Velosophy

I’ve an old Garmin auto gps. Is it worth in your opinion to crack it open and put a new $25 battery in it. I’d like to use it for rides instead of a phone

base2 

I looked into this once on an old Edge 520. If you are looking to rehab a Nuvï or something, maybe my experience will not apply.

The trouble was finding a battery of the same capacity. All the ones I could find were quite a bit smaller. Then there was the issue of making the connection. The battery is factory soldered to the leads. I didn't trust my ability to solder anything that small and delicate. It ain't no ni-cad. In the end I dropped the idea & got a new Garmin Edge 820.

Maybe battery tech has come a long way since then? The instructions are readily available online. Separating the case is pretty easy with a jewlers cross-tip screwdriver.

Of course with a Nuvï there is no guarantee of any function beyond navigation. The cool thing about cycling computers is the cycling specific features and the ANT+/BlueTooth functionality.

njkayaker

As far as I know, the auto GPS units are intended to be run plugged in, which would mean the battery is too small.

Tourist in MSN

I still use my vintage Nuvi in my vehicle, mine came with lifetime map updates, I update it a few times a year. Mine uses a mini, not a micro USB cable for power. You could probably run it on a small powerbank without battery replacement. With the backlight, it might use more power than a small battery would have for capacity, I have no clue how many hours you would get for what size powerbank.

Nuvi is not intended to be waterproof or weather proof, and a bike handlebar likely vibrates a lot more than a car body, so it might not be too happy on rough roads. I do not even know if there is a bracket made for it for a handlebar.

My Nuvi battery is shot, but still works great when used as intended on the power cord.

About a decade ago I brought my Nuvi on a bike tour, not to use regularly, but to use the database in it to find grocery stores, etc. But I never used it on that trip, that is the closest I ever got to using my Nuvi on a bike. And other GPS units I bought later fill the need for finding what I need to find nearby.

Iride01 

It's a tight space in there. If you are thinking it's worth the cost of a battery, then you might open it up and look inside at what has to be undone to get to the battery. Some of those ribbon cables for the screen and other things that might have to be undone have very little excess length to let you open the case fully with out disconnecting them first. And they can be pretty fragile if you don't have the proper tools to pull and push on them. Or the fixture to hold the to case halves in the proper orientation while you use both hands for other things.

Certainly some or many have done it and in my opinion been lucky. But I also wonder how many did it and failed but are to ashamed to say.

I'd just get new. Some of the newer features are nice. Like knowing if someone in your contact list is out riding nearby and how far away they are.

pdlamb

I'd try plugging it into a USB battery, like an Anker, first -- at least if you're not riding through a heavy shower. Otherwise, it may be time for a new GPS. The Garmin Explore 2 is on sale this month; it's low enough in their line that the price may not be too painful, and it has most of the features from previous generations' top of the line models.

Velosophy

Thanks for the responses. You’ve brought me back to reality. This is a foolish errand. It’s time to donate. Thanks!