Virus

iTrader: (1)

I just purchased a Valentine 1 with remote display and an extra wiring install kit for $475. I need moral support because the guilt is starting to creep in after the euphoric high while purchasing. Although I try to keep within 10mph over the speed limit and haven't gotten a ticket in 10 years, I find myself running into many radar traps lately and would love to know before my heart stops beating.

Iilac

iTrader: (65)

You made wise purchase. I can't live without mine. Ha, hope that helps.

MaximaPolak

iTrader: (9)

I wish i had the money for one.....


Good luck with speeding though....i'd be speeding all the time with that puppy......

I went to the beach (Seaside in Jersey) and on my way there some of the weirdest noises i have ever heard came out of my radar detector...for the first time is saw and emergency vehicle (ambulance) set off my "emergency vehicle" warning.....VG2 was a popular with the cops down there....had one follow me while trying to detect it.

Virus

iTrader: (1)

My wife and I are going to the beach in August and it's a 7-8 hour trip so I thought this would help make it 6

Funny story: I was coming home on rt66 telling my passenger how well I liked my Uniden remote detector and how it was undetectable to the VG2. Uh oh, a beep, then more and so on. I slowed down and sure enough around the corner an officer was lurking. He quickly pulled out behind me. I turned off my detector immediately. I pulled over. He said, "drivers license and radar detector please". I responded, " here is my license, but I don't have a radar detector. (I installed it in my ash tray) He looked through my car for 20 minutes looking for the detector and couldn't find it. He said, "sorry for the inconvenience. It must have been the car in front of you". I then bought a Bel, tested the VG2 invisibility with a friend who was an officer and it was indeed undetectable. He had a V1 for his personal car and swore by it.

lophix

iTrader: (3)

guilt?? conscience?? whazzat??? Man, go out there and tear the road up! That's why you got it! 10mph over is for people without r.ds. 20above is for people with bels and radioshacks and what not. double the limit is for V1 owners

I had mine for a while but had to give it up...was too expensive a toy to keep at the time...although a couple of weeks later, I got a ticket almost equal the amount of a v1

If I could, I'd buy one in a heartbeat, and I've been hinting to the accountant ever since but my arguments aren't strong enough yet

SonicDust187

iTrader: (11)

Detect what, I thought it is legal to use a radar detector in NJ.

Triple8Sol

iTrader: (29)

I settled on an 8500...Just think of it as an investment, because that's what it is. It may help you avoid a costly ticket and lawyer fees. Plus the added peace of mind. Also, since the V1 can be upgraded, it won't be outdated.

Virus

iTrader: (1)

Like so many others, I was caught up between the 8500 and the V1. I've said for years, "if I ever buy another detector, it's gonna be a V1". Honestly, I was leaning towards the 8500 with blue display. I found it for $249 on sale, but the V1's remote display was the back breaker. I live in Virginia which is the only freakin state that it's illegal in and travel to DC which completes the only 2 places in the U.S. where they are illegal. If that wasn't a factor, the 8500 seemed like the best detector for the money. However, the V1 upgrade policy may pay for itself within the next 10 years, who knows.

Dave B

Just keep in mind that if you're one of few cars on the road and you're the first car the officer decides to radar/laser with instant-on, it doesn't matter what kind of detection device you have in your car. You're cooked and served.

I have a cheapo Bel that's served me flawlessly, however I'm not a huge speeder (10mph over on the highway, 5mph in the city). I use the detector more as device to help me keep my speed in check and make myself aware of the police in the area.


Dave

CaLSoNiC

I just got a V1 for a graduation present... this thing is awesome. I love the arrows, love the modes, love the whole damn thing. Its a great upgrade from my hand-me-down Passport 7500 :P

I speed... I speed too much. I bough H-rated tires to keep me under 130. But no matter what detector you have its not foolproof.

MaximaPolak

iTrader: (9)

It is legal but some of the cops here follow you form far away and check if you have a radar detector so you don't have a chance if you don't have one.

This is my POS.....

It's the Cobr 9860 I think.....not too bad. It kept me out of tickets for now.

C MAX

iTrader: (4)

i have the same one but be careful, i got two speeding tickets because i rely'd on it too much. one time they paced me and another time they waited till i passed and zapped me. but other than that if there is a radar it will pick it up.

Virus

iTrader: (1)

The two things I'm worried about are this: Getting hit with instant on while going a little too fast and jamming on my breaks and getting 2 tickets one for the speeding and the other for the detector. #2, getting hit with instant on and hitting the breaks while not speeding and getting a ticket for the detector

MaximaPolak

iTrader: (9)

I'm pretty sure there are ways of hiding it form view.....I thought i've seen this in the past where you cannot see the detector at all.

Triple8Sol

iTrader: (29)

Thought I posted pics earlier, but maybe not?

