How bad is the 2013 v Factory NAV system?

New Toyotas will soon start offering Apple's CarPlay built in. I'm hoping they will have a software upgrade for older models available. That should be possible. I would be glad to pay for it!
I just got a 2012 v (lowercaes v), and while I haven't had any problems with the nav system, it suffers from the same problems as every other manufacturer's nav system... it just generally stinks to use it.
Here's hoping. And here's a link for more info. Apple - CarPlay

 

After 2 years of attempting to use the v3's NAV, my impressions have changed.

I find many missing addresses that are more than 5 years old so no excuse.

I get the "Recalculating Route" command frequently after I have passed the street that showed on the map display as one I should turn onto but for which I received no announcement of "turn left in 99 yards at Jones Street". But I can't watch the display and the road at the same time so the map is relatively worthless unless I have a navigator in the passenger seat. An example is a trip I took a few weeks ago that had about 6 turns, only one of which was given correctly despite the GPS knowing where my starting point was and where the end point was and what the intermediate turns/streets were.

I get no warning or announcement while in the city and needing a quick second turn after the first. Again this on streets that are far from new. It isn't a case of sight lines to the satellites either.

I consider the '12 v3 NAV as dangerous compared to prior NAV systems I've used because it is often silent, often late and gives no advanced warnings so you are often in the wrong lane or at the wrong speed or making a U-turn. It is fine on an interstate where you have time to look at the screen at an opportune time and where turnoffs are marked by anticipatory road signs.

I consider a 5 year old TomTom I bought for less than $150 to be more reliable and safe to use.

 

Found out pretty quickly that the nav system in our '12 v is not at all dependable for actual navigation. We use it mostly just to see where we are, rather than navigating with it. We have Google Maps on our smart phones and that is almost always dead on, so it doesn't bother me that the Toyota Nav system is as bad as the ones in every other car we own/owned. I'm not willing to pay for upgrades either, considering they're free and automatic on the smartphones.

 

Since the Nav is an integral part of the display and features list, Toyota should provide free Nav updates, as well as work on those nagging issues. I've not had problems with the warnings, for the most part, they've been pretty automatic at the 2-mile point. It's when you're closing in at .2 miles and then sooner, that the "lag" can happen.

We had the iPad running Maps on when we were approaching a quick turn we missed once before. Maps alerted us to the proper lane, and was quicker to tell us to turn right in 50 yards. Toyota's Nav distance stated 100 yards, and told us to turn when we were almost past it. Did the Entune 3.2 update cure any of these issues?

 

Allow me to clarify. Telling me to go down one way streets the wrong way is the exception not the rule, but it did once tell me to turn the wrong
way three streets in a row. I've mostly figured out where the trouble spots are in the data.
Being forced to use voice recognition for everything while the car is moving is the larger annoyance. I've learned to search for places and enter addresses before I leave. Still, some days just don't work out so planned and then I'm stuck using the voice recognition.
It's crazy little mistakes with voice recognition that have lead me astray at other times. If anyone knows of a command to get it to read out again or display the destination address in progress that would be very useful. As I remember it lets me go into options using the touch screen to see the destination address. I am not sure if i've tried that when it's moving. It might have been only at stop lights.
A couple of good things about the NAV: The directions are timed well and clear and I once had it avoid certain streets to re-route around a place I know traffic jams and that worked well too.
I'm very happy with my Prius, but I don't like the NAV, and I won't pay $170 f0r an upgrade data disk. If I were to spend money I'd buy an Nuvi. Even the model on sale for $80 comes with free lifetime map updates.

 

Preordered and looking forward to this:
Navdy

 

There is an update they did today to the software (not maps) that is specifically targeted at not warning you even though it knows the route. After the update, my service adviser and I drove one of the routes that had confounded the GPS in prior trips and warnings were now present. Not as early and repeated as I'd like but at least they were in time for the turn to be made safely.

So any of you who are having similar problems see your dealer.

(As they gave me no paperwork, I have no revision numbers or TSB numbers to add, sorry.)

 

What version of Entune do you have now?

