I have an Escort Solo SII, it runs off batteries or with a cord. The batteries seem to last about 2 months, but it depends on how many hours per day you have it on.
I do quite a few long distance trips. I have had it for just over a year with no speeding tickets. I have driven in most of the states east of the Mississippi, cops use different tactics in every state. Here in Florida, the cops have their radar guns on all the time so they can be detected very easily.
Everyone has a different opinion on radar dectors. I think if you drive half way sane and use the detector as an aid then all is good. Some people get a radar detector and think they can speed like crazy and end up getting nabbed for not paying attention.
Ohio, North Carolina, and PA are very tough states to speed in, the cops are pretty sneaky.

 

I've got a Valentine-1. Works great, and has more than paid for itself despite it's expense (it's a pricey bugger). :devil:

I love it for the fact that it tells me not only how many signals it's getting, and what type, but in what direction, and what one is a higher priority.

I agree with p3ozman though, a radar detector is an aid, and not a substitute for driving reasonably. It takes some getting used to driving with a detector, as you have to analyze what it's telling you and figure out whether it's a real threat or not. For instance, many of the automatic door openers in shopping centers operate on a frequency that will trigger some detectors. The rear CHMSL on some of the newer GM SUV's (Yukon, etc) is neon, and bleeds into the same range as a lidar (laser radar) gun.

Also, you may want to check about, I believe certain states ban the use of a radar detector.

 

Ill 3rd that. So many of my friends are like " I need to get a radar detector so I can speed" Incorrect. I have an escort 8500 (would get an valentine 1, but I got this one off of ebay for a nice price). You have to be smart with a detector in order for it to be affective. For example, if you are the only one on a highway, and are speeding, the only radar you will pick up is the cop shooting you! My justification for getting it was my bright blue truck. If I was going the speed of traffic (and it happens to be 80 more and more these days) Who will the cop pull over? The tenage kid in his prerunner, or the old lady in the civic? No brainer. Now I can tell if there is a cop up ahead or behind in a traffic situation, and I can switch lanes and slow down. It has saved me BIG TIME bout twice, other times, I can only specualate. I was coming down a hill, hauling ass, and it went off. I slowed down, rounded the corner and a biker cop was sitting under the bridge in the shade. Guaranteed ticket, in fact, I warned my friend, and he got one in the EXACT same spot 2 weeks later. Sucks for him. Worth it? Yes, but use it smartly

 

Escort 8500 and V-1 in different cars

Again as the other posts, it's a tool to help, now a radar jammer.......... :devil: but back to where we were. Most of the places I drive the cops have instant on Ka band or Laser. By the time you hear the detector it's too late. They work better in traffic because you pick up the signals when other people are getting clocked. If your the only one on the road you KNOW WHO got clocked. At this point turn your interior light on, roll the windows down so the LEO can see in the car easier, keep hands on the wheel and be VERY respectful and hope for leniency.

Suffolk County Highway Patrol have laser and only turn it on when they have one specific vehicle targeted in the scope. I've been next to and behind people on the LIE that got pulled over and neither one ever went off. The laser dot is pretty precise!

 

I have to agree with Sequoiasoon in that they earn their price in traffic where the cars and trucks ahead of you are being clocked. I have had an Escort Passport for a number of years that has saved my bacon more than a few times. I have it hard wired into my fuse panel but I can still unplug the unit and take it with me when I travel for use in rental cars with a cord that plugs into the cigarette lighter or power port. Of course, here in Arizona they don't use that much radar on the freeways - it's mostly on surface streets. The freeways here are just about anything goes most of the time with very little enforcement compared to other states.

 

Again as the other posts, it's a tool to help, now a radar jammer.......... :devil: but back to where we were. Most of the places I drive the cops have instant on Ka band or Laser. By the time you hear the detector it's too late. They work better in traffic because you pick up the signals when other people are getting clocked. If your the only one on the road you KNOW WHO got clocked. At this point turn your interior light on, roll the windows down so the LEO can see in the car easier, keep hands on the wheel and be VERY respectful and hope for leniency.

Suffolk County Highway Patrol have laser and only turn it on when they have one specific vehicle targeted in the scope. I've been next to and behind people on the LIE that got pulled over and neither one ever went off. The laser dot is pretty precise!

This is true. I have a Whistler and it has saved my a&%$. You have to be aware of your surrondings at all times. and make sure that if there is not a vehicle close to you be careful. Cops will sit and wait with if off and instant on the gun and got ya. Now in Tennessee they have a problem with sitting in their cars with them on so you can avoid a ticket but some do use the sneaky approach. As for laser guns they are hard to hold up in court. The cop has to make sure that the beam is on you and not any other vehicles beside you. Also my detector picks up laser but I have found few cops that use them.