Here's my hardwire install:

C MAX

iTrader: (4)

no that dont work in virginia. they have a device that detects the radar
and if they see it or not they will ticket you. p.s. i was told once by a state trooper in virginia to show it to him or he will find it and take it. i dont know if thats true or not but i showed.

Maxima-2

iTrader: (8)

I love my V1..... I have had it for about a month now and this thing is second to none! I had an older pasport(?) detector can't even remember the model, and it was very true to me and my group of friends...(saved tons of tickets on various trips) anyhow it had VG2 lazer ka K and X, it was great, since owning the V1 I notice a lot more cops driving with there radar on? who knew!

Virus

iTrader: (1)

They aren't allowed to take it from you, but you will get a ticket. Anyway, the only device they have down here is VG2 and Bel, Escort and the V1 are all immune to it. I had the pleasure of putting the Bel and V1 detectors a few feet from the VG2 and it couldn't detect them. I'm just worried about site. I originally thought for whatever reason that when you purchased the V1's remote display that the main unit would be a plain black box.

Maxin It

I've been runnin the bel 985 sitting by the left side mirror on the dash. Passed many cops durin the day without any problems. No tints either. In VA only K Band has gone off. I wonder if they even use laser here in VA. I've driven on 66 and there's always a cop parked right before the 7100 parkway exit. K band everytime... If your ever in Vienna, the 25 mph zone is everywhere. Cops just sit there waiting for speeders. K band everytime there too.

Cheocwa

iTrader: (4)

I need a V1 bad!

Virus

iTrader: (1)

I've been everywhere in Va for one thing or another. Ka is used down towards Richmond and beyond, but it's really used quite a bit down rt 81 past Harrisonburg and Blackburg. K band is definately more prevelant and I too have never seen Ka in NOVA. I've never seen anyone using laser in VA. When I lived in Maryland they used it everywhere. Truthfully, laser is a big waste of time for Police Deptments. Most people don't have detectors and the effort of having to get out of your car and pointing it is rediculous. Any pics of your install?

Virus

iTrader: (1)

www.m3forums.com had some very good threads on both radar detectors and the ZR3 Laser Jammers. They say the ZR3 works extremely well at jamming laser.

Wisky97SE

iTrader: (1)

I have a V1 and it was money well spent. Although it costs $400, it has saved me counless amounts of time and money.

Maxin It

Held in place by ghetto velcro I tried mounting it above the rear view mirror where that blue strip is... range is so much shorter. When it's mounted there you can't see it though. Mounting it under the rear view mirror is not an option since it's clearly visible.

endus

iTrader: (1)

You made a wise purchase. I won't go into yet another littany on why the V1 is so much better than every other detector, but it is the ONLY detector I would ever spend money on. Anything else will probably end up getting you MORE tickets because you get the false sense of security without the ability to detect falses. The first time you pass a cop using radar in a place where you normally get falses and would therefore ignore a standard detector you will understand why you spend the money. Wait til you see how well the flashing arrow to indicate the strongest threat works.

Watch out for laser. Watch out for instant on, but as long as you're not the only car on the road you're fine.

Mount the detector up high and velcro the RD in front of your wheel. If you get pulled over just turn the V1 off, and quickly stash the remote display...it is very difficult to see the V1 from outside the car if you mount it like this...

Virus

iTrader: (1)

Just to reafirm. Radar isn't prohibited at all through the tint, it's just the laser correct? I'm buying weathertechs off of another org member which should also help hide the V1 along with my 35% tint.

endus

iTrader: (1)

I was actually reading on Valentine's site where they were saying something aobut how the tint isn't even going to affect laser reception because of something about reflections off the hood. People say it can affect radar reception but if it does in our car I haven't seen it yet. Detection range is pretty ridiculous and I've had it mounted up there since the beginning.

nadir_s

i have the same one. It's not THAT bad. saved my *** twice so far, but i still got a ticket when highway patrol decided to follow my car from like a mile away and used his "best judgement" without any speed detection device....

Maxima-2

iTrader: (8)

[COLOR=Red]Where to mount

[COLOR=White]Valentine One works best when mounted high in the windshield, and toward the center between the windshield pillars......................

. When properly mounted, the FRONT ANTENNA will look forward through the glass. IT MUST HAVE AN UNOBSTRUCTED VIEW................

. The REAR ANTENNA will look reward, between the passengers and out the rear glass. It, too, MUST HAVE AN UNOBSTRUCTED VIEW.


IMPORTANT NOTE: ...............................block radar from passing................... So do solar barrier windshields of the type used..............................and on imported luxury sedans (look for a reddish or copper tint) Same for mirrored sunscreans

All in all I think those of you who have it mounted above the mirror are not getting full rearward coverage, because the rear antenna is facing into the roof. check it out mine was just under my rearview now that its a touch lower its more responsive on reward radar!

