Radar Detection - Recommendations?

[ALA G8R]

I've have used a Beltronics remote unit for years and it's saved my arse countless times. Stealth, semi-permanent install that turns on and off with accessory power. Highly recommended.

http://www.beltronics.com/vectorlrremote.html

 

[lifter213]

Originally posted by 03Cobra_Poison
So you V1 guys dont have a problem with laser detection with our windshields?

Well i have limo tint on all my windows and mine isnt affected. But if the laser detection goes off more than likely its cause your caught. Not much any of these radar detectors can do about laser. But regardless i use to have Escorts and since i got the V1 i'll never go back. Its by far the best i've used.

 

[Patrick-GT]

V1 is by far the best and has the best service. You can call and actually talk to the man who designed it. Arrows are a great help too because you know where it is coming from and where to look and see the potential cop. As someone else said the laser is almost pointless because A) not too many agencies use it and B) if you are hit with it you are already busted.

 

[SnakeBit]

And to add to the case for a V1, I have turned off the X-band function and have greatly reduced false alarms. If I wanted, I could also turn off the K-band as well.

As far as time to react, in addition to laser being a ticket detector, here in Georgia, the troopers are using instant on Ka when rolling. It's almost as good as laser for them. I got zapped a few times (luckily I wasn't speeding), trust me, no time to react.

Once you go arrows and counters, you'll never go back.

 

[ALLNTRL]

Escort 8500 here.

 

[HaulinBuggy]

V1 for me.

Originally posted by SnakeBit
As far as time to react, in addition to laser being a ticket detector, here in Georgia, the troopers are using instant on Ka when rolling. It's almost as good as laser for them. I got zapped a few times (luckily I wasn't speeding), trust me, no time to react.

That's funny, I thought all of the troopers were out to get me.

 

[c0dy]

ive never seen a printed test that the v1 didnt win every catagory. and if you can find one, i seriously doubt itll lose in the detection, probably in ergonomics or something

 

[maoun]

instant-on isn't really valid in court....lots of precedent to help you there

v1 is the only way to go

 

[Nuclrslug]

Valentine!
I was racing a guy on my way home from work in my 02' Bimmer. I was pulling on him at 130 (governor) when my detector went off. By this time I was far enough ahead I couldn't see him. I slowed down and rolled throught the trap at 70. My exit was about 3/4 a mile up the road from the trap and when I was on the overpass I see that Mr. Fife nabbed the guy I was racing. Poor guy, I wonder if he ever figured out what happened. Thank you Mike Valentine!
(I also run the remote with the power wires tucked away so as not to give Mr. Fife another reason to pull me over).

 

[svt03cobra10th]

OK, just wanted to talk a little bit about this. The Valentine One is a good detector, but, it does absolutely no good for it to detect on the left and right. Because of the way that radar works, (doppler), the police officer has to be in front of you or behind you. I have in depth knowledge of the radar detector market, but due to a confidentiality clause I can't tell you why. I will tell you that there are several radar detectors that will do just as good a job for less money. Cobra, Bel, Whistler and Passport are all good detectors. I personally have a Whistler 1790se and it has saved my butt on several occasions. I have nothing against the V1 except they are marketing a feature that is pointless. Yes thier detection range is a little better than my Whistler, but my 1790 has picked up KA at a range of a little over a half a mile. Most police radar guns are only good for about 1000 ft anyway. Go to www.radartest.com they don't accept advertising and offer a non-biased look at the market. For the laser, your screwed about 99% of the time. If your detector goes off in laser, he probably has you. The cone for that is tiny. If you really want to get around laser the best thing on the market is the Passport SRX for $1600. Anyway, PM me if you have any questions about what I have said.

 

[SonicTide]

While you are entirely correct that radar can't nab you from the side, I disagree that the feature is useless. Radar detectors are about situational awareness and providing information. They are not the be-all-end-all in ticket avoidance and it is still up to the driver to decipher that info and to always be alert and looking for that cop that hasn't used his radar until you are in his sights. The directional arrows provide much more information about what is out there. Many people have said it on here before but once you lived with the arrows and bogey counter, you'll wonder how you ever lived w/o them.

