The best GPS for truckers

CoPilot is powered by PC Miler data. To comment on your other statements we would need more info.

What version of CoPilot is it (the About CoPilot screen.) What version of maps and road restrictions? (that number is under the version number in the "About CoPilot screen and starts with "Data.ALK.NA...)

ETA is calculated by the amount of miles to go, verses what you set your average speeds to on the 5 different road types in your profile. The default road speeds are always set conservatively (i.e. Low) so this would typically show your ETA as being longer than it actually takes. Are yours seeming longer or shorter? Also, it looks at the clock on your device and it can be off because of time zone crossings. Sometimes it is better to display the "time remaining" instead of the ETA. PC Miler and CoPilot do funky stuff with the ETA when dealing with time-zone crossings.

Road restrictions reports. What to you have your profile set up as? height, weight, length, width, National Network on or off, 53ft on or off?

Lockups - that would be more of a factor of the device that it is on. What operating system does the Qualcomm run on? (Windows, Android?) How much memory (RAM) does it have? What processor?

The thing about PC Miler / CoPilot is that there are deeper profile screens and settings than Rand or Garmin for instance. Rand and Garmin more intuitively assume that if you don't deliberately tell it otherwise, it will walk you though the initial setup screens as 13'6" high, 53 feet trailer, no hazmat, etc. It is easier on PC Miler / CoPilot to have one of those incorrect (especially missing the checkboxes for "National Network" and "53 foot trailer." However, if your company is routing you with PCM and your settings match theirs, then your miles will match exactly to theirs. The rather underhanded thing that some of them do is to have theirs set for "shortest" routing, allow tools, and sometimes even "car mode" so that they pay less miles. I'm not saying that yours does that, but I have found many who do.

side note: EVERY single GPS for trucks that you can buy has road restriction errors somewhere, sometimes. Every one. Every one of them also has various map versions that greatly modulate the accuracy of the maps and the road data. The newer the map version, the more current the addresses, roads, and restrictions database will be.

 

Removed post based on the fact that I am too dang tired to actually post something that made sense.

 

Thanks, a lot of that makes sense. Road res. I believe I have set up correctly but I may have the road speeds on the ETA set up too conservatively. Not sure on what O.S. it has.
I know that none of these are going to be 100% but would like to get one that is very reliable that will get me very close to the miles that my company is paying me for.
Thanks again for your reply

 

Go to your profile road settings. Set freeways to 60, divided highways to 55, primary roads to 45, secondary roads to 35, and local streets to 25. This will be very close starting point to get accurate ETA's on PCM or CoPilot programs. If your actual arrival time is always sooner after that, then tweak the freeways up 5 more mph. And go the opposite direction if your actual time is always later than it says. But start with those as the defaults and it will be much closer than the default conservative settings that come normally in the program.

And again - IF YOUR company is calculating trucking "PRACTICAL MILES FROM DOOR-TO-DOOR" using PC Miler back-office, then any out-of-route miles would be on you and the company is being square with its drivers. It's also important to know whether they are paying you by toll miles or not. It the east, using toll roads can cut hundreds of miles, or time, from many routes.

Oh, and I am super curious about two things, if you are able to perhaps reply.

1. What operating system does this Qualcomm with CoPilot run on?
2. What is the data version inside of the CoPilot app? (again, go to "Menu / Settings / About CoPilot" and write down what is says after "data.alk.na..."

Thanks.

 

Hey guys. There was a thread awhile back on best web link for map downloads on the pc miller. Having trouble finding it. Does anyone know of a link that actually work for map updates on the pcmiller? I've had problems updating like others also. Would appreciate any comeback, thnx

 

Assuming that you are referring to PC Miler Navigator, with a "50" in the model number, the links for the CoPilot Central updater is here.

 

Appreciate the comeback dieselboss. Yes it's a navigator. Be checking into it.

 

Here are the steps:
1. Click the link
2. Click "CoPilot 2.0 download instructions
3. Click the version of your Windows (32-bit or 64-bit)
4. Download and install CoPilot Central
5. Plug the GPS into your computer and wait for it to show as connected on the GPS screen
6. Double-click CoPilot Central from your desktop icon and start it up
7. If you successfully done all of this so far, CP Central will have a button that says "Create Account" and you enter an email and password.
8. After logging in, it should now say "Hello your name" at the top right.
9. Now click "Maps / Get new Maps / North America / Download.

UNDERSTAND that it is about 1.4 gb, so do it on an internet connection that can deal with that

10. Wait until it has finished downloading the maps AND finished transferring them to the device. There will be a red CoPilot icon in the status box at the bottom-right when it is done.
11. TURN OFF power on the GPS and then disconnect it and start it up. You are done.

Remember that this only applies to the 450, 550, and 750 models.

 

FYI - I have been unable to get CoPilot Central to work on Windows 8. I have many tricks to make Windows bend to my will in various ways, but none of them are working in this instance.

Just a heads-up for Win 8 users...

 

I believe that Streets & Trips is the best because the routes can be easily manipulated in any way that you may need. Thus, I configure my company supplied truck routes in Streets & Trips and then also use Streets & Trips for navigation. For Truck Specific POIs, I've added the Truck Stops Plus overlay, which is pinpoint accurate and also contains all the amenities and everything else you need. Finally, I use Google Earth, which is a free download, to look up all my shippers and receivers, where I then place a pushpin in the truck entrance ways, access the pushpin properties, and then copy the GPS coordinates from the pushpin properties into Streets & Trips. In that way, Streets & Trips provides turn-by-turn directions directly into my shippers and receivers truck entranceways. I also save them in Streets & Trips for when I have to go back to them again in the future. I've also setup all my company terminals and drop lots in that same manner as well.