I used Russ's writeup to hardwire my Passport 8500 in my 01 Max SE. It turned out great, cannot see any wiring and I can use my lighter plug to charge my cellphone now.

http://www.5thgenmaximas.com/hardwireradar.html

I put the radar detector right above the rear-view mirror.

Should I be concerned that the effectiveness of the detector might be reduced because it is behind tinted glass?

 

Yes the glass will affect you detectors range. I would suggest that you place the 8500 just below your rear view mirror. This won't disrupt your view out the front and plus the detector will not be behind the tinted glass.

Here's a pic of it installed in my car.....

 

I wouldn't be worried....the radar detector companies use a piece of extremely dark tinted plastic on the unit. I wouldn't think a little tinted glass would make much of a difference.

 

The radar will be affected by the tint only if the tint has metallic fibers to it. The tint will affect laser radar though. For more information, the site that sells the Valentine 1 has a lot of detail on what affects radar ranges.

the site is http://www.valentine1.com

 

How would you know if the tint has metallic fibers??? Does the tint on top of the windshield have metallic fibers??

Thankz in advance....

Later....

 

From my understanding and research (please correct me if me wrong), the Max's tint does not have metal in it, on the other hand, if you get aftermarket tints, then you would probably have to check the ingredients.

 

I spent a large part of my life driving in Virginia & D.C. (where radar detectors are still illegal), so I am really uninformed about this topic. I should, however, look into getting a detector here in the great state of Washington where cops ticket you for going 2mph over the limit if you look at them funny.

In Russ' write-up, he has the "external warning lights" mounted on the steering column? Has he separated the warning lights and the actual radar device? Is that what you have done as well? How does the Passport mount on the windshield...is it attached to the stalk of the mirror in some way (could you get creative and do it that way) or is it suction cupped onto the window?

 

Some models have an "external warning" lights that hook up to the main box. You can put them anyway convenient. One big benefit with that setup is you prevent people from tailgating you to use your detector. It is especially obvious at night, since your main box is usually higher up on the windshield blaring out red LEDS. as for the mounting, not know too much about it, but seen on the threads with suggestions which include velcro and others. I guess as long as it works... AND doesn't damage your car, it'll be fine.

 

I bought a seperate smart wire that designed for hardwiring, it allows you to mount the external warning light and mute button anywhere you want. Also the 8500 comes standard with suction cups, but you can buy other accessories at escortradar.com

 

y'all still gettin updates to the thread? lookin to get a 8500 and wanted to mount it on top of the mirror like one cat had his bel mounted (lookin like it's not gonna fit). not really tryin to use the windshield mount cuz mounting it up that high i want folks to see it as little as possible. is that my only option or have any of y'all bootlegged your mounting?

 

It was mentioned that metallic fibers can affect the radar detectors. I have F1 metallic window tint all around. Will the make a radar detector much less effective?

 

I've had my radar detector (8500) mounted on top of the rear view mirror ever since June last year (had it in an expedition before) and no tickets yet. Of course you still gotta play it smart. Range doesn't seem to be affected and it still goes off in enough time to warn me.

 

Does anyone have any pics of their hardwired detector sitting above the rear view mirror? Russel's pics are very helpful in getting the thing wired, but I don't see any pics of where the actual detector is mounted.

 

I have the Bel 980 (Bel & Escort are sister companies) with no problems on range. On the way to work on the 15 fwy, my detector goes off alot since the Highway Patrol likes to hide out under the bridges and use their radar guns. It has saved my butt alot. As for mounting, I didn't use the suction cups. I Used Velcro!

I will post pics of the install later today.

Dave

 

that would be great if you can do that!

 

 

here it is:

 

that's nice! how stable was it? how strong was the velcro?

 

I am buying a Passport 8500 x50 and want to hardwire. Can anyone help me out with these directions since Russ' website is no longer up.

 

Wow this was dug up from the past... Sorry i cant help just amazed.

 

I'm literally going to buy a Passport 8500 this week because I didn't want to wait several weeks to get the new X50 version. Do you know what makes the X50 better than the original?

 

I am getting the x50 because that is what they had up at Best Buy for the exact same price as the older version. I didn't even see the older version there.

Still need these directions. Please help me.

 

they added these features
50% more range!
POP radar detection!
Brilliant blue display +$40= 340
the red display is still 300

 

Soonerfan just mounted his detector inside the sunglasses holder...looks pretty decent, and it's hidden (since they are illegal here in Va.)

 

I just did this w/o any instructions this past weekend, so I can describe what I did if it's any help. I didn't get the 8500 wiring kit w/ the remote lights though, so if you get that you'll need to do something different.

How I did mine was I removed the sunglass holder by taking the 2 screws out (phillips) and then removing the map light assembly with a flat head screwdriver slid between the headliner and the assembly to compress the 'spring' on the passenger side of the map light unit, then it'll pop right out.

Once I had all that open I tapped the hot wire for the map light (can't remember the color, but not the black one) and backed a bolt (10mm?) that was above the sunglass holder out and attached the ground wire there. Then I tucked the excess wiring in to the right of the sunglass holder above the headline (there's just enough room) and snaked the power wire out toward the front of the car over the top of the headliner. I pulled about 4" of cable out to allow me to plug it in with.

Then it's just the reverse to get it all back together.