Garmin, the well-known manufacturer of GPS equipment, has introduced a robust marine autopilot system for sailboats designed to handle sailing dead downwind and in quartering seas - two situations where many autopilots seem to falter.
The GHP 12 autopilot, intended for sailboats up to 70 feet in length, updates Garmin's GHP 10 autopilot with sailing-specific software, something Garmin's customers have requested, said Greg DeVries, Garmin's director of marine sales and marketing.
"We haven't had a solution for sailboats before," DeVries said in an interview with Suite101.com. "This is designed to handle pitch and yaw - the forces on a sailboat, which can be much harder to handle than a powerboat."
GHP 12 Marine Autopilot Designed for Below-Decks Mounting
The GHP 12 is a below-decks autopilot system, and can be equipped with two different linear drive options: the Class A Drive unit for sailboats up to 28,500 pounds displacement, and the Class B Drive unit for sailboats that displace up to 79,000 pounds.
The unit features a built-in gyro that maintains turn response and control stability. In addition, the GHP 12 includes an integrated rudder feedback unit, unlike competing brands of below-decks autopilots, most of which require a separate rudder feedback unit to be mounted.
As a below-decks autopilot for larger sailboats, the GHP 12 competes with the SmartPilot system from Raymarine and with the NavPilot series of autopilots from Furuno.
Garmin Sailboat Autopilot Includes Color Display
The GHP 12 Autopilot includes the GHC 10, a 3.5-inch full-color display. It's possible to interface three separate GHC 10 controllers to a single GHP 12 unit, which allows boaters on larger vessels to control their boats from several different locations.
The GHP 12 also can be interfaced with a wind sensor, GPS and other electronics through its standard NMEA 2000 interface. Once networked, it can steer to a heading or to the wind, handle step turns, tack and jibe.
The unit also has been designed for low power consumption, a critical factor on sailboats with limited battery capacity, according to Garmin.
GHP 12 Likely to Cost $5,500 to $6,000 Installed
DeVries said the total GHP 12 Autopilot package, including the drive unit, will cost boat owners between $5,500 and $6,000 to purchase and install, depending on the drive option selected. "A lot of the cost is built into the drives," he said.
For boaters who already own an older autopilot, the GHP 12 control head will be able to use some third-party drives, although it's not clear yet which ones will be compatible, DeVries said. He said that Garmin is looking at common drives, such as older units produced by Raymarine and Simrad, to see if they will work with the GHP 12 software.
The GHP 12 core pack, which includes the control head, computer, GHC 10 color display and connector cables, retails for about $2,000. The drive units range from $1,900 to $3,000.
When coupled with other innovative marine electronics, such as the Standard Horizon Matrix AIS VHF radio and a marine navigation program running free NOAA charts, the GHP 12 sailboat autopilot can help make long-distance sailing easier, especially for singlehanders or couples on larger sailboats.
Jane Anderson - Jane M. Anderson spends as much time as possible on the water, working and sailing on boats. She grew up sailing Sunfish and Rhodes 19s on ...
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