My car is not equipped with an in-dash GPS. I did, however, receive one for Christmas ’07. It’s worked out splendidly for road trips or even drives around town to unfamiliar places. Duh…it’s a GPS.
The model I got was the Garmin StreetPilot c340. I counted on the thing being easy to use, having updated maps, etc. What I did not count on was the excellent warranty and customer service that Garmin offers. Right now the c340 is relatively cheap (around $150). Around Christmas last year…not so cheap. Here’s the slight problem with this particular model. The power cable does not plug into the device itself. It plugs into the suction cup, which holds the device to the windshield or another smooth surface (not the dashboard though). On very hot or very cold days, the suction cup loses suction and the device falls from the windshield, crashing into the center console and usually onto the floorboard. It’s not a particularly far fall, but if it happens while you’re driving, it can scare the crap out of you. If it’s a really hot day, like it was this past weekend (around 107 degrees outside) as the hot device falls, the heated and now fragile elements inside break and cause the touchscreen to break.
But, have no fear. Garmin has a 1-year manufactures warranty, which, apparently since this was a known issue, covers the faulty suction cup. Furthermore, my GPS was purchased refurbished from an authorized dealer off amazon.com, which is also covered by the warranty. To put one more cherry on top, Garmin also offered me a new dash mount for the StreetPilot at no extra charge because of the known temperature issue with the suction cup. So, to sum up, my StreetPilot c340 was purchased at a better price off amazon.com. It broke, due to no fault of my own and Garmin is replacing it free of charge and giving me a new mount. Oh, and because I asked, they are also expediting my replacement so I don’t have to go too long without a GPS. Nice.
