MrCanuck

Well, I guess I'm not surprised, but I am disappointed.
Today on the way home from work (in my non-p-car and without my valentine one) I went through a laser speed trap. Luckily I had noticed far in advance that a suspicious looking car was on the side of the road and I slowed down to the speed limit and drove right by. Since the laser trap was about 3 blocks from my house, I drove home, got my Valentine One from my 993 and went back to see what would happen... I hadn't been through a laser trap before and was very curious to see how it would perform.

So, I drove back out, and went past the cop in the opposite direction. Then I pulled off one of the side roads to wait... (the cop had pulled 2 people over in the 3 minutes it took me to get back, so he was busy writing tickets.)
After he'd finished writing his tickets, I turned back onto the road, behind two other vehicles, to go through the trap.

Now all 3 of us were going the same speed, roughly at the limit. I was expecting that the Valentine One would at least chirp when the cop targeted the two vehicles ahead of me.. and the lead car was only about 40 yards and the car directly in front of me about 15 yards.

And? Not a single beep until the detector went ballistic (because he was pointing it at me).

I have to say, what on earth do they have the laser detector for? It was utterly useless and I can't think of a scenario (given the proximity of the cars in front of me) where it would work.

So, not only is it useless against "spot-on" radar, and it's constantly going off because of bogeys (business auto door openers and such) but it is completely useless against laser.

Really all it does very well is give you a false sense of security, and that's when you'll get caught.

I'm bummed.

Anyone wanna buy a valentine one?

cliang

I stopped using a laser detector a few years ago when they had my speed down to the 10th of a mile an hour. It seems to me that if it does go off you should just get you check book out.
The one upside was that a few weeks ago I was driving with 3 Ferraris and a Lamborghini when we hit a speed trap. Because the beam was only focused on one of us, he was pulled over and the rest of us had time to slow down and drive by.
The range on the laser is up to a mile. More than likely they've seen you before you see them.

Just my opinion.

Chris

yetis

You need a laser shifter. I had the Escort SR7 combo with the escort Zr3 laser shifter on my old car. After install, it was about the price of 3 V1's but TOTALLY worth it. I would say keep the Valentine 1 and get the laser shifter installed, this as the base SR7, unlike the V1 cannot be upgraded. There are two options in laser shifter, see below.

http://www.lidatek.com

http://www.radarbusters.com/products/escort/shifter.asp

p_carfan

I love my Valentine 1....One must realize it is just a tool, to be used correctly you as the driver MUST be very aware of the environment around you. That being said a few points to consider, the range of laser is limited, lighter color cars reflect best, the surface area matters along with contours and whether or not you have a front license plate.

I came over a hill the other day, looked down the road and bigger than Dallas there was a police car. I slowed down and when he tagged me the V1 went off, I was doing the speed limit.

So.....If you would like I'll send you the shipping and take that POS off your hands .

Coleman

It does depend upon the area and the surrounding objects and cars.. I have been in a situation whereas the laser was diffused off a car ahead of me, I received an a laser alarm on the V1 and I slowed.. My V1 saves my a$$ daily.. and as Steve stated, you must be aware of the environment. That said, in the past 2 years with this version of my V1 (I had an older version, which I upgraded) I have come across 1 cop with a laser device, he was on PCH in Malibu.

Coleman

Coleman

BTW, aren't radar detectors illegal in canada?? you're breaking the law -and then you're complaining that youre not efficient enough at breaking the law..

-sheesh ;-)

Coleman.

OldGuy

Kanuk it even says in the manual that if the laser goes off its almost too late anyway. The V1 has saved my bacon many many times. The laser is more difficult for a policeman to use anyway. I would not count on my V1 for laser protection, its too fast.

Ray Calvo

Mine seems to give me warning when cop points at a car in front of me; works OK.

Nothing's perfect.

Oh yeah - mine isn't built-in/disguised; it's hanging under the rear view mirror where it is intended to be. Sure nothing's blocking your sensors? They're out in the open?

Want added warning? Throw a CB radio in the car and listen to the 18-wheelers. You'll get mile-plus distance warnings.

Blame yourself before blaming Valentine.

TamiyaGuy

The legality of radar detectors varies on a province by province basis. I don't recall having any issues with them when I lived in Edmonton.

Luis A.

Canuk,

Set it to "super logic" (capital "L" displayed) to greatly increase the specificity.

mlincoln

I tend to agree with MrCanuck that radar detectors don't really seem to work all that well, and produce a huge number of irritating false alarms that mostly interrupt one's concentration upon the driving task. As such, they merely promote a false sense of security and could even be dangerous. There's a fairly sure way to avoid most all speeding tickets without any irritating false alarms at all: the "no radar detector" method of measured, rational, 'nothing to prove' driving. While that is perhaps a bit difficult to carry off in a Porsche, driving a Vanagon camper on occasion is a good method drill!

Just my opinion here.

Mike

jrgordonsenior

Our CHP seem to keep their radars on constantly on Ka band. My V-1 has earned it's keep many times over on our highways.
I was talking to a LA County Sherriff the other morning in a Starbucks on Sunset in West Hollywood. He said they have just recently begun shooting lasers all over the county......****!
JRG

MrCanuck

Coleman - radar detectors are not illegal in Alberta, so my griping is 100% justified.

I have to admit that the V1 has saved me a few times on the highway, when the cops are using radar. But here in Calgary the city cops use laser exclusively (and now I know why!) Even after reading the documentation on the V1 website, I still think that the laser detection in the V1 is useless. You have to have very specific circumstances in order for the laser to bounce off something and be picked up by the V1. (probably a very small percentage of the time.) And yes, I have the V1 setup correctly in my car...

Maybe yetis is right and the laser shifter is needed as a supplement to the V1.

GrantG

I always hated radar detectors before I recently bought a V1 - it has already saved me a few times in a month - I love it. BTW, Mike Valentine is a Rennteam.com member and a real Porsche enthusiast

OldGuy

Mike V is also a Rennlist member