Hello - I am looking to invest in a radar detector because I recently got a ticket. I hear that the Valentine 1 is the way to go.

Anybody have any suggestions and pictures of a clean mounting of one in their car?

Thanks!

 

i prefer the http://www.escortradar.com/passport9500ix-details.php
my escort detects earlier than my friends valentine

 

see 037's set up

 

Thank you Chas.

At the moment I have an Escort Redline installed. That replaced Escort Passport 8500 X50 Blue (useless for detecting laser and I'm sure Redline is too).

Note that Redline uses a different setup from the 8500 X50 and thus has a slightly better range.

Note that 9500ix uses the same setup as the 8500 X50 and adds GPS but not extra range.

In the states that uses laser guns (such as NJ and NY), a shifter/jammer such as Escort ZR3 would do wonders.

Ex: It's a Sunday afternoon, good amount of cars on a 4 lane interstate, doing my 90 in the left lane minding my own business. Got a Honda on my tail maybe 10 cars down just keeping up to make sure I get the ticket.

Drive by a cop, I get lasered. He pulls out, follows us with sirens. Honda gets out of the way so I can have the ticket and...gets the ticket.

Laser shifter ftw. Sorry Honda.

Feel free to PM me if you got any more questions. I got shifter and radar hard wired.

 

The V1 is the best detector in many people's eyes. It has been rated number one by many publications and it's the only detector that the gumballers use. My dad has a 9500ix and I tested my V1 against his on a road trip and the V1 handily beat it every time, k, ka, and laser. The V1 is the only detector that has saved me numerous times from laser. Also once you have the bogey counter and arrows you will never go back to a "beep beep" detector again. I hard wired mine into the fuse box so it comes on every time I start the car, just get the kit from V1's website.

 

There are dozens of sites that are pro Escort and Valentine and I won't get into a fight of who's best and by what margin.

But I will say that the only defense against laser is a jammer/shifter or driving the speed limit.

 

Shouldn't the detector be mounted higher on the windshield to increase the receiving angle of radar from the front, and to give the front mounted receiver (for radar being shot at you from the back) line of sight through the rear window? Doesn't V1 recommend mounting high on the windshield?

 

Yes but I don't want it sitting in the middle of my windshield and or up by my rear view mirror. It has worked perfectly fine for me so I'm keeping it there. Also with it being there I have been able to turn off all the volume and just look at it when it lights up, otherwise it annoys my wife by going off all the time.

 

going off all the time is not a good thing for a detector. Unless you're being followed by a cop with a radar gun...

I hear Escort had a lot less false alerts...ehehe

sorry, couldn't resist a jab at an easy target.

 

I clip my Escort 8500X50 on the driver's sunvisor on the left side. Note that the sunvisor clip does not come with the Escort and you have to order it from Escort.

I run a wire down the A pillar and it goes to the fuse box on the left and the Escort is thus hard wired. The Escort is on when ever the ignition is on.

While this set up is not the most optimal in terms of sensivity. It is a very steathy set up as you can't see it from the outside. So you don't get broken window from potential radar detector thiefs

And you don't get the unmark car tailing you for miles because they know if you have a detector, you are most likely to speed.

Plastics
05 RL silver

 

How do you get the wires to the fusebox? Is it pretty easy to do? And which fuse?

 

This becomes a religous debate between the Passport and V1 users. You won't go wrong with either one.

The advantages of the V1 are the arrows and it may be a little more sensitive. The drawback is that the V1 is known to be very "chatty" (i.e. falses a lot). The problem with that is that in urban areas it can get annoying and you may also become desensitized to the warnings and begin to ignore the alerts.

http://www.radardetector.net/forums/
I have owned several Passports, 8500, 8500 X50 and 9500i. The 8500X50 is in my wife's car. I've owned the 9500i for at least a couple of years now.

The Passports are definitely more quiet. I get very few falses and more than adequate warnings. I've caught K and Ka warnings from as far away as 1.5 miles. The V1 may give you another .5 mile... maybe, but the trade off is the falses. For me 1.5 miles is more than enough time to slow down.

The Passport 9500ix line also has GPS capabilities that will allow you to mark and filter known false sources like grocery stores. You can also mark known speed trap areas so you get a warning when you approach and you can download updates from Escort on known red light camera locations.

