cities where tall buildings may block out many of the satellites. I suspect that If the position error is more than 100 m or so, the software snap function is abandoned and you then have the joy of flying through fields on the screen!

[Carlodiesel]

Yes, what he said.

[Brijo]

Sat navs need to be updated, not just the maps but the software. The Maps for Life on my present Garmin work a treat. It will re-route very quickly compared to my last model, that did not have this facility. Since your Columbus was installed the position of the satelites has in real terms changed and I would guess your unit is searching and getting a bit confused. Or could I be talking a load of rubbish? 

 

This made me think - just how long does a satnav take to get a fix? 

 

I too have a maps-for-life stand-alone Garmin satnav, which I plug in for updating once or twice a year.  I've got some 'simple' Garmin hand-held GPS units, too, one of them old, really old.  This 'GPS III' gives its date as 1999 and seems to be running software from 2002.  I'm pretty certain it hasn't been fired up in four years at least, more likely five, and batteries are always removed.  So this morning I put in four fresh AA Duracells and switched on, in the garden and with a fair sky view.  From a standing start, then, It took around 90 seconds to find its first satellite and another fifteen to get the next pair.  It gave an acceptable OS six-figure fix on six sats at two and a half minutes.  

 

Not singing the praises of Garmin - just some sort of benchmark, perhaps, for comparisons with modern technology?   

[speedsport]

I had OP problem with the original Columbus (2010) a couple of times in the early days and fixed it by pulling the fuse (in the box under the bonnet) waiting 2 mins & trying again.

Never did it again but eventually (out of warranty) the Columbus packed up & I had to replace it with a new one off flea-bay, but still nearly £500.

[Hamill]

My Columbus works fine in all respects except the satnav map keeps reverting to Germany. I need to reset but no joy! Any ideas please? Hamill

[Rustynuts]

You could try a software update, but best to know what version you have at present before going any further. Some older units will require a maps update afterwards, and other such intricacies. Also the age and model of your car will help

[JulieD]

Mine turned out to be a faulty aerial base which was replaced under warranty. Apparently when this part completely fails the unit reverts back to Germany

[Llanigraham]

My Columbus works fine in all respects except the satnav map keeps reverting to Germany. I need to reset but no joy! Any ideas please? Hamill

 

Get a new aerial fitted.

[eyegr]

My Columbus works fine in all respects except the satnav map keeps reverting to Germany. I need to reset but no joy! Any ideas please? Hamill

Regensburg syndrome: http://www.my-gti.com/3159/volkswagen-rns-510-regensburg-syndrome

 

Keep SETUP pressed for 30" and report all version information so that we may help.

[Sad555]

Hamill......you don't say how old the yeti is,if it's under warranty let the dealers sort it for free.same issue when I had an Octavia ,sorted at the dealers in under an hour.

[Hamill]

tried holding "set-up" for 30+ secs but no version info displayed. What now?

[Rustynuts]

You don't have the option set to show the developer menu. Have you a scan log of VCDS anywhere?