Select your product to confirm this information applies to you

Garmin DriveAssist 51 LMT-S or Garmin DriveAssist 51 LMTHD Not Recording or Missing Video

Follow the steps below if saved or unsaved footage cannot be found on your Garmin DriveAssist™ 51 LMT-S or Garmin DriveAssist™ 51 LMTHD GPS navigators, the VIRB™ Mobile App, or the device's SD card:

  1. Ensure the device is recording video
  2. Check Automatic Incident Detection settings
  3. Check SD card compatibility
  4. Ensure the device and VIRB Mobile app are up to date
  5. Format or replace the SD card

Ensure the Device is Recording Video

Make sure that the SD card is inserted all the way into the video slot on the back of the device. The SD slot on the bottom edge of the device is for data instead of video; if no SD card is inserted into the video slot on the back, the device will not record footage. See Installing the Dash Camera Memory Card for more information.

The device will show a not recording or paused icon on the main menu if it is not recording video. Press the paused icon to open the Dash Cam app, then press the  record icon to begin recording. 

The device cannot record video while the Gallery app is open on the device, and/or the device has been placed into sharing mode with the Garmin VIRB Mobile app. Closing the VIRB Mobile app will not be sufficient to end sharing mode if the device is connected to the app on your phone to share footage. It will be necessary to exit sharing mode on the device itself by pressing Stop Sharing.

The device cannot record video when connected to a computer.


Check Automatic Incident Detection Settings

If the device is not saving video of events (e.g. collisions or sudden stops), Automatic Incident Detection may be disabled.


To Check Automatic Incident Detection Settings on the Device:

1. Touch Settings

2. Touch the down arrow

3. Touch Dash Cam

4. If Automatic Incident Detection is unchecked, touch it to add a  checkmark

5. Touch the back arrow to save changes

The device will now automatically save video when it detects an event.



Check SD Card Compatibility

The device may not be able to record footage onto incompatible SD cards. The device requires a Class 10 microSD card and will accept sizes up to 64 GB.  See SD Memory Card Sizes for Automotive Devices.


Ensure the Device and VIRB Mobile app are up to Date

The software of your device can be updated using Wi-Fi. See Wireless Map and Software Update Instructions for instructions.

Search for the VIRB Mobile app in the App Store or Google Play Store to see if updates are available for the app.


Format or Replace the SD Card

The SD card may need to be formatted to record more footage if it contains corrupted data. See Formatting the Camera microSD Memory Card or Map microSD Memory Card on a Garmin DriveAssist Device.

You may need to replace the card if the device still shows no videos recorded after formatting the card or if the card cannot be formatted. See SD Memory Card Sizes for Automotive Devices for information about recommended card sizes.


Contact Product Support if the device continues to fail to record any video.