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Science Forum Index » Electronics - Repair Forum » Can I Leave a GPS in a Hot/Cold Car...
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| Buck Turgidson... |
 Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2008 6:50 pm |
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I want to buy a cheap GPS to have for those occasions when one really needs
one. I know there is risk of theft, and all that. My concern though, is if
I can leave the GPS out-of-sight in a hot or cold car (e.g. under the seat)
without doing damage to the unit?
Thanks very much for any input. |
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| William Sommerwerck... |
| Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2008 7:48 pm |
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High or low temperatures will cause the LCD to (respectively) darken or
become extremely sluggish. Very high temperatures might cause the LCD to
lose its Purity Of Essence altogether.
I wouldn't leave any electronic equipment in a car I expected would get
hotter than 100 degrees or so. |
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| Meat Plow... |
| Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2008 7:53 pm |
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On Sat, 21 Jun 2008 19:50:28 -0400, Buck Turgidson wrote:
Quote: I want to buy a cheap GPS to have for those occasions when one really
needs one. I know there is risk of theft, and all that. My concern
though, is if I can leave the GPS out-of-sight in a hot or cold car (e.g.
under the seat) without doing damage to the unit?
Thanks very much for any input.
Never bothered my GO 510 TomTom but I wouldn't recommend it. |
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| Eeyore... |
| Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2008 8:40 pm |
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Buck Turgidson wrote:
Quote: I want to buy a cheap GPS to have for those occasions when one really needs
one. I know there is risk of theft, and all that. My concern though, is if
I can leave the GPS out-of-sight in a hot or cold car (e.g. under the seat)
without doing damage to the unit?
I'd advise finding a way of getting local ventilation.
Electronics HATES high temps.
Graham |
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| JANA... |
| Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2008 10:35 pm |
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I use my GPS in a large SUV. I have it mounted on the top of the dash.
The front windscreen is very large, and there is no obstruction for
proper viewing. When I am parked I put a fishing hat on top of it to
look like I threw my fishing hat on top of the dash. I've had GPS's in
my vehicles ever since GPS's for became publicly available.
As for leaving it in the car, as long as it is covered from sunlight on
warm or hot days it should be okay. The radio, system computers, and all
the other electronics in the cars and trucks survive for many years
inside of the vehicle environment. Most electronic equipment can take up
to at least or a little more than 60 deg C or 140 deg F for storage. I
would not recommend operating most consumer electronic equipment in
temperatures exceeding 40 deg C or 104 deg F.
--
JANA
_____
"William Sommerwerck" <grizzledgeezer at (no spam) comcast.net> wrote in message
news:v8qdnQxDfbExPMDVnZ2dnUVZ_uqdnZ2d at (no spam) comcast.com...
High or low temperatures will cause the LCD to (respectively) darken or
become extremely sluggish. Very high temperatures might cause the LCD to
lose its Purity Of Essence altogether.
I wouldn't leave any electronic equipment in a car I expected would get
hotter than 100 degrees or so. |
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| Andrew Rossmann... |
| Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 7:32 am |
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In article <Vsg7k.6046$qa5.972 at (no spam) newsfe13.lga>, jc_va at (no spam) hotmail.com says...
Quote: I want to buy a cheap GPS to have for those occasions when one really needs
one. I know there is risk of theft, and all that. My concern though, is if
I can leave the GPS out-of-sight in a hot or cold car (e.g. under the seat)
without doing damage to the unit?
Check the owners manual for the device. Many may have them available on-
line if you are still shopping around. Check for specifications and any
warnings about temperature extremes.
To be honest, any car-related item should be able to handle a reasonably
wide range.
--
If there is a no_junk in my address, please REMOVE it before replying!
All junk mail senders will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the
law!!
http://home.att.net/~andyross |
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| Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 11:24 am |
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You can leave a GPS wherever you want to leave it.Best to throw it away
and buy a real paper Map.
cuhulin |
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| Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 11:27 am |
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We don't speak c (temps) in America.It is always F.
cuhulin |
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| Sjouke Burry... |
| Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 1:07 pm |
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cuhulin at (no spam) webtv.net wrote:
Quote: We don't speak c (temps) in America.It is always F.
cuhulin
So? Learn what the rest of the world/science uses.
0 C is thawing ice, 100 c is boiling water. |
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| CJT... |
| Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 4:01 pm |
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Sjouke Burry wrote:
Quote: cuhulin at (no spam) webtv.net wrote:
We don't speak c (temps) in America.It is always F.
cuhulin
So? Learn what the rest of the world/science uses.
0 C is thawing ice, 100 c is boiling water.
I agree. To do otherwise is to assert that Americans are either too
stupid, too lazy, or too arrogant to learn how to deal with both.
