...simply, which is better, 8500 or v1...I have a 8500, but am looking to switch!

 

The Valentine Version 1.8 is the best radar detector out. My friend has it and can find cops like its nothing.

 

If you are gonna sell your 8500 i will buy it from you cause my car is hardwired with the 8500. If it was valenting cord i would get the Valentine in a split sec.

 

you'll soon find out which's more efficient...i'm testing out my friends new 8500 against my v1
Jae

 

Okay, let me ask which one you think is going to avoid you from getting a ticket when the cop is using Instant On K or Ka band? Better yet which one is going to keep you from getting a ticket at Laser? I bet you neither. Those two scenarios are basically the ones that will get you a ticket and your $400 detector is just going to go off letting you know you just got F#%#ed.

Only reason I say this is cause DC, MD, VA, NY, NJ they all use nothing but these guns.

Dixit

 

I've had good results with laser so far. Once I was definitely speeding faster than everybody else in the fast lane (4 lane freeway). I got a weak signal (2 out of 6 bars) for laser for a split second. I slowed and moved over a lane...a few more seconds later I see the cop on the side of the freeway. So yeah, it saved me there. Probably bounced off the ground or another car and my V1 picked it up. So that's proof for ya.
2nd time, I was sorta chasing another car through residential (i know, big no no) He must got beamed a block ahead of me. I got a full laser signal and braked hard and took a turn. I didn't see the cop but I'm pretty sure he was waiting up there for the mustang. I've never had a laser false alarm, especially behind a mustang and in a residential area.
There's been plenty of times I've been hit by radar and not speeding. I get 1-5second warning. before I see the cop.
Ka, K, and X, I get plenty of warning, so I don't worry about those. I leave my rader on most filtering (least sensitive) unless I know I'm speeding or racing. Even on the lowest setting, I still get a few seconds of warning at the least. Other times, up to 1/4mi or 1/2 mi I get Ka warnings on the open freeway.
Jae

 

Now I wanna do Valentine hardwire.

 

I posted this response before, but it might be worth repeating:

Being an ex-police officer, I will tell you that Valentine's are excellent. I have experimented with all different types over the years, and V-1s are the best in my experience. If you look around you should be able to find a used one for around $200+/- Just make sure you check with valentine on the serial number to make sure it is not stolen. They can check instantly.

The tests that my fellow officers and I conducted were fairly unscientific. We would each go out and buy a different detector and then hook many up into one car and set up different types of radar guns/laser guns. Our goal was to see the effects of instant on and also figure out rough advance warning distances. The V-1 ALWAYS won every time of contest we set up. Yes it is the most expensive, but you, at least in this case, seem to get what you pay for. I would also recommend that you check out http://www.valentineone.com/lab/detectortests.asp. It is a summary of a Car and Driver test conducted in February this year.

I repeated this test with an 8500 this summer with a buddy on the MA State Police. We used every type of radar, including instant on and laser, and each from straight away, around a corner, and coming over a hill. The V-1 alerted at least 10 seconds before the 8500 at 60mph, in EVERY test; for those mathematically challenged, that equates to about an additional 1/16 of a mile of additional time to slow down (880 feet). The maximum that the V-1 bested the 8500 was 22 seconds! That was an extra 1,936 feet early, or over a third of a mile!!!

This is all just my opinion; ultimately go with what makes you happy.
I drive over 100mph a lot, so for me this was the way to go. And for what ever it is worth, I do not know of anyone, either present or former law enforcement, that owns anything but V-1s. Hell...Buy both, do the tests for yourself, and return whichever detector comes in second place. Both companies allow for returns.

That said, any detector is better than no detector! Don't drive naked!

Drive safe-

 

Boots,

Very informative. I was hoping on a ex-cop or current cop to get in on this. I got the highest of respect for you all people who put their lives infront of ours.

Now lets get down to business. If you say the V1 is the best, and I believe you, my questions are these.

1. On instant on K or Ka, isnt the concept being INSTANTLY turns on the gun and grabs your speed? How would ANY detector grab hold of that signal to give me a fair warning and slow down? I got nailed instant on and basically the radar just told me I got F@#$ed. Or is the V1 picking up a signal emitted from the gun besides the Instant-On signal?

