Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

We have used Garmin navigators in our cars for years without issue. Generally, the automobile models have even performed fairly well in our motorhome. Once, however, the auto model directed us to take our motorhome onto a road that was not suitable for transit. Because of that experience we looked into navigation systems allegedly designed specifically for RVs and intended to keep RVs out of harm's way. We chose the Garmin in spite of the considerable number of negative reviews, accepting the manufacturer's explanation that the dissatisfied users had probably not programmed the units correctly. We learned the hard way that the Garmin RV770 is simply not up to the task of safely and efficiently routing a motorhome, let alone a motorhome towing a car, from starting point to destination. Our first trip with the RV770 installed was a bad joke. The unit could not even direct us out of our development (2 blocks) to a state highway. When we forced it to the state highway, it claimed the section of highway we wanted does not exist! We knew most of the route we wanted to travel, but let the Garmin select the route. We expected that once we got on our alternate route the Garmin would recalculate accordingly. It did/does not. Instead it continues to try to force you back onto its selected route, no matter what. We traveled a US route (322) in South Jersey which and has been the major east/west artery for all traffic for decades. It gets heavy semi traffic. The Garmin kept alerting us that we were going to encounter a 4 ton weight limit on this road (absurd) and tried to direct us off of it, back to its selected route, a detour of at least 25 miles out of our way. On US 220 in central Pennsylvania the Garmin RV770 reported numerous length restrictions (22') that simply do not exist. Again, we and semis travel this highway without issue. The unit is unforgiving. It does not accept the fact that you are not going to follow its chosen route and recalculate to adjust to the route you have chosen. Yes, you can program it to accept modifications, but it is a struggle to get it to accept your custom route. And, that begs the question: What if you are traveling in an unfamiliar area and have to rely entirely on the Garmin? How can you have any confidence in it when it does not recognize US routes as acceptable and spits out nonsensical restrictions and limitations? Its repeated efforts to redirect us back to its chosen route for hours after we traveled on our alternative route became annoying and exhausting (again, no recalculation). We programmed the unit to avoid unpaved roads, yet in central Pennsylvania it tried to direct us onto a dirt road with low overhanging branches, attempting to force us back onto its selected route. The RV770 did not once provide overhead clearances (a big concern), but will continuously stream alerts about animal crossings, fake weight limits, curves, etc. if you let it. It also does not allow you to include the fact that you are towing a car when you set up your vehicle profile, so it probably assumes you can easily U-Turn and back up to rejoin the route it has selected. Before appealing to Amazon to accept return of the RV770, we attempted to work with Garmin to see if we were the problem. Garmin tech support read from a scripted response suggesting programming changes that we had already tried. They even suggested that simply turning off the "propane on board" option might get the unit to go along with the routes we wanted to travel. It did not. Tech support suggested waiting for another software update to see if it corrected our problems. The final straw: On our return trip home, on the last 1/4 mile, the Garmin tried to direct us onto numerous narrow back streets with tight turns rather than a state highway that we regularly travel. It kept alerting us that the state highway is an unknown, unmapped road. For these and other reasons we declare the Garmin RV770 to be a hazard to safe RV navigation and travel that would have, if we allowed it, directed us to travel in circles to get back on its chosen route due to imagined restrictions and erroneous road information. The numerous bad reviews received by Amazon for this product are valid in our opinion, and not the result of programmer error as asserted by Garmin. It is simply a bad product that does not perform as advertised. We were thrilled to be able to return it for even a partial refund.