I'm going to get a new radar detector, want to hardwire it into the roof by the dome lights. I can easily get to the harness for the mirror or the sunroof. Anyone know which wires are switched power and ground?

TIA

Dave

 

You know, I have always hard wired my radars in the roof controls of the sunroof/dome lights. And I tried on this car with my meter, etc and gave up. I found switched 12v sources but when I tapped into them for the radar it would start acting funny (sunroof would open, etc. lol). So I just bought a fuse box tap and it was easier to run it down to the fuse box instead.

 

read this thread:
https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...=radar+sunroof

and this one:
https://acurazine.com/forums/car-talk-5/what-great-year-end-price-tl-s-need-help-asap-89682/

i did this with mine. i used one of the screws up in there for a ground.

 

I used the bottom one as well and it did not work. When I turned on my radar my sunroof opened. LOL. They change things over the years on cars. This might be one of them.

 

There is an accessory port in the fuse panel by the drivers left leg. There are two ports, one should be constant on and the other is ignition on. Just use those so you dont mess anything up. Thats where I ran mine, comes on with ignition, and turns off when I turn the car off.

 

Thanks Guys, this is what I was looking for. I'm going to use this wire:

http://invisicord.com/

You don't need to tap the wire, just push the post into the proper slot. Haven't decided whether I'm going with a Valentine One or an Escort. Don't start. I've had both in the past and they're both good. Only problem with the valentine is the arrows are so bright, like a beacon to the police.

Dave

 

My V1 dims at night so they aren't bright at all. I had both as well and prefer the V1.

 

hmmm, that might be something new. I had one back in the late nineties.

 

So Dave, did you try the invisacord? What power source did you connect it to? Thanks!

Mark

 

actually i've got the invisicord, but I'm going in for an operation in August and won't be able to drive for several months, so figured I wait for a new rd.

I have found that if you take off the dome light lens, take out the bulbs and the reflectors by pushing in on the plastic tabs holding the reflectors in (carefully, don't force). You can then pull down on the back of the black assembly, it will snap out fairly easily, you then can see the harness plugs for the mirror and the sunroof. You can also get to the bolts that hold the whole assembly up. I'm going to put a little notch in the assembly right by the left of the mirror and feed the invisicord through the notch and connect it to the plugs.

this thread shows which wire to use:

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=89682

Dave

 

Anyone installed the invisicord in a TL yet?

 

No inviscord here, but I was able to run a regular 12' phone wire in the existing cracks and crevices of the TL so that only a very small portion can be seen from the windshield to the V1 detector and a little bit from just under middle console to the cig lighter area.

The extra unit you see there is the remote audio unit. This allows me to leave the detector volume up at a decent level (in case I am jamming the DVD-A player) and still have very easy access to muting it (in the case of city shopping centers or if I am on the bluetooth phone). Currently I am using foam to hold that little unit in place but am keeping an open mind on how to improve that a little more.

 

Yes I installed it back in July and haven't had any problems. I poped out the dome light and the reflectors, this gave me access to the four bolts that hold up that assembly. I put the ground wire under one of the bolts and the power into the wire show in the pics a couple of posts above. It's the far green wire on the green plug. You can test it really easily.

It goes on when the car is turned on and off when I shutdown. If I'm going someplace where I don't want to leave the detector in I take it off and put the wire under the sunshades.

It probably took me about 10 mins to do, also didn't have to cut or splice any wires, I just pushed the hot wire into the back of the plug assembly, it fits in there snug.

Dave

 

How did you run the wire out of the dome light assembly? Did you have to notch any part of the assembly to feed the wire out?

What length of invisicord did you buy?

Thanks.

 

I should be receiveing my V-1 today!!! here's hopeing!!!!! haha, or tomorrow cause it's martin luther king day you know?
~Jason

 

I didn't need to notch anything, there's enough of a gap to run the wire out of the housing without any notch at all. I think I bought the 14" length (not sure), buy longer than you think you need, there's plenty of room to coil up the invisicord in the dome light, sunroof switch assembly. Just don't tighten down all the bolts until you know how much cord you need. It is extremely easy to do, really. The thread inside of this thread has pictures on which plug and wire to use, taking the housing down is literally popping out the lenses and the reflectors (careful with those, they're flimsy) and then you'll see a bolt in each corner, take out those bolts and the whole thing comes down.