2. Laser, I thought the whole concept here being it takes only 1billionth of a second to grab your speed, how do I get any warning? If Im driving alone on the highway, aint nothing can be done right? I know if there is slight traffic, I can get a beam fragment and get warning that way, but what are the chances of that? Dont the cops "aim" who they want speeds of an pull the trigger? How does this warn me?

I only ask these cause I am anti-radar now, if you can give me just cause on those questions or show me that it truly do work, I will get one. And this is not meant to belittle you, I respect your work and want to know what you think and inform me if Im being hard headed or stupid.

Dixit

 

I've used both.. I had the 8500 but I switched over to the V1.. The range has definitely increased. And I love the feature on the V1 with the arrows that tells you which direction you are being tagged from..

 

correct me if im wrong, but i am getting slightly confused...i own the 8500 now...just because it starts goin off with KA does not mean im getting hit, it just means there is radar around, correct? I think im gonna switch, for a christmas present from my parents :-D

 

Let me start by saying that I am no expert in this area, as I was never "assigned" to traffic duty. But I did go through all the training...blah, blah, blah...that said, there may be some others in our group that ARE experts, and to them, I defer in advance...

In the specific scenario of you driving alone, meaning with no other car in sight, your assertion is correct that a detector is virtually useless against both instant-on radar and laser guns. Your only hope would be if the traffic officer accidentally triggered the gun prior to sighting your vehicle. I would not have these scenarios stop you from purchasing a detector though! I have never been pulled over for speeding since buying a V-1. Most departments in the New England area do not use this technology, as there is simply too much traffic for those devices to be effective.

Radar works rather simply, and when activated it usually measures the fastest moving object within its effective range (which emits from the gun in a cone like pattern) although it sometimes measures the closest instead. Technically better put, radar transmits a beam which blankets an area. The strongest return signal is usually the biggest or the closest object. The fastest moving object is the one which has the greatest change in frequency, usually. A radar beam fired 200 feet down the road will cover an eight lane highway.

Lidar (Laser) simply transmits a laser beam. It is VERY target specific and must be aimed. It can not be used while moving. Its accuracy has been successfully challenged in several states, but it is also being greatly endorsed by Federal speed compliance programs. Lidar is VERY accurate, assuming the proper target is hit with pinpoint accuracy and NO movement by the officer. Otherwise, it's painfully inaccurate. In one documented courtcase, a wall was measured, repeatedly, as moving at 4 MPH. The ticket was dismissed. It can not be jammed, however, it can be deflected and its accuracy is also highly questionable if used through a windshield. Rain and fog also seem to affect it rather badly. I have also heard that Xenon headlights mess these devices up severly, at night or day...I always drive with mine on. The only thing left for them is my plate during the day.

Accordly, laser must be able to SOLIDLY fix on a REFLECTIVE part of the car for it to work properly (license plate or headlight housings work best by far...bumpers usually do not provide a reading). Using a laser is not as easy as you might think. It requires the officer to hold the sight of the gun on say the license plate for about 3 seconds...try doing that from the side of the highway some 200 feet from a car travelling, presumably OVER 65mph. And remember, the officer must hold the device ABSOLUTELY still.

Given all this, I would buy a detector TODAY if I were you.

Good luck

 

Damn Boots......

Youve got me almost sold on buying a Valentine1.

Only question I got on Lidar is that how can it work accurately if shot at the headlight housing? I mean most headlight housings scatter light all over a flat beam area. Like the 2k2 Xenon lights have a flat pattern. I dont see how if the cop shot it at say anything above 300ft he would even get a reading back? That said, I dont have a front plate since Alabama dont give one.

Now with all this put to rest, almost, cops can still give you a ticket on what they believe you were speeding at. What I mean by this, cops are supposed to be trained to be able to tell the speed of a car with +/- 3mph just by looking it and judging. I know this is true cause when I was younger, we did an interview for a school report on Radar guns and the cop met up with us at my house and we went out to a local street and he basically said the speed of the car before he triggered his gun. And most of the time, i say 75% of the he was within the +/- 3mph spec. Now I dont know how well this holds up in court. It is usally dependant on the court/judge.

These Valentine1's are expensive. $400 DAMN. But then again a $200 ticket and insurance costs are expensive as well.

So in closing would you say, using Radar to avoid getting a ticket while speeding in traffic is safe? correct? not that I condone this . But we all know speeding alone on the highway is just asking for it.