All my Passports have served me well. If you're going the Passport route though I would opt for the 9500i models or above. The X50 is a good basic detector with good range. It works for my wife, but i like the added functionality of the GPS feature.

Passport 9500i series
Pros
GPS filtering
marking speed traps
Configurable display, when receiving multiple signals allows the ability to see strength of each signals
QUIET QUIET QUIET

Cons
No arrows like the V1
slightly less range than the V1

V1
Pros
Arrows
Longer range
multiple signal indicator (but shows strenght of only one)

Cons
more falses


Hope that helps. You can also go to this website to get more information.

 

I am also very happy with the Passport 8500 x50. I had 2 of them and they were great. Some false alarms but nothing annoying. The range is great except when cops use laser. With laser, unless you have a jammer - nothing will help.

Another detector that is 100% identical to the Passport 8500 X50 is the BEL RX 65 Red/Blue. I have it now and it is as good as the Passport 8500 x50 it replaced. I got a better deal on the BEL detector. Since Escort owns BEL, they offer the same product under a different brand.

 

i had it 10yrs love it. it is not chatty if you set it in lower "L" mode but having had many types of radar detectors having know idea where the cop is. THE V1 with arrows pointing to the smokey is the greatest detector i will never go back to looking over my shoulders days.... You will love it TOO!

 

8500 X50 is not a "basic" detector, it's got the same sensors as 9500xi.

V1 arrows are nice, but threat wise not important (unless your detector never shuts up). Radar signal means stop, doesn't really matter where it's coming from.

 

That is correct, the sensors are the same. By "basic" I meant you don't have GPS, and the ability to mark speed traps, areas that are typically false alarms or the ability to download the national database of known red light cameras.

From a detection standpoint they are the same.

 

Agree with this point too. As soon as I get a K or Ka warning, I slow down. I love my Passport. It has more than paid for itself. It gives me plenty of warning and it's quiet. I am hardly ever having to mute it for false alarms, and when it goes off, I'm pretty sure it's REAL radar.

Same for my wife's X50.

 

hello tphan RL,
To hardwire your radar detector to the fuse box. Pick a fuse which is not too critical and that goes on with the igntion...like the radio or something like that..wrap the "hot"wire of the detector around the fuse and shove it back in....connect the ground wire of the detector to some any screw you find around the dash that is convenient . ..and that's basically it. It should be a 5 minute job.

Plastics
05 RL silver

 

You are wrong about the arrows not being important. They have saved my ass many times, the V1 goes off and it says there is a cop ahead of me with the bogey counter saying one, then as I pass that cop the arrow changes to behind and bogey counter goes to two with arrows pointing to ahead and behind. There is another cop ahead waiting for you! It's called a speed trap and only the V1 can save you from that. Also the arrows tell you if the cop is coming from ahead or behind you, quite important info if you ask me.

 

Although this is an old test it is unbiased unlike some others out there. Also to my knowledge the updates to the Escort line have been GPS info and tracking of speed camera's that were there before. The V1 is still superior in range and with the arrows and bogey counters I'm sure it would still come in first today.

http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/...mparison_tests

 

wcoy, not to burst your bubble, but the arrows are still unimportant.

You get to 1st cop, your detector alerts you, you keep going, if the detector is still going off, you still should be going slow.

If you speed up before the detector quiets down...your own fault for getting a ticket.

You don't need arrows to go speed limit while the chirper is going off.

Also, Escort Redline is the latest and "greatest".

Either way, V1 arrows are not important. As for quality of detection, it could go either way with tons of reviews going each way.

 

Sorry I don't think you understood my post. In a speed trap the following happens. With the V1 as you approach a cop ahead the arrow points ahead and the bogey counter says one. As you pass that cop the bogey counter then signals two and the arrows point to ahead and behind, hence you are in a speed trap and you know there is a cop waiting ahead even though with other detectors will just continue to "beep" and you think you can speed up. If you don't understand still I'm sorry but you don't have a V1 and if you read the article and talk to anyone who has a V1 you will get it once you have the arrows and bogey counter. While your "latest" and "greatest" beeps at you I will watch my arrows and bogey counter. You are more than welcome to form your own opinion but there is a reason why every Gumballer uses V1's only. Your latest comments are merely opinions while mine are facts based on real world situations.

 

If you put the Escort in Expert Mode/Display it will show the signal strength of each signal it encounters.

