Certain features on our cars allow you to benefit from significant driving comfort! In fact, having a GPS built in in your motor vehicle allows you to stay centered on the road although driving to an unknown destination without any problems. However the road network is constantly developing, it is therefore essential to update the GPS of your BMW 4 Series , and this is accurately what we will discover in this article. To do so, first we will talk about the different features of the integrated GPS for vehicles, and secondly, how to update the GPS of a BMW 4 Series .

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How does onboard GPS function in a BMW 4 Series

In this section we will discover how the GPS of a BMW 4 Series works and what are the different types of GPS.

The advantages of an integrated GPS?

A built-in GPS presents many features that a smart phone GPS or Tomtom-type GPS will not be able to give you. Below is a list of the advantages of these devices:

  • The point that it is built in immediately into the dashboard of your BMW 4 Series makes it impossible to steal the GPS from your motor vehicle.
  • Linked with your car’s radio antenna, the GPS will have better reception than any kind of GPS you could use.
  • It is often, dependent on the year, connected to steering wheel voice commands, which allows you to use it without taking your hands off the wheel and as a result to drive more safely.
  • The screen is in most cases much larger than a GPS on a smartphone or a nomadic type, so the information is more readable.
  • Associated with your speakers, it can be coupled to music and just occur when you replace direction, which limits the risk of you going off course as much as possible.

The different types of GPS for BMW 4 Series

After having seen the pros and before explaining to you how to update the GPS of your BMW 4 Series , we will quickly summarize the different sort of integrated GPS that exist for a BMW 4 Series, here they are:

  • The classic GPS: We call classic GPS the models that equip recent vehicles, they are connected to a whole multimedia system and are equipped with a touch screen.
  • The old GPS: These GPS were the first generations, the screen is only used for navigation and they are updated with a USB stick or SD card. These systems, although basic to use and have a lower screen quality, you’ll feel like you’re watching a TV from the 90’s.
  • GPS Android Auto or Apple CarPlay: Finally, last kind of GPS, on the latest vehicles it is possible to have a system including Android or Apple, these systems are autonomous and you use the native applications of one of the two operating systems. They are very responsive and easy to use.

How do I update the GPS on a BMW 4 Series?

We will now move on to the part you are most enthusiastic about, how to update the GPS of your BMW 4 Series? To do this, we will see for each kind of GPS how the process of updating the cartography, the signalling and the software is done.

Updating old GPS on BMW 4 Series

The old GPS systems present on the BMW 4 Series until the years 2000/2005, these GPS use a particular software for the brand and the approach to update this GPS on a BMW 4 Series is to go to the car dealership who will handle it, for a 50 euros most of the time.

Updating the GPS of BMW 4 Series by SD or USB

This kind of GPS is most general on cars that are about ten years old. Most of the car companies have called upon the company “HERE navigation” and you will have to go to their site to download the map update of your GPS, then copy it to a USB key or SD card depending on the connectors available on your model and do the update immediately through the menu of your integrated GPS.

Automatic GPS update

Most recent BMW 4 Series’s with Android Auto or Apple CarPlay will update automatically, so there is no need for you to make any updates. You can continue to use your GPS with comfort knowing that the map and speed limits are up to date.

If you have any further questions about the BMW 4 Series, do not hesitate to consult our BMW 4 Series category.