Columbus Sat Nav is a bit....

[kitset]

shlte. Well, in NZ anyway! I've tested it on a couple of trips out of town when I knew the way and there are a number of roads that just aren't included - not minor dirt roads or anything, these are proper roads with houses etc. They're the fastest way between a couple of towns. I loaded up Google maps to do a side by side comparison and it was like I was in different locations! The Columbus trip from A to B was 37 minutes, the same trip in Google maps (with its fancy extra roads...) was 17 minutes.

I certainly won't be trusting the Skoda maps on a trip where I don't know where I'm going, which is a shame as I thought I could get away from having an ugly mount for my phone on the windscreen. Android Auto can't come soon enough for me...

Edited 28 October, 2014 by kitset

[JoseDB]

Interesting! Have you got the latest maps loaded?

[kitset]

I kinda assumed the dealer would have put the latest version on (I picked the car up 6 weeks ago), but I really should check!

[JoseDB]

It may have been bad luck and a new set were released between manufacture and pickup and your dealer didn't bother checking (it is time conduit to update them).

[andyvee]

They rarely have the latest maps on them from the factory, and dealers don't do it as standard

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

[sh4rpsh00ter]

So what is the latest maps version??

[mannyo]

In the UK the MK3 Octy Columbus maps are user upgradable and downloaded for free. Not sure on the situation in NZ.

 

EU Maps are downloaded from www.navigation.com

[bigreddognz]

Interesting - which roads is it missing Kitset?  I haven't had any problems with mine (I'm in Tauranga) except that its missing some of the new Hamilton ring road - but to be fair those roads are only a couple months old and I've had the car since March! 

[kitset]

The area I was driving is north of Auckland, between SH16 and SH1. https://www.google.co.nz/maps/@-36.7187024,174.5130134,13z

 

It's rural, but there are dozens of roads and quite a lot of activity - vinyards, businesses, houses, etc. Here's the same area in the Sat Nav (it's zoomed out, but if you zoom in there are no more roads than shown).

 

 

The Sat Nav effectively shows only two roads (Kahikatea Flat Road and West Coast Road - neither shown in my image) off SH16 between Riverhead Road and the town of Wellsford - a distance of 80km. There are actually dozens and dozens of roads in the area, many of which save considerable time than staying on SH16. Sure, if you used the Sat Nav you'd get where you wanted to go, but potentially waste a hell of a lot of petrol on the way (and miss a bunch of very fun roads!). And too bad if you wanted to visit friends who lived in the area, or take a trip to the wonderful Matua Valley Wines on Waikoukou Valley Road - they don't exist on Skoda's maps!

Edited 29 October, 2014 by kitset

[vRSNZ]

The area I was driving is north of Auckland, between SH16 and SH1. https://www.google.co.nz/maps/@-36.7187024,174.5130134,13z

 

It's rural, but there are dozens of roads and quite a lot of activity - vinyards, businesses, houses, etc. Here's the same area in the Sat Nav (it's zoomed out, but if you zoom in there are no more roads than shown).

 

 

The Sat Nav effectively shows only two roads (Kahikatea Flat Road and West Coast Road - neither shown in my image) off SH16 between Riverhead Road and the town of Wellsford - a distance of 80km. There are actually dozens and dozens of roads in the area, many of which save considerable time than staying on SH16. Sure, if you used the Sat Nav you'd get where you wanted to go, but potentially waste a hell of a lot of petrol on the way (and miss a bunch of very fun roads!). And too bad if you wanted to visit friends who lived in the area, or take a trip to the wonderful Matua Valley Wines on Waikoukou Valley Road - they don't exist on Skoda's maps!

 

I'm going to have to check mine now... Not that I have used it at all in the 8 days I have had the car...

[AllanDJ]

Main thing that I don't like with this model is fact that it doesn't allow you to enter post codes! It might also work on the continent but as I am not very likely to be driving over there that is kind of irrelevant.

