(((RADAR))) Detector - What do you use and why?
03-17-2018, 01:13 PM
#76
Rennlist Member
Another vote for the Escort 9500ix. I am a fan of these mirror mounts, very stable:
03-18-2018, 12:02 AM
#77
I use the Uniden R3, and made my decision based on online reviews by Vortex Radar (YouTube.) This unit gets very early detection, and regular updates from Uniden, so I'm quite happy to say the least. I've had it for about 6 months now.
03-18-2018, 07:05 AM
#79
Track Day
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My Max 360 got an update last summer that made it silent with all of that stuff. It went from an Acura/Cadillac/Buick/Mercedes defector to a police radar detector. I’m very pleased with it, been driving with it for 2 years now, saved me thousands of times.
03-18-2018, 09:29 AM
#80
Rennlist Member
My advice is to simply modify your behavior.
1. Radar detectors only work when the radar or laser is on. Police often simply wait until they see a potential target before activating the radar/laser. All the detector can tell you is that you have been pinged, which is a little too late in most cases.
2. Some states they are illegal.
3. They really are unnecessary and if you are stopped they can give the officer the impression that you regularly flaunt the law.
I have over 120,000 miles clocked on my bright Guards Red GT3 and have never been ticketed. I'm no saint, but I know what I can get away with and what disturbs law enforcement. If you want to play hard, go to the track or your local autocross, but street driving is not the place to perform risky behavior.
Know the law and know what officers are looking for. Let someone else speed. I love to have someone passing me, as they make good ticket fodder. Their brake lights also make a good LEO detector. Don't speed in residential areas!
Also, stay alert. Watch for speed limit changes, obstructions, pedestrians, etc. I have spent so long making a point to always know what the speed limit is that it is a habit.
Lastly, don't appear to be reckless in your maneuvers — be smooth.
All of the above works for me and I drive my car all over the place along the east coast. Talk to a few officers about what raises their hackles. I find most to be pretty candid and good people.
1. Radar detectors only work when the radar or laser is on. Police often simply wait until they see a potential target before activating the radar/laser. All the detector can tell you is that you have been pinged, which is a little too late in most cases.
2. Some states they are illegal.
3. They really are unnecessary and if you are stopped they can give the officer the impression that you regularly flaunt the law.
I have over 120,000 miles clocked on my bright Guards Red GT3 and have never been ticketed. I'm no saint, but I know what I can get away with and what disturbs law enforcement. If you want to play hard, go to the track or your local autocross, but street driving is not the place to perform risky behavior.
Know the law and know what officers are looking for. Let someone else speed. I love to have someone passing me, as they make good ticket fodder. Their brake lights also make a good LEO detector. Don't speed in residential areas!
Also, stay alert. Watch for speed limit changes, obstructions, pedestrians, etc. I have spent so long making a point to always know what the speed limit is that it is a habit.
Lastly, don't appear to be reckless in your maneuvers — be smooth.
All of the above works for me and I drive my car all over the place along the east coast. Talk to a few officers about what raises their hackles. I find most to be pretty candid and good people.
03-18-2018, 10:01 AM
#81
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Your first point has been demonstrated to be untrue for 99% or the radar encounters I’ve had over the years I’ve been driving with my Max 360 for radar in the northeastern US. Police drive around with their radar on constantly. Most of the time my detector warns me half a mile or more that there is a steady radar that is getting closer to the front and I have forever to slow down. On tighter backroads it is closer, but it still gives me plenty of warning. For those encounters where they aren’t simply leaving it on, it’ll alert then shut off as they hit traffic in front of me. What if there are no other cars? I’m not going fast because there is no one else to warn me, or I’m accepting the risk of a ticket.
As for laser, I get hit with it occasionally, but it is less than 1% of the time that the detector goes off, and it is always on nice sunny warm days, usually on 95 in NH. Even then with the Escort Live feature I have usually gotten an alert from someone else getting hit and the detector starts counting down the distance to where they got hit counting down from 6000ft or so and closing as I get closer and the detector pointing to where it happened.
Having an RD doesn’t mean that you stop acting responsibly or stop being observant. It is just another tool that increases your awareness. Also, they are only illegal in VA and DC.
As for laser, I get hit with it occasionally, but it is less than 1% of the time that the detector goes off, and it is always on nice sunny warm days, usually on 95 in NH. Even then with the Escort Live feature I have usually gotten an alert from someone else getting hit and the detector starts counting down the distance to where they got hit counting down from 6000ft or so and closing as I get closer and the detector pointing to where it happened.
Having an RD doesn’t mean that you stop acting responsibly or stop being observant. It is just another tool that increases your awareness. Also, they are only illegal in VA and DC.
03-18-2018, 01:07 PM
#82
Rennlist Member
Your first point has been demonstrated to be untrue for 99% or the radar encounters I’ve had over the years I’ve been driving with my Max 360 for radar in the northeastern US. Police drive around with their radar on constantly. Most of the time my detector warns me half a mile or more that there is a steady radar that is getting closer to the front and I have forever to slow down. On tighter backroads it is closer, but it still gives me plenty of warning. For those encounters where they aren’t simply leaving it on, it’ll alert then shut off as they hit traffic in front of me. What if there are no other cars? I’m not going fast because there is no one else to warn me, or I’m accepting the risk of a ticket.
As for laser, I get hit with it occasionally, but it is less than 1% of the time that the detector goes off, and it is always on nice sunny warm days, usually on 95 in NH. Even then with the Escort Live feature I have usually gotten an alert from someone else getting hit and the detector starts counting down the distance to where they got hit counting down from 6000ft or so and closing as I get closer and the detector pointing to where it happened.
Having an RD doesn’t mean that you stop acting responsibly or stop being observant. It is just another tool that increases your awareness. Also, they are only illegal in VA and DC.
As for laser, I get hit with it occasionally, but it is less than 1% of the time that the detector goes off, and it is always on nice sunny warm days, usually on 95 in NH. Even then with the Escort Live feature I have usually gotten an alert from someone else getting hit and the detector starts counting down the distance to where they got hit counting down from 6000ft or so and closing as I get closer and the detector pointing to where it happened.
Having an RD doesn’t mean that you stop acting responsibly or stop being observant. It is just another tool that increases your awareness. Also, they are only illegal in VA and DC.
All that aside, my point is that you can still enjoy your car safely and avoid tickets without a radar detector.
The caveat is, some areas and states are more aggressively patrolled than others. I feel your pain if you live in such a place.
Short, funny story: My third and last ticket was over 15 years ago in Ohio. Not long after I got it, the mayor of that small town fired all the police officers and padlocked the police office because the local businesses were complaining about the speed traps and their negative impact on businesses. Some departments and officers just go to far, but most just don't want to have to respond to an accident scene.