Haicom loosing fix

[Geordy]

Hi,

Happy Christmas.

My GPS setup has developed a strange problem.
I use a Haicom 203e connected to a iPAQ 3850 running TomTom v1.53 (I know this is old kit but it works, almost)
Recently a problem has developed whereby I loose all satellites after about the first 5 minutes of any journey. The 203e seems to then go into a cold start and takes in excess of 5 minutes to re-establish a fix.
I have not changed anything on the car, a Rover 75 Tourer, and have had the the Haicom checked out by GPSWarehouse who found no problem. I have since discovered that if I put the Haicom outside of the car the problem appears to go away. I know this suggests that the windscreen is blocking the signal but with the receiver back in the car, once I have been through the re-acquire cycle the unit performs perfectly for the remainder of the journey, often in excess of 3 hours. Additionally I have found that if I connect my Magellan Map 330 to the PDA everything works fine. Even if I leave the Magellan in the pocket to the right of the steering wheel with only the stub antenna protruding. I regularly see between 3 and 8 satellites in this position.
Although the windscreen does have an effect I find it hard to accept that it is the cause of this problem. The only thing I can think of is that something in the car cuts in after 5 minutes and causes the GPS to loose its fix and go into a cold start.
Can anyone help?
Confused of Bucks.

[lbendlin]

This could have multiple causes. Maybe indeed some HF interference kicks in after five minutes, but maybe the 203 is just old and about to die. Do you have a chance to test with a newer receiver?
_________________
Lutz

Report Map Errors here:
TomTom/TeleAtlas NAVTEQ

[DavidW]

I'm beginning to wonder whether there's something not quite right with Evermore chipset GPSes - possibly a firmware issue. This is yet another post from someone with an Evermore based Haicom (all Haicom GPSes where the model designator ends in E use an Evermore chipset) with strange operational problems. We don't seem to see this kind of post from people using SiRF based GPSes.

All I can suggest is making sure TomTom GPS is set to NMEA 0183v2 4800 and not Haicom GPS (which is a setting aimed at SiRF based Haicom products). Apart from that, I'm stumped.


TomTom Navigator 1.53 - fair enough, but the maps in such a setup will be something like three years out of date.



David

[TonyP]

I have a similar problem with a Haicom 201S, I hav had it for about 3 years but since a few months it takes for ages to get a first fix, as if it was doing a factory cold start. TomTom shows a couple of grey satellites, but they never turn red.

Usually I dont have the patience to wait and just drive off anyway. Sometimes it gets a fix after a time,maybe 20 minutes, sometimes it never gets a fix. If it does get a fix, it works perfectly, even in difficult situations with poor cover. It will keep the fix if I turn it off for a short period and then on, but it loses the fix overnight.

I guess it is the internal battery that has gone.

These GPS mice dont seem to be very reliable, I have had Garmin units that last for years.

[Geordy]

Thanks for the comments Guys. I hope Lutz is wrong about the unit about to die as it is only 11 month old.
I do have TT set up as per David's suggestions although when I first got the unit I was not aware of this and it worked fine set to Haicom GPS?
All in all I wish I had found this website before I purchased my unit and hope others benefit from my experience. I guess I will just have to try to find a neat way of mounting my Magellan handheld in the car.
Thanks again
Geordy

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