I have owned my 2018 F Type R coupe for almost a year now. The car came with 3G which we all know is no longer available. I recently had the car in the shop for it yearly maintenance and I was having issues with several electrical gremlins which is all taken care of now.
While repairing the car the tech installed new modules and the car now has 4G. Since I never had the opportunity to use the Navigation with the live feature and the car is in storage for the winter, my question is how many of you use the navigation that came with the car?
Does anyone use the live feature, and how accurate is it? While searching the subject I have found that some people use Waze or some other form of navigation. Is the navigation in the car that bad? I assume I will be paying for a cellular service for the car once the warranty goes away in March of this year, I called the two dealerships in my area to find out a cost, but unfortunately they were not able to help me with this. The dealership did said that the incontrol app is $120.00 a year, and could not confirm that the cell service is included in the cost.
I would assume it is not simply due to the cost, I would expect to pay at least $20.00 a month for the cell service alone. I do not have a unlimited cell service plan and I am being told that navigation can eat up a lot of data, I am trying to decide whether to purchase the data service from JLR for just the car or just go unlimited on my phone.
While doing my research I did see that people are also upgrading their cars to Android Auto or Apple Carplay which I assume I would be using the phone for directions and this just puts the display on the cars devices. Is this correct?
I have been using this car for trips, I have put a little over 7,000 miles on the car so far and about half of those miles have been long trips is why I am researching the best route to take. No pun intended.

 

I have not used the live feature on the navigation. Overall I have found it to be mediocre at best. It will get you where you are going, but it does not seem to know the best route to get you there. It has always gotten me to my destination eventually.

If you want the voice guidance to have a British accent see the link below.

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/f...on-mod-261813/

 

I believe that most people use their phones for navigation these days.

 

I'm definitely in the minority here, but think the JLR navigation system is one of the better OEM navis out there. I've had in-car satnav since 2001 so I have a lot of systems to which I can compare. I find it very accurate (when you keep the maps up-to-date, which is true for any system). The other really nice feature is it is 100% operational while in motion, so a passenger can utilize it on the fly. So many manufactures disable most of the features when the car is motion, which I understand to keep a driver from being distracted, but it also keeps a passenger from using it while you drive.

When I had my '18, I used the live feature quite a bit. The main things you can do with the connectivity piece are real-time traffic (almost zero data), online searches (some data), sending destinations to the car (some data), and satellite maps (a LOT of data). If yours is a CPO, you may have data connection for 5 years after purchase. The real-time traffic is very effective and it will re-route you if necessary. The other good thing is Here (the map provider) offers monthly updates if you have a subscription so the maps are never really out of date (unlike my Honda, which only updates once a year, if that, and that is usually a year behind already). The 2018s do have 4G, but often came with 3G sim cards. A new SIM and activation is what it takes to get the 4G (which sounds like you already had done).

I bought my '18 as a CPO so I never paid for any of the services. My maps, data, and InControl were all part of the CPO program for five years.

 

NOT correct. It does not just put your phone on the screen, the screen is driven by the phone, with apps that are meant to be used while driving. See Apple CarPlay and Android Auto (both ecosystems are supported, even though the intelligence is an Android device "merged" in to the factory head unit).

The unit from Unique Auto Developments is by far the most popular option, and it has been fantastic. Wireless connection to the phone. Could not as for better!

https://unique-ad.co.uk/product-category/carplay-kits/

 

In the UK I find the car's navigation system to be fine - it always takes me where I want to go with a minimum of fuss or detours. I also have mine set to use live data and it never seems to use very much, I have a 10GB SIM.

 

I am on the phone side of things....WAZE has lots of features/data in terms of issues ON the road like police officers, traffic, accidents, speed cameras, hazards...then I got a UAD type carplay adapter for my bosch based head unit....nav goes away and wireless carplay and wireless android auto take over where nav used to be (bottom right button for my 2016 unit). Then I use whatever app I want....with music, SIRI, hands free texting, etc. It is really great.

The "old" head unit with carplay makes the car equal to whatever is current for my needs....carplay keeps a car up to date in tech more or less.

Have not missed the oem nav since shifting...not even a little.