Dave

 

https://acurazine.com/forums/ramblings-12/new-movie-trailers-check-them-out-83364/
Try this link. This is how I installed mine and put the indicator on my steering wheel. Ill try to take pics later after work if I have a chance but like the thrread states I found this to be very convient because when the window lock is turned on the radar detector is also turned off.
Goodluck w/ the install

 

I really like the V1 unit, but am leaning towards the K40 or one of the other remote mount ones so I can completely hide the unit and sensors. I wish the V1 had a model with remote sensors.

 

Well, I can understand the desire for a concealed unit, but a v1, escort x50, or bel rx65 blows any concealed unit out of the water. People will get into heated arguments about which is better, but the fact is the v1, escort, and bel are within inches of each other.

Check out this site, it's a forum for radar detector nuts (like us tl nuts):

www.radardetector.net/

Nice bunch of guys (like us)

http://www.radarbusters.com/ (a reseller but has good reviews and is a good guy, I've bought escort products from him in the past, I now have a v1).

and

http://www.motortrend.com/features/mobile_electronics/

general auto electronics tests


Dave

 

I wired mine to the cig lighter and just ran the wire up there, I tucked it in using a credit card... Wished I knew about the switched and unswitched accessory port before I ran it from the center console.

 

Anyone install the RJ-11 remote for the Bel RX-65?

I happy with the RX-65, but getting tired of the coiled cord and hiding the detector in the console. I like the invisacord idea and leaving it up, but don't want to give up the remote mute functionality that is on the RX-65 Smartcord.

Those of you who are mounting your detector near the rearview mirror, are you using the suction mount that came with the detector, or something more "fixed"? Are the warning lights visable (by the cops) from behind?

 

Well in answer to your question. Yes, I'm just using the suction cup mount that came with the V1, I'd like to find something else, but haven't been able to find something suitable. I find the suction cups tend to become unreliable during the extreme cold. The only thing I've found is a mount that clamps to the mirror, making the RD even more visible. I figure the chances are the cop car is going to be higher than my car and hopefully he won't see the RD, if he (cop) does, he does, they're not illegal where I live. That's one good thing about being older, I find cops are more likely to let you go, if you get stopped at all, and being older I do tend to drive more carefully. I think it's because I realize what can happen if I loose control and I've learned that as I go screaming down the hiway passing everyone, they catch up at the toll plaza. LOL

My last car was a volvo and one of the guys on the forum had a signature that read "I'm an old white guy in a Volvo, I'm invisible". Always thought that was funny.

My V1 lights are definitely visible from the rear. The V1 lights up like a xmas tree! V1 offers a remote display but then I'd have to rerun the wiring and there's really no good place to put it without hacking up the car.

Dave

 

I have the bel 995 (same as the RX-65) with the "direct wire kit". This includes a powered speaker, and a small wired" remote" that is inline between the detector and the speaker. (the remote provides redundant waring / operation lights, and a more convenient mute button)

I have these wired into both cars. I always use the heater cord wire, as it is a keyed power wire, that can EASILY handle the "extra" load associated with the radar detector.

One note, when splicing wires, PLEASE remember to strip a little covering & solder the extra wire on. NEVER cut the orginal wire or try using the splicing connectors as they usually cut some of the origianl wire.

Hope this helps others

 

Thanks Dave and terminex. I guess I'll stick with the cig lighter coil plug and windshield mount for now. Thanks!

Mark

 

I'm having the same problem here in North Dakota. The suction cups just don't work on a cold windshield. Where did you find the mirror mount? I've searched all over and haven't found one that works on our mirrors. I found the site that sells the mirror mounts for 350Z's and a few other models, but not for Acuras.

