Thank you, Garmin!!

[wally_games]

For Christmas, I bought myself (from my kids, lol) a Garmin Nuvi 1490LMT. I think it was about $165, plus shipping, and I also picked up a Ram mount and a cradle at the same time from gpscity.com. As my wife and I commute together almost 100 miles each way for work, I end up driving the car about four days a week.

Anyway, we were using the Garmin in the car, mostly for the traffic feature. Suction cup stuck to that flat, round disk that they give you to stick on top of your dash instead of sticking it to the windshield. Wife dropped me off and took off and the suction cup gave way. The Nuvi fell down onto the gear shift lever and spidered the screen!  About 40% of the L/H side had no picture.

I went to the support page on their website. Obviously, not a warranty issue, but I found that Garmin will fix just about any broken unit for a set price, based on the model. Anyway, to fix mine was listed as $120 and they pay the shipping back to me. Rather than go buy another one, I decided to send it to Garmin and pay the $120. I sent them a message/email through the website, outlining what had happened, and requested an RMA number to get mine fixed.

A day and a half later, I get an email from a tech guy at Garmin. Due to the manner in which the non-warranteed damage occured, he said he'd give me a "one time waiver" of the repair/replacement charge!! All I had to do was ship it to them and they'd do the rest at no charge.  Shipping from my work cost me $6.75 for second day UPS, and according to them I should have it back in about 10-14 days.

Now THAT is customer service! 

[Cuda]

Maybe because you were being HONEST , they rewarded you.

[maxtog]

That is great news.  Generally, Gamin has been a good company to work with.  I have owned and still own some of their products and do recommend them to others.

[Conrad]

Nice!

[PH14]

Wow, that's fantastic! Great service.

[ZG]

 

[Pokey]

I too have had good experiences with Garmin, I will keep buying them for sure.

[BudCallaghan]

In addition to the good fortune you had in reaching an understanding person at Germin there is also blame to be placed on their mounting accessory as it failed to stick to the surface it is designed to adhere to.  I have two Garmin GPS units and their windshield mounting suction cups will not remain stuck to the windshield for more than a fortnight.  Fortunately I mount them on the lower left hand corner of my windshields and they only fall 1/4 inch and land on the forward slanted dash top.  For my motorcycles I use the RAM accessory mounts and never have a problem.

[Pokey]

In addition to the good fortune you had in reaching an understanding person at Germin there is also blame to be placed on their mounting accessory as it failed to stick to the surface it is designed to adhere to.  I have two Garmin GPS units and their windshield mounting suction cups will not remain stuck to the windshield for more than a fortnight.  Fortunately I mount them on the lower left hand corner of my windshields and they only fall 1/4 inch and land on the forward slanted dash top.  For my motorcycles I use the RAM accessory mounts and never have a problem.

Interesting.....mine stays up on my windshield no problem.

[Smiffer]

In addition to the good fortune you had in reaching an understanding person at Germin there is also blame to be placed on their mounting accessory as it failed to stick to the surface it is designed to adhere to.  I have two Garmin GPS units and their windshield mounting suction cups will not remain stuck to the windshield for more than a fortnight.  Fortunately I mount them on the lower left hand corner of my windshields and they only fall 1/4 inch and land on the forward slanted dash top.  For my motorcycles I use the RAM accessory mounts and never have a problem.

That is strange mine has been in the windshield for almost 6 months. Thats pretty much my experience with garmin. They've replaced one of my old gps's, when they really didn't have to (out of warranty). Along with the mount for my Zumo.

[BudCallaghan]

Interesting.....mine stays up on my windshield no problem.

That is strange mine has been in the windshield for almost 6 months. Thats pretty much my experience with garmin. They've replaced one of my old gps's, when they really didn't have to (out of warranty). Along with the mount for my Zumo.

There's usually a reason for such discrepancies.  Perhaps the area of the windshield where I attach my Garmin has a greater curvature in the glass than does either of yours where you mount it.  It's not a significant issue with me as the GPS simply drops a 1/4 inch before landing on a padded dash.