I have nothing to do with the person/company, but this is what I am using now and it is great:
Hiccups with bluetooth can happen (if you remote start it and the phone is not nearby)...you usually have to manually connect bluetooth to it. Once in a very blue moon it needs to just reboot. Turning the car off and the phone off or out of BT range does this...say 10 minutes away...and it just works. I paid a mobile professional 100 dollars to install it for me. It is almost perfect...he added a mic at the top of the a pillar...looks factory. Yes it is a hack. But a darn good one that if you are savvy is not an issue to use. I think it can do video in from the front if I had such in the car...it handles my facotry rearview camera input correctly with reverse. And you don't see any changes in terms of the factory dash look.

jb

 

I've used the navigation a lot on many road trips all over Europe and think it works really well although I haven't had that much use for the live traffic data. I usually also have the satellite view on my screen when I drive around without using the navigation for guidance. I'll probably install the UAD kit sooner or later but haven't felt the motivation to do it because the built in system works so well for me and I still think the CarPlay interface has a way to go until it will work as well as a good built in system. I haven't found the satellite view to use up that much data either.

What's a bit of a hassle with the system is to set up an exact route past a number of waypoints, especially if you want to do it in the car. When I'm planning a road trip with a very specific route I usually do it online or in the phone app and sync the route into the car. All of that is a bit easier done with google maps. What's lacking compared to Waze is live updates about police locations and speed cameras so I use Waze in parallel for that kind of info sometimes. Unless Waze's live sharing features are important to you the built in navigation will probably serve you very well.

120$ per year sounds very expensive compared to what it costs over here but maybe that's US pricing. I would consider trying it out for a year.

Unless it's limited in the US, another feature you get with the live stuff is that you can use the car's built in Spotify app. That also works well but sucks up pretty much data.

 

Thank you to all that replied.
I tried using Waze going to Florida, the buffering was horrible. Thankfully I have driven that route several times and I knew where I was going. I do like all the features Waze has, but I could not deal with the buffering.
From what I have read the Waze App installs the maps on your phone which takes up a lot of space, being that I was driving most of the US eastern seaboard that may be why I had the issues I had. I run a valentine one radar detector that I made a special bracket so the detector mounts in the dotted area by the rearview mirror it works pretty well, saved me multiple times on that trip, but the accident information and traffic slowdowns that Waze has is nice also.
I did not use the navigation in the car because it did not work properly. The navigation was missing the voice prompts.
I read somewhere that I can buy a sim card with x amount of data on Amazon and use that instead of purchasing through JLR. Is there any advantage to purchasing through JLR?
When I try and use the Live feature a message comes up that reads insufficient data available. I assume that the card the tech put in is used to test the system and I have to purchase the data.

 

Hmm, I don't get the part about buying a sim card from JLR. The car has one built in sim from factory. That one is used for the remote features if you have an active remote subscription through JLR. Then there's the sim card slot in the centre cubby where you can add your own card with a data plan, which you can purchase from wherever you want. That card is used for the additional live features like the live navigation with traffic updates, in car spotify streaming, in car wifi hotspot if you set that up etc. There's also the the over the air updates of the in car software which uses one of the sim cards if activated.

It's actually a bit confusing what goes through which of the sim cards but this is the way I remember it from when I set it up. You activate the remote and live features in JLRs online incontrol shop (https://incontrol.jaguar.com/jaguar-...wner-web/login) and all navigation related features like a map update subscription including live traffic through HERE's Jaguar branded web page (https://www.jaguar.here.com/index.php#home/0) so you'll need an account in both places.

 

My 2018 XE has ICTP and 4G. It was upgraded to CarPlay, but I prefer the Nav maps to Apple’s, much more detailed and easier to control. Wish it showed rest areas, which my 2014 F-type system does.

 

Phone apps don't work well when there isn't a phone signal....

 

This is also one of the reasons why I like the OEM navigation. In some of the more remote parts of New England, there are places with no cell service (or poor enough that you can't reliably use Waze, etc.). Waze also does not work very well in the tunnels of Boston (phones don't have as sophisticated dead reckoning mechanisms the way the OEM navigation systems do). Waze constantly gets lost in the tunnels.

And of course, the other piece is having to mount your phone somewhere where it's visible and can be manipulated without blocking other controls and I always hate the way a phone mounted to the dash looks in an otherwise beautiful interior. It's a necessary evil, I know, and my other cars have it. But not in the Jag.

 

Not needed at all. UAD is wireless CarPlay/AA.

 

FWIW, I agree with Thunder Dump... I really like the OEM Navigation features of my MY21. One of the things I really hated about *the other* systems was that it didn't give you sufficient notice when you had to turn, as I got caught in the wrong lane too many times. Plus, I do like the different voices available. It's a bit of a shock to unfamiliar passengers hear "Lady J" give me notice to "Turn right and enter the Thoroughfare".