Thing is you won't always know the street name of a destination, one time I was trying to get to a place near Edinburgh Airport usually not hard but with an awkward road closure it was difficult and the

sat nav wouldn't allow me to put in airport as an option under Edinburgh, which kind of defeats the purpose of having this kind of technology if it assumes that you always know the street names of where you are going!

[73henny]

Main thing that I don't like with this model is fact that it doesn't allow you to enter post codes! It might also work on the continent but as I am not very likely to be driving over there that is kind of irrelevant.

Thing is you won't always know the street name of a destination, one time I was trying to get to a place near Edinburgh Airport usually not hard but with an awkward road closure it was difficult and the

sat nav wouldn't allow me to put in airport as an option under Edinburgh, which kind of defeats the purpose of having this kind of technology if it assumes that you always know the street names of where you are going!

 

 

You can enter postcodes. I do it all the time.

As for the airport, it will be there under POI.

[JoseDB]

Indeed, you have to press the postcode button before hand though, it's not that intuitive, it also assumes postcodes start with a number so the input method is...

New dest

Postcode button

ABC button

Enter post code

Also, make sure you put the space in the right spot, it doesn't predict where it should go every time.

And finally, it is often more useful to enter a partial postcode. Otherwise it doesn't ask you which street/house number. If I know these 2 bits of info, I don't enter the last letter of the postcode and it then prompts for the street/house number. If you enter a full postcode it just takes you to the middle of the street!

All in all, not perfect, but there are workarounds.

[kitset]

I'd be happy if it just included all the roads ☺

[Smeghead]

Any use to you....http://nzopengps.org/ ?

[bigreddognz]

Keep forgetting to update - I had a look the other day and can see many roads between Kumeu and Wellsford (including Waikoukou Valley Rd). However I'm not sure if Skoda updated the maps when it was in getting a towbar a few weeks ago.

 

 

[AllanDJ]

Like you were saying not very intuitive! The salesman showed me how to use the sat nav by entering place name, then street, number etc. Guess he didn't know how to use it either.

Noticed recently that since car had its first service that the sat nav was only showing on the main screen and not in the central section between rev counter and speedometer, which made it rather less than useful. Actually missed a junction because of this, then when I got turned around and back onto correct road, the central screen suddenly reappeared! That middle bit seems to be stuck most of the time showing range, which it never showed before. Originally, it showed the street name and compass, then that vanished and it showed my iPhone. Seems to have a mind of its own, wish it would make its mind up! Occasionally it chucks in the red warning light with the exclamation mark and car symbol too, which just flashes up and then vanishes. It's done that since new, did that the other day on a dry road at 25mph when i gently braked as the car in front indicated left, the brakes went very strange too, not normal ABS just kind of dead. Car is going into garage this week anyway to hopefully get my collapsed variable load floor replaced under warranty, have asked them to check brake system too.

[kitset]

Keep forgetting to update - I had a look the other day and can see many roads between Kumeu and Wellsford (including Waikoukou Valley Rd). However I'm not sure if Skoda updated the maps when it was in getting a towbar a few weeks ago.

Excellent, thanks for checking. Those are definitely missing on mine, I was driving on Taylor Road but the car was on no man's land on the screen! Looks like I might have an old map version. I'll contact the dealer and find out how to update.

[kitset]

 

Keep forgetting to update - I had a look the other day and can see many roads between Kumeu and Wellsford (including Waikoukou Valley Rd). However I'm not sure if Skoda updated the maps when it was in getting a towbar a few weeks ago.

 

 

Don't suppose you could have a quick look at your map version? Mine is V03959800BL0033 ROW. I've sent an email to the service team at Giltrap, but it would be good to know if you do have a different version.

[bigreddognz]

Mine is V03959800BL0033 ROW. 

Mine is V03959800SK0030 ROW 2014 - so it looks like a different version - as I say they may have updated mine when the towbar was done a few weeks ago - wish i'd taken a note of what it was originally!  Hope this helps.