Tech Tips

Selecting a GPS for your Motorcycle

 Here's a cool thing to mount on your machine - a lot of people attach a GPS. I have tried a few different units and I would like to share my experiences with you. The most important thing I learned was to not grab just any GPS and stick it on a bike. One of the units I tried was a very expensive unit that had a hard drive in it to hold all the maps. The hard drive inside the unit did not like being on a motorcycle due to the vibration and it stopped working a few times after being bounced around. Also, some units had speakers in order to give turn by turn directions. The bad thing is that when at speed on a bike, you cannot hear the directions. My recommendation is get a unit without a speaker or get a unit with Bluetooth. Bluetooth will bring it own set of issues, like battery life of the head set, if the headset will fit inside your helmet, and possible interference from your cell phone. But in my opinion, even a unit without a speaker is much better than a paper map. Most GPS units for vehicles will want to get power from the bike, a few have their own batteries. Getting power from the bike is the best option as then you don't need to recharge the batteries and the GPS will not die from lack of power when on a long trip. We can install a 12 volt power outlet on your bike or you can do it yourself. Be careful installing a power outlet as it could void your warranty and a bad install could be dangerous. The other thing to do is to get a good mount for the GPS. RAM mounts are very well made and have models for most bikes and GPS units. Keep in mind the theft factor. Motorcycles themselves are favorite targets for thieves and GPSs are even more popular. I would recommend bringing the GPS in with you any time you are away from the bike. The photo is of the Garmin Zumo 550, a recommended GPS. It's only drawback is it's price - about $1000. Garmin also makes a Zumo 450 which is not quite as fancy for about $750. Another nice unit is the TomTom RIDER 2, which is not quite as nice as the Garmin, but it is less money, about $599.
If you decide to go with another unit, make sure it is water proof as you never know when it may rain.