Hardwired Radar Detector

[Neveready]

Is it worth using an old laser radar detector that does the bands k, ka,x, laser?

I have an old Bell855sti super wideband from the late 2000s

 

[Tall Steve]

I never drive fast enough to need one.....

 

[KatyTxCT5V]

Is it worth using an old laser radar detector that does the bands k, ka,x, laser?

I have an old Bell855sti super wideband from the late 2000s

Old, depends how old. Radar detectors can get outdated over time like computers and unless they are capable of being updated, they become useless faster. Sure they “work” but usually with many false alarms especially with car radar sensors used on newer cars today.

I use a 360C Escort in my BW and my AT4 and keep them updated. They have not let me down and well worth the money. It’s extremely rare that I even get a false alarm. When I bought my new 5BW at a dealership 4hrs away, it detected LEO’s almost 2 miles away in the drive home.

Radar detectors work at their best when there is some traffic over zero traffic and using common sense. With no other cars around and some LEO’s not turning on their radar guns until they see you’re pretty much caught if you’re speeding.
Be smart and stay alert if you’re going to speed.

I’ll keep mine and buy better ones as they become available.

 

[Neveready]

Be smart and stay alert if you’re going to speed

Thanks, I may dust it off and try it out. It's funny you mentioned this, because the reason I stopped using radar detectors was because I was getting sloppy, I would rely on it too much.

For the last 20 years I've become much more aware of the surroundings, staying more alert near bridges, on and off ramps, etc.

In Chicago, giving speeding tickets was a racket. Getting pulled over for stupid things like going 6mph over or no front license plates, front window tint.

 

[FLYARMY]

Some out of state cops that I have talked to, have told me that they still install the RADAR detectors and leave them on all the time, reason being , the people with the detectors get an alert and slow down, even though the cop isn't hunting them. Hence.....they are driving safer. We called it "omnipresence". My department used to park empty police cars at problem intersections and it slowed everybody down ! Then after a few days, they would actually assign a cop and write tickets. Kept the drivers guessing. Now every where is a camera. The plate readers made my department MILLIONS ! I called it "fishing without bait". RADAR uses a completely different system of radio waves as compared to a laser beam the thickness of a pencil that goes out for miles! THe RADAR picks up the largest object, not necessarily the fastest. I had to train for three days just "eyeballing" how fast a vehicle is going. You actually have to be accurate +/- 3mph to pass the state certification. RADAR guns have been known to create health problems and most police departments aren't using them anymore. We used our laser guns to measure distances that were accurate to within 6 inches ! There was a saying "9 you're fine, 10 you're mine". I always laughed whenever I saw the sign..."Speed enforced by aircraft".

 

[Badillac]

Uh oh! I'm no electrical wiz so I brought my R8, blendmount & wire kit for mirror tap (as well as printed instructions from OP) to my guy for install today. The detector works & is nicely mounted...but now my rear view mirror has turned into a screen that is constantly displaying video from back up cam!!! It's no longer a mirror that I see reflection on (I don't see myself if my head's in front of it!). Instead, it's a smaller version of what you'd see on the main screen when in reverse. It's crazy! Technically, I can see what's happening behind me but very unnatural and distracting to have the video displayed there as a screen instead of a refection as it should be.

Has anyone else had this problem? I assumed something was wired wrong but could it have something to do with the settings? I have PDR, full camera package, and manual if that makes any diference. Any advise or input appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Andi]

Uh oh! I'm no electrical wiz so I brought my R8, blendmount & wire kit for mirror tap (as well as printed instructions from OP) to my guy for install today. The detector works & is nicely mounted...but now my rear view mirror has turned into a screen that is constantly displaying video from back up cam!!! It's no longer a mirror that I see reflection on (I don't see myself if my head's in front of it!). Instead, it's a smaller version of what you'd see on the main screen when in reverse. It's crazy! Technically, I can see what's happening behind me but very unnatural and distracting to have the video displayed there as a screen instead of a refection as it should be.

Has anyone else had this problem? I assumed something was wired wrong but could it have something to do with the settings? I have PDR, full camera package, and manual if that makes any diference. Any advise or input appreciated. Thanks.

You probably have the rear view camera mirror option and never knew it was there. Flip the “night” lever at the bottom of the mirror to enable/disable the rear view camera mode on the mirror.

 

[Badillac]

You probably have the rear view camera mirror option and never knew it was there. Flip the “night” lever at the bottom of the mirror to enable/disable the rear view camera mode on the mirror.

OMG! You're right! What the heck- had no idea that existed! Hahaha. Amen it wasn't to do wth the wiring. Thanks a million.

 

[FLYARMY]

I was driving the BW for months before I realized that the front seats had leg extensions !

 

[SynisterAZ]

While I only just got around to this mod today in my 4BW, this was one of the first threads I dove in to since hardwiring my R7 was a priority from day 1...so much so that in lieu of hardwiring, I actually traveled to the dealer in Dallas with 2x of those weird 6v camping batteries that I wired in series and connected with an old direct wire connector since I forgot the correct 12v connector at home...still, no way I was ripping across 900mi of TX, NM, and AZ without some protection and those $12 batteries lasted 2 days no prob.

How it started...

How its going...

 

[dribs15]

I was driving the BW for months before I realized that the front seats had leg extensions !

I double and triple checked for this with dealer before I placed my order due to my daddy long legs!