 

Do they work? Which one do u have? How are they in the city?

I have a Cobra Trapshooter Micro and it is worthless. It doesn't pick up any radar signals until you are right on top of the cop (too late by then), but it does go off when I key up my CB radio. I don't even take it with me anymore.

There are probably better R.D.'s out there, but Cobra isn't one of them.

 

Also, you may want to check about, I believe certain states ban the use of a radar detector.

They are illegal in Virginia where I live. I believe they are also illegal in Connecticut and the District of Columbia.

It used to be in Virginia the cops would sieze your R.D. if you had one in your car, but someone beat that in court on Fourth Amendment grounds and now that is no longer the case. I have, however, heard stories of the State Police threating to write you up for Reckless Driving (instead of just speeding) unless you take the R.D. out, put it under your tire, and drive back and forth over it several times.

Supposedly, down in the Virginia Beach area, they have "Radar Detector Detectors"; devices that can pick up the residual RF coming off your R.D. I guess I'll have to wait until someone comes out with a Radar Detector Detector Detector. :devil:

 

They are illegal in Virginia where I live. I believe they are also illegal in Connecticut and the District of Columbia.

It used to be in Virginia the cops would sieze your R.D. if you had one in your car, but someone beat that in court on Fourth Amendment grounds and now that is no longer the case. I have, however, heard stories of the State Police threating to write you up for Reckless Driving (instead of just speeding) unless you take the R.D. out, put it under your tire, and drive back and forth over it several times.

Supposedly, down in the Virginia Beach area, they have "Radar Detector Detectors"; devices that can pick up the residual RF coming off your R.D. I guess I'll have to wait until someone comes out with a Radar Detector Detector Detector. :devil:

Let's keep that in Virginia and not Tennessee :tu:

 

THEY DO WORK! "IF"... you use them properly! :tu:

I bought one SEVERAL year ago... and I "still" use it, to this very day. The company which offered this detector... "guarrenteed"... that if I got a ticket within "X" amount of time (I've forgotten, it's been so long now)... they would "PAY" your ticket! I just couldn't pass up that offer... OH NO! Especailly... since I commute daily to work! I'm not necessarily "condoning" speeding...but when you're running late for work... sometimes... you just can't help it.

So... I bought one. After reading their "idea" of how a radar detector works and how I "should" use their's, I realized... they had hit on something! :tu: I have a friend who was a deputy sheriff, as well as a brother-in-law who was a cop in a beach town for several years, and both... had been "radar certified" telling me... radar detectors don't work... as I suspected they would.

The "KEY" though... to making almost ANY radar detector work for you, is this...

To start... "ole smokie"... does... have the advantage... period! You might as well accept this to start with... especially... now-a-days. Nearly EVERY cop running radar today has a... "trigger"... either on the radar gun itself, or next to his leg in the car, which he can flip on and off... INSTANTLY! When that happens... it doesn't matter... if you have "THE" most technologically advance radar detector available... it "AIN'T" worth... sqwat! That's better translated as... you're screwed!

The ONLY way to beat this is... to first of all... learn the difference between a false and a true tone/signal from your radar detector. Once you've mastered that... you can begin to have "some" advantage... although be it "small". The "KEY" is... once you hear that particular tone... even if there's ONLY one red LED light, which lights up on you detector... IT IS "TIME" TO SLOW DOWN TO THE SPEED LIMIT. If you've notice... as you get closer to the actual radar signal... more and more LED lights, begin to light up on the detector. That simply means... one of two things... either you're closing in on a "stationary" speed-trap... or both of you are closing the distance between each other. And... here's the MAIN thing... this ONLY works if "ole smokie" has clocked someone "AHEAD" of you. If you're on a lonely road somewhere and you're the only car in sight... a radar detector is... well... USELESS! Unless you have telescopic vision, to see a cop coming... "before" he has time to flip his "little trigger finger"! Even then, if you're on a hilly road... that won't work, as all radar certified cops are "trained"... to use the terrain against you. He'll have his finger on the trigger every time he starts to clear the crest of a hill... knowing... if you're on the other side speeding... you ARE NOT going to have time to react to his "quick-draw" trigger finger! DONE DEAL!

