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2005 STS Navigation is horrible, or maybe its me?

5K views 45 replies 19 participants last post by  ddavis75007 
#1 ·
Okay, I admit I have only had my STS for a very short period of time and I absolutely love the ride, power (I have the 3.6 but it is more than adequate and I got over 30 MPG on the highway the other day according to the computer). The techno gadgetry is great except when it does not work!! Voice commands??? Forget it! Nav??? My $50 GPS is smarter! I was two blocks from my house and all I needed to do is make a quick left and a right -then two houses from the corner, and it wants to send me a mile up the road to turn around! No, the street was not a new one and it has been there for years! Such a shame. Having nav built into the dash is very cool especially if it worked! My $50 gps has text to speech and this does not!!

My question is, I am told there is a software update for this system (not the map update).

- Is there an update and does it make the NAV usable or at least almost work?
- Does anyone here know where I can get a copy of the firmware/software update disk? The dealer wants over $250 to pop the disk in and hit some buttons. They are supposedly the only ones that have the disk!
- Has anyone done the update themselves? Is it difficult?


Thanks, maybe one of you can give me hope that I will have a nav system that will do something other than tell you what road you are on and actually give accurate directions!

Thanks in advance.
 
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#3 ·
Thanks for your reply. I did call GMNAVDISC and they said that all they have is the map update discs and not the software/firmware discs which I have to get installed by the dealer. It seems there are people who actually have the update disc. My question is ...was your experience with the NAV system as bad as mine? Was it better after the update?
 
#5 ·
The software update doesn't make the NAV any easier to use, it is mostly for voice recognition, blue tooth and a few other personalization functions.
Do you have the seperate NAV manual? It does work, you just have to learn the procedures but it is not what you would call user friendly. It doesn't have text to speech,
just "turn right in 100 meters" not "turn right on Main Street in 100 meters". I too have a Garmin which I find is nothing short of amazing, but the large screen of the NAV is
great. Obviously the newer the Map DVD is, the more chance of having newer information regarding roads and POIs. Someone posted a "Cheat Sheat" for this NAV, do a search and
if you can't find it, I have it somewhere in the bowels of my computer, I think! $250 seems high, like another said, look around at other dealers, some dealers don't even know
what you're talking about regarding this.
Doug
 
#6 ·
Hey Doug,

My concern is not so much that the NAV would be easier to use (I have a degree in Electrical Engineering so I can hopefully figure out the cryptic icons) it is that it should make reasonable route choices rather than send you 2 miles out of your way when you are 2 blocks from the destination! I do understand that the map update would help, but the street it should have chosen was depicted on the map/screen and has been there 50 years! I know portable GPS are usually better than factory but this one is ridiculous! Bluetooth does not always link up so that would be helpful and it would be great to have voice commands that work! Do you know the part number of the update disk? I am hoping to find someone that I can buy/rent/borrow it from. Yes, I realize I bought a cadillac, but I bought it for under $15K! So I would like to avoid the Cadillac dealer which charges you as if you could afford a $50K car! $280 to pop a disc in is a little excessive. IS a regular GM dealer able to do it?

Thanks Again!
 
#31 ·
Hi,

Could you tell me the version numbers for the update for the 2009 STS? I just had the NAV unit replaced, bad map DVD reader. I noticed that the firmware on the replacement unit was later than the original NAV unit. Maybe they updated the firmware when they did the replacement. They didn't say. If I knew the updated version numbers, I could check and see if there is any need to start a firmware update battle with my dealership.

Thanks,
Doug Davis
 
#11 ·
There is a 2010 NAV map update for the 2005 - 2010 STS, It is part number 20861474 and is available from www.gmnavdisc.com for $199.00
I have a 2005 STS with the 2009 disc, part number 25976806 which is also still available for $199.00, these are both 2 disc sets for East & West US and Canada. I think the maps are the same , only the POIs are different. Sometimes they are on eBay cheaper, make sure of the part numbers.

Doug
 
#12 ·
There is a firmware update for 05 sts you just have to find a dealer that has the firmware update disk their have been treads posted a few months back on this do a firmware update search, this will update voice recognition and bluetooth your other option is to get a updated nav disk as stated in the above tread.My 05 works pretty good with some research and persistance it got the firmware update and I have the 09 nav disk.
 