 

Both my v (lowercase v) and my wife's are 2014 model year. Mine came with outdated software from 2010 and my wife's is from 2011.
I've called Toyota Canada and they are going to update the software for us in each car.
Downside is the ridiculous price thereafter if we want updates. It's $199 CDN a year. That's appalling as most of us know that a Garmin or TomTom can be $100 bucks with lifetime maps.
Toyota is good for some things but not as much as they used to be. They look after their cars but anything that's accessory that they sell within, falls short...way short.

 

An update. After the Nav s/w update, I did a series of drives last week involving big cities, tiny towns, two states, maybe 1,000 miles in total. There was now none of the "recalculating and no warnings" problems I had reported here previously so the fix seems to have really worked.

Waiting till the map updates are available in November and then I'll only be a year out of date.

 

A link was provided for the update file on the last update, which worked very well.

Anyone have this update available yet?

 

Ok, I'm thinking of getting the map update for my 2013 Prius v. I'm familiar with all the reasons why I shouldn't waste my money and just get a Garmin. My wife used the built in gps to get to a friend's house that was built about 4 years ago and the address wasn't in the database. My maps were obsolete the day I bought the car and would really like to be able to use this expensive option as I should be able to.
I don't want to pay for the map updates to discover they are obsolete and a new version is released the next week.
How can I find what is the most recent version? I understand an update is generally released in November. Is there an announcement from Toyota? My dealer doesn't seem to know much about this. I appears very few people are interested in the map updates.

Thanks.

 

I just got a certified 2k12 prius v (lowercase v).... but that maps are definitely absolute. I am one of the few whom is also intersted in getting the map updates. Do i have to go back to the dealership to do it? Is the update user friendly for an intermediate techie to perform? Is there a site where i can go to to get notified?
How much does it cost to update?
Are there certain options you can update?
Is there an A la carte option?

Just wondering

 

I'm pretty sure only a Toyota dealer can update the maps for you. Not sure on the cost, but seems I've read it's north of $100. I hear you about wanting to actually be able to use the nav, since you paid extra to get it. But to me, it's throwing good money after bad since there is so little positive feedback about it.

 

I am just back from a trip that is essentially the same as one I took in May of this year. In May I drove my Prius v5 w/ATP, and for the just completed trip we drove a Camry with a LMT Garmin, updated two days before we left. If you don't have the 5 w/ATP, then maybe this won't apply, but if you are thinking about getting a Prius w/ATP, then I think the following is relevant.

Hands down the Prius v guidance is better at actually driving, less confusion over which lane to be in where when traversing cities, such as Atlanta, during rush hour.

Using the Garmin I actually missed two turns during rush hour traffic when I couldn't move to the "instructed" lane in time . That never happened to me in the Prius and I drove through the same cities at about the same time. My wife even commented that the Garmin "voice" seemed to be a bit tired and irritated whenever it "spoke" recalculating; which it did many times when getting off the Interstate for gas/food, etc. Also, the Sirius in coordination with the GPS machine provides gas and other facility information on the next 3 or so upcoming exits - not available on the mid-priced Garmin model we have - don't know if it is available on high end models or not. At least I think it is the Sirius internal connection to the GPS - but maybe not, have always had Sirius so I don't know if this useful info would disappear without it.

Summing up my experience using a Garmin with updated software AND updated maps: I named it Mary, after my Mother-in-Law, and I don't usually give names to electro/mechanical devices.

 

Your dealer should FIND OUT about it.
Talk to the owner if necessary.
If that doesn't work, look for a new dealer.

 

The Lexus document you attached contains the information I needed. The map updates for the area of PA where I live cover the parts missing from my old maps that was really annoying me. When I take my Prius in next month for the 20,000 mile service, I'll have the maps updated.
Thanks.

 

ems2158: Thank you for the link to the specifics of the map updates. I note two major irritants for me have been updated.

 

the Garmin 3597LMTHD is the one U should get not the mid tier ones. connected to phone U can perform call, get weather info, Traffic is done over HD quality wise as good as your Sirius. if U choose to pay $ to enable data traffic from phone to Garmin you get better traffic. the only reason I would get it is you want more and faster up to date Traffic info right from the source.
nuvi 3597 LMTHD | Garmin

on the highend Garmin it does auto route calculation for a better route when traffic conditions went away unlike what is installed in factory. it also provide lane suggestion much like in the install ones, so U not really missing out anything. Garmin updates like 4 or more times a yr

maps update from dealer cost ~$169.