I've been stopped way too many times lately. I could be loosing my license on october 10. I know I should probably just slow down but what are some good raday detectors? I've got a Cobra 9332 (not sure about the number) but it picks up all types of radar and laser and crap but doesn't tell me the direction. Any suggestions?

 

damn, so it isn't working for ya?

 

heh, i just spent $222. on a passport 7500 and thats with a hook up i have at ultimate electronics. now this is the one directly below the 8500 which is even better than valentine 1.

 

Did you happen to get that information from that radar detector test website? Cause that site is pretty much complete crap (I think it's owned by one of Valentine's competing companites).

Someone on Supraforums.com did a test (he had all of the necessary equipment) and the V1 still kicked every other radar detectors ***. Why do you need K band detection for 5 miles if the detector isn't even smart enough to tell where it is and if it is even a threat? Granted the guy on the supra page said that one of the detectors was more sensitive (on one band, I belive it was the K band) than the V1 but he said that the V1's detection was still better. The guy on the supra page also said that V1 was comng out with a smaller more advanced V1 in the near future.

Just save your money and get a V1, you'll be very happy with it. Plus it's upgradeable.

Gabe

 

The V1 that is shipping right now is smaller than previous versions. The face is the same size but the housing is smaller. It seems to detect the same as the previous larger versions.

 

thanks for the info. The reason I ask is b/c half the time my detector tells me what's up, I've already passed the source of the radar which kind'a sucks b/c you know he's already figured your speed. As for the $500 dollar detectors, I might as well buy stealth material from the market and put that in place of my car panels. At least then they won't know how fast I'm going. HeHeHe

 

Yer all talk. You don't have evidence of anything. Have you personally owned both detectors? no, so how can you comment?

 

Two words. Cobra Sucks. You get what you pay for. The BEL 980 and the V1 are both pretty good detectors but i'd rather get the BEL since it costs less and performs just as good if not better.

 

I dont know with what cop cars are equipped over there, but over here even the most expensive dedectors dont work against the laser equipped highway patrol cars until you are basically passing them....

 

go to escortinc.com (i think thats it) i just got the escort 8500. yeah it was $300 but when you look at it my way...
$125 fine, if i'm lucky
$500 insurace increas, for six months
$500 get out of jail fee, thanks Mr. boules
you get the idea
i live in Me so it's almost all back roads, that are 35, but there so long and boring that going 20-30 over is the only way to get anywhere, with out falling asleep at the wheel HTH

 

I've had experience with several detectors and so far my V1 is the best. I've had no experience with the newer models that are supposed to be better than the V1 but I have read several reviews on them and none of the reviewers picked any of them over the V1. Some of them were rated very close to the V1 but none of them were picked ahead of it.

Have you presonally owned both? Do you even own a detector? I do own a V1 and I can tell you that it is a great detector. No it won't get you out of instant on or laser traps but it will detect just about anything, and it tells you where it's coming from and has a great strength indicator. You don't have evidence to prove me otherwise nor will you ever convince me that anything on the market right now is better than the V1.

Gabe

 

Here ya go gabe...
http://www.speedzones.com/

i too consider radartest.com to be very bias...as you can tell by their writing. Read over their test and decide for yourself.

I still maintain that the v1 is overpriced RIGHT now for what is on the market as of today. If you think knowing where the radar is coming from is worth an extra $180, then get the v1. If not, get the BEL 980. For me, it doesnt matter where the radar is coming from, because when that baby goes off (especially on the freeway), i am slowing down anways...

 

Yep, the V1 is really pricy. But I did want to know where the signal was coming from and I wanted upgradeability. I agree if you don't need all the features of the V1 then don't get it, go with something a little cheaper.

I do disagree with one of the tests on that page though, the V1 is very good at picking up ove the hill radar guns. I've avoided more than one with my V1.

Gabe

 

hey GldCrzy, your hookup sucks...lol

with my employee discount hookup i got my escort 8500 for $212 out the door with a service plan for 2 years.

and by the way....the escort 8500 is reprogrammable just like the v1.

 

Still you can't comment as you have only owned the V1. All your information is second hand. How can you call it the best dectector when you have not even used the 8500?