#14 ·
Here is my dilemma, I would not mind investing a little time and money into the nav if I thought it would actually yield a something useful!! Get this one. I am at the CORNER of an intersection at a light . I am looking right at the front door of my house which is three houses from the corner. I told the NAV I wanted to go home. IT WANTED ME TO TURN RIGHT (MY HOUSE WAS LEFT) AND DRIVE A HUGE 3 MILE LOOP TO GET TO MY HOUSE WHICH WAS 100 FT AWAY!!! It had my house properly marked on the screen. Oh my God it cannot be this bad! Maybe I have a defective unit? Seriously, there is no way the nav is this pathetic. Is there? If there is some hope, I will keep trying. Otherwise I will buy a $50 portable and stick it on the window ...SIGH. Has anyone had a good experience with 2005 NAV?
 
#24 ·
I have 06 STS N* w/Nav and i think it works fine. you may want to check your route type settings. it has choices for shortest route, quickest route etc... and that will change adjust which way it takes you...i have played with it and it sometimes shows drastic changes in the route it take based on which option you are set up for...it's definately not "user friendly" to just get in and start using though...that i agree.
 
#15 ·
I have a 2005 and when I first got my STS I felt the same way but after playing with it and constantly using it I now find it much easier to manipulate.Play with the different routes......just play with it everyday and before you know it you will come to like it....really! :yup:

how all I need is a lockpick
 
#16 ·
Thanks, do you have any tips for me? Perhaps there is a setting I can change?
I was so excited because I searched for a chinese restaurant name and it found it!! I told it to route and it sent me in the opposite direction! Oh well.

If I could get this thing working I would by a lockpick but for now it would be a huge waste!
 
#17 ·
I'm not trying to hijack this thread but I have a question. Does the Nav in the STS talk to you? I bought an 08 STS without the Nav and then bought a TOM TOM GPS, an XL 325 SE at Walmart on black Friday for $89 and I wonder how I ever traveled without one. This thing talks to me and tells me how far the next turn is, which lane to get in/stay in, and a whole lot more. I just got back Thursday afternoon from a 5,124 mile trip back East and Mandy (the voice I chose) really helped. She found hotels, motels, restaurants, gas stations and the shortest routes, with the exception of Paducah KY, poor thing took me to the hotel of my choice in an industrial area down by the railroad tracks and there was nothing there, she was totally lost. I finally turned it off as nothing seemed to work right around there until the next morning.
So, does the Cadillac Nav talk? Just curious.
 
#18 ·
Every navigation system I have ever seen...factory or hand held....speaks to some sort of degree depending on which system it is

That being said the Nav system in the STS is not very good...ie..user friendly
There are $99 handhelds that work better and are more user friendly...and there are other manufacturers that have much better factory Nav systems

I won't even go into the voice recognition...LOL
It doesn't work without a lot of baby sitting and repeated phrases....again another function that other manufacturers have excelled at

That being said...the Nav does not...just difficult to program...and it looks a whole lit better...to me.....with the factory Nav unit in the dash than the Non Nav set up


Warren
 
#19 ·
I don't have any trouble like Joe's; occasionally, I find a minor shortcomings with the Nav but I consider it satisfactory in both my 2006 and my wife's 2007. Both have the firmware upgrade and the Version 5 (2008) Disks. Virtually all the aftermarket units are better than OEM; just like A/V systems. They have to compete; the auto manufacturers don't. Does anyone choose a car based on the Nav or A/V system?

It sounds to me like there's something wrong with Joe's Nav unit. I'd be interested if another STS with Navigation has the same trouble at that location. That would confirm/refute my suspicion.

If he has no warranty, I recommend watching ebay &/or seeking a used parts dealer for a replacement. The firmware upgrade should take less than an hour and if a dealer has the disk, so it should be well under $100. (But it can be hard to find a dealer & tech writer that knows anything about it.)
 