Dixit

 

1st issue:
Ladar certainly works best when it is aimed at the license plate, front or rear, but some headlights can work, depends on the make. Plastic housing works well, glass does not work. It is the same reason that the windshield is not a good target...the beam gets refracted in the glass, and does not bounce back correctly. Believe it or not, but a dirty car will render a ladar unit almost useless. These are the reasons why "laser proof" plate covers work...they refract the beam so the police officer is not able to get an accurate reading.

2nd issue:
I personally do not believe that a police officer can accurately judge highway speeds without using some type of measuring/timing device...it can be from tree 'a' to tree 'b', but there has to be something. That said, it is not tough to judge slower speeds with some practice. But wow are these "estimated" tickets easy to fight. Assuming the offender's driving record could not easily be used for wall-papering a court room, I would think the ability to prove an officer's technique would be almost impossible. But that would be for criminal hearings/proceedings...most tickets are civil where the evidentiary requirement is just that it is more likely than not that Mr. Smith was speeding, etc. Maybe signup for Prepaid Legal Insurance, so you can have an attorney handy.

3rd issue:
In my opinion, traveling above the posted speed limit is not per se unsafe. Factors such as driving conditions, vehicle condition, time of day, weather, skill of driver, etc. all come in to play. Speed limits are designed for "reasonably forseeable or commonly occurring worst case scenarios" that is why it is easy to make turns on 25mph exit ramps in the snow at 25mph...and when it is sunny, dry, warm, and you are driving a new corvette with ultra high performance tires, and you have been through many driving schools, you can take that same ramp at over 65mph (not that I have personally done this!) Additionally, I believe that the biggest hazard, by far, you encounter on the road is other drivers. Why would you want to spend any more time than absolutely necessary near them...I say pass them and do so quickly! Use turn signals, do not race idiots in rice burners or sour kraught karts, NEVER screw around when in traffic or if it is slippery outside, just use your head. I have driven over 175mph on the highway...with no one else around. That is FUN!

Peace-

Boots

 

this's gonna sound dumb...but if you're alone on a hiway, why would you bother speeding? There's no "cover" of other traffic. It's too easy to point anything in your direction, get a reading, and know for a fact that it's you that got pinned and not something else. If you're gonna speed, have someone ahead of you withing eyeshot. That way, hopefully your detector will pick up stray laser and give you some kinda warning...and have the cops chase after your "rabbit".
Jae

 

OMG you're my hero! I agree 1000% with your above statement. Thanks also for all the good ex-cop info. Not sure of the story, but did they kick you out 'cause you were too cool to be a cop?

<~~~Had to use the new smiley!

My only problem with the "reasonably forseeable or commonly occurring worst case scenarios" is that some times those 25 MPH things are right on target(in SUNNY weather). They kind of give you a false sense of security when you can add +10 or +20 MPH to almost every other sign. What they need to do on the bad turns is say "No..we REALLY mean it" over the sign.

175mph on the highway? Awesome. I thought my 140mph was fast!

 

Have you tested the laser jammers that are on the market? They dont work?

Thanks

 

I've been using my friend's Escort for the past few days and here's my verdict.

Escort in auto mode:
better filtration (much less false alarms)
easy volume control, but better if it was a turn ****
autmatically reduced beeping after 5sec (V1 requires you to tap the button)
strength bar easy to read, especially when it says "X" or "KA"

V1 in highest filtration mode:
better side protection
more sensitive @ a distance (but provides many many many more false alarms)
better mount, easier to use, more sturdy
doesn't totally mute beeps when you hit the button
easily identifiable beeps
radar counter tells how many radars
directional arrows
arrow blinks to most threatening radar
easy to hardwire (includes all hardware needed...escort requires you to cut the cig lighter...which's where the mute button is located. so stupid!)
Detector is padded where it touches the windshield (important to me cuz I have tint on my windshield)
small square black box is less obvious
auto dims readout

Bottom line...I'll take the V1 with Escorts filtration. The amount of false alarms is unacceptable. I never noticed this till I tried the Escort. But the V1 gives crazy distance. Just to be on the safe side, I'll take the V1 and drive slower on every false alarm. Since getting the V1 in the summer, I've actually taken less chances @ speeding. It makes you conscious of your speed.

Jae