So... the ONLY way a radar detector "will" work for you... is when there is other traffic on the road... for the most part... in front of you. Even though most radar detectors do search for radar behind you for... maybe a mile... if a cop has slipped out behind you... he honestly doesn't have to use his radar. He can use the other method, which he's trained for... which is... by measuring your speed between poles and/or dotted lines on the road. As long as there is traffic in front of you and a speed trap is being utilized or either an individual patrol officer is driving toward you... using his radar on other vehicles... you "DO" have a chance! :tu: Most detectors, have a range of about 3 miles in front... I think. So... when your radar detector does go off... even with only one LED light showing... and you're "CERTAIN" of the tone... the best precaution... is to slow down. Oh yeah... this same idea also works for this "new" rearward facing radar as well. But again... ONLY... if the cop is using it to "clock" other vehicles ahead of you.

Also.. another good rule of thumb is... if you're in a "group of cars" say... at least 5 or more... running more than the speed limit... nine-times-out-of-ten... a cop won't even bother you. Reason being... he HAS to be certain of "WHICH" car he clocked, before it'll stand up in court. That said... if he's a real a$$... he "can" pull over every single car in a group... but most won't pull more than 3 or 4 at one time... as it is to much work for them. Most perfer the more "simple" route... of pulling one car at a time. Thus being in a crowd of cars... helps... if you're speeding. But again... if you're on a 4 lane and you're all by youself... in between a group of cars... he'll DEFIANTELY "choose" you to clock... as you're... "easy pickins"... at that point!

If you keep these things in mind... for the most part... radar detectors "can" and "do" work. We're all creatures of habit... and that also includes... cops, which simply means, like all of us... whenever we can... we'll chose the "easy" route... most of the time.

 

Phazer

Does anyone have experience with the Phazer Radar Jammer?
http://www.radarjammers.com/

 

Does anyone have experience with the Phazer Radar Jammer?
http://www.radarjammers.com/

These are not true jammers like, for example, you see on fighter jets equipped with electronic warfare devices.

In order to be a true jammer, it must transmit a radio frequency to confuse or overload the receiver part of the radar that is tracking you. And transmitting radar radio frequencies without an FCC license will get you bigger fines than speeding ever will.

These "jammers" take advantage of residual RF that naturally emanate from your R.D. when it detects a radar signal. It then reflects that residual RF back to the radar source in a dubious attempt to confuse it.

These "jammers" get around the FCC by "reflecting" a signal rather than "transmitting" one. Refer to my earlier post about Radar Detector Detectors. They work on the same principle.

The weakness in these "jammers" is that they can't reflect anything if there is nothing to reflect. They can't do anything until they pick up a Radar signal and by then, it is usually too late.

In these days of Instant On radar, so-called jammers are even less effective that R.D.'s and only give you a false sense of security. Save your money.

 

I have a Escort 8500 and it works fairly well. I just use it on long road trips. It helped me learn where the cops tend to congrigate. However, I did get one ticket with it due to Instant On radar, no way to avoid that. You are most prone to getting a ticket where there is little traffic and lots of space betwwen cars. That is the perfect place for police to use the instant on. Find yourself someone to follow and hang back a little, that way if they are using instant on you will pick it up when the lead car pass by and have time to slow. Radar detectors are more usefull for moderate speeding, 10-15 over, much faster than that you won't have time to slow and it will be very obvious when you do so. Last opinion is if you can barely afford it, don't bother but if you can, it will help you learn most of the spots police like to hide.

 

Does anyone have experience with the Phazer Radar Jammer?
http://www.radarjammers.com/

Dunno if they work, but the rumors I heard is that you need to be more or less on top of the cop for the jammer to work, and by then it's probably too late, but I know jammers are illegal in CA. Detectors are OK, but Jammers are a no-no.

 

on so. cal. freeways we have more bikes than cars..so the CHP uses the bikes alot more and the cars are for traffic accidents and whatnot..the bikes actually pace you without using any radar..and you can fight that to a point..around the cities the cheaper RD's pick up super market auto doors..

Valentine-1..hands down..best RD

 

You can get some good info about active, passive and laser jammers as well as radar detectors on Radar Roy's website...

 

Got two for Christmas from radio shack. Discount two for 1 sale :O
The basic ones that give beeps that beep more frequently as distance closes. My experience is that they were definitely worth the price. Especially
for lead footed college students. (all the more reason to make them pay for their own ticket/defensive driving if they still get caught).


Story of experience. One went into the TUNDRA. I have never been stopped in over two years in that truck. My g/f on the other hand gets one or two a year the same time every year. I even got a ticket in her car, but I hadn't had one in over two years.

