Garmin, Amazon & Halfords

I like to have GPS in all my vehicles, & since none are the newer 'posh' types with them built-in, I don't like having to unplug & re-set them up in the van, also, I try & hide the wiring as much as possible in & under the dash-joints etc.
So, I looked at the latest Garmin 7"DriveSmart, supposedly at around £270.00, Ebay & Amazon do them for around £ 178.00, Halfords ( just round the corner ) for £215.00!!
So I thought i'd try it on this morning, printed out the Amazon offer & trotted down to Halfords, a very nice fella came with me to the display-case & I said I'd take one but only if he'd price-match,  'Sure' he said, 'WOT'!! £40.00 off??
Yep, I got it for the Amazon price of £ 178.00, I'm happy with that.

Already made a 'hidden' bracket that makes it appear to hang in space & all wiring hidden out of sight.

I have found Halfords in recent years to be very good at price matching and have bought many items for online prices. 
Not every store seems to follow/understand the same guidelines from head office but generally you can get a great price, you just have to find the right salesperson and be friendly with your approach, going in aggressive never works anywhere!!

Any pictures of the DIY mount that you can share @modelman?

Yep, she's off for MOT first thing tomorrow, i'll sort pics later.

Fixing the GPS holder to the screen makes it too far away for me, I want it 'up front', the dash surface wont allow the fixing of the suction-bracket, but on the mk6 Transit, there is a document-tray on top of the dash which has a 'lid'. 
I will not drill holes in the dash if I can help it, but noticed the 'lid' will come off, so it was removed, the suction cup, pin, spring & cam  were removed from the holder leaving just the bracket. The underside of the cover was roughed up & the bracket was bonded in place with the mount-ball just showing when the lid was re-fitted, & with the head unit in place, virtually nothing can be seen, power cable hidden behind dash joints out of the way.

Lawrie, its really good to read you back in full swing and full of enthusiasm again.

Thanks @modelman - great job!

Thanks to all for kind comments.

Peter Brown wrote:Lawrie, its really good to read you back in full swing and full of enthusiasm again.

I second that.  I was always amazed at his ability to rebuild Motorcycles to such a high standard.

Micky

Halfords price match Garmin 780 MT-D camper £300

Any good?
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Richard

Has anyone used a Halfords friction pad for satnav mounting?

Thought it might be good so it does not have to be removed when closing the front blinds.

Really pleased with the 780 camper, used it for the 1st time today, loads of alerts.
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Richard

If you mean the rubber mat with a disc in centre for sat nav suction pad, sits on top of dash, then yes I have one in car and one in van. Keeps sat nav perfectly stable and also brings it nearer to you for entering info. Bought them off Amazon , cheaper by the pair.

Thank you Paul, yes that's the type. Amazon looks a better deal than Halfords which I spotted while buying the Satnav on Sunday.
Good news, was not sure if they worked, as you say they will bring it in reach while driving.
Cheers
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Richard

Rgermain: I use a variant as suggested in a thread of about 5 years ago by Gromit. A rubber mat with central plastic disc (bought from Amazon) is secured by the clip-board spring on the dash; I stuck a Garmin mount to the disk with araldite. Works perfectly. 

Cymro

Cymro wrote:Rgermain: I use a variant as suggested in a thread of about 5 years ago by Gromit. A rubber mat with central plastic disc (bought from Amazon) is secured by the clip-board spring on the dash; I stuck a Garmin mount to the disk with araldite. Works perfectly. 

Cymro

Sounds same as above.

rgermain wrote:Has anyone used a Halfords friction pad for satnav mounting?

Thought it might be good so it does not have to be removed when closing the front blinds.

Really pleased with the 780 camper, used it for the 1st time today, loads of alerts.
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Richard

Do you mean one like this??
If so, this is due for the bin, its yours if you want.
It seems to be full of lead shot or similar.

modelman wrote:

rgermain wrote:Has anyone used a Halfords friction pad for satnav mounting?

Thought it might be good so it does not have to be removed when closing the front blinds.

Really pleased with the 780 camper, used it for the 1st time today, loads of alerts.
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Richard

Do you mean one like this??
If so, this is due for the bin, its yours if you want.
It seems to be full of lead shot or similar.

Thanks, not really, I was after a larger flat sticky pad type.
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Richard