 

Yeah that's the ones I've seen too. I've also seen some on Corvette sites don't know if they'll fit:

http://t-rexsoftware.com/greatlakes/


I also check out this forum, sometimes they talk about alternatives:

http://www.radardetector.net/

Dave

 

I just hardwired my STi Driver with the invisicord. I bought an extra suction cup bracket and removed the suction cups and used Gorilla tape to fasten the bracket to the windshield where the black dots are just above and to the left of the rear view mirror. The tape seems very strong. Before taping the bracket, I also cut 1/4" strips of tape and fastened this tape around the entire bracket where it would touch the windshield as a precautionary measure against any scratching. So far this setup is working great. You can barely notice the detector- especially when you open the drivers visor.

 

Hey LaCostaRacer... any pics?

 

PM me your email address and I will send you the end result of my solution. Mount it to the rear mirror stem with less than $10 at home depot.

 

I'll post some pictures in the next couple of days. My Wife had the camera when I needed it this weekend for this project. I had some 'technical difficulties' with the crazy glue holding today so I want to find out more about the $10 HomeDepot solution before going to the next round of using Glass Glue that is UV activated.

I'll post some pictures as soon as I can.

 

Would you post your solution to the thread? It sounds like several of us might want to check it out. Does it allow for the visor to be used (other's solutions don't).

Thanks!!

Mark

 

a possible idea for the suction cup failure. Don't leave the RD mounted, pull it off the bracket whenever you don't drive the car. Cuz i had that problem in the hot weather, but if i wouldnt put any stress on the suction cups when i wasnt in the car, it never failed and always held the RD.

 

^x2!

 

I wound up glueing a mount to the windshield and it seems to be working fine. Here are some pictures of how it looks:


The glue of choice:


The inside view:


The outside view:


I'm hoping this glue holds. If it doesn't, I'll use Rhinoglue for my next attempt.

 

LaCostaRacer, thanks for the pics. I like the stealth view from the outside (versus those brackets that mount below the rearview mirror). I'm guessing that you lose some (or all) use of your visor. True?

Thanks!!

Mark

 

You lose just a little bit of travel on the visor swinging forward- perhaps 10 degrees of rotation- the visor is still very effective though. I just mounted the detector on Saturday so I'll give a report in a week after I have some miles on this setup. My main concern now is if the glue is up for the task and I'll know that answer in a week. This glue is rated for -40 to +150 degrees and is not brittle like super-glue so I think it will work pretty well.

The other nice thing about this setup (versus the bracket that I also own in our Pilot) is that the power cord can be very short as well. The other setup has a longer power cord requirement and this bugs my Wife who primarily drives that vehicle w/o my radar detector.

 

I have an escort x50 (blue) mounted top left of the rearview. The visor does loose some travel, but I find that if I relase the visor as if I was going to move it to the side window position I get that travel back.

I used the smartcord that I purchased for $30 at a local best buy. It has an inline mute. I have it hardwired to the fusebox and have the mute button located in the center consol. The blue looks great.

I use the suction cups for mounts, but I think Im going to try double sided tape that you would use to mount a rearview. I do have problems with the suction cups popping off in extreme cold/heat.

 

Back again. The Amazing Goop solution I used is working great for me! The detector is rock steady and out of site. I don't miss the Visor travel much and the unclip the visor idea would work for me when needed.

I'll probably use the glue on my Wife's Pilot before we take it out of town for Xmas. I found that the under-the-mirror bracket on the Pilot oscillates the detector on some road surfaces and especially off-road. This is probably do to fact that the detector is not touching the windshield on the forward edge like it would on a suction mount and the detector needs that stabilizing force. It's not cool watching the detector wiggle as much as it does. The vendor recommends engaging the detector all the way and it still vibrates too much for my tastes.

 

^Back again 2 years later. Well I had a glue failure on our Pilot which sits outside most of the time. I figure the glue broke down because of UV exposure. My TL is garaged so its bracket will last a lot longer.

There was no damage to the windshield and it was a simple task of scraping old glue off bracket and reglueing. I used Rhino glue this time and the Pilot was ready to go last weekend for a camping trip in short order. I was wondering how removing the bracket would affect the windshield and it's a non-issue now for me.

 

hmmmmm....im guessing i never responded to this thread. IMO it would be more efficient to just invest in this



http://www.escortradar.com/iq/