Does anyone have a suggestion on a good radar detector. I've never had one before but might be a good idea now. Engine mods are on the way.

I have the Valentine 1 (http://www.valentine1.com/) and have also got a ticket TWICE with it.There is NO fool proof detector ,instant on is just that.Lets you know your going to be delayed

Pull over and chat with the officer :o:

i have the passport 8500, and like it a whole lot, saved my ass more than once, i have a two left for sale in the classifieds, for a very good price, one brand new
http://dieselplace.com/forum/showthread.php?t=25149

another vote for the V1. it has paid fo ritself already.like makcin said though, istant on or if you are the only vehicle on the road, no advanced warning means $$$

Valentine 1 and Escort Passport 8500 are the top two. Depends on who you talk to. There was a big thread just a couple months ago and this was the verdict.

I run the Escort.

Hey Bugsby, Most departments now use laser radar The ones that
look like a big gun. I would not spend my money on a detector, why, they are almost
impossible to detect. I know - I drive one of those white crown vic's with letter on the side. The old radio wave type of radar could be detected because as the sound traveled out from the device it got larger and larger. It bounced back from the first object and thats how the device recived it. The extra radio waves just continued on. Those were the waves that detectors picked up. The new laser radar does not do this. They can be detected but only if the lasar is pointed at you, and it is to late by then.
John

pwerdmax please tell me you don't frequent the trap that's on 85 near the airport, the 75-55 for 2 miles-75 area?

Escort, I have had an Escort radar detector for 20+ some years and have never had a ticket either in my truck or the Corvette. I've never been one to drive slow and pass way more than I am passed.

Had a couple close calls with laser, but have not been pulled over yet. I was doing 85+ across S. Dakota, as soon as I heard the bleep from that detector I hit the breaks, all I got was a dirty look as I went by.

Escort 8500

Hey Spoolin, That is College Park. I do work South Fulton. But I try to stay in the country - Fairburn- Palmetto. Yes they are there just about every night. College Park is building a new court complex - they need the money.
John

I hate that trap. 4 different precincts collide there and everyone is out there with a speed gun...

Valentine 1. Still the best.

Nothing does much good against lidar. All they can tell you is that you just got clocked.

actually the passport has a add on you buy that scrables the lasser of a few seconds and alarms so you can slow down, i have heard they work great

Another vote for the V1.

Best part is it has the arrows to tell you where the radar is coming from.

Valentine One. Had them since they first came out over 10 years ago. Plus, as they upgrade them over time, you can trade in old ones toward new ones.

Nothing is 100% protection, particularly in these days of laser and instant on radar. You are most vulnerable when you are the only car on the road. However, if there is any traffic at all, you can usually pick up signals when they are shooting at the vehicle you are following, even if you are following by a half mile.

With fines, insurance surcharges, etc., it only needs to save you once to pay for itself.

I got my Val 1 on March 8. This past Sunday the laser detector went off. Then again and again and again until it was almost constant. I even went so far as to put it in the center console and it still went off. Covered both openings so no light could get in and it was still going off pointing forward the whole time.

Called them (I'm still in the 30 day money back guarantee window) and asked for a new one. Nope. They won't do it. :mad:

Had me FedEx it back for repair. Said they don't replace units. So I guess we'll see what happens. Right now, I'm not very happy with a $400 discretionary item that breaks after two weeks and they won't replace it.

At least the FedEx was on their dime, but in the meantime, I'm without the purchase I made for over a week (eating away my 30 day MBG).

The supervisor I spoke with said it happens very rarely, but it does happen. Assured me it would be repaired and returned within a day, but since it took two weeks to break the first time, and then I spent 3 days following their tech support suggestions to finally determine it was defective, what's to say it won't do it again and then I'm out of the return period.

I'm sure there are units out there that have been flawless, but not mine. FYI.
:rant:

Chisuzu:

Were you driving into the sun when it happened, or have some snow blowing around?

Dirt on the windshield, or blowing snow off the hood, can diffuse the sunlight and fool the detector into thinking it is a laser signal.

Kinda sorta into the sun on Sunday. White truck. I know. Then this week its been snowing on and off. That's why it took 3 days of trying stuff to finally determine that it was most likely the laser board inside.

Wednesday, it was kinda cloudy and overcast and the thing was losing its mind. That's when I stuck it in the console to see if it would stop, but it went off, again and again. Then I covered it up and it kept going off. When I pulled into the drive at the house, it was facing a pasture and was still going off. I covered it up again and it just kept on going like the Energizer Bunny.

Keep in mind that it didn't do this for almost two weeks. Then it just started out of the blue. Since I installed gauges I thought they might be causing some interference so I moved it around and such, all for nothing.

Chisuzu:

Were you driving into the sun when it happened, or have some snow blowing around?

Dirt on the windshield, or blowing snow off the hood, can diffuse the sunlight and fool the detector into thinking it is a laser signal.


Another reason to buy an Escort, NEVER have had these kind of problems.

I've also heard that the sun shining through a wet windshield will set the V1's off.

The arrows are a distraction and are useless....IMHO. I beaps, you slow down, who cares where it came from.

THEY are both good detectors but I have heard too many storys about their little quirks like above that make the V1's something I dont want to mess with.

Go to the V1 site and look under their FAQ's, they even talk about some of the prolbems.

Escort

Passport 8500 here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It is freakin awesome. It is the best I have ever owned. The dim feature is cool too especially in states where they are illegal, with the vg2 protection I have never had a issue. 3yrs. and ticket free! knock on wood

Even the non laser radars units can be pulsed now. So if you are the target your had.

I have the Valentine 1 (http://www.valentine1.com/) and have also got a ticket TWICE with it.There is NO fool proof detector ,instant on is just that.Lets you know your going to be delayed

Pull over and chat with the officer :o:
Mack,

I've lived in CT. I thought you were not suppose to have thoses evil things. ):h

I own both and the Val 1 is my 1st choice.
The wife has the Escort.:D

I swear by my Phazer Radar/Laser Detector/Jammer. 0 tickets so far!!I'd highly recommed it. :ro)

I got a $100 SENSORO LASER/RADAR Detector from Costco........

It detects all K,KA,X bands and Laser..........

CT State Police is running a super secret undetectable laser...........I have been coming into my town, not speeding and had the State Police Officer pointing it at me...........no warning, not even a beep........

I stopped and chatted with him one day...........battery operated, with a crosshair sight.........it is totally off when not on use...........it requires a simple click of the trigger like a gun...........and BAMMMMM he has ya........

He stands behind a tree on the school road which is 15 mph and when you get to the Stop Sign he is watching...........he gives out speeding and failure to STOP tickets........

Best advice is run with a PACK or don't speed.........I know if I am alone 5 mph over and that's it..........with a pack I try to piss off someone so they take the lead.........):h , then I use them as my blocker..........

T:cool: NY

Something else to consider- there are WAY less radar guns in use in my neck of the woods than the old Ka etc... So, IMHO, it's still worth cutting down your chances. Kind of like not playing the lotto when it's 'only' a million as opposed to 20 million- I'd rather get 2 tickets than 4 any day. And I have gotten 4 in a day before, ugh.


So, I run the Escort 8500 all the time.

when I was selling them, Valentine took top honors, then on the list that was produced for dealers was a Bell, then a Passport. These arent the cheap ones that hang on the walls for sale either, they have that line, but the goods noe are up in price.