 

[svt03cobra10th]

Sonic,
I agree 100% that it is all about situational awareness and the driver knowing what is going on around them. My point was a lot of ppl have made comments in this thread and others that the V1 is the best detector to have in you car. IMHO, what it comes down to is how much are you willing to spend. Just like the mods that we do. Personally to me, the bogey counter is a marketing angle, a very good one, but still a marketing angle. Just like golf, I don't worry about the last shot or the next. What matters to me is the one right here and right now. I am considering going to the Passport SRX just because it is a neat gismo, but logically, I haven't justified to myself the $1600 for the unit. Any decent dectector will give you a good tactical picture, what the driver does with that information is the key. So what it comes down to is am I willing to spend more money for a unit that will do the same thing as a cheaper one. The effective cone in KA band is ~50ft, or four lanes of traffic at 1000ft. The effective cone for LIDAR is ~14ft at 1000ft.

I guess my bottom line point is, get a detector. If you are driving one of our cars w/o one. You are nutts. Unless you have a garage queen that has never seen 70 mph. At any rate, good discussion, have a great day my friend. See you on the playground.

 

[01blkcovert]

LOVE MY PASSPORT. Saved my a-- many times!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[NJCOBRA10thA]

Don't forget you can take a V1 use the concealed display and remote speaker and mount it such that it can't be seen from outside the car therefore making it into a sort of remote detector.

I have done this and have no fears about theft because you can't see it from the otuside. For that matter from the inside all you see is a blacked out volume control which looks more like it would control a sub. You also see the concealed display top left of drivers side. I have blacked out the writing so it's all black unless the lights are on.

To me this is the best of both worlds and it's still portable if I want to pop it into another car.

The unit itself sits on the rear deck raised just enough to have a good view for lidar. the sides are wrapped in carpet and it's velcroed down firmly. Above it sits a hat facing rearwards. The rear lidar is obscured but I have checked and cops don't use it that way here. If it were a problem I could cut a hole in the hat. Forward facing laser detector is exposed because I leave the plastic clips of the basebal hat opened. I have a medium tint on the rear and back windows no tint upfront.

Sensitivity is awesome. Bogey counter hasn't affected me much lately but has helped after passing 1 trap and seeing a 2nd bogey on the counter I knew not to resume speed yet.

The arrows are great.

 

[Bigg Slimm]

Where would be a good place to buy a V1 at a discount, or are these hard to find at a discount and usually sell at retail?

 

[caveman6666]

Originally posted by svt03cobra10th
The effective cone for LIDAR is ~14ft at 1000ft.

Not true. From the side of the road, at an angle, where laser is most often used, the coverage area is much larger. The beam would be narrow only if shot from dead on - out in the lane, or from an overpass.

The usual description of the laser beam—four feet in diameter at 1000 feet—overstates its precision in actual use, too. Henry Roberts, a retired Bell Labs scientist and another of Maccarone's expert witnesses, pointed out the "slice of bologna" problem. Laser gunners don't stand in the road, they stand alongside it, and therefore see a slight side view of traffic. What happens when the invisible beam sweeps down the side of a string of vehicles? Imagine bologna cut at a small angle. With a beam angle of two degrees to traffic, he calculates the active end of the beam to be an ellipse about 115 feet long. From what does it produce its reading? Laser accuracy and reliability can never be separated from the question "What did it hit?"

The article initially appeared in Car and Driver. Check out the pics.

http://www.moederdegans.nl/de_bologna_slice_kwestie.htm

Either way, with the advent of laser, a detector alone doesn't cut it anymore. A jammer or 'diffuser' is essential. Unless you're lucky enough to pick up a stray beam fired at another vehicle, all the detector will do is inform you you're about to get a summons.

 

[svt03cobra10th]

Caveman, You are right the number that I used for the LIDAR cone was from a 000 or 180 relative position.

 

[NIELSTTCOBRA]

ups tracking says i get my valentine one today...
going on a road trip to temecula to visit my buddy (stopping off at so.cal.diablo to install my 2.80 RR pulley, accufab throttle body, and a predator tune by shawn) on thursday and will let you know how it works on hwy. 5 when i'm doing a buck ten the whole way.
any suggestions on what bands i should have on for the trip.

 

[Chucko]

Use one of these:

http://www.escortradar.com/x50.htm

hooked up via the built-in shift-link technology to one of these:

http://www.escortradar.com/zr3.htm


This combo will cost you about $800 (installed) but if it saves you from even one of those 120-in-a-65 tickets it's more than paid for itself.

This combo approach yields great sensitivity to radar and will shift the laser signal to protect you against that type of threat.

The V1 is a good unit but it can't come close to what this combo offers.

 

[JP]

Protection

V1