Navigating Planet Earth with Garmin’s Motorcycle GPS

On our never ending quest to find no particular place, a handy gadget by Garmin may help us get there. Wherever there is. I used to think all I needed was a saddle and an open road, and a map made out of oddly folded paper stuffed into my shirt. This was my idea of advanced navigating. Take every pretty road, get lost, get found when I can figure where the hell on the map I was. Then came this invention from the future, wrapped in a handheld thing and jammed with every imaginable map in the universe, and maybe a few I didn’t imagine.

What fresh witchery was this? Satellite navigation systems seemed like something out of Buck Rogers, for those of you old enough to know who that was. Nowadays, we take this little magic box we hold in our hands for granted. Smartphones changed everything, but there was something even greater, even more mysterious.

Garmin Zümo XT2 motorcycle GPS system. Photo by Garmin.

Garmin has built guidance systems specially made for hurling ourselves into the the wind with no need for real maps or even a sense of direction. The Zümo XT2 is Garmin’s latest platform for telling us how to get from A to B, the fast way or the scenic way, with pretty much every conceivable convenience stop along the way while also alerting us to sharp curves, state helmet laws, speed cameras, traffic conditions, ETA and probably a few more things I haven’t figured yet. It won’t tell you if someone is pointing a radar or laser gun at you. That costs extra. Buck Rogers had a laser gun, didn’t he?

Like a conventional smartphone maps app, the XT2 efficiently plots your trip. Tap Adventure Mode and it takes you off the highways. However, this doesn’t mean it sends you down the most scenic roads, it simply kicks into an “avoid highways” option. And like the GPS on your phone, there is no what I call a “convenience” option, which might add a minute or two to your trip but save you from making left turns against traffic. I’m hoping somebody somewhere is working on an algorithm for that.

Screen after screen of features.

The Zümo XT2 also has a time travel option, or so I thought until I realized what appeared to be the time of day was in reality an estimated time of arrival display. I wondered why the clock moved backwards sometimes. I’d probably have to ride a lot faster for that to happen and as everyone positively knows, I have never stepped beyond the law. Ok, all of you can stop laughing now.

Garmin has built in so many features it’s hard to get a real sense of their efficacy. More road trips are needed to penetrate them all with practical purpose. You can toggle to street maps to topographic maps to satellite imagery, for example. Map and system updates are always available, although the update can take more than three hours. Do it before a trip. This is the kind of gadget that will grow on you the more you use it as its layers are revealed.

The unit on one of editor Brooks’ bikes.

This also presents a bit of a downside. The XT2 is not very intuitive, at least to me, and in fact seems to have a mind of its own. I’m working with the second unit Garmin has sent us. The first was glitchy, trying to send me off to destinations unknown rather than get me home. It wasn’t always easy to switch to and from highway and off-highway modes, and sometimes I had to go back more than one screen to make what I thought should be quick and simple adjustments. Not that I much mind being taken for a ride, but I like to trust I’m headed the right way when I don’t want to go wrong. Around town, it’s not a big deal; one can always find their way back to the neighborhood, but out in the wilds, unreliability often ends badly.

The new unit is performing better, but still seems a bit quirky to me. Let me take a moment to remind you I’m more of an old school Rand McNally guy. Don’t like fussing with a lot of buttons and tabs and screens. Let’s say I prefer press and play over layers of tech that some find quite helpful but I tend to think are clumsy clutter.

J&P Cycles carries the new Zümo XT2 as well.

The XT2 does have some significant advantages over using your cellphone GPS, the largest of which is a bright six-inch screen that can be seen clearly in direct sunlight. I keep wondering when phone makers will catch up. The Garmin is also weatherproof; your phone is not. The XT2 audio, however, cannot be heard on a motorcycle, at least while riding with an open-face helmet, and at least to my matured ears.

I can hear the unit clearly at home, though, and oddly, it will steal my phone’s audio signal from rooms away while charging, cancelling the sound on my phone. The nerve.

The Garmin mounts to your handlebar via a sturdy bracket. The bracket is bolted to the bar, but there is no quick release option so you can transfer it to another bike. The bracket becomes a more or less permanent and unsightly addition to the handlebar, and it’s not hard to accidentally position it so it partially blocks your speedo view when the XT2 is cradled in the mount. I asked Garmin why they don’t offer something more portable. They said that was a good idea, and I should add it to their digital suggestion box.

A closeup of the handlebar mount, and the parts editor Brooks had to pirate off other mounts he had. Inexcusable, Garmin.

The bracket also did not come with any rubber mounts to protect the chrome on your bar. Editor Brooks provided some bits he cannibalized from other systems so I wouldn’t mark up my handlebar. Another idea for the suggestion box.

Although the XT2 can run on its rechargeable lithium battery, it really wants to be hardwired to your bike’s battery. The unit’s charge will only last a few hours, so if you’re planning a long-haul day you’re going to run out of juice. You can pull over and recharge the thing at stops, but that’s just inconvenient. If your bike has a USB port you can run a cord from the XT2 to your port, which will charge the unit as you go. Just don’t forget to unplug it after you’ve stopped if you take the unit with you, which I recommend if you don’t want it to get stolen. It quick releases from the mount. Perhaps a password or thumb print to access the unit might discourage the bad guys a bit. Another offering to the suggestion box.

The snap system Garmin engineered for mounting the unit. Pretty solid.

If you don’t have a USB port, but you have a SAE battery tender lead coming off your battery, you can run a cable to the lead’s SAE plug. USB to SAE cables can be found, but finding one long enough is the challenge. This, of course, is not ideal, and I believe Garmin does not recommend it. It’s also kind of messy. No one wants to add wires to their bike, running higgledy-piggledy around the handlebar or tank and side panels.

Editor Brooks observed, in one of our many late night and whiskey-fueled philosophical talks, the XT2 comes with no carrying or protective case, or screen protector, nor are accessories available. The unit is only two or three ounces more than your cell phone (with case), but feels heavier. It’s larger, as expected from a GPS with a six-inch screen. Because of its size and weight, it doesn’t feel like it’s something you want to carry around in your pocket.

The Garmin’s hard wiring mount and parts, and the non-wired mount we had to ask them to send separately; The Handlebar Controller they offer.

We agreed the mounting system needs some help, and a few options. The C-clamp, as the motorcycling pastor pointed out, is too short to be used with anything that might prevent your handlebar from getting nicked. On the plus side, the screen switches from horizontal to vertical easily, pairs with smartphones, helmet comms, and smart systems on various bikes, has multi-rider tracking, route mapping/saving (similar to REVER), and route sharing. The unit comes kitted out to hardwire the battery via the wired mount, and includes the necessary hardware.

The Garmin can be charged via a USB-C cable, but an extra non-hardwire mount must be purchased separately from them. It has an optional handlebar controller that makes it easier and safer than fiddling with the unit in mid-air, which Garmin seriously doesn’t want you to do due to liability concerns. The controller has to be hardwired to your bike.

Rolling with the unit mounted up and operational, in the vertical. Switches automatically between vertical and horizontal.

You can also create and load custom maps, which can put some adventure in Adventure Mode. The unit has lots of memory to do it, but I haven’t figured out how to yet. It boasts 32gb internal storage, and can accept up to 256 gb microSD memory card, which is not included.

Look for updates as we see where the XT2 takes us. The Garmin retails for $600 online at https://www.garmin.com/en-US/

Joshua

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