achen0122

i am currently using an old (2-3 yrs) cobra radar detector. I am thinking about getting a new one but am not sure if it will actually make a difference. anybody have any feedback about the escort 9500? any other recommendations? k40 is out of my price range haha

co1063

even a low end whistler (i have the pro-73) would perform better than what you have. but i'd say pro 73 or pro 78 for best value. but if you have money, then get the V1.

tjjarc

I, too, have put the radar detector away. It seems that my neighborhood has moved to laser and by the time the detector went off, i was already busted. I did make a change that I think works - I added license plate covers (the plastic thing that goes over the plates and are a little curved).

From my understanding, officers target the laser on a flat part of the car to take a reading - typically, they go for the license plate. By adding a curved surface, it gives you a couple more seconds to react. I should have been nailed a few times and that's the only thing I can think of that saved me.....

Of course, speeding is not condoned and we should always drive responsibly.

01tl4tl

laser gives them a pin point accuracy - and any part of the car will do, off the wiper arms- the front bumper the grill
If you didnt get popped, its because they have a minimum over the limit- that becomes a worthwhile fine, otherwise they just get the next guy.
Some places may have no leeway- the speed limit is the limit, while others may still spot you 10 -15 but 17 over is a 200+ fine- so its worth their time to write it. Thats when (as the wife discovered) they do the 52 in a 35 and wont cut it to 50 for you. MONEY!- what city or state isnt going broke?

The curved covers are more about overhead cameras like red light intersection cams, and as rapper DMX recently discovered in his '66 nova2- the freeway around Phoenix has speed laser cams on top of the light poles!
They need the license plate to send you the ticket.
And it comes in the mail with 3 pics- a close up of the plate, the 3/4 front view of the car, and your smiling faces as you go thru 3 of them at 101 104 and 113 MPH- we have a winner!!!
This one gets a personal visit and invitation downtown~

Pure Adrenaline

iTrader: (2)

I used to put faith in my trustworthy V1 but lately it has failed me on multiple occasions. One occasion resulted in a ticket. It simply failed to pick up a radar signal from about a hundred feet ahead. Feck!

Montaigne

I've got a V1. It's awesome. It's saved me countless times. The important thing is not be at the head of the pack or flying along all alone. The V1 will pick up the laser when they blast the cars ahead of you, often from a surprisingly long distance. Even more so with the Radar. I've been amazed at how far off I've picked up a lazy cop sitting with under a bridge with the radar on.

Of course, if you know they usually hide in a certain spot, slow down.

As much as the V1 costs, it paid for itself in the first month or two that I had it. The arrows are great, too.

goldendragon576

I think the V1 and passports are worth their price from saved tickets. My fiance didn't want to spend the $400 on the passport but she's happy she did...if you are saved from a ticket jsut once, it already paid for itself.

tradz

I have the Escort Passport 8500 and love it. It has saved me numerous times. It can detect those school zone radar signs from like 400 yards and even detects it over hills. This is the one I have and here is a great site to check out all your options...RadarBusters.com I remember that it saved me from a Jersey trooper on 95 when i was going to Va. I think they use Ka band, which this detector is good at finding.

Cboyfresh

I have an 8500x50 escort...the best for the price IMO

achen0122

is the only difference between the escort 9500 and the 8500 the gps? do you guys think its worth it?

Cboyfresh

that was exactly what I was thinking when I was in your position, and I found that the 8500 x50 (make sure its an x50) was the better choice money wise...Believe me, it has payed for itself many times, and I don't purposely speed that much any ways.

fsttyms1

The 9500 is a sweet unit. Expensive but sweet. My buddy has one and its better than my 8500 (which is better than my V1) Im planning on upgrading to the 9500

Black_dc2

<-- K40 Calibre, wouldn't trade it for anything.

achen0122

haha my car at the shop quoted me $1200 for that! i rather put in a new exhaust and headers for that much.. but yes I have heard amazing things about the k40s

ice2fire11

at first i thought the 9500 was a little too much, but the gps comes in very handy.

1. for annoying purposes.... driving by any motion sensing doors that use x band and you have it on highway mode, god ive come close to throwing the thing out the window.

2. sometime, the sneaky little piggies will hide in range of these annoyances and while your 15 over and think its that same false alarm that happens everyday, in turn becomes a nice ticket.

we sell, escort and cobra, but escort is the best imo.

Dicster

I used to have a passport 8500 X50, works great. I decided to buy another radar and try the V1, but not happy with it. It's good at picking up signals, but it picks up all kinds of signals. I got more signals beep with the V1. I read that the 9500 have better circuitry that will decrease false signals and with the built in GPS, that will further reduce false alert. The only thing i like about the V1 is that you can upgrade with new technology without buying a whole new radar in the future.

