auto

The idea was deceptively simple: Round up a bunch of cars with navigation systems, send 'em out and see how they do in the real world. This expedition was conceived as a true test-as opposed to the inconsistently navigated commutes we've toyed with for the last couple of years. Inevitably our test also became a semi-organized competition.
It seemed a convincing enough premise and we had to get the entire staff to an editorial retreat somehow, so calls went out to various manufacturers' PR departments. We bypassed suppliers who provide GPS technology to manufacturers, since even hardware from the same suppliers is presented by manufacturers with a wide variety of interfaces. auto We sought out only those systems built into the cars; the combination of a portable GPS antenna, mapping software and a fast laptop computer has advantages, but one of them is not variability from car to car. We're a car magazine, not a computer magazine.
We selected the cars in the same way shoppers do-by brand and availability. Our fleet: Acura TL, Audi A6 2.7T, Jaguar S-type, Mercedes-Benz S430 and Volvo S80 T6, with each manufacturer's latest run at nav system smarts. And because no experiment is entirely valid without a control element, we stuck our News Editor and Art Intern (both immigrants to the Great Lakes state) in a Chevrolet Impala with a $3.95 Rand McNally map of Michigan and wished them luck. auto (There are systems from BMW, Lexus and Land Rover that we've sampled at various other times, and found they work as well-or as poorly-as those involved in our test. They were, unfortunately, not available at the time.)
For the record, our tireless car scheduler tried to secure a General Motors product equipped with the OnStar system. OnStar respectfully declined, noting its route guidance is not part of the basic package. Fair enough. But we say, if you don't play, you can never win.
We chose four locations in Southeastern Michigan. At the end of each leg, the teams received a sheet revealing their next destination. auto We chose locations that would provide a variety of roadway, in urban, suburban and rural environments. Teams were sent out on staggered starts (so the temptation to follow the car ahead would be at least temporarily discouraged) and with specific instructions to never exceed posted speed limits. That latter instruction was followed religiously for several yards beyond the starting line. Each car came equipped with a sealed emergency package containing a map of Michigan and written instructions-to be opened only if a team was so utterly lost that there was risk of missing dinner. True to form, a couple teams broke the seal; no journalist misses a free meal. auto Especially one at which the boss wishes to speak to the assembled staff.
What followed was a day of steep learning curves, frequent cursing, periodic cheating and the discovery that, in Otisville, Michigan at least, an eyebrow waxing can still be had for $6.