[wally_games]

Mine had come loose a couple of times, normally when the weather warmed up. It had also become "unstuck" from my Tahoe windshield a time or two. In my car, I usually left the mount in place and unclipped the unit so that it wasn't left in the car for a wouldbe thief. Once I came back to the car to see the mount had fallen, even without the weight of the unit pulling on it. I normally always made sure to reattach the suction cup before replacing the unit in the cradle. In this instance, I didn't do that first.

[momo65]

Who is this Garmin individual, hmmm does he know how to play an accoustic guitar with one hand hmmm?, does he have a black panther as a pet? does he drink Dos XX from time to time hmmm?, ok just playing, am looking to buy a GPS from them real soon, good to know that the company is in good Deeds.

[Cuda]

 A little sugar water helps the bond.



"In addition to the good fortune you had in reaching an understanding person at Germin there is also blame to be placed on their mounting accessory as it failed to stick to the surface it is designed to adhere to.  I have two Garmin GPS units and their windshield mounting suction cups will not remain stuck to the windshield for more than a fortnight.  Fortunately I mount them on the lower left hand corner of my windshields and they only fall 1/4 inch and land on the forward slanted dash top.  For my motorcycles I use the RAM accessory mounts and never have a problem."
[/quote

[momo65]

check this out, nice tone to the song.
One Handed guitar player - Tuoi da buon - The Vinh

[Rhino]

I love my Garmin 3450. About a 1/4" thick, great touch screen. I loaded it with Europe maps and use it on 2 continents.

I use a projektd handy stick:

http://projektd.com/product_info.php?cPath=27_39_46&products_id=162

 and a gps ball mount like this:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003FMUP0K/?tag=money84-20

I've never actually used the water proof case. I just use the ball mount and the mount that comes with the Garmin. Works great with no rain. Haven't needed it yet but can use the waterproof case in the rain as long as you don't have to use the touch screen.

[maxtog]

I love my Garmin 3450. About a 1/4" thick, great touch screen. I loaded it with Europe maps and use it on 2 continents.

I use a projektd handy stick:

http://projektd.com/product_info.php?cPath=27_39_46&products_id=162

 and a gps ball mount like this:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003FMUP0K/?tag=money84-20

I've never actually used the water proof case. I just use the ball mount and the mount that comes with the Garmin. Works great with no rain. Haven't needed it yet but can use the waterproof case in the rain as long as you don't have to use the touch screen.

Garmin makes a motorcycle GPS.  Zumo:

https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=135

[Rhino]

Garmin makes a motorcycle GPS.  Zumo:

https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=135

Well aware of the Zumo but a bit pricey. I got the 3450 as a gift and use it in the car as well as on the bike.

[Pokey]

The ZUMO is insanely priced "except the 220", the NUVI 500/550 is a much better option for 90% of riders IMHO. I have 2 Nuvi models that are not waterproof, but work awesome for the C14. When I am on a trip I just stick it in a small ziploc bag with a rubber band at the bottom......cheap waterproof GPS now. I have however aquired 2 of the best waterproof GPS units that Garmin ever made, I got a hookup on 2 like new 2720 units and I keep one of them on my WR250R.

[maxtog]

The ZUMO is insanely priced "except the 220",

Yep, way overpriced.

the NUVI 500/550 is a much better option for 90% of riders IMHO. I have 2 Nuvi models that are not waterproof, but work awesome for the C14. When I am on a trip I just stick it in a small ziploc bag with a rubber band at the bottom......cheap waterproof GPS now. I have however aquired 2 of the best waterproof GPS units that Garmin ever made, I got a hookup on 2 like new 2720 units and I keep one of them on my WR250R.

It is not that the Zumo is just waterproof, it includes a very nice mounting and power system, has a glove friendly touchscreen , has a more motorcycle-designed display, is designed to withstand vibration, and has physical buttons on the side.  I bet they would sell a lot more if they didn't price it so high.