Do I need to buy a GPS?

Hardly. The ebay prices are higher than the truckstops

 

then dont buy from the big sellers that buy in bulk and mark up.......buy from regular ebay members, you will get some really good deals

 

Admittedly I was only looking at the Rand McNally models, but there are still no really good deals even from private sellers.

 

i bought the rand mcnally. it may have some nice bells and whitsles. but for actual gps. i think it totally sucks.

mine took me away from my pickup down to a recreational camp sight which isn't on a map. it prefers to take me 75 miles out of route from what my phone says. it tells me not to take a junction and ends up routing me through town. AND THEN. can't figure out how to get me out.

sprint nav comes with my cell plan for free and has yet to steer me wrong. but it's not for trucks. so there's a conflict.

maps are good. but only on the highways. gps can tell me where to go. and my eta so i know how much time i have to pull over for a nap. my company drives us hard. i need sleep. we get loaded and the destination is closed. or doesn't speak english. and we have to be there at open next morning.

gps is the most valuable tool for me. it allows me to sleep instead of planning. call for directions and what not. i can sit at a truck stop knowing how long it's going to take me to get there in the morning. and not have to worry about about those times when your camped out and need a BATHROOM.

i have a map book. it hasn't been opened yet. i have rand mcnally but it's been worthless.

i have gps but i'm not limited to just one. i have different types and programs.
it's the best tool to have. specially when you're hauling ### throughout the week. but you can't just stick with one. cuz it can go wrong. you dooo need to have backup.

 

Hey Gman, does a good map tell you bridge restrictions, overpass heights, etc. That part is scary. How do you get that info that is crucial for a driver? Thanks

 

A good map does tell you the restricted routes and low overpass locations.

The motor carriers atlas list's them and even gives you phone numbers for each state to get up to date construction and detour info.

As with anything else in life you can't put blind faith in any man made gadget.

The longer you drive the less you need a map to tell ya how to get anywhere in the country. All you will need is the last mile or so from the main road to the customer.

I always call every customer even if I there last month just to see if they have changed anything in the area like tearing the whole road out or redoing their lot things like that .

 

I love my GPS and it has paid for itself several times over in time saved. But you still need to know how to route yourself using a map and have enough sense to know when not to trust what the GPS is telling you. Also very important to understand the obvious that having GPS directions does not mean you no longer have to read signs, pay attention to what's around you, and get local directions from people who actually know the roads you will be travelling.

My company just banned GPS units in our trucks because of the distraction they cause to some drivers, who tend to keep running into everything in sight. Told my boss that the only way I would take mine out of my truck was if I got a huge raise to compensate for the extra work and time it would involve not having that tool at my disposal. I didn't get the raise, but am lucky enough to be in a position where I can get away with breaking some of the minor rules like this one.

 

If you buy a Rand McNally Atlas there are listings of low over passes. I usually just read the signs. Most roads have signs which tell you the height of bridges or over passes in plenty of time to change your route. I would much rather rely on that than one of these over priced GPS units. How do you think we survived all these years without GPS? We read the signs. Every load that I haul can be a different height. If in doubt I measure my load so that I know where my truck can go and then watch the signs along my route. Not long ago I had a load that put me at 14' 8". If I relied on a GPS I would have taken out some bridges. All you need to do is use some common sense. I think that when you rely on technology, such as GPS, you can become complacent and careless.

 

And G/MAN hit the nail on the head, right there. GPS itself isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it does lead to complacency. That's the problem with them. It goes hand in hand with everything else which leads to complacency on the road.
When you have new drivers fresh out of school being taught by "six month wonder" trainers that all they need is a GPS, that's just plain not good in any way. They will become dependent on them. Technology isn't bulletproof - it can (and sometimes does) fail. What does it take to interrupt a satellite signal? Not a whole lot. So what happens when a GPS-dependent rookie has to deal with technology which has failed?
GPS is a great thing, when used properly, in conjunction with other means available. However, too many drivers are using it as a crutch.

 

Its funny i was expecting a lot of people to say learn to read a map on this.. map reading is always the best. When i drove non CDL i had trucks high enough to not make it under some bridges and tunnels closest call I ever had was the bucket of my old sign truck just skinned the top of a tunnel one time. no damage done but I never used that rout again in that truck. Another bad one was when going through NJ our company provided us with a GPS but it was a car GPS so a new guy ended up going onto the gardenstate parkway and got himself a hefty ticket for it.

Reason why i would stick to the basics is a GPS isant going to bail you out when you have the red white and blue on your tail for being somewhere a truck isant supposed to be.
I personally will be getting one but I will also be checking it to the rout it says to an atlas.