So to use the example wcoy gives, initially you would see one signal with a stronger signal as the other. As you pass the one (stronger) signal you should see that signal's strength lessen and the other signal's strength increase.

Maybe not the same as the arrows on the V1, but you can get a similar understanding. Either way as 037 states, I'm not letting my guard down as long as I am getting any sort of alert.

 

I would think that would happen in any detector no? Its signal strengh would change at some point based on the movement of your vehicle and the cops cars right? Or it may stay very similar if the cops are close to each other. Either way the V1's arrows tell you were the cops are and how many cops are around which no other detector has.

 

I don't think you read my post very clearly even though I tried to double space and all.

I don't know what a Gumballer is and which product they indorse, but as I said previously there are opinions going either way.

The point is: if the detector is chirping, you shouldn't be speeding.

 

As you have now resorted to trying to make fun instead of arguing your point I know that I have won that discussion.

The gumball 3000 is a cross country rally in which rich men who aren't good enough to race on a track take to the streets and try and outrun each other. To keep from being pulled over all the time they all run V1's.

 

I hope they are packing laser jammers too as once you get hit with laser in NY or NJ, you can toss your detector (V1 or escort).

 

Not necessarily. Most radar detectors (including the V1) give you the signal strength of only the strongest signal. The V1 will indicate how many signals it has detected, but it will show you the strength of only the strongest signal.

In Expert mode, the Passports (X50 on up) will show you the signal strength of up to six signals at the same time, not just the strongest. The 9500 series will also give you an audible warning stating, "multiple signals detected".

So as I stated earlier, as you progress through a speed trap you can monitor the signal strength of all the signals. As one begins to dissipate and another increases, you know there's another cop nearby.

 

or you can just go speed limit until all the signals are gone...as I stated to begin with.

 

Agree, but I was making a point that the arrows aren't the "be all/end all".

 

I don't think that's gonna work because the arrows are necessary to make up for the extra false alerts they get.

 

to bring fun back into equation, I had a person about 300 feet in front of me get shot with laser at 130mph and my Redline top of the line Escort detector said...




















NOTHING.

I wonder how V1 reacts to laser. My old X50 got me two laser tickets.

 

Fortunately while driving with my Escorts I have not gotten any tickets, but that's largely due to....














































Fortune.

When your detector starts screaming laser, all it's doing is reducing the distance the cop has to chase you with his lights on. You might as well just pull over.

 

that is what stealth jammers are for...I got 5 confirmed kills (that's when I get hit and the person directly behind me enjoys the ticket)

stock


stealth

 

As I said, all of this stuff is a religous debate. In the end there are a few tips that if you follow will increase your chances of not getting pulled over.

Number 1 - A detector is a good investment but remember it's not foolproof. Any decent detector will do a reasonable job of saving you if the cop has his radar in "constant on" mode.

Number 2 - Instant on radar is deadly. A laser warning is deadlier. It basically means your going to be a few hundred dollars lighter in your wallet.

You might be able to guard against instant on by doing the following...

Number 3 - If you're going to speed, always make sure there's a "rabbit" (another car) in front of you. You might be able to catch instant-on when the cop times the rabbit in front of you.

Number 4 - (This is the most important) If you are the only car on the road, especially in the middle of the night, DON'T SPEED.

I have a heavy right foot and I went almost 15 years without getting pulled over for speeding by radar until I got cocky and ignored Rule Number 4 on a road trip 5 years ago. I was driving through central Wisconsin around midnight and I was the only car on the road for a while. I had been consistently been going between 85 - 90 mph in a 65 mph zone. I had slowed down to 86 and as I hit the crest of a hill, my Escort lit up like a Christmas tree. I pulled over before the trooper put the car in drive and drove off the grassy median. 26 miles over the limit. Ouch.

Lastly, you can also try not speeding.......

 

Yeah but some states are banning lidar jammers as well. I know Illinois recently did.

 

rule #4 - soo true

 

Has anyone used this with a V1 or 9500ix successfullly to get extra warning time for laser detection?

 

I have never used it but here is my experience.

Every time I got hit with laser my radar detector said nothing. I know for a fact a person driving 4 cars in front of me got hit with laser and my top of the line Escort Redline said nothing.

My advice: get a jammer if it is legal or don't speed.

 

Mine has gone off many times for laser, probably 10-15 times a year and I have never received a ticket from laser. Hit the brakes and hope for the best.