Got pulled over by johnny law and giving a ticket, first thing he says is, well at least you know your car can go from 0 to 60 pretty quick, and is this your car?
I have been thinking about getting one is it worth it ?
I've heard that they are but I want to hear it from forum members that use them in daily situations.
i am especially thinking about the bel tronics rx65
I've read alot of reviews seen alot of web sites and talked to Tom at best raders here on the forum.
any imput here is appreciated.
thanks
Heavy

A radar detector is just that, and it won't prevent you from getting a ticket if the cop has his heart set on it.

I have a BEI and a V1.

If you want battery operation, then the V1 won't fill the bill, but it is a neat detector.

I got mine off of Ebay. Saved about $100.00.

I also own a Valentine One & it works great. Some of the other top line models do also.

Of course nothing is gonna protect you from pop-up radar unless your unit picks up a burst aimed at another car before you get within range. My V1 has provided me excellent early warning of this type on many, many occasions in the past.

These days I seldom drive in excess of about 8-10mph over posted limits on highways & tend to drive at posted limits in town, so it serves primarily as a reminder from time to time to check my speed & adjust when prudent/necessary.

I have a Cobra RD. The Lazer is to fast. It will warn you that you're getting a ticket!:p

Rob,that's what I'm afraid of!

Honestly my radar detector has saved my life many times. The most memorable was when this V-6 camero came up beside me honked his horn and gunned it. So i followed suit...i shit you not the second i hit the gas Ka went off....there was a cop sitting on the otherside of the bridge. Plenty of time to bring it back to 70mph and watch someone get pulled over. Passport 8500 is my choice.

Hope this helped

Here in Alaska you make a donation to the State Troopers Association and you get a decal to put in your window that's an unofficial "get out of jail free once" card. Unless it's really stupid driving or DUI you're on your way with a warning. It's much cheaper and more rewarding than shelling out for a Radar detector.

Koz, they do the same kind of thing here in NJ but I don't think it works as well as the people who buy the stickers would like it to - my ex-wife and her two brothers had those SP/PBA stickers in their rear windows, and to my knowledge, it didn't help at all on the times they were tagged. Perhaps that's one of the differences between Alaska State Police and New Jersey ones. :thumbsup:

I have the 8500 x-50 & it's saved me several times! It is really only good for radar though. You don't know a laser is near until it's too late, but that's with any brand/model, unless you get a jammer too.

nj state police blows. big pains!

nj state police blows. big pains!

The ACLU says they're really good at racial profiling!

We had units that did not send the signal out till we pushed a button. Then when your detector went off, I already had your speed.

A radar detector is a tool that will help against getting tickets. A top of the line detector will give you ample amount of time when coming upon a normal trap. Most patrol cars that use radar leave it on all the time so you have warning.

If laser is a concern in your area you can get a laser jammer and they are incredible effective and they will prevent a laser gun from getting a reading on your car. Laser however is only used around 5% of the time. Laser guns also can not be used in very humid conditions, fog, rain etc. so usually radar is what you will see.

The biggest threat is instant on. This is where an officer is really working to find a speeder and they only turn their gun on when they see someone that looks like they are speeding. In this situation a good detector can sometimes help if there are other folks travelling ahead of you that are speeding since you detector will see these quick radar bursts.

I have driven with a detector for over 10 years and I can tell you that it does make you a much more aware driver and it is definately a usefull tool. I would not drive without one. I am in NJ where everyone speeds and even though the limit is 65 if you are driving 65 people will flash you to get out of their way. The average flow is about 12 over the limit so at anytime anyone could get pulled over. The detector does give you an advantage over the other drivers.

I have a Bel Rx65 and have had mixed results. There have definately been several times where its started chirping so I slowed down and sure enough there was a cop waiting nearby.

Unfortunately I've also been pulled over and gotten a ticket twice since I've had it. The first time the cop didnt have his radar running until he saw me; the detector went crazy on Ka, I stomped on my brakes, he pulled me over and knew exactly how fast I'd been going before I slowed down. The second time it was two cops running a speed trap with laser. The detector never made a peep until I was already pulled over and the cop was just stepping up to my window, then it chriped twice on X band. I'm sure that just did wonders for my pleas for mercy.

The first one was totally my fault, I was going fast enough that he didnt need radar to know I was speeding. However I'm still bitter about that second ticket because I had been going EXACTLY the same speed as the cars around me. The cop said he singled me out simply because I was in the left lane so he had to assume I was going faster than the cars to my right. The worst thing about it was there is NO way whatsoever the cops could defend that stop as being in the interest of "public safety". It was the middle of the day, very light traffic, and the weather was excellent. The cop stepped out into the road and made everyone nearly come to a stop in the middle of the highway so he could pick me out. Ten minutes later as I was pulling away they were flagging down their next victim and I was nearly sideswiped by a truck that had to swerve to miss the cop standing in the middle of a 4 lane highway.

Oh, in the city this thing falses like none other. There are days where I just turn it off because otherwise it will chirp almost constantly.

In My Opinion It Only Works On The Highway In An Open Area....

A RADAR detector can give you a false sense of security. Keep your eyes and ears open. Observe the traffic around you. Use cars in other lanes for a pick. Keep them between you and possible trooper hiding places. Look in your mirrors. Drive with some sanity.