 

[OldGoat]

I have two older Valentine One's. I unfortunately can no longer update and must cough up to purchase newer version. Even updating older ones cost about $100 less than just new purchase. 2 units with 2-3 updates got pricey. I've learned to live without but I haven't really done many long interstate drives as I once did. I may invest in one again after I retire at end of the year as I plan on doing a lot of traveling. Houses in NJ and outside of Vegas.
I remember reading that guys were having issues hard wiring detectors and ruined auto dimming rear view mirror on C8. Anybody having problems?

 

[sonny200]

I have the hardwiring installed for my V1 Gen2 as per this thread on my 5BW & I have one on my C8 as per a thread on that forum. No issues whatsoever.

 

[SonnyAK]

I have two older Valentine One's. I unfortunately can no longer update and must cough up to purchase newer version. Even updating older ones cost about $100 less than just new purchase. 2 units with 2-3 updates got pricey. I've learned to live without but I haven't really done many long interstate drives as I once did. I may invest in one again after I retire at end of the year as I plan on doing a lot of traveling. Houses in NJ and outside of Vegas.
I remember reading that guys were having issues hard wiring detectors and ruined auto dimming rear view mirror on C8. Anybody having problems?

I had 2 Valentine's which I recently sold on Ebay (they still bring decent money) and purchased an Escort Max 360c. Modern radar technology is amazing compared to just a few years ago. Between that and running Waze Nav, you'll have a pretty good indicator of who's where - I live in southern Illinois and most law enforcement in all the surrounding states still run radar,(you'll periodically get a laser hit) plus the Waze community is pretty great for keeping real time info current. I used a Gen5diy plug and play wire harness to get power easily and a Blendmount for a clean install.

 

[FLYARMY]

I found the Waze App to be the best for keeping me ticket free.

Yesterday, I drove the 75 miles to my summer home to visit my 5BW in the garage. I can't wait for the nY weather to remain in the 60's. I went with my brother who has a high end Mercedes Benz 2dr convertible. His car even has heated armrests and ventilated headrests. Whenever we would be in a curved road, the back seat bolsters would automatically tighten. I like my Cadillac's .....but Mercedes does make a nice car.

 

[shbox]

I found the Waze App to be the best for keeping me ticket free.

Yesterday, I drove the 75 miles to my summer home to visit my 5BW in the garage. I can't wait for the nY weather to remain in the 60's. I went with my brother who has a high end Mercedes Benz 2dr convertible. His car even has heated armrests and ventilated headrests. Whenever we would be in a curved road, the back seat bolsters would automatically tighten. I like my Cadillac's .....but Mercedes does make a nice car.

Sounds like true brotherhood rivalry. I have 3 older ones.

 

[BrakeL8]

As I have done for my last several vehicles, I hardwired my UNIDEN R7 into my BW. Pulling the plastic cover off of the mirror was the actually the harder part. Wiretap BLACK to BLACK and WHITE PIN, Wiretap RED to PURPLE and GRAY PIN. Here are some pics for you.This install has been the same for me on my GM vehicles. The Radar detector only receives power when the vehicle is ON, not ACCESSORY , or OFF.

If you need a guide for removing the plastic cover this video (although for a different GM model) shows how to do it.

 

[Speed Racer 007]

Old, depends how old. Radar detectors can get outdated over time like computers and unless they are capable of being updated, they become useless faster. Sure they “work” but usually with many false alarms especially with car radar sensors used on newer cars today.

I use a 360C Escort in my BW and my AT4 and keep them updated. They have not let me down and well worth the money. It’s extremely rare that I even get a false alarm. When I bought my new 5BW at a dealership 4hrs away, it detected LEO’s almost 2 miles away in the drive home.

Radar detectors work at their best when there is some traffic over zero traffic and using common sense. With no other cars around and some LEO’s not turning on their radar guns until they see you’re pretty much caught if you’re speeding.
Be smart and stay alert if you’re going to speed.

I’ll keep mine and buy better ones as they become available.

x2
the 360C is a great piece of equipment!

 

[rubberduck]

There is just enough room above the rear view mirror for my R7. Hardwired to the fuse block on the drivers side.

 

[Lithoss]

Some out of state cops that I have talked to, have told me that they still install the RADAR detectors and leave them on all the time, reason being , the people with the detectors get an alert and slow down, even though the cop isn't hunting them. Hence.....they are driving safer. We called it "omnipresence". My department used to park empty police cars at problem intersections and it slowed everybody down ! Then after a few days, they would actually assign a cop and write tickets. Kept the drivers guessing. Now every where is a camera. The plate readers made my department MILLIONS ! I called it "fishing without bait". RADAR uses a completely different system of radio waves as compared to a laser beam the thickness of a pencil that goes out for miles! THe RADAR picks up the largest object, not necessarily the fastest. I had to train for three days just "eyeballing" how fast a vehicle is going. You actually have to be accurate +/- 3mph to pass the state certification. RADAR guns have been known to create health problems and most police departments aren't using them anymore. We used our laser guns to measure distances that were accurate to within 6 inches ! There was a saying "9 you're fine, 10 you're mine". I always laughed whenever I saw the sign..."Speed enforced by aircraft".

Took my 4bw on it's first road trip yesterday, my uniden saw police multiples times (4+ if I recall correctly) long before I could see them. I'm not sure if it saved me tickets (I wasn't driving toooooo fast) but I enjoy the peace of mind and appreciate the reminder. They definitely have their guns active in north Texas and the panhandle.