Following custom routes when driving

[junglist]

I have an E85 with the professional navigation. Yes it's 10 years old and lacking features of the modern TomTom's etc but for simple A to B directions, it's fine.

Now, I often use Google Maps to create hooning routes but I'm struggling to follow them. Obviously I can't integrate these into the navigation, and I can't copy them over to my iPhone.

Fair enough I could make a note of the URL and then open it in my iPhone but that relies on being in a location where I can pick up 3G (which is pretty hard to come by in the Yorkshire Moors, Peak District or Welsh mountains lol) - and even then I can only see the route, there's no positioning with turn by turn directions etc.

When I went out on my mountain bike I used a website which listed GPX files of routes - it would give you a URL which you'd open up in a GPX viewer app on the phone and download all the data for offline viewing. Then when you're out on the bike, it'd mark your position and you could see where you were heading along the route.

Something like this would be perfect however I can't seem to find any sites that will allow you to turn a Google Maps URL into a GPX file. I know you can use the map maker feature (and then use third party sites to convert to GPX) but it's SO much more complicated than just typing in destinations and tweaking the route to suit.

At the moment I'm having to print off directions which inevitably end up flying all over the car or I keep having to stop and check I'm going the right way. Not ideal!

How do other people do it?

 

[junglist]

http://www.elsewhere.org/journal/gmaptogpx/

That would be perfect but it seems like it's no longer supported with browsers.

 

[Titan]

This has always been a tricky or fiddly operation but I think you may be able to do it using Google Maps, provided you are logged in.
If you create the route you want in Google and add/drag specific waypoints you can then save the route to My Maps.
You then use the the "chain link" symbol next to the printer icon which brings up another screen with a "send" option.
The send destinations should include email and GPS (and Car if you have BMW assist)

There is also an option if you look at the saved map to produce a KML export file which contains all the coordinates.
Unfortunately I'm not an expert with any of this - it's just stuff I've picked up when trying to communicate with an old Garmin and more recently with SWMBO's e89 :headbang:
If there is an easier way to do it I too would like to know!

 

[Jembo]

http://www.tyretotravel.com/

This is what I use for hoon planning, though is a nightmare working out avoiding the other programs u don't need when downloading the free executable. It offers:

- ability to plan routes & create TOMTOM / Garmin / BMW files
- convert a Gougle route into a TOMTOM / Garmin / BMW file
- convert TOMTOM / Garmin / BMW files into a Google route

Basically all u ever need to do, though TOMTOM dropped the full itinerary abilities a few years ago - why I & many others i know won't invest in a newer TOMTOM even though the UI on latest ones look very sexy.

PM me if u have any other questions about it

 

[Big Red Cat]

I use Bike Hike
http://bikehike.co.uk/index.php
click on course creator you can use google or OS maps to create a route then save in various formats including GPX.
I use it with my Garmin Oregon GPS & my Garmin sat-nav but haven't tried it with the on-board Sat-nav as I've only had the car a couple of days.