There needs to be one lane where people can actually go fast. 70mph on the I95 can get you killed... by somebody with road rage pissed off enough at your slow driving... We're not driving 77 Mercury Cougars anymore. Some cars can handle and brake better at 150mph today than most cars from 20 years ago going 40. One lane with a minimum of 80mph is needed. Maximum, 100mph. How many people drive back and forth from New York to Florida and actually go 70 anymore?

I been using the same Escort Passport since about 1999. It has saved my ass more times than i can count, but just yesterday I broke down and bought a new Valentine One. It should get here next week. I hope it is everything everyone says it is.

A RADAR detector can give you a false sense of security. Keep your eyes and ears open. Observe the traffic around you. Use cars in other lanes for a pick. Keep them between you and possible trooper hiding places. Look in your mirrors. Drive with some sanity.

I agree, Koz - I think there are times and situation where people turn on their R/Ds and then hit the cruise button, and think it's safe now to make that cell phone call, play with the nav screen, or catch up on their reading of the daily paper.

I've always tried to be an alert driver, keeping an eye out as far down the road as is practical - if you see brakelights from every car going past a particular bridge abutment or clump of bushes, you can be pretty sure there's something there worth slowing down for. As mentioned earlier, I managed over 37 years of driving, primarily in the crowded, high-speed, crumbling-infrastructure east coast area from NYC to Florida, without a ticket. But it seems that enforcement is becoming more of an issue, at least around here, than it had been in the past.

I can't get one. They're illegal in Va.

:banghead:

There needs to be one lane where people can actually go fast. 70mph on the I95 can get you killed... by somebody with road rage pissed off enough at your slow driving... We're not driving 77 Mercury Cougars anymore. Some cars can handle and brake better at 150mph today than most cars from 20 years ago going 40. One lane with a minimum of 80mph is needed. Maximum, 100mph. How many people drive back and forth from New York to Florida and actually go 70 anymore?
The big problem with your theory is the laws of physics. If you double your speed you hit with four times the force. The difference between 40 and 80 MPH is staggering. An accident survivable at 40MPH becomes an unrecognizable pile of scrap metal at 80. Two cars hitting head on with each going 80 is a catastrophe. As long as we all have to share the same highways there has to be a lid on things. With 40,000 deaths a year and 40% are drunks it's hard to argue that we need to make the impacts even more unsurvivable.

Well I wonder how the HOV lanes are doing.. Maybe they could give Them a boost in speed limit...

Koz, they do the same kind of thing here in NJ but I don't think it works as well as the people who buy the stickers would like it to - my ex-wife and her two brothers had those SP/PBA stickers in their rear windows, and to my knowledge, it didn't help at all on the times they were tagged. Perhaps that's one of the differences between Alaska State Police and New Jersey ones. :thumbsup:
It's key that you actually know a trooper and can give the badge number. My father in law was a retired captain NJSP and he told me to make sure I always have a sticker on the car and give his badge number when stopped. Works like a charm. :thumbsup:

Over the years a had a # of detectors, and the valentine one is one of the best in my opinion.Not only has it saved me a good # of times, it will tell you what direction the source is as there are a # of bogus signals out there, and if you see the signal is in front then along side and then behind you, you then know it was a bogus signal that you just passed and you can then go back up to speed again.

I been using the same Escort Passport since about 1999. It has saved my ass more times than i can count, but just yesterday I broke down and bought a new Valentine One. It should get here next week. I hope it is everything everyone says it is.No need to worry. You got yourself a winner.

A RADAR detector can give you a false sense of security. Keep your eyes and ears open. Observe the traffic around you. Use cars in other lanes for a pick. Keep them between you and possible trooper hiding places. Look in your mirrors. Drive with some sanity.You're right. It CAN give you a false sense of security...if you're ignorant. If you do as tomm says, it is a useful tool.

I drive for a living and I constantly drive 10-25mph over the limit. But I'm alert, always give plenty of space, switch lanes calmy and deliberately, always scanning for signs of police. And to all the "speed kills" robots, I have a 00 driving record in MA. No accidents EVER and no tickets for over 7 years. At least no tickets that made it through the courts. Tickets are easy to defeat.

Can't go wrong with the Escort Passport and V1 radar detectors.

My wife has the Passport X50 and I have the V1.

I just love the arrows. Don't care what people say about it costing more b.s.

Anyways, here is the NEWEST radar detector that the Passport came out with. Its the Passport 9500i.

Read it. Sounds pretty cool. I might have to buy it and put it side by side with my V1 for a few months and see which one works better and keep the one that is better and get rid of the other one. :thumbsup:

http://www.laserveil.com/escort/passport/9500i/

http://www.escortradar.com/9500i.htm

Here's my $.02. I have a radar detector I use it for ballast and to keep the carpet from flopping around at high speed. :) Seroiusly though, my experience has been that if you're observant, and you watch far enough ahead of you on the road, oftentimes you can see the cop before he sees you! Most people only watch about 30 to 40 feet ahead of them. As a result you don't see anything untill you're right on top of it. I won't tell you not to buy a radar detector, but it is possible to avoid a speeding ticket without one.

The problem I personally had was with false alarms as someone else brought up. There was never a time when the radar detector wasn't beeping, so much so that I stopped paying attention to it. After spotting two cops with radar guns well before the radar detector went off, I decided I didn't need it. My advice is to be more observant, it won't cost you a dime and will definatly make you a better driver!

Look for helmets in the bushes. :cop: