I am seriously looking to buy a turn of the century (99,00,01) 740il and I was pleasantly surprised to find the level of support for the E38 that is available. I do not know much about the bmw gps system, other than they are usually stock on the '01s and optional in the others, so I am wondering if I be better paying a premium of a thousand or so for the factory gps or would a new aftermarket gps give greater functionality? Is the factory gps still usable and will it be likely to be supported in the future for data updates?
Thank-you
Chuck Racic

Who needs nav, especially the ones that come with the car, some are very horrible. buy a Garmin car GPS or whatever its called, cheap fun and effective although i have yet to try one myself. the naviigation systems i see today that come with cars are just horrid

I opted against a model with GPS beacuse I wanted to put an aftermarket MP3 player behind that foldown panel. I never really understood the GPS thing. I dont travel much and I am fine with a map or asking directions when I do. Mapquest.com = free GPS. To each his own I guess. Best of luck finding a nice E38! You wont be disappointed.

I am seriously looking to buy a turn of the century (99,00,01) 740il and I was pleasantly surprised to find the level of support for the E38 that is available. I do not know much about the bmw gps system, other than they are usually stock on the '01s and optional in the others, so I am wondering if I be better paying a premium of a thousand or so for the factory gps or would a new aftermarket gps give greater functionality? Is the factory gps still usable and will it be likely to be supported in the future for data updates?
Thank-you
Chuck Racic
If you really must have a GPS - go with the factory-installed wide screen versions of the late 2001 model. Alternatively, you can upgrade an older NAV to the newer 16x9 screen and a DVD. Retrofitting one into a 740 that never had the NAV system is expensive and labor-intensive, as several brave people here have successully done just that. I considered it for a while and decided against it - just wasn't worth it, IMHO.
Good luck!
Gene in Buffalo Grove, Illinois

All US 2000 E38s come with the 4X3 NAV.

The 01s have the same, but the 01s built after 9/00 have the wide screen.

I like having NAV but I upgraded to the newer screen. I also upgraded to the newer DVD based system that did not come stock on the E38.

Personally, I would say factory BMW NAV from 00 and early 01s are not 'must have' items. My stock 00 NAV was very slow, and only now that I have the new version, do I find it worth using.

If you're not going to get a 9/00+, I'd say aftermarket NAV is a better bet. Unless you have to have the factory screen/display. Adding BMW NAV to a car without it is generally cost prohibitive.

Before, stock 00 4X3 screen, MKII CD based system.
http://members.roadfly.org/mwong/NAV%20Old.jpg

After, widescreen, MKIV DVD based system.
http://members.roadfly.org/mwong/NAV%20New.jpg

I have a late production 2001 w/widescreen nav. I love it. It doesn't cost you anything as far as a 'service' is concerned. You just might want to upgrade the map CD every 5 years as you would a normal map to get the latest road data.

I never thought I'd use such a thing, but it's kinda fun and makes it much easier to find a party or a business I've never been to before. I'm using it more than I thought possible.

As for aftermarket NAV, they look like crap. The BMW unit has a factory fit and finish. No screwing around with oddball manufacturers. Better re-sale IMO than some aftermarket unit screwed into your dash.

I HIGHLY recommend getting a late model 01 with the widescreen Nav. I thought it would "look" cool in the car which is why I got it. What I didn't know is that it's incredibly useful when travelling, or lost. It can really get you out of a hole fast!!! I can't tell you the amount of times I've used it when travelling in other cities. I rarely travel, but when I do, it is most awesome.

Plus, it looks VERY cool and makes the interior. AND, radio stations have the names of songs and group names come up on the display if their decent, commericial, stations. It is a really nice feature.

Go for it!!! Or buy a 2000 car and upgrade to the widescreen version for less than $1000.

Steve

Whether you use it alot or not, it is one cool option and if you don't have it, you will wish you did. Let's face it, there are a ton of gadgets on these cars that we seldom use, but we yearn for them if we don't have them.

I recently purchased my E65 and what learned from my experience from my E38 was to make sure I got as many goodies as I could and to not compromise or rationalize away options in a "I would never use it" fashion. With my E38, shortly after buying it, I wished it had NAV, PDC, EDC, and rear power/heated seats. My E65 has all of these.

Definitely get an '01 with widescreen NAV.

Whether you use it alot or not, it is one cool option and if you don't have it, you will wish you did. Let's face it, there are a ton of gadgets on these cars that we seldom use, but we yearn for them if we don't have them.

I recently purchased my E65 and what learned from my experience from my E38 was to make sure I got as many goodies as I could and to not compromise or rationalize away options in a "I would never use it" fashion. With my E38, shortly after buying it, I wished it had NAV, PDC, EDC, and rear power/heated seats. My E65 has all of these.

Definitely get an '01 with widescreen NAV.

EXACTLY! I couldn’t have said it better! NAV rawks :buttrock

I have nav and I don't really use it. I just turn it on to show off to my friends and family. They think it's cool that you can see where your car is heading on the map. Besides that, I just plan my trips in Mapquest or Yahoo and print out directions. I either leave my monitor on to see what CD track is playing my favorite songs or just turn the monitor off. Some guys think the Nav really makes the car look extra spiffy and they'll drop another $900+ for the widescreen upgrade. For me personally, that's a steep price to upgrade something I rarely use. I'd save my money for new tires and ding repair.

I have an 01 with widescreen NAV and use it all the time. This may surprise you but, the BMW NAV computer is better than Mapquest. It finds faster routes that I would have never thought of. I use mine because I do consulting for many businesses and am always travelling to locations I don't really know.

Thanks guys, I was really wondering if the BMW was worth the additional cost. I have come to the conclusion that yes I want it. I always knew I wanted a GPS, I was not sure of the BMW version. My experiences on my R1100S (yes a bmw) have really sold me on GPS. Just the ability to see where you are on the map instantly is a really useful thing. Believe me trying to unfold a map on a motorcycle and find out where in the heck you are while riding is a recipe for crashing, in a car it is only frustrating. Trip routing is the icing on the cake. I have now refined my search to 2001 740iL's. Again thank you for the knowledgable opinions.
chuck racic

I have the old Navigation and I love it. Works perfectly and its easy to use.

However I'd like to upgrade to the new one. How much do you think it will cost?