Garmin Echomap 70s won’t stay on…

[Mustang65fbk]

I bought my boat used back in October and a few months back I bought a new maps chip from Garmin as I bought the boat in Maryland and live just north of Seattle, so I wanted the local maps. Went to install the chip, had to do a software update and then everything worked for a few minutes. Powered it back down, tried turning it back on for a little redundancy and now it won’t stay on. It’ll go to the initial screen with the Garmin logo on it, pause, shut off for a split second or two and then keep repeating itself. I tried to do a hard reset but either I’m doing it incorrectly or the unit isn’t allowing me to do it. I looked up a few things online, one of which is that the unit was made around 2013, so it’s almost 10 years old now. I believe I have enough power that should start it up as it did so a few times before, even though the engine was off and it has been sitting most of the winter. I tried starting up the motor briefly for a few seconds, which she had no problem starting right up. To me, it sounds like possibly a software issue or something similar. I called up Garmin technical support, of which they weren’t a ton of help but also thought that it could be a software issue and that about my only other option besides buying a new unit would be to do a forced software update on an SD card and see if that unlocks anything on the screen or unit. I’m up at my beach cabin for the day, I don’t have my laptop but I’ll likely go back into town tomorrow and see if I can do what they recommended. Anyone else on here have any ideas or suggestions? Do they have Garmin repair shops or anything like that for things of this nature or is it usually always just a matter of buying something new to replace it with? If it was months ago then I wouldn’t mind buying a new unit and install it but with the opening day of crabbing only a few days away and the salmon opener on the 15th, I’d rather try to make this setup work for the summer. Thanks!

 

[blindmullet]

That unit has a POS connector in the back. I have hit waves and the unit shut off. Make sure the power connector is clean and seated and that wire has clean power/good ground.

 

[Sauza45]

You said the motor started right up, did you let it run? I would also check battery voltage.

 

[Chessie246G]

Electronics are very voltage sensitive. Check your battery voltage first, especially after sitting and cranking the engine. You pulled a good bit of reserve out of the battery. Second check the connectors and make sure they aren't corroded causing resistance. My Lowrance units are very fickle. My voltage alarm is set for 11.8 volts. More than enough to start the engine, but about 11.5v my electronics will shut themselves down.

 

[Mustang65fbk]

Good afternoon all and thanks for the replies... my boat is up at our summer beach cabin on Whidbey Island and we don't really have that many tools or electronics up there other than the basics. Over the next couple of days I'll probably go back up with a voltmeter and test a few things out and see if I can narrow anything down at all. I figured if the batteries had enough power to start the motor that it should keep the GPS on, but I could definitely be mistaken. And I just turned the key over until the motor started and then basically shut it right off again, so it's still up in the air as to if it could be a battery issue or not. I do understand that these electronics can be a bit finicky, so it could definitely be a power issue... I just figured with it working literally right before without any issues and prior to doing the software update that the software update was the likely culprit. Is there any way to rig up the GPS unit at home with a battery from a car or lawn mower for redundancy and to make sure it's not a power issue? I believe it's an 8 pin power cable, could you run a positive and negative wire from say a car battery to the unit and try powering it on that way? Thanks again everyone for the suggestions!

 

[Fishtales]

Agree with others. I had the same issue with an older VHF I used until I replaced it. Connector cleanliness is the first place to check. You can seat/unseat the connector several times after cleaning. The extra wiping should ensure a good contact. Voltage is next. If you have a house battery, best to use this one. If not, induce a draw of current and see if the voltage droops or the unit resets. You may need to either get a new battery or swap around the ones you have. Last is connections. Grounds are important as well as positive leads. May need to check every connection point and either crimp, seal (liquid tape) and then tape or make sure they are super solid.

 

[blindmullet]

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Yep, you can try a good battery and run it to that. I had a battery going south with that unit and it would turn on and off. It's possible that the connector in the rear came a bit loose when you stuck the card in for the update. There is a plastic piece that locks the connection in place---its a junk setup. They went to a different connection in models after. I just reinstalled a dv74 into my little Mako a few weeks ago. Check all connections--its probably not software.

 

[Mustang65fbk]

Thanks for all of the replies, I'll have to get my voltmeter, trickle charger and a few other things and then go back up to my beach cabin in the next couple days to see if it's a battery/power thing or not. I knew that GPS units could be a bit finicky but I didn't think it would be to this extreme with regards to not having enough power, and figured that if there was enough power to start the motor that there would be more than enough to power on the GPS, at least for a couple of seconds. I'll come back in a few days to post with an update, thanks again!

 

[SkunkBoat]

On the power plug look for green corrosion.
That will cause that symptom.
You might clean it up but a new cable might be the fix in the end.

Also look at the fuse block for green corrosion on the blade fuse legs and the 1/4" terminals (both + & -)

 

[Mustang65fbk]

Well, I have a little bit of an earlier update than I anticipated... I managed to use a jump pack as a battery source and then jury-rig it so that it would put out power to be able to turn on the Garmin unit and had the same thing happen. Voltage was consistently above 12.8 and still ended up having the same thing happen. Here's a YouTube video showing the process... I think it's a software update issue and will see if I can do a hard reset with the jump pack, but I'm assuming probably not.

 

[Hookup1]

Sounds like the software update went badly. Build a software update card. You may need to use Garmin Express.

Do a hard reset and re-run the update from the SD card. Usually removing and inserting the update card will bring up the update screen. If you can't start the update you may need to call Garmin directly to see if there is a system recovery incantation to force an update of the unit from the SD card.

 

[Chessie246G]

Yeap. Agree with your diag. Confirmed good power. Likely a corrupt update. Hopefully the reset works.

 

[Mustang65fbk]

Sounds like the software update went badly. Build a software update card. You may need to use Garmin Express.

Do a hard reset and re-run the update from the SD card. Usually removing and inserting the update card will bring up the update screen. If you can't start the update you may need to call Garmin directly to see if there is a system recovery incantation to force an update of the unit from the SD card.

Thanks. I'm on the phone with Garmin currently to try and do a forced software update on a micro SD card and we will see how that goes... but I've tried doing a hard reset, which for some reason I'm unable to do that on my device. We shall see how it turns out. Thanks again for all of the replies!

 

[Fishtales]

I’d look at the connectors very closely. May need a new connector and/or cable.

 

[Mustang65fbk]

Well... I just spent almost the entire afternoon talking to Garmin and they don't know what the issue is but they're leaning towards it being a software issue and the kicker is that the unit is so old that they won't work on it anymore haha. So... it looks like I'll have to buy something to replace it with, yay!

 

[Hookup1]

Unit probably left behind as new updates came out. Never tested.

Only other thought is to install an older version of the software. Not sure its possible to download that though.

 

[blindmullet]

I just reinstalled a 74dv last week and forgot about another issue. They used a real cheapo inline fuse holder on my model. When it was on the Grady I had to fix the holder as it was losing power randomly while under way. Just another thing to try incase its not software related.