does those radar detectors really work???
if so... which brand? model?
Cobra? Whistler? Escort? Bel?

i know Valentine one Radar Detector is the best... but its such a rip off costed too much...

i cant stay on the speed limit (i'm at CA too many cops here)... i'm having too much fun with my new TL... so i guess i need a good radar detector to avoid those tickets (but not too expensive maybe around 100)...

thank you so much

 

Check this out: http://www.acura-tl.com/ubb/Forum1/HTML/001992.html

 

My $100 Whistler from WalMart works fine, picks cops up from really far away. ALL detectors give false alarms, though, but false alarms seem to always be X-band, while the cops here use K and Ka-band almost exclusively. Very few cops use laser. get a detector that reads Ka, which is pretty much every detector.

The V1 also reads behind you with a dedicated antenna, but 'normal' detectors such as mine will also find cops behind you pretty easy, too. I couldn't justify $400 for a V1, either, as detectors can only help so much with instant-on radar and laser. A little help is all I wanted, and I'm 100% satisfied with my purchase.

there's a good post on the CL board on how to hardwire the detector, and that's what I did. I never take it out of the car as it's nearly invisible from the outside due to being right below the passenger visor and hidden behind the tint band on the top of the windshield. Highly reccomend you do the same, just follow the instructions in the post to the letter and it'll take maybe 25 minutes. It comes on when I turn the car on, and off when off. Painless! Plus, I smoke and still have use of my $135 cigarette lighter.

The Whistler is cool b/c you can set different levels of dimming for the indicator lights on the display, so people behind you don't know that you're running a detector. I don't think the V1 does this, but the V1 does have a cool remote-mount option that costs like $35 more or so. Hope this helps.

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'01 WDP TL
Momo shift, wing, tint, Whistler 5-band.
'88 White RX-7 Convertible
BBS, Kenwood 'Flip-face,' Fosgate Fanatic 4.3, Fosgate 8", Boston Acoustics.

 

Oh yeah, one last thought on detectors. The battery-powered ones are kinda cool if ya don't want to mess with power cords (i.e. - Solo, by Cincinati Microwave, makers of Escort). However, they admit that detection range is decreased with use of batteries, and come with a power cord for longer range use.

Neat, but low-performance and cost more, so probably not a good buy. get a decent detector and hardwire it, you'll be happy.

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'01 WDP TL
Momo shift, wing, tint, Whistler 5-band.
'88 White RX-7 Convertible
BBS, Kenwood 'Flip-face,' Fosgate Fanatic 4.3, Fosgate 8", Boston Acoustics.

 

so which brand should i pick? model?
Cobra? Whistler? Escort? Bel?

thanks

 

Gomez-

which model do you have?
do they really work?
should i go with Whistler? or other brands?
where are these RD made anyways?
made in usa the best or made in somewhere else?

thanks again

 

do i need the 6-band or the 9-band detector?

thank you all

 

Man, itchin' to spend some money, huh? :-)

Mine is the Whistler 1650, and yes - it really does work. It works very well, actually - better range than the Escort and Gul I used to have. Even has laser detection from rear, but cops don't really use that here. Also does a lot of other cool stuf that I don't need.

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'01 WDP TL
Momo shift, wing, tint, Whistler 5-band.
'88 White RX-7 Convertible
BBS, Kenwood 'Flip-face,' Fosgate Fanatic 4.3, Fosgate 8", Boston Acoustics.

 

I would go V1 anyday. Actually, I did; and I love it! It has been worth the extra $....

 

My brother-in-law has a V1 and he absolutely loves it. I have a Bel 840i (I think) that I got at Best Buy and I think it works very very well. It cost me around $80 and it's my second Bel detector. I do get some false alarms, but that's to be expected. It has a pretty decent range - sometimes I think I'm getting a false alarm and a couple minutes later I finally find the cop. Hope it helps...

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John

2000 TL WDP Nav

 

I've heard only great things bout the V1. Thats the one i would go with.

 

I personally would get a detector such as V1, but with instant on radar and laser I questioned the worth of a detector at all. The best radar detector is with your eyes. Look to see if speeding cars in front of you slow down for no apparent reason. Look to see if cars are bunched up together behind you which usually indicates a cop within their presence. Constantly keep look to the side and medians and other basic common sense stuff like that that I am sure you already knew.

 

I'd go with a V1. My other car, besides the TL is a "ticket magnet." I own it and use it and it saved me many times. The range of a V1 is by far better than any I've used(Bel & Uniden). Even R&T gave it their best rating beating all the other detectors. The only problem I have with it is the V1 is 1.)expensive 2.)really ugly and bulky looking. If a V1 is too expensive go with Bel, it supposed to be the next best thing.
Hope this helps!

 

Regarding the instant on laser/radar traps. You can only pick it up if the car ahead of you get's hit first. But because of V1's range you get a better advantage over the other detectors. Same thing goes with photo radar traps.

 

I'm all about the V1...If you don't believe me, try one out yourself. Put a few of the competetors on the dash next to the V1 and see who is the best i did that against a bunch of the leading competitors like the best detectors from K40, Bel and Escort and Whistler and even the SR1 which is just an installed version of the 7500 and the V1 had better range, less false alarms, plus the nice part is the fact that it tells you which way the radar is hitting you from. Is it ugly yes, and bulky yes, but does it work, yes...It only takes one ticket to pay for in terms of how much insurance you save by not getting the ticket....

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1996 2.5 TL Dark Green
HKS Powerflow, HKS Fuel Pressure Regulator, Sebring Exhaust, Jacobs Pro Street, Apex-i AFC, Jet ECU, Powerslot Rotors, Axxis Metal Master Pads, PIAA 1100x, Clarion 9255, Tube Driver Amps, Boston Pro 10's (2) , CD Technologies 6-4-2, Clarion 6.4 TV's (3), Cliford Avant Guard 4, Monster Capacitors (2), Jacobs Accuvolt, Trunk, Underdash and Underbody Neons
No nav yet but soon!!!

 

thank you everyone for helping me out!

 

Valentine would the best choice. Though, due to cost reasons I dont have one too . I have the Escort/Passport one. Iam pretty sure they have a nice higher model then mine out by now. The Escort/Passport has worked really really well for me!! Give it a try.