there are a variety of water prrof sat nav covers on the market that allow you to use a car sta nav on a bike are these any good or are there pitfalls with using these car sat navs are about 1/3 the cost of a bike sat nav
I tried, but the glare through plastic and not able to touch screen as well, and condensation also a issue I think you get what you pay for lol
Always used a car satnav on my bike, and virtually any of the covers work fine with them. But then so does clingfilm...
Have tried the Hein Gericke one, that was too square for my TomTom 520, now have one from buybits and a glare stomper surround on it, works fine for me.
thanks for the word of warning, was only looking at using it 2 or 3 times a year and can't justify spending loads of ££££ for that amount of usage, on the flip side have ridden all over europe and the states without one using maps which is still an option
I've tried 3 or 4 satnav pouches and not had any problems with any of them. They're obviously not as good as a dedicated bike satnav. The other option is to lob the satnav in the map pocket of a tankbag, but I find them too far from your field of vision. Meanwhile, clingfilm works a treat...
http://www.buybits.com/catalogue/3236.aspx Have a look there - had two cases one the slim pocket one which has a very good plastic screen
The givi sv850 seems to be favoured, and about £40, fair value (has a bag for house keys, wallet, mobile, etc). But I do like he idea of the cling film - got an old garmin that I wouldn't cry over if it died, so worth a try. Just got to find a mounting method...
I had an old Becker satnav from tesco I used for about 8 years on bike and car. Bloody thing refused to die, it filled up with water 3 times but still got me all over Europe without a hiccup. It finally died when I cleaned the screen with some window cleaner and somehow stopped the touchscreen working. Now I use a basic Garmin Nuvi with an unbranded cover. Again, it does the job perfectly, but the Garmin ain't as resilient as that cheap old Becker unit.
Something else I've found using car satnavs on a bike is that they don't suffer vibration very well. My Garmin kept switching between battery and mains power (with the screen going dark then light again and battery warnings showing) until I realised the vibration was affecting the mains power connection. So as well as looking for a cover for the satnav you'll need to seek out a mount that allows a bit of flex to soak up the vibes. Anything that uses rubber packing to make a snug fit around the handlebar or in the headstock should be fine, but don't tighten the mount up too tight, just tighten it enough to keep the satnav in the desired position and no more.