Her excuse this year was that it did not work for her? That one she fessed up to right away the second one I blame the cop. She was caught speeding 68 in a 60. Definitely a no no, but the LOOP freeway she was one is usually 65, except for the southern portion which is 60. To top it off it was her birthday, and he didn't let her go. This cop is notorious for being a stickler. He is one of the few motorcycle cops in town. And he is a sgt so.....you get the idea.


Now with the front end lifted I seem to get really good readings. I mean I can definitely hear them coming way before I see them. :tu: :tu:

 

next week

Next Week on Myth Busters will do a show on radar and if you can beat a radar gun.

 

I hardwired my Valetine 1 into the last three vehicles I've owned and I love it. It's a great investment and like what has been said before it is a driving aid. The thing is now when I drive a vehicle without a V1, I feel like I'm naked

 

Next Week on Myth Busters will do a show on radar and if you can beat a radar gun.

I really like the episode about the ancient "death ray"

I will have to catch that one about radar detectors.

 

I have a corba it was 150 bucks it works graet in the city not only does it warn you about cops it tells you if the is a wreck or if a ambulance is coming and stuff but that kind of stuff only works in the big city where the ambulance and things are programed for it.. around here where i live it doesn't work. but i drive about 60 or 65 only a few mph over the limit and i love mine. it tells when a cops is coming the range is about a 1/2 mile but i live in the mountains. so if your in the city it should be better.. if you get one DON'T USE IT IN VIRGINA THEY ARE ILLEGAL the cops there have a device called a VG-2 it can pick up if you have a detector and if it says you have one they will pull you over. but a detector is NOT a free ticket to speed cops have other ways of tellin' if your speeding or not..........

 

They are illegal in Virginia where I live. I believe they are also illegal in Connecticut and the District of Columbia.

It used to be in Virginia the cops would sieze your R.D. if you had one in your car, but someone beat that in court on Fourth Amendment grounds and now that is no longer the case. I have, however, heard stories of the State Police threating to write you up for Reckless Driving (instead of just speeding) unless you take the R.D. out, put it under your tire, and drive back and forth over it several times.

Supposedly, down in the Virginia Beach area, they have "Radar Detector Detectors"; devices that can pick up the residual RF coming off your R.D. I guess I'll have to wait until someone comes out with a Radar Detector Detector Detector. :devil:

The device to pick it up is called a VG-2 my detector has a built in VG-2 blocker. so that can't pick it up but i turn mine off just to be safe. but the books say that if a cop is using VG-2 then my detector hides it singal and cannot be detected and it will also say VG-2 alert and start beeping and that lets me know that cops is using VG-2 on me ....

 

Do they work? Which one do u have? How are they in the city?

I've been using RD's since the first "Fuzz Busters" came out. I've gone thru several versions of Escorts. When Mike left Escort to start Valentine Research; I followed and have owned several of those. I currently own the latest V1 (Ver. 1.8). They’re upgradeable by the way. As one member put it best "I feel naked driving without it". What the other members are say about learning how to "read" your detector is so true. Also, when and what situations it will work in is part of the learning curve. But once you understand which signals are burglar alarms or "dead" radar and what is the real deal. One "save" and you've paid for the detector.

Also keep in mind the titanium tint the some of us have on our vehicles will reduce the detectors range. (Wish I hadn't gone that route).

"Fly low and avoid the radar"

 

if you get one DON'T USE IT IN VIRGINA THEY ARE ILLEGAL the cops there have a device called a VG-2 it can pick up if you have a detector and if it says you have one they will pull you over.

One of their most used tacttics in VA is to sit on the on ramp and turn the radar on randomly not aimed at anybody. The people who hit their brakes out of nowhere usually have the detector. Everybodies first reaction is to hit the brakes especially when it starts beeping full signal.

 

I have a corba it was 150 bucks it works graet in the city not only does it warn you about cops it tells you if the is a wreck or if a ambulance is coming and stuff but that kind of stuff only works in the big city where the ambulance and things are programed for it.. around here where i live it doesn't work. but i drive about 60 or 65 only a few mph over the limit and i love mine. it tells when a cops is coming the range is about a 1/2 mile but i live in the mountains. so if your in the city it should be better.. if you get one DON'T USE IT IN VIRGINA THEY ARE ILLEGAL the cops there have a device called a VG-2 it can pick up if you have a detector and if it says you have one they will pull you over. but a detector is NOT a free ticket to speed cops have other ways of tellin' if your speeding or not..........

The VG-2 cannot find all detectors. For instance, the Valentine-1, and several others are invisible to the VG-2....but having said that, if it's illegal in your state, it's probably a good idea not to have one in the first place.