ICEMAN 316

For sure.. I'll post some pics from the dealership cause as soon as I get it its going to EuroRev to get the mods done

Biff Trout

I vote V1. Have had one for 5 years and has never let me down. Just prior to delivery of my 550, I sent the old V1 back to Valentine and had them upgrade me to the latest and greatest. Arrows make all the difference in the world and show you where to look and/or worry. Without them, you are flying blind IMO.

BTW, I did a permanent install in my 550 so that I would not have to mount/dismount, etc. Pix are in the DIY section.

PS - Cobradav you had better knock on wood - you just committed a "spoke too soon"

JStraw

Keep in mind the following:

1. Any Laser detector you buy will be useless without a laser jammer. The reason is that the laser (commonly know as LIDAR) is very targeted and instantaneous. By the time any detector picks up a laser signal it's too late anyway. Even if you buy a jammer, you have to remember that as soon as the jammer detects a signal, you have to slow down and turn the jammer off. That way, the cop will not suspect that you are jamming. Otherwise the chances of the cop tailing you will increase and he/she will look for a reason to pull you over. There's no law against laser jamming (except maybe in a few states and lot of Canada). Remember radar jamming is illegal in the US.
2. Smaller city cops generally use a radar (one that is always on) and LIDAR as supplement.
3. Police depts also use POP where the radar gun stays on, but doesn't transmit a signal till the trigger is pulled. Almost instantaneous just like LIDAR.
4. False Alarms. No one has a foolproof way to avoid it. At least in my case, every false alarm results in me jumping on the brakes. You can potentially get complacent after a while. Some probably are better than others. lot of people will claim that the V1 does produce higher false alarms - although not sure about the latest one with 2 band POP.
5. Most regard the V1 to be the yardstick that all other detectors are measured against since they have dual antennas - one for front detction, one for rear. The newer detectors like Bel RX65 have a single antenna that is bi-directional. The Bel (or Escort - same company) may have better filtering for false alarms.

I know this probably doesn't help in your decisioning, but you sometimes have to look at the entire picture. I have been considering buying a detector for a long time, and I am probably leaning towards the V1 too. I really don't think you can go wrong with either the V1 or Bell RX65. Keep in mind, you will need to add-on a laser jammer for full protection.

robg

I know the V-1 is by far the most popular detector among members here. Personally, I have used Escort for years with great results. Never had the V-1 "arrows" so I cannot miss them.

Here is a link to what I think is an independent review (some may disgaree) of the 3 leading detetcors: V-1, Escort, and Bel. The results may surprise you.

http://www.radartest.com/article.asp?articleid=9090

JStraw

Here's another link that has more detectors included in the test. This site is linked from Motor Trend's website. Possibly reliable information.

http://www.radarbusters.com/support/produc...sts/Default.asp

cobradav

Thought about that as soon as I hit "submit", then it was too late But it has been since 2000 right after being stopped for 93 in a 55 and NOT getting a moving violation. I swore I would never embarrass another policeman or myself by putting us in this position.

jet190rs

Not available in HUD yet, but is available in the rearview mirror or instrument cluster.

jet190rs

Good info on radar/laser/etc
http://www.radardetector.net/

sc02492

I used to have a V1 and switched to the X50 with blue LED display. Do a search on my username and you can follow the threads and read about my likes/dislikes about the V1, and why I made the switch to the X50. When comparing the V1 and the X50, I have learned to beware of anyone who says that there is a clear-cut "best" choice (for either brand), especially if they do not put forth a reasoned argument based upon facts. If you do some research, you quickly realize that it's not clear-cut at all. The truth is that BOTH detectors are excellent, but each has different strengths and weaknesses, and only you can decide which one suits your style. I like the X50 for its automute feature, greater programming flexibility (and ease of choosing custom features like display dimming), less false alarms (much less), better bogey display, and the blue LED . Objective testing provided in the links below also suggests that the range of the X50 is superior. As a small point, I like the sleek, more modern appearance of the X50, but of course this would not be a major factor in deciding between the two brands. On the flip side, I really liked the directional arrows of the V1 and wish that the X50 had them, but the strengths of the X50 outweigh the lack of directionals in my opinion. If the X50 had directionals, it would be perfect as far as I'm concerned.

In addition to my previous threads, check out the following links as well:

http://www.radartest.com/article.asp?articleid=9090

http://www.speedzones.com/

I think that it's fair to say that regardless of whether you choose the X50 or the V1, you will have an excellent radar detector....