#22 ·
I don't have any trouble like Joe's; occasionally, I find a minor shortcomings with the Nav but I consider it satisfactory in both my 2006 and my wife's 2007. Both have the firmware upgrade and the Version 5 (2008) Disks. Virtually all the aftermarket units are better than OEM; just like A/V systems. They have to compete; the auto manufacturers don't. Does anyone choose a car based on the Nav or A/V system?
)
I find quite the opposite....a factory Nav unit is comparable to a handheld IF they were from the same generation
IE...if the car was new to the market that year the best factory automotive Nav systems are on equal footing with the hand helds of the same time
That technology changes drastically every 2 years..so after that time its archaic...however I have seen factory systems...Lexus LS for example..that was on the same user friendly and quality level as my old Tom Tom from a couple of years ago

For a car to really compete in a particular class you expect it to be up to the level of the competition..or at the very least very close
The STS was not close to a few of its competitors in this regard

Its great that you are happy with yours...depending on your tolerance for its idiosyncrasies..You CAN make it work for you
I think we have already touched on the voice activation system of the car

But I also realize it's the cheapest( on the used car market) of the cars that were in its class
Like my dad used to always tell me.."you get what you pay for"

Would I have paid an extra $5K for a better Nav and voice activation system

No


Warren
 
#20 ·
You have to remember that these cars hit the market in 2004 and the electronics are essentially unchanged since. That means major design decisions were made around 2001, so it's no surprise you've seen better by now. Even for 2001, they certainly could have made better design decisions. However, if you've got the factory navigation, it pays to read the manual, and learn to use the system. Experiment with it even when you know where you're going. It's not bad when you know how to use it. Some features do work better than my TomTom (like exit info), and you can't beat the large screen.
 
#25 ·
I'm thinking there is a setting that needs changed as the post above mine indicates.

I've never had a problem with the directions it gave me just the user friendliness or lack there of. I have a maybe 8 y/o garmian that sold at best buy for $1,300 at one time and it's a lot better.

When I bought the STS 3 years ago (05) model I ASSumed all gps where the same. Never thought about test driving a GPS. Sure learned my lesson there!!! If they are charging a premium for the GPS it should be worth the extra money.
 
#26 ·
Okay, I may have found out whay I was having so many problems. There was a way point active. However, I deleted them all last week! Somehow there was still one there. Anyway, I deleted them again, and told the NAV to take me home and it actually agreed with my Magellan portable all the way home! It is too early to tell, but I at least have some hope. Now I am waiting to get my rim back as I somehow bent it but I don't remember hitting a pot hole!

Now that there is some hope for NAV, I would like to buy the second to the latest version of MAP disk. Is that the 08 version? What is the part number? I am hoping to get it for maybe $75? Also, I may want to try and update my system firmware. Does anyone know where I can get the update disk so I don't have to pay a dealer over $250!!!
 
#27 ·
The STS navigation system will send you on all kinds of strange detours unless you select the proper preference for road types. It's the same old story; RTFM. You may have inadvertantly directed the system to keep you off of major roads or maybe freeways. I realize that reading the manual is admitting defeat but sometimes there is no other way to get from point A to point B.
 
#29 ·
I concur with with bear. I adjusted settings on my nav and accidentally programmed it to keep me off major highways. What a pain in the but. This happened on a long trip out of state. What a pain in the butt. Over all, I am satisfied with my the nav in my 2006 sts.
 
#28 ·
There is a Cadillac technicion on here who is up on this topic, he goes by ewill3rd and I think he monitors this group. I stand to be corrected but I think you need a Tech II to install the firmware update. Anyways he will know for sure, I think there is also a way you can check if you have the update already. There is a diagnostic mode that you can get into, do a search in this forum for that. Best bet is ewill3rd, according to his profile he is in Alexandria, VA

Doug
 
#30 ·
Maybe you were so close to the corner that it thought you were already going right and that was the only way to go. If you were a few yards before the light it may have calculated you go left. It does have its quirks but it isn't that bad. I think I've read in the past that GPS accuracy is dependent on many factors and can be accurate from .01 meters to as much as 15 meters or something like that. So if the satelite thought you were already driving right on that street instead of left where your house is, the safest route is a couple miles out of the way assuming there is no uturn along that route. A 3 point turn in someone's driveway is not considered a safe u-turn. just my $0.02 :)
 
#32 ·
firmware was probably upgraded at the Electronic Service Center where your radio was sent to the dealer from... either that or by the manufacturer themselves (Denso i believe)

Denso units are not remanufactured in the US - they are sent back to Denso in japan (and if you have any discs locked in your unit, or forgotten in the unit they will not be returned - discs left in other radios will be returned ... eventually)
 
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