Tommy99TL

What do you think about 9500 vs STI in term of performance?
I like STI for the fact that it can hide RDD from the cop, but if it picks up more inaccurate signal than 9500 then it wont worth to me!

blkaspec

i have also been trying to compare these two, but havent found a clear winner. i read something that said the Sti was more like a BMW, and the 9500i was more like a Mercedes or something, but i couldnt really tell what that meant. I do know that the non-window mount versions(the ones that require professional install) of both of these are better in every way, especially with the 9500. But these systems are like $1000-2000. It seems like more TL owners are using the Escort over the Bel. I am using an older Bel and it was worked great, but the speaker or sound has recently crapped out on me and i really need to hear the warnings...

fsttyms1

That is one of the reasons i gave my V1 to the gf. i was sick of all the falses. the passport is the best. The only thing nice is the arrows, but you can easily live without those.

2N10s

IMO V1 is the best
i've tested it against the Escort 8500X50 and the passport (can't remember the model)
As annoying as most ppl say it does detect alot of signals but hey better to be safe then sorry also that there's a second volume control just for fasle alarms on the V1... and another thing when my radar beeps i'm always keeping an eye out wheather which side of the road it's on/direction. so in this case the V1 aids me on finding where the source is as oppose to the other two.

Test 1: comming straight up and down hills to the target the V1 arrow would light up as the fist indicator b4 any beeps and before the Escort & passport hence i have a way better time to react and slow down.

Test 2: around the corner at roughly 90degrees if not a sharper corner. once again the V1 arrow would light up about 60ft BEFORE approching the corner and the other 2 radars stay queit just untill i'm half way around the turn is when they all go off.

fsttyms1

Sounds like you took that out of a magazine.

Im sorry i have both (V1 actually being newer). And can tell you from testing with friends that are cops (see other radar thread) the 8500 picked up K and KA further than the V1. Not like range really matters with those 2 as they will both pick them up over a mile away. Also the metering system on the 8500/9500 is far superior (showing up to 12 and their strengths different radar signals)

blkaspec

from what i have read the only competition the V1 wins is in laser detection.

wind'on'the'road

I used to have a Cobra in my other car, and a passport in my TL. Now I took them all out. Reason, I was taunt by a f*#@$% state police in OH after being pulled over in my tl. I learn the best thing to do is stay alert and use common sense. In Jersey where I live, the state troopers are always taking certain spots on the highway, so remembering where they hide is the best way to avoid a ticket. Also if a car is coming from behind really fast. Quick, get out of the lane as fast as you can and slow down! I guess that way they feel their pride or something! I see a number of times when someone just stay in the left lane and these pigs pull up behind them and wait for the cars to move and they didn't . They got pull them over for just a few mph over the limit.

Hey I got an idea, we need the input and help of all the ziners to compile a list of all the location of the Hide out by state and highway or freeway. and also have those red light and speeding cameras included. That way any ziner know where to look out . ahhh 1 big problem.... how do we do something like this?

2N10s

Hard to say... i'm not familiar with the 9500 and no i didn't get that out of a magazine.
I have 2 V1s and one Escort 8500x50
I first compared my first V1 with the Passport. and V1 definately came through, espcially when going around corners. When i got my second V1 and compared that to a brand new escort 8500X50. the result in beeping were pretty much the same but the V1 arrow still lit up first so i gave the win to V1 for the initial warning. when i compared the 2 V1s together my orinigal V1 for some reason picked up signals a few meters earlier then my second V1. Does anyone else have 2 V1s and noticed anything different? they're both new V1s but they're not consitant between each other... i'll try this weekend with another friends V1 so i'll have 3 V1s to see if they're consistant. as for passport and escorts i would assume they aren't all consistant themselfves either...

blkaspec

no manufacturer can make two detectors work exactly the same. some are a little worse than intended, some are a little better, so it is really hard to compare them. so if you were to compare one that fell on the low end, to one that falls on the high end, regardless of brand, you could really have a different opinion on who the winner is.

Edward'TLS

If this is the case, tough luck. Because that's how all consumer products are being compared and reviewed. All radar detector comparison tests, even conducted by some best-known car magazines, are done by picking one model sample from each manufacturer. If a manufacturer provides a weak model, it deserves to be at the bottom of the charts.

Dicster

tru dat

hairything

http://www.radartest.com/article.asp?articleid=100542

personally, I've used both the 8500 and v1 and prefer the v1. I really don't find much difference between 8500 or v1, it just go down to preference. I've never tried the 9500, so I can't comment about it but I can say that passport makes top-notch radar detectors. If you're on a budget, 8500 would be the best one to go with (note that hardwire is sold separately). If you like arrows, you pay an extra $100 for v1. I guess I just wanted the arrows and the hardwire that came with the v1.

At the end of the day, radar detectors can only do so much. I've gotten paced twice at night. Pacing has become a popular technique by officers so watch out.