Garmin XT & Garmin Express are driving me nuts

Vlad

Premier Member
#21
I currently have an update to Basecamp to fix this particular issue, sitting on my computer ready to update. Just one little problem, every time I try to run the update it tells me the file is corrupted and I can’t run it.
cant find the file location to delete it either, somewhat frustrating.
 

owl*

Rally Bonus checker
IBA Member
#22
That is odd. Your Mac should recognize it as a device plugged in to the computer. My icon is just a gray rectangle that says "Garmin", but any time I plug any device into the Mac it shows up on the desktop. I always "eject 'Garmin' before unplugging it or I'll get the You were naughty message that it was improperly disconnected, blah, blah, blah.

You might check your settings with it plugged in and see if it shows up anywhere.

edit - Your XT should have come with it's own data cable. All my Garmins have come with a data cable. I mark them so I don't lose track of what cable came with what device. Just some tape with the name written on it.
Hi Eric,
The Zumo did come with a cable, and I did label it - I attach a tag to all cables, otherwise I find you have a box full with no idea which is which.
Definitely doesn't show up on the desktop, or in 'Finder' which leads to my continuing suspicion of the cable.
 

owl*

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IBA Member
#23
I phoned Garmin Support this morning.
They told me that there is a problem with operating systems Catalina 10.15, Big Sur and newer. I'm on Catalina 10.15,
The good news is that there is a fix, and they sent me a link to it here.......

Garmin Express not Detecting Devices on Mac Catalina 10.15 and Big Sur 11.0 and Newer

I explained exactly what is happening when I try to get either BC or GE to recognise my Zumo, and the techie told me it could be either the cable or in need of the fix as above, and immediately ordered me a replacement cable free of charge, even though my XT is over 2 years old.

The fix didn't sort it for me, so I'm now waiting for the cable to arrive, to see if that does the trick..
 

EricV

Premier Member
IBR Finisher
#25
Oh, "over 2 years old". I have a new suspicion. Bad port on the XT. That's not all that uncommon, from what I've read.

I didn't realize the XT had been out that long. FWIW, I'm running Big Sur 11.6.1 on my circa 2013 Macbook.
 

owl*

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IBA Member
#27
Oh, "over 2 years old". I have a new suspicion. Bad port on the XT. That's not all that uncommon, from what I've read.

I didn't realize the XT had been out that long. FWIW, I'm running Big Sur 11.6.1 on my circa 2013 Macbook.
If the cable doesn't do the trick, that'll be the next thing to look at.
 

Firstpeke

Well-Known Member
#28
I am somewhat frustrated that Garmin insist on sticking with this USB type connectivity..... when they have wifi for updates, surely they could use that method for routes....
I have not tried the email method which I think would involve using Garmin drive, perhaps I am the one out of date.....
 

Auburn

Premier Member
#29
I thought I read that you can send the route to the XT via the garmin drive app on your phone or ipad? I haven't tried it yet. But might be another solution.
 

owl*

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IBA Member
#31
The new cable arrived today and made absolutely no difference. Still unable to use GE or send or receive from BC. I will phone tech support again on Monday.
 

owl*

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IBA Member
#33
Another update.

In desperation, and because I couldn't think of anything else to do, I decided to uninstall Garmin Express, then reinstall it.

Everything started working - GE and BC as well.

So, it seems to me that a combination of doing this Garmin Express not Detecting Devices on Mac Catalina 10.15 and Big Sur 11.0 and Newer

plus new cable plus uninstalling/reinstalling GE did the trick.

Thank you all for your help & suggestions.
 

Firstpeke

Well-Known Member
#34
Well done that man..... better tell Garmin support as they will know how to fix it if all else fails........ maybe.

I have fixed Tyre several times by doing what you did... sort of gave up on asking them for help.... I never delete my old exe files as I have found going back to a much older version often fixes some problems, then do the updates again...
 
#35
I like Garmin Zumo satnavs, and have been using them for over 20 years. The XT is the best of the lot in my opinion, but.............

When I plug my fully charged Zumo into my MacBook Pro, its screen tells me it has detected a USB cable, and will go into file transfer mode in 15 seconds.

I duly wait, and Garmin Express then tells me to plug it in, as it cannot detect it.

I have tried clicking the 'continue' button instead of waiting 15 seconds - same thing happens.

I have deleted G. Express and downloaded the latest version, have used an alternative USB cable, have turned the laptop off and on again, and still the computer tells me the Zumo is not connected but the Zumo tells me it has detected the connection.

Can anyone shed any light on this for me? I'm not sure whether to throw the Zumo out the window or the laptop.
I had this problem very recently when connecting the XT to my Mac. My Mac has 2 USB ports so I tried the OTHER port and it worked just fine.
Good luck
 

owl*

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IBA Member
#36
I had this problem very recently when connecting the XT to my Mac. My Mac has 2 USB ports so I tried the OTHER port and it worked just fine.
Good luck
Yes, it depends on whether the USB port is capable of transferring data as well as supplying power. Or it may simply be that one of them became just be a bit worn if that was the one you habitually used, and ceased to be a tight enough fit. In my case, I tried both ports and neither worked.
 

owl*

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IBA Member
#37
Another twist : -

Today I made a route in BC, but when I plugged the Zumo in to transfer it, yet again my computer, or BC, did not recognise it.

After a lot of swearing and trying every possible variation of turning things on and off, and timings of plugging things in, I cracked the code.

For the mental health of anyone using a Mac operating system of Catalina, Big Sur or later and who are having problems, follow the following procedure : -

1) follow the directions here Garmin Express not Detecting Devices on Mac Catalina 10.15 and Big Sur 11.0 and Newer

2) get a new cable

3) uninstall then reinstall Garmin Express

Then, when you want to use BC and Zumo, use the following procedure : -

1) have your laptop/computer turned on, and Zumo turned off

2) connect the cable to the Zumo and the laptop/computer

3) then, and only then, open Basecamp and wait until the programme recognises the Zumo. On my laptop this took about 4 minutes.

Trying any other variation resulted in BC not recognising that the Zumo was connected.

Why the hell Garmin makes life so difficult is beyond my understanding.
 

Shawn K

Professional Cat Confuser
Premier Member
#38
I know it sounds wacky, but only one of the USB ports will communicate with my Garmin GPS units so I literally have it labeled that way on my Windows machine. If I plug it in to one of the other USB ports I get the same lack of communication you seem to have on your Mac.
I had the same issue. My experience was that my Garmin would only communicate on a USB 2.0 slot, not USB 3.0.

Same problem with my Spot X as well.
 
#39
I have found that you need to have Garmin Express completely not running (as in no triangle icon at the top of your screen) before Basecamp will recognise the XT on my Mac. Garmin Express can be a bit hit and miss on recognising it too.

If you want to manually move things to the XTs storage from the MAC you need to install an app called Android File Transfer (https://www.android.com/filetransfer/)