Sorry about the novel, I had the manual handy and my FYI. hope this helps!

LithiuMax

I was in a car with the V1 and the thing kept beeping loudly. Wouldn't that get annoying after a while? We were in a small city..

Zero Deuce SE

I have to disagree with you on that statement. I have mine mounted above my mirror and I get great rear coverage.

Zero Deuce SE

Congrats on your execellent choice. I have been using one since 1994 and I'm very happy with it. I did manage to get a speeding ticket about 6 weeks ago while using it. I was driving home from work and not paying attention because I had forgotten my sunglasses that day. About the time I saw the FHP cruiser, he took my picture. I was doing 80 in a 55. He did cut me some slack on the ticket and wrote my speed as 64. I had been pulled over several times in the past while using the V1 but there were times when it did not sound an alert. I would advise you to not fall into a false sense of security while using your new V1.

Maxima-2

iTrader: (8)

Well it could be due to my 35% tints, but I noticed a more responsive rear arrow!

As for annoyance in the city! tell him to turn down the mute level!

Zero Deuce SE

I'm running 35% smoke tint also.

Virus

iTrader: (1)

Well, it's installed. It's almost totally hidden when it's up high on the right like Maxima-2's, but just a tad higher. I moved it down to basically the same position to make sure it was under the tint line. With it there, it's still very hard to see from outside the car, but it's noticeable. I'm going to contact Mike Valentine to see if he knows if our tint retards radar reception in any way. I doubt it does. I realize that it will kill laser reception, but if it goes off your basically toast anyway. I have never seen police running laser/lidar in NOVA. I was very unsure of where to locate the remote display. I didn't like it atop the steering column because I was afraid it would be noticeable upon close inspection. I instead installed it the the right of the column, directly underneath the right hand side of our gauge cluster as high as possible. It's only a half to 1 inch lower, but it's entirely hidden from outside view in that location and it's very easy to see in the drivers seat.

Friday evening, I had to paint my daughters bedroom because we bought new furniture. (room was being used for storage). Home Depot was about to close so I had to get there fast to get another gallon of paint. The V1 saved my butt big time. It's funny how things work out. If I hadn't bought it, I would be paying hundreds to insurance and the state. Thanks Mike Valentine.

srbarnes4ever

Do I take your statement to mean the the V1 is indetectable to radar detector detectors? I have never know that to be the case but haven't tested it either. Please confirm.
Thanks!
srb

Virus

iTrader: (1)

I'm not quite sure how you got that out of my statement. I bought it for the remote display which is concealed out of view from all the cars around me. No radar detector currently available is undetectable to the Spectre II RDD, but the Valentine is detectable between 800-900 feet while the Escort is detectable at almost twice that distance. Does that matter, probably not, because I'm not going to turn mine off anyway. My guess is that VA doesn't have many Spectre's. They do have alot of VG2's however which Bel, Escort and Valentine are all immune to. I have tested these myself with a friend whose an officer. I can literally put them next to the VG2 with no detection.

The only thing that I don't like about the Valentine is it's display. It's still in the dark ages and I prefer the Escorts display. On the other hand, do you really need to know what radar band is being displayed? The answer is no for me. You only have to memorize the different sounds and they are very distinct in their differences so it's not a problem.

max95q

iTrader: (10)

Im not very familiar with everyone talking about instant on and how a person has to hide his/her detector. Why would you need to I thought they were legal to have. I live in Texas maybe thats why, but could someone please explain the instant on and why the need for hiding them?

Zero Deuce SE

They are not legal everywhere.
Radar Detectors
Radar detectors are illegal in cars in Virginia and the District Of Columbia. Radar jammers, and possibly other devices like IR-absorbing license plate covers, are explicitly illegal in California (VC §28150), the District of Columbia, Oklahoma (47-11-808), Minnesota (169.14(12)), Nebraska (60-6.275), Utah (41-6-52.7), and Virginia (46.2-1079). The FCC claims even "passive" radar jammers are illegal under federal law; see their 1997 opinion and order in the Rocky Mountain Radar case. This order was affirmed by the tenth circuit court of appeals in October, 1998 (Rocky Mountain Radar v. FCC, 158 F.3d 1118; cert. denied 119 S. Ct. 1045 (1999)).

I have heard that you can have your detector confiscated in VA if it is visible to law enforcement. Not sure if it's true in all cases. I know that you can't use them in commercial vehicles in any state.

http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/laws.html#radar

C MAX

iTrader: (4)

i made a post earlier abouth this. i got caught in va, not for speeding but for having a radar. i was able to detect him and slowed down but he still pulled me over. i hid the radar and he came to the car and said i know you have a radar show me it or i will consficate it. so i showed him and he gave me a ticket.but i got to keep my radar.