Why won't my Garmin display my RVTW route

[timjet]

I have no connection with Garmin other than having used several of their devices over the years. I also have no connection with RVTW other than being a RVTW ambassador and using their product. So the following is just my opinion after having used both products over several years.

Perhaps the best way to explain why I believe Garmin will not likely ever allow third party software to display on their devices is to create this analogy:
I love my Chevy Camaro. It’s the coolest looking car and I love the way it drives. It handles the road better than any car I’ve ever driven. But the engine is lacking. Ford Mustang engines are the best, better torque and higher available rpm. If I could only replace my Camaro engine with a Mustang engine it would be the best car around. Everyone in my Camaro club agrees so I’m going to contact GM and see if they will install Mustang engine mounts in all their future Camaro chassis so we can just swap out the engines. How do you think that request would go??

Garmin has spent tons of money on their devices and software. There is no incentive that I can see for them to allow their devices to navigate using software from another company. And from a liability point, if a RVTW route displaying on a Garmin devices routes you over a cliff, who is liable.
So like the above analogy, good luck getting Garmin to substitute their routing engine for a routing engine from another company.

And lastly how many Garmin GPS users want the ability to allow third party software to display on their GPS? Most Garmin users just want a RV safe route to their next campsite. I just don’t think the demand is there for Garmin to incur the cost to tweak their software to allow 3rd party navigation to display, even if the liability issues could be solved. And I think Garmin knows that if you complicate the software to allow 3rd party use they are going to loose some customers.

As has been discussed before, when you download a route created in RVTW to your Garmin GPS, the GPS ignores the route and simply creates its own route between the origination and destination using the avoidances you set in your GPS. That’s why you bought your GPS, to safely route you to your next campsite using a RV safe route.

Now that being said, Garmin’s BaseCamp PC routing software does allow a Garmin GPS to display a route created in BaseCamp that supersedes the route the GPS would create. But some knowledge of BaseCamp is necessary and is beyond the scope of this post.

Additionally, a route created in RVTW can be downloaded into BaseCamp and with some knowledge of BaseCamp can be downloaded into your GPS to mirror or closely mirror the route you created in RVTW.

Note: I have never owned or have knowledge of Fords Mustang or Chevys Camaro. Please don’t correct me in that analogy as it was used as an example even if the general opinion and facts are different than I used in that analogy. Please limit further discussion to Garmin GPS’s and software.