Why are you asking me If I've owned a dectector. I did not even comment on one being better then the other, like you did.

 

Common sense is the best way to steer clear of speeding tickets. Just keep scanning the horizon with your eyes. If you see a stretch of road that looks perfect for a speed trap, it probably is. Unnecessary brake lights on the horizon and "clumps" of traffic on an otherwise uncrowded freeway are usually a dead giveaway of impending doom. Never drive in the left lane unless passing. Always signal lane changes and drive responsibly, leave a 2 to 3 second distance between you and the car in front. Never overdrive your headlights.

 

I can comment on it all I want, it's a free country. I have used other detectors just not any of the new ones that are supposed to be better than the V1. As for second hand info, yes it is but out of the three articles I've read the V1 still comes out at or near the top. He asked for suggestions on the best detector and it is my opinion, as well as the opinion of a lot of user and testers of the V1, that it is the best detector on the market.

Gabe

 

might as well throw my two cents in. i decided on the bel 980 when i got mine for a couple reasons. first, bel is owned by escort, and the 980 is the same internally as the 8500. because of the way the housing is built, the 980 isn't quite as hot on laser, but then again, if you're hit with laser, it's already over. both are reporgrammable, small, feature packed and not too expensive (got my 980 for 220 on ebay, brand new). the valentine is really nice, and has good detection along with the direction indicator, and is better at laser. however, both the 980 and 8500 are at least the v1's equal in radar across all bands. as far as the direction goes, i can usually tell from the terrain, what's coming up, and the change in signal strength where it's coming from.

couple more things to avoid getting a ticket. first, take your front tag off and put it in your window. don't put chrome anything on the front of your car. always scan ahead and watch out for turns with hills, overpasses, and downhills. learn what cop cars look like from the back, and scan every car as you pass them. watch for any car over taking you from the back. don't travel in the passsing lane. keep someone going as fast as you about 200 yards ahead of you. don't make your car stand out in a group of cars.

 

Put front tag in window? That's gotta be the red-neckiest thing ever.

 

4doorH22 said it exactly, COMMON SENSE! If you come up on a speed trap rather unexpectedly, try to keep some other vehicle (prefferably a semi or other type of truck) directly on the line of sight between you and the cop, this will interfere with his radar reading. I've accidentally gone past cops at 15-20 over before, but was not pulled over because I kept another vehicle in between.

 

Well, tonight I go to court for double the speed limit in a consruction zone. I pulled out right in front of a cop (thinking it was a white mustang) and gunned it for the exit lane. He rode my tail until I was about halfway through the exit and then hit the light. It's a ten point ticket and I'm only allowed 12 in a year. He didn't have aany radar on b/c my detector didn't go off but he tried to match speed with me. B/c of my ignorance I just did a really stupid thing. I wondre if I'll losse my license.

 

sure it's redneck, it's also hard for the laser gun to get a good return.

here's something i'm working on currently. you can get all sorts of cool laser aborbing dyes and films. i'm thinking of putting the stuff over my headlights and on a license plate cover.

 

They have some type of laser-defracting spray (don't know what it's called so don't ask). Spray a coating of it on the plates and anthing else and you're protected. It is perfectly legal to use it, and it defracts all the laser so nothing gets returned to the gun.




[Modified by spyder, 1:54 PM 10/10/2001]

 

4 years, no detector, no tickets. Knock on wood. Kensington, MD... you're not the Tischer Acura guy with the JRSC equipped Integra are you? If not, what do you drive?

 

sorry, but the spray stuff is totally bogus, so are almost all the laser refracting license plate covers, they simply don't work. now, you can get try laser absorbing material that operates in the 904nm range, but it's not cheap.

quick word here. most of these laser and radar jammer or cloaking products are bogus. the sprays and license palte covers don't work, those passive laser, radar jammers absoultely don't work. there are a couple laser that seems to work, like the blinder, and lidatek. there are no legal and semi-effective radar jammers.

no, i'm not the guy with the jrsc. i drive a '97 green prelude sh, all stock. it does everything i want it to, and my big obsession is doing it without getting caught.

yeah 4doorh22, where in kensington do you live? i'm in the viers mill, connecticut, university triangle, a couple blocks from einstien.