--
The e-mail address in our reply-to line is reversed in an attempt to
minimize spam. Our true address is of the form che... at (no spam) prodigy.net. |
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| JR North... |
| Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 4:23 pm |
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I wouldn't take anything Jana says seriously. It's obvious from this
post his judgment and common sense are in serious doubt.
JR
On Sat, 21 Jun 2008 23:35:34 -0400, "JANA" <jana at (no spam) NOSPAMca.inter.net>
wrote:
Quote: I use my GPS in a large SUV.
HOME PAGE:
http://www.seanet.com/~jasonrnorth
-------------------------------------------------- |
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| Charles... |
| Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 4:26 pm |
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"Buck Turgidson" <jc_va at (no spam) hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:Vsg7k.6046$qa5.972 at (no spam) newsfe13.lga...
Quote: I want to buy a cheap GPS to have for those occasions when one really needs
one. I know there is risk of theft, and all that. My concern though, is
if I can leave the GPS out-of-sight in a hot or cold car (e.g. under the
seat) without doing damage to the unit?
Typical ratings:
Operating temperature -10°C to 60°C
Storage temperature -20°C to 70°C
Humidity 0% to 90%, non-precipitating
Safe in a vehicle. |
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| Jeff Liebermann... |
| Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 6:35 pm |
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On Sat, 21 Jun 2008 19:50:28 -0400, "Buck Turgidson"
<jc_va at (no spam) hotmail.com> wrote:
Quote: I want to buy a cheap GPS to have for those occasions when one really needs
one. I know there is risk of theft, and all that. My concern though, is if
I can leave the GPS out-of-sight in a hot or cold car (e.g. under the seat)
without doing damage to the unit?
I think it might vary by maker and model. I'll offer my history of
past GPS's and what happened.
Garmin GPS-45. Nice unit but would always hang when hot. When it
hung, it would run the batteries down fast. It did that when I parked
my truck at the airport, where it took about 5 days to run the car
battery down. The display would turn all black if really overheated,
but would recover when cooled down. It was eventually stolen out of
my truck.
Garmin GPS-65. The display would turn dark blue when overheated.
However, unlike the GPS-45, it would not recover until power cycled.
Fortunately, no excessive battery drain. The navigation electronics
would sometimes hang when overheated, but not always. I think it
requires some additional help in hanging, such as starting the vehicle
and having the battery voltage sag or spike. I blew it up by dumping
a static discharge to the antenna center pin. I still have it if
anyone wants parts and pieces.
Magellan MAP-410. Overheating does not seem to affect the display or
cause it to hang. It hangs all by itself, without any thermal assist.
It may again be the vehicle power causing problems. It has a rather
odd effect when warm. The location fixes tend to go wildly out of
range, and then return. I've tested this from a fixed location (local
restaurant parking lot) both hot and cold. It's quite consistent.
High temperatures makes the VCXO drift further off and therefore make
it easiest to go out of lock. I still have it and use it as a loaner.
Various Novatel GPS boards running a laptop. This GPS is embedded in
my truck and buried under the dash. It's not going to get very hot in
the summer. However, I cleverly located it near the heater ducts,
which does get hot in the winter. After about an hour of running the
heater, the board hangs. It recovers nicely when cooled down.
Probably the same problem as the Magellan MAP-410.
I've also borrowed various navigation and mapping displays. None of
the current stuff has hung, died, or even complained when hot. I
decided that overheating a borrowed $500 mapping GPS was potentially a
bad idea and have resisted to temptation to push the limits. Methinks
you will be doing fine as long as you keep the temperatures
reasonable.
--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl at (no spam) cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558 |
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| Jeff Liebermann... |
| Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 6:42 pm |
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On Sun, 22 Jun 2008 11:27:50 -0500, cuhulin at (no spam) webtv.net wrote:
Quote: We don't speak c (temps) in America.It is always F.
cuhulin
The entire scientific and most of the engineering community speaks
metric. Using Fahrenheit labels you a technical Neanderthal. I tend
to use both, depending on the audience. To scientists, engineers, and
those with a clue, it's Celcius or Rankine (absolute temp). To the
GUM (great unwashed masses) it's Farenheit. Admittedly, upgrading
from F to C does take some practice and adaptation. However, I think
it's worth the effort. Try it.
--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl at (no spam) cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558 |
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| JANA... |
| Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 10:15 pm |
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If you are a professional in any type of scientific field, it does not
matter where you are located, C deg is used. This also includes America!
Get educated!!!
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JANA
_____
<cuhulin at (no spam) webtv.net> wrote in message
news:6526-485E7D86-295 at (no spam) storefull-3253.bay.webtv.net...
We don't speak c (temps) in America.It is always F.
cuhulin |
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