Radar Detectors - Comments Page 1

Here's a revolutionary way of avoiding speeding tickets. Don't break the speed limit.

Well duh... I suppose you've never looked down at the speedometer and realized you were doing 40 in a 30 zone. MOST speeding tickets are written in towns and cities -- not on the highways. And they are more about revenue than safety. That's where the real value of a radar detector is evident.

Ironically, the radar detector has made me a safer driver. I am much more attentive to my speed, and I actually drive slower because I'm scared to get a ticket with the detector in the car!

I got a speeding ticket last year and within days I started getting mail from law firms offering their services to help me fight the ticket. Pretty creepy. I wonder how those lawyers found out. That would be a good question for Bob although it's not computer related.

EDITOR'S NOTE: In most places, the police blotter (record of all arrests) is a matter of public record. Attorneys can view the daily list, then look up your phone and address in the phone book.

Car & Driver has occasional radar detector comparisons. Valentine One has won every comparison since they introduced their detector. Their detector has cool arrows that tell you where the radar signal is coming from.

Note that some states ban radar detectors. I suppose that this has been held as consttutional by federal courts. This raises my hackles! I also suppose they can confiscate the detector if they see it. I am currently on a trip in Virginia, and I saw a sign.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Correct, they are illegal in Washington D.C. and Virginia.

Dont know what the law is now, But a few years ago I read that having or using radar detectors is illegal in some states. Before you start looking for which detector to use, find out if you are letting yourself in for more legal trouble by using one. The one I had in those early years went off every time I got near a fast food place or a business with automatic doors.

EDITOR'S NOTE: As mentioned earlier, they are legal in all states EXCEPT Washington D.C. and Virginia.

I'm a cop, I have never ever issued a speeding ticket to generate revenue? Speed kills on municipal streets as much as highways. The solution to being caught breaking the law is NOT to break another law. They are illegal in most states. You really should be ashamed. Besides, the price of one of those would pay for a couple of tickets, that is if your too dense to slow down.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Hmmm.... there are SEVERAL items in your note make me shake my head in wonder. First, any cop would be aware that speeding tickets are big business -- over a BILLION dollars a year. Houston for example raked in $45 million last year. And radar detectors are not "illegal in most states" -- just the OPPOSITE is true! They are legal in all but two states. And the price of the average speeding ticket: about $800 including fines, lost work time, and insurance hikes over the next 3-5 years.

Have you never driven through an area with an artificially low speed limit -- clear visibility, few houses, the type of area that would normally have a speed limit of 45, but for some reason it's only 30? That's what I mean by "revenue traps" and believe me they're no accident.

I second the Valentine One. It picks up older style radar bands far better than any of the other major detectors, plus it tracks multiple sources and the directions they are coming from. This is very helpful - for instance, if it displays three, and only the arrow ahead is lit, you know all three sources are in front of you. As you pass one, the front and side arrows light up, and after you are past, the rear arrow also lights up. You know you still have two sources in front of you. Other detectors will just keep going off, and you won't know as you pass cop one that there are two more in front.

Radar detectors are little use against "instant-on" guns. Once the officer pulls the trigger and you hear the warning, it's too late. I threw my detector out after receiving a ticket this way on I-10 outside San Antonio in 1993.

I don't want to sound holier than thou, but since I started (mostly) obeying limits, I drive with no fear or paranoia. Try it, it's relaxing, and you get there almost as quickly using less gas.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Since getting a radar detector, I actually drive safer and slower. It helps me focus on my speed and driving. But I think you'll find the technology has advanced quite a bit in 13 years. Of course there are situations where a detector will NOT help, but for those times when you're not paying attention and going a little too fast, they can wonderful.

There are some states, such as Indiana. That if you get pulled over for a few miles an hour over the limit and the officer was intending to write a warning. You automatically get a ticket if the officer sees a Radar Detector. Dosen't matter if it's on or not.