Navigation taking longer way...

[Dakkor]

Last week I was using the navigation to see wich way to use to get home. I always have 2 options. I know the way I just wanted to know the traffic. So I set my destination and it is making me use the longer road. 10km longer. I unzoom the map and look around, there is no traffic and the navigation indicate 35 minutes to home.

I decide to not listen to the navigation anyway and take the other road I can use. On the moment that I get on that road, navigation recalculate: 10km less 5 minutes less.

I really don't understand what the navigation is taking into consideration to make these choice sometimes...

 

[mmcmonster]

One possibility:

The navigation software and the map itself are two separate packages. Apparently, while the map is created by Google, the navigation software uses a separate map and is created by Garmin.

I noticed this in my area, when a new exit from the highway was created. It showed up on my map quite quickly, but still doesn't show up on my directions when it is obviously a shorter route: Google Maps

 

[bob_p]

Especially in areas with road changes in the last 2 years, it's likely the navigation maps are incorrect, because they only get updated (at best) annually, and the maps that are pushed out for updates could already be out-of-date by the time we get them.

While I have a new house (less than 2 years old) and my street has been here for almost 10 years, the navigation software doesn't know the location of my address - and gets confused whenever I drive back to my house - since it thinks it takes 5 extra minutes to drive the past a few houses on my block - and get to my house.

And because we have new roads in our area, the routes are often wrong - the console map shows the latest roads - but the navigation maps think we're driving in an area without any roads.

When the Model 3 comes out - does Tesla really believe owners will continue to accept the map inconsistencies or the lack of typical features in the navigation software? Or maybe they'll just add a mount for a smartphone - since Apple and Google provide much better navigation packages - and they use up-to-date maps...

 

[AB4EJ]

I have noticed this also - navigation often does not take into account new roads or routes in a way that I would not go. I have taken to planning my routes in areas I am not closely familiar with, using other tools (Mapquest, etc) and overruling the navi system when necessary. When you start driving on your corrected route, the navi system will recompute and use the new route. (I just don't know if this info gets back to Tesla for future map corrections, but I hope so).

 

[ShotgunF15E]

Navigator is utterly useless. Period. I refuse to even show it to family or friends. Tesla needs to DUMP this from google before the Model 3 comes out or they'll be the laughing stock of the auto industry.

It's never right. Either showing a slower but shorter route, or takes me on some random journey out of my way for no reason.

Come on Tesla. This is a joke for 2016 and a $100,000 + car.

 

[Dakkor]

It was not a new road. Usually it's give me the correct road. Only that time it was giving me the longuest road.

 

[scot]

Come on Tesla. This is a joke for 2016 and a $100,000 + car.

You should try the nav system in a maserati grantourismo or the older QP. Ours definitely needs improvement but.. man.. The systems in those cars is mind bogglingly bad.

The new one is ok (new QP and ghibli), but only because much if it is just another mass-market solution that is maserati branded. Nothing close to as integrated or slick as the tesla interface.

 

[bob_p]

The Tesla user interface is very attractive. But, compared to the functionality in my previous Lexus LS (which I purchased over 10 years ago), the navigation software functionality is still missing major features. My old Lexus was the first car with real-time traffic - and while it was restricted to only the major roads in the major metropolitan areas (using XM data), it did warn me of upcoming traffic problems and ask if I wanted to re-route. The Tesla software should have this same information, and provides no information on upcoming travel restrictions, instead it frequently changes the route automatically, trying to optimize your trip based on the latest traffic data.

Other useful features that were present in my old Lexus - waypoints, route customization (avoid tolls, ...), route selection (the Lexus software presented options for the shortest distance and time routes), and information on services (restaurants, ...) at upcoming highway intersections.

While other car manufacturers may be missing features in their navigation systems - the alternative is a smart phone app - and it's surprising that Tesla seems to be satisfied in having many of their owners use the navigation software on their small smartphones, rather than using Tesla's built-in navigation software.

 

[cpa]

When the roads are open, we have many choices to get from the eastern Sierra across the mountains and back home to the valley. The nav system ALWAYS wants me to take US50 through Meyers/South Shore, Placerville and Sac to join SR99 and head home. Yet I choose to take Ebbets Pass or Carson Pass and then head south in the foothills before joining SR99 in Merced.

The original route that the nav system selects for me always shows about a 6-7% residual charge in the battery.

When I have driven far enough on my route, the system recalculates two or three times en route. Finally, once I am on O'Byrnes Ferry Road, heading south to Merced, the trip tab suddenly reflects 25% residual charge in the battery. No range anxiety. Not. Ever.

Something tells me that the route selection emphasizes availability of charging opportunities en route, stressing Superchargers if possible, then other charging locations that had been visited before and are on our touchscreens. There are some HPWC in the Arnold/Murphys area along SR4, but I have never availed myself of them, so perhaps the program fails to consider these when the route is selected initially.