My time with WAZE is long past, and included old iPhone versions and iOS's. At the time, there were few others that traveled the routes I took. Plus, as Thunder Dump noted, mobile internet access for too many of my routes was spotty at best, and using the app really drained my phone battery. Now, with vehicle HotSpot access and many more WAZE users, things might be different. But I still find the OEM preferable. Who knows, when the currently-installed access runs out in 2026, there might be better third-party options available. We shall see.

Getting back to the OP's questions, though.
The navigation features on my MY21 are incorporated as part of several different 'features' built into the vehicle. While the car includes it's own SIM card and data storage, those are not necessarily used for navigation. They include, for example, SOS Emergency Call, Optimized Jaguar Assistance, access for vehicle software updates, Valet Mode, and others. InControl is built in as a sort of wrapper around those features. I need an InControl account to access and utilize them. For example, I have my mobile phone# associated with my account, so that Jaguar Assistance can call me back if needed. Access to my InControl account is via the InControl website at incontrol.jaguar.com.

Be advised, however, that access to InControl account vehicles is based on VIN. Once added, the VIN is locked out from other InControl accounts. If the previous owner of your car didn't delete the vehicle from his/her InControl account, you probably won't be able to add it if you create you own InControl account. All I can say is to try it. The account is free.

Maps, map updates, route planning etc. are available through a separate account at jaguar.here.com. Again, vehicle access is based on VIN and is free. The free map updates subscriptions run out in five years from original purchase.

All that being said, to actually UTILIZE the OEM navigation system, the vehicle will need a separate SIM car to get access to the internet. That access is provided by an internet service subscription - typically monthly or annually. With my original F-Type purchase, I received a SIM card in a microSD card and a 3-month trial subscription to AT&T for access. The microSD card fits into a slot in the console storage cubby. Once my trial subscription ended, I was able to add a prepaid AT&T subscription at myvehicle.att.com via PayPal. Again, vehicle access is by VIN. The account is free, but subscriptions are not.

Others in the forum have found and used ISP's other than AT&T. I believe they needed a different microSD card and SIM. I have no knowledge of how those work or where to get the card, as I've been too lazy to look it. Again, that may change in 2026.

With your MY18, I don't know if the same feature were available for your car as with mine, but I suspect that your free access to the built-in features will expire this year... if you even have access to those (see the VIN precautions above). I don't know if it's an uphill battle to extend those, or even if possible. It may be that your best bet would be to explore the third-party options for navigation. It's certainly something to consider. May I suggest you explore this forum to find out if anybody has extended the original features, or - as noted in previous posts on this thread, have advocated third-party solutions.

Good luck!

 

Excellent write-up! The only clarification I would make to your post is that the OEM navigation doesn't REQUIRE the SIM card and internet access/service to function; however, it is ENHANCED with the SIM card and internet access/service. The maps and the POI database are internal on the hard drive, so while the data will grow stale over time, it is perfectly usable without connectivity.

 

Ow... color me thoroughly chastised. My only defense is that I never used the OEM navigation without the SIM card and subscription. As such, I had no idea of what the basic navigation system provides.

My thanks for the clarification.

 

Great thread. I just purchased my new-to-me CPO 2018 "R" and have gone in circles trying to get the wireless features working. I can confirm that the 2018's use AT&T for connectivity and I was able to add the car to my existing AT&T cellular account for 20.00/month. The AT&T and IN Control service techs told me that the center console cubby must have the SIM card provided by Jaguar for the wireless features to work - it's there. After a week's worth of phone calls and tech mumbo-jumbo, it was determined my car has the 3G head unit and nothing will work until I take it back to the dealer to have the unit "updated" (software? ..... head replacement?) to support 4G service. I have also noticed that when I plug my I-Phone in and ask the system to recognize it, it won't. I can connect with Bluetooth for basic phone functions, but that's it.

 

My 2018 XE has InControl Touch Pro (10” screen without physical buttons on the sides) and it was upgraded by the dealer for wired CarPlay/Android Auto, though mine has 4G and continues to work. The non-Pro 8” screen probably can’t be upgraded.

 

Dillweed,
My car has the 8" screen and they just upgraded my 2018 R to 4G. The change was in the modules not the head unit, my car had a few gremlins that the tech was working on and one of them was with the navigation. They were able to give me the modules under warranty because the old modules could not be repaired and are no longer available.
I went to Verizon to add another line for the car and they said they could not do it. I then went to AT&T knowing that is the provider Jaguar uses and I was told the same thing. When AT&T gave you a sim card did you provide an IMEI number for the car? I thought all my provider had to do is provide me with a sim card set up for the IMEI and I could put it in the car and the car would recognize it. Does anybody know if this is correct?