Radar Detectors What Do You Recommend?

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i just have a basic cobra that i got at radio shack for a hundred bucks. got it hardwired in, so i dont have the annoying squiggly cord running to the cigarette lighter. i have gotten two tickets with it, but i'm out of state licenses living in texas. go figure. i got one for driving by myself at night doing well over the speed limit and got busted in a speed trap. but it did save me about 10 mph of me hitting the brakes. and the other was laser, so i was screwed from the beginning. just a way to look at it, figure out how much you averagely (i think i just made up a word) speed, and find out the average price for a ticket that range is. thats the minimum you should spend on a radar detector (i got a cheap one cause i'm a college student, oh well.). the first time your radar detector saves you, it will have paid for itself. mine has paid for itself many times over. just a way to look at it. i have heard the valentine1 is the way to go though.
 
I know the best system ever for avoiding speeding tickets and it not only is free it saves you loads of money. Don't speed.



Gerry Mac
 
Gerry - I generally drive 5 over the limit. However, it's nice to have a radar detector for those highway patrols that like to give tickets for only doing 5 over. Plus, the new detectors now detect emergency vehicles.
 
I have NEVER known any LEO that would write you for 5 mph over. I wrote at 22 Km over, although I don't write tickets now, I am sure there are some though that would do that kind of chciken-poop stuff. Especially if he was jealous of that great looking Trac.

P.S. I wasn't preaching or meaning to anyway just offering an alternative opinion.



Gerry Mac
 
I have two Cobra radar/laser/K/Ka Band detectors (one in each vehicle) They are about 8-9 years old and have worked flawlessly. I have never gotten a ticket or even been stopped since I bought them. They only cost about $60 each.



My recommendation would be based on the type of speed checking equipment used in your area., Around here there is only on local community that uses Laser. I don't go through there very often but my Cobra unit did pick-up their Laser in plenty of time since he was aming at vehicles ahead of me.



My personal preference would be for an Escort or Valentine. But I don't drive that fast anymore to warrant the extra cost.



...Rich
 
I use and Escort Passport 8500 X50. I've only received one ticket since I got the detector, and it was on a road where the speed changed from 50-30mph without any signs. I took a video of the road and went to court and still lost, but oh well. It picks up laser, ka, k, and x, but you can adjust the x-band sensitivity. It can track up to 8 different radar signals at a time, or it can show you just the strongest signal. Mine has saved my butt plenty of times, and I've got it hard wired in up above the rear view mirror via the project here, as well as have the "remote" turn-off down by the HVAC controls.



I think I paid $350 when it was brand new on the market 1 1/2 years ago.
 
I have never written a ticket for less then 10 over, generally its 15 over, and I do not know any officer that has written one for 5 over, however I have heard about it in other states. One thing I can guarantee you if I DO get someone at 10 or more over and they DO have a radar detector then they DO get a ticket. On the other hand a nice sorry officer I wasn't paying attention to my speed might just get you a warning. It isn't any secret that officers are much more likely to give a ticket to someone with a radar dectector beacause it shows that they likely have a tendency to speed, so though it may get you stopped less it may increase your likelyhood of getting a ticket. My advice, slow down and then you wont have to depend on it to save your butt.
 
firedog, do officers look for radar detectors? Mine is above my rear view mirror on the passenger side of the overhead console and unless you knew it was there and were looking for it, I doubt you'd find it. Also, I've discovered that the best way to get out of a ticket is when the officer asks "do you know why I pulled you over" You just knod your head and say "well I'm just a dumba$$" not really sarcastic, but just kinda sorrowful, and usually they'll laugh, run your license and send you on your way with a warning (at least that's how I've gotten out of 6 tickets)
 
firedog,

I know people who have gotten tickets for going less than 5 MPH over the speed limit !!!



I look at this way. If the radar detector prevents a cop from stopping you for speeding, then it did it's job. If you were going so fast that the radar detector could not warn you early enough to slow down, you deserve the ticket, and you will probably get one anyway whether you have a radar detector or not. If you are stopped, it's all up to the descretion of the office. Since they cannot see my radar detectors, it would not make any difference.



...Rich







 
I know people who have gotten tickets for going less than 5 MPH over the speed limit !!!
Click to expand...



Theresa has gotten a ticket for going 36 MPH in a 35 zone at 11 PM. She told the cop her speedometer was at exactly 35, but he didn't care. The court was a mayors court and since the mayor is the judge, you always lose.



Federal laws says that you are allowed to receive any radio signal broad casted. I am exercising my right to receive the radio signal a police officer broadcasts via a RADAR gun. RADAR stands for RAdio Detection And Ranging. If my RADAR detector goes off, I can look at my speedometer and know if I need to slow down or keep going my present speed. I also know if my speed was clocked and if the police officer pulling out is coming after me.





Tom
 
I've done a substantial amount of reading and chatting with others on this topic recently since i'm also considering getting a new radar detector. Along with the standard reviews one of the things I've been reading as part of my random reading is people's logs from long (hundreds or thousands of miles) high-speed non-officially sanctioned races since the people doing those are probably more likely to be concerned than the average citizen.



Between everything I've read the Passport 8500 X50 or the Bel equivelent are the best mass-market detectors and the Valentine 1 is right up there but tends to have more false positives and gives you way less data since it has a fairly basic interface. I think the advanced interface would be cool so I'm kind of torn right now but then I was thinking about my last sports car (a '95 Eagle Talon) where wanted to keep it discreet and kept the display off. The Valentine offers a remote display that can be relocated to to the place of your choosing...



The oher thing that I've been contemplating is whether or not I want the Lidar jamming functionality of some of the products on the market. The 8500 offers an interface to their Laser jamming product, which I've read is at least somewhat effective, although I'm not sure since I haven't tested it myself...



To summarize: Right now I'm torn between the Valentine 1 and the Passport 8500 X50. I suspect if I don't opt for the laser jamming i'll stick to the Valentine 1 since you can get a full remote display for it. If I opt for the laser jamming I'll go for the 8500.
 
The 8500 has a remote hook up as well. That little black box below my a/c controls is the remote hooked up to the X50. When a signal is detcted a red light starts flashing, and there is a button I can press instead of hitting the mute button on the unit up on the window.



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Caymen...36 in a 35, and she couldn't get off by claiming that was within the margin of error of her speedometer and the radar gun (or other technique used to observe speed)? I would have refused to pay...everyone has a superior, there's always a higher court.



TJR
 
Question RichardL, you said its a federal law that we can recieve any radio signals broadcasted. Then how are radar dectors illegal in Virginia if its a federal law. I just want to know for the next time i am up there.
 
36 in a 35? That cop should be dragged out and hung by his gonads. God I hate stupid cops like that. Makes every cop look bad. Alas, there are cops out there like that. Most never finished 3rd grade but got hired anyway.
 

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