Questions about Garmin Nuvi 660

I just purchased a Nuvi 660 at a very good price of $500 from Costco.com. I am playing with it and haven't gotten to actually use it in the car yet.

So far, I love the display. However, the suggested routing from my house to where I'm going is usually not what I would choose. Even though I set "faster time" as a preference, it takes me down roads with many traffic lights instead of on the highway. It also tells me to take a left turn at intersections where you're not allowed to turn left or there is no light and lots of traffic.

How can I change the routing to start the way I want to go? I keep hearing/reading the words "via" and "waypoint" but can't figure out if these apply or how to enter them.

I know this isn't a GPS forum, but I am asking here because I can always count on you guys for some help. If you know of a better forum where I can get questions answered, please let me know.

Thanks!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(PriusRos @ Jun 9 2007, 08:26 AM) [snapback]458598[/snapback]</div>

I just found the answer in http://www.gpsreview.net/forums/.

The options are pretty limited. After entering a destination, one can add a via point on the way so that it will go via that particular route. The problem is you have to reenter that point every single time you want to go that way, and you have to enter it after you've entered your destination point. Only one via point can be entered for the trip.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Tom 6850 @ Jun 9 2007, 10:43 AM) [snapback]458641[/snapback]</div>

Yes, I did make sure it I didn't avoid highways....

It would be nice to be able to specify highways preferred.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Tom 6850 @ Jun 9 2007, 11:02 AM) [snapback]458649[/snapback]</div>

Thanks. I think I have figured out how to set it up -- I have all the preferences and avoidances set, and so on. My main gripe is that if it suggests a particular route but I know there's a better/faster way of getting there, or I prefer to use a certain route because it's more scenic, It's hard to make it go that way. All I want to do is say Use Route x instead of the calculated Route y. I don't think it should be so difficult.

In spite of my griping, I agree that it is a nice little unit. I really like the large bright display. I also discovered that I can use the Bluetooth features with my phone even though the phone (LG VX-5300) isn't listed as one of the compatible models on the Garmin website. I was very pleasantly surprised to see that my address book was automatically transferred to the nuvi and I make calls directly by touching the screen.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(SomervillePrius @ Jun 10 2007, 07:52 AM) [snapback]459100[/snapback]</div>

The problem is, even though I might be going somewhere I don't know, I already know how to get to the main road from my place so if I am trying to preprogram it before I leave home it's always going to give me the wrong directions from the beginning.

I think I have figured out how to solve it though. Enter the destination point as a favorite, but don't press GO until I get to the road I want to take.

What would be two really nice features -- and I don't know whether ANY GPS has something like this -- would be the ability for you to be able to manually enter a preferred route and for it to memorize a route that you take. For example, if somebody gives you specific directions to their house -- they usually know the best way because they are familiar with the traffic patterns and what to look out for. It would be nice to be able to enter these directions on the nuvi and then let nuvi read back the directions while you are driving. If you could store these directions, the next time you go there you can use the same route.

The ability to memorize a route would also be nice.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(priusenvy @ Jun 10 2007, 05:16 PM) [snapback]459266[/snapback]</div>

I'm sorry -- I don't understand what you're referring to. How does one specify speeds?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Rxmxsh @ Jun 11 2007, 11:43 AM) [snapback]459513[/snapback]</div>

Because it's a new toy and I need to play with it of course

I haven't gone anywhere where I really needed it yet. However, the other day, I was in Alexandria and wanted to find my way over to George Washington Parkway to go to Mount Vernon. That's when I got somewhat frustrated by nuvi's directions. I entered Mount Vernon as a destination and it gave me directions via another road. I tried to enter GW Parkway as a via point, but it was virtually impossible because it wanted me to supply a specific address or intersection.

All I wanted was to find the fastest way from where I was to that particular road. After all, if I were to stop and ask someone for directions, I would ask, how do I get to GW Parkway South. If I knew what it intersects with, I probably wouldn't need to ask for directions.

I asked about this in the GPSreview forum. They suggested that I use the map function to plot the via point. I think I had tried that but messed up. I think I ended up entering GW Pkwy Northbound instead, because it was giving me all sorts of crazy directions.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(9G-man @ Jun 13 2007, 01:09 AM) [snapback]460674[/snapback]</div>

It seemed I tried that -- maybe it was giving me the closest intersections but I didn't understand what I was looking at. I'll try it again.

Thanks.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Rxmxsh @ Jun 13 2007, 11:34 AM) [snapback]460882[/snapback]</div>

For a limited-access highway, how can I be sure I'm hitting the correct lane (southbound vs. northbound)? I think I might have hit the wrong direction and ended up being prompted to do all sorts of weird things.