Ok truckers! I am a drivers wife and want to buy him a good GPS that is specifically designed for truck drivers. The piece of crap the owner operator provided takes him onto lightweight roads, overpasses he can't go under, downtown, doesn't know half the addresses and I spend half the time on Mapquest giving him directions!! It is stressful enough out there and in some places too dangerous to be in areas not designed for truck drivers!! Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!

 

You might try doing a search. We have discussed GPS for truckers previously. There are several trucking specific units on the market. Garmin, Rand McNally, Cobra are the ones that I see most. I like Rand McNally. I have a friend who uses a Garmin, but it is not for truckers. It is a standard unit you would use in your car. TA may still have a Cobra GPS and CB 25 that you can purchase at a little discount. I have used Rand McNally maps for many years, so I personally like them. I have heard that the Cobra GPS tends to get a little confused if you miss a turn and it has a problem finding a different route. But, they make a good CB radio, so their GPS should be good as well. If you are looking to compare different units, you might go to Dieselboss trucking site for semi truck driver products and trucker services. There are several listing. You want the one that has something about fuel prices. When you go to the website there should be something about trucking accessories or GPS. At one time they compared several different GPS units. It might help you to at least get a start. There is also a trucking show coming up in a few months. Some of them offer a discount on any GPS units purchased at the show. It isn't usually a bid discount, but anything helps. I don't own a GPS other than the one on my new phone. With any of them, you need to understand that they are not 100% accurate. You still need to be aware of your surroundings. Drivers still need to watch signs about bridge heights, weights, etc., You are still better off in this business with a truckers GPS than one for cars.

 

I have used the Rand McNally TND 510 now for about 2 years. I use it mainly because it also uses the same map datum as the Motor Carrier Road Atlas.

I have also used the TND700 series and NOT liked it. It vibrates too much for my liking so much that you MUST rest it on something to get it to stop. I just don't think the mount is stout enough for it.

 

i've been running my 510 for the same amount of time and love it. however, it wont take updates anymore. so i hope by next week i'll be updating to the 520. what i like about the 520 is that it can use WIFI for fuel prices, weather and what not. also for a o/o the fuel logs make it simple for ifta returns.

 

Did you ever get a new one? I think when I get back to work this fall I am going to invest in a RM but not sure which model to get. Have the prices come down any?

 

sorry took so long. i did. got the 520. its ok. i feel like my 510 routed me better though. if your an o/o it makes life so easy. if you have an air card in your truck the WIFI feature is amazing for weather. overall, i like it.

 

I use the Rand Mcnally 720 It has never let me down even wide or heavy

 

Hi all, I got the Rand McNally 760 fleet with weather overlay and it is slick. Use a verizon mobile hotspot 6620 for the weather add on. Has electronic log capability, but I will wait a bit for that.

 

I see this is several years old but.........Jill can bite me, aka: get bent! I'm tired of her trying to route me away from tolls or toll roads that we are allowed on. Or route me an extra 3-15 miles because she thinks a road doesn't exist. Looking at getting my own to carry with me, Jill typically goes AWOL Saturday nights......not cool in unfamiliar areas for the first time. Looking at the Rand McNallys. How's the 530? Do they help reroute you when you stumble upon an sudden road closure that requires a detour? Jill went AWOL with that the other night. I had to stop and pull up Google maps to get me out. Good old Maryland closed a road but had no detour signs up to help navigate around it.

 

OK I was told to stay away from the Rand McNally's from a driver on my account. He has one and its always not working properly. He's done all the updates and it still messes up. So I'm looking towards Garmin if it has trucking specifics in it. Anyone got any info on theirs?

GMAN, your last 5 sentences really hit it. A newbie got lost last night trying to follow Jill. Ended up totally lost in a very truck unfriendly town, and tore off half his bumper trying to get to the same backhaul I was at waiting for him. He thought a mobile home park was a good turnaround area...........