Now that a smartphone’s charging unit is tailored to fit cars these days, and with Google Maps on mobile phones, the popularity of GPS systems in vehicles has declined. Nevertheless, if you own a motorcycle, that neglected GPS in your car might come in handy once again. With that said, can you equip a car GPS onto a motorbike?
Car GPS devices can be mounted on a motorcycle handlebar and be used the same way as in a car. The key differences between a car GPS and motorcycle GPS are that a motorcycle GPS is made to be weatherproof, has built-in Bluetooth features, and is made to withstand a motorcycle’s vibrations.
Today’s automobile GPS units from bigmanufacturers appear to be as durable as their motorcycle counterparts, to the point that we see fewer and fewer promotions for motorcycles. When bad weather strikes, chances are you won’t be riding very far, so weatherproofing isn’t a problem. With that said, how would you mount one?
How To Mount A Car GPS On A Motorcycle
A motorbike GPS is fitted differently from a car GPS. For a car’s GPS to be mounted to your motorcycle’s handlebars, the easiest method would be to get your hands on a 12-volt power supply rather than to cut cables and connect and disconnect to your battery every time you intend to use it.
Here is an easy tutorial on how to install one:
If you are not familiar with electrical systems, I recommend having an expert installer with the proper knowledge of the electrical system to install the device. Incorrectly wiring the power cable can damage the motorcycle or battery and cause bodily harm.
Using these six steps, you can install your die-hard car GPS on your motorbike.
- Search for GPS mounts specifically designed for a motorcycle to guarantee a suitable mounting mechanism, and you may find one at your local bike store or online stores like Amazon.
- Before installing, Select a position best suited for you; choose a position that is easy to find and won’t obstruct your view while driving.
- Loosen the handlebar mount with the tools necessary; when purchasing the GPS mount, the tools required will be specified as an Allen key, screwdriver, or spanner of a specific size.
You’ll have to modify the mount’s size to match the width of your motorcycle’s handlebars. The motorbike GPS mount will most likely come with a piece of rubber that you’ll need to cut to fit over the handlebars if necessary.
- Place the rubber over the handlebars and secure it. Tighten the mount with the necessary tool until it no longer moves or sliders around.
- Attach the holder with the supplied screws using a screwdriver. The GPS device may now be slipped or clipped into the holder.
- Connect the motorbike GPS to the power cable. The GPS device will be attached to one end, while you will plug the other side of the cable into a 12-volt power supply on your motorbike. After that, you may turn the device on and begin using it.
What Are The Best GPS Devices For A Motor Cycle?
Even though smartphones are taking over most of the GPS duties now, they may not get you on those long journeys without constant power and a couple of external chargers and power supplies. That is where GPS devices shine and slide into their superhero-mounted gear and are eager to guide you safely to your next destination.
Here are five of the best GPS navigators available for motorcycles:
Tomtom Rider 550
The TomTom Rider 550 (Amazon) is the first contemporary color touchscreen item on this list. The Rider 550, powered by a quad-core CPU, can get firmware upgrades through wifi, is IPX7-rated, and supports Siri and Google Now and hands-free calling.
The system’s 4.3″ display has a light and heavy glove settings and, owing to Bluetooth connectivity, shows text messages and other push alerts from your smartphone.
Magellan TRX7 CS
Magellan’s TRX7 CS (Amazon) is an IP67-rated device with a substantially sized 7″ touchscreen that combines many of the most remarkable aspects from both off-road and street GPS systems.
The gadget includes turn-by-turn navigation for paved and dirt roads and more than 115,000 off-road trails and high-resolution 2D and 3D mapping of the United States and Canada.
Garmin Zumo XT
The Garmin Zumo XT (Amazon) is an advanced moto GPS that’s small, hardwearing, and feature-rich, and it was first introduced in March of 2020.
On the device’s glove-compatible 5.5″ TFT touchscreen display, you may see live traffic reports, a database of preloaded Tripadvisor-recommended local attractions and significant places, Birdseye satellite imagery, a campsite network directory, and on and off-road topographical maps.
Best GPS App For Motorcycles Users To Use With Their GPS
Because of the widespread availability of contemporary smartphones, most of us already have GPS-enabled devices with map apps.
While this fact may render motorcycle-specific GPS navigators useless, this is not the case. Moto GPS devices have several notable features, as mentioned above, that make them objectively superior to smartphones.
However, in this case, there is an app that can communicate directly with your GPS navigator to work hand in hand to provide you with as much information as possible. So, what app is it?
Eatsleepride App
EatSleepRIDE is a smartphone application that transforms any iPhone or Android device into a motorbike GPS unit.
The software detects when the user is riding a motorbike and automatically records the user’s GPS route, lean-angle, speed, acceleration, and elevation using a sophisticated algorithm and the smartphone’s internal gyroscope and accelerometers.
In addition, the GPS app allows you to share tales, photographs, and other biker’s ride routes, making it ideal for discovering new local riding routes.
Best of all, the Toronto-based tech firm provides “CrashLight,” a premium service that can automatically detect an accident and send the rider’s GPS locations to a pre-programmed contact if the rider is unresponsive.
The CrashLight service, unlike the rest of the app, isn’t free, but at only $15 a year, it’s a well-worth investment given it’s already saved lives and may provide peace of mind to friends and loved ones (plus it only comes out to less than a nickel per day).
Conclusion
In the end, if you have a car GPS navigator shoved in the glove box or boot of your car, you may want to add it to your motorcycle experience. They may not be as durable as the GPS navigators explicitly made for motorcycles, but they would be able to do the job for about any road bike.
Suppose you don’t have a car GPS and are still interested in a GPS for your motorcycle. In that case, plenty of devices would outplay your mobile device and even utilizing your smartphone’s hardware for an easier and safer journey.