 

[Gizmotoy]

You should try the nav system in a maserati grantourismo or the older QP. Ours definitely needs improvement but.. man.. The systems in those cars is mind bogglingly bad.

The new one is ok (new QP and ghibli), but only because much if it is just another mass-market solution that is maserati branded. Nothing close to as integrated or slick as the tesla interface.

I had a 2016 Audi A6 as a loaner the other day and was shocked how bad the navigation was. I generally don't think the Tesla system is stellar, but kind of figured luxury brands would have caught up by now. It appeared to have the same built-in/online map split the Tesla had.

The Tesla version does stupid things with some frequency, though. It once wanted my wife to take a little loop off onto a side street for no reason, then get back on the main road in the way we were already travelling. Safely ignored, but stupid.

 

[markn455]

The Tesla system is light years better than what was in my Ford. It was Traffic Aware But Don't Care.

 

[Dithermaster]

I'll join that clib -- I've ignored the navigation and when it updated, the ETA was sooner.

The humorous part was the 5 minutes where it desperately tried to get me to turn around, insisting it knew better. When it finally gave up and routed me on the road I insisted on, you could almost hear some "tone" in the voice for the next few instructions.

One wonders if any of these acts of defiance ever make it back into the database, especially if they shorten the ETA.

 

[wayner]

Just use Waze. Too bad we didn't get third party apps for the Tesla.

 

[simonog]

The issue I find is that I do not know what the Tesla navigation is optimising.

Is it trying for shortest distance? Shortest time? Least energy usage? These could be very different choices and I'd be more comfortable knowing which it is.

In practice I think it is some combination of these. That combination has changed with firmware versions. I'd still like to know the mix.

 

[bob_p]

The app appears to be optimizing for shortest travel time. If there are upcoming traffic slowdowns, the software will attempt to re-route to improve travel time.

However, the app appears to base its calculations on a combination of the real-time traffic data and the navigation map (not Google maps). From the navigation map database, the app identifies potential routes, based on the roads existing in the database - plus the speed limits for the road segments, again from the map database. If any of this data is incorrect the app ends up producing routes that may not make much sense.

And, since the navigation map data appears to already be out-of-date by the time we get the map updates, in areas where there is new road construction or changes to existing roads, you end up with bad navigation routes - that can't be fixed until we get the next map update.

 

[msnow]

I get bad nav routes on routes where the roads haven't changed in 20-30 years. It just can't be trusted like it should. If you have problems you should let Tesla know so they realize a number of us have problems and they will fix it. Until then use Waze, Apple Maps or Google Maps on your phone.

 

[Cosmacelf]

Yes, trying to figure out the exact bugs that causes Tesla nav to give erroneous routes can be a full time activity.

My observation is that it thinks traffic on freeways slows the journey a lot more than it does, while thinking that traffic on surface streets goes a lot faster than it does. So during bad traffic, it will route me off the freeway onto parallel surface streets, which is almost always a bad idea unless the freeway is at a standstill.

Other times, it routes me on a much longer freeway route that passes a supercharger instead of a slower but much shorter highway route that is 30 minutes faster than the 2.5 hour freeway route. That's a different bug, probably a supercharger preference bug.

I've complained in the past to Tesla and they seem totally clueless and uninterested.

 

[msnow]

Yes, trying to figure out the exact bugs that causes Tesla nav to give erroneous routes can be a full time activity.

My observation is that it thinks traffic on freeways slows the journey a lot more than it does, while thinking that traffic on surface streets goes a lot faster than it does. So during bad traffic, it will route me off the freeway onto parallel surface streets, which is almost always a bad idea unless the freeway is at a standstill.

Other times, it routes me on a much longer freeway route that passes a supercharger instead of a slower but much shorter highway route that is 30 minutes faster than the 2.5 hour freeway route. That's a different bug, probably a supercharger preference bug.

I've complained in the past to Tesla and they seem totally clueless and uninterested.

Agree. I also turn off traffic based routing and trip planner in settings.

 

[AnOutsider]

Navigator is utterly useless. Period. I refuse to even show it to family or friends. Tesla needs to DUMP this from google before the Model 3 comes out or they'll be the laughing stock of the auto industry.

It's never right. Either showing a slower but shorter route, or takes me on some random journey out of my way for no reason.

Come on Tesla. This is a joke for 2016 and a $100,000 + car.

Google doesn't power the nav, Navigon does. Google maps is only used for the center screen display. I believe this is so that you can input destinations while not connected to the internet.

 

[bart513]

One thing that affects my commute is that the nav system does not take into account that I can drive in the HOV lane which many times bypasses traffic on the LIE. So sometimes it wants to take me on other routes that are not as fast, but I don't know that there is a solution to this particular problem.