As part of continuing series of road adventures with the latest and greatest radar detectors, we are currently doing a driving circuit in the state of Florida to examine the performance of the top performing radar detectors when pitted against the hands of Florida traffic enforcement. Unlike Pennsylvania, Ka-band seems to be the preferred form of police radar. Today we encountered Ka at 34.7Ghz (Stalker) and 35.5 (Kustom,Decatur) operated in both stationery and moving pulsed-modes.
Both the Passport 9500i and Valentine 1 served our interests well, however while cruising at a steady 85mph on West SR80, south of lake Okeechobee in the center of the state we noticed a white car approaching us from the opposite direction. At about 2000 feet I scrutinized the profile of the car. It was a late model Ford Crown Victoria.
Playing it on the safe side, I got off the gas and slowed to about 65mph. Sure enough as the vehicle passed me, I could clearly see that it was a Sheriff's vehicle with a radar unit mounted inside the vehicle.
The entire time of this encounter, neither detector went off. Rest assured, if I had not been paying attention, my expensive detectors would have more the likely sounded off a full alert of instant-on Ka and I would have been handed a nice fat ticket.
Continuing along my route, I reminded myself that there is no substitute for situational awareness and that no matter how good radar detectors get, they are only a tool. The most important 'radar detector' remains the one between your ears.
Veil Guy
2 comments:
I wouldn't say your brain is more important that a radar detector for detecting the presence of police, but still it is very important...And yes, radar detector users must realize that their detector doesn't give them immunity from police and their trickery. I have a V1, it's the best, but still, I am always watching very closely for hidden police or police around me, and I always slow down for the spots where LEO's have previously camped out...What most detector owners forget about is, with Instant-On or laser, yes your detector will alert, but by the time you hear the alert...you're done....It just sucks that today there are so many different police cars because I have mastered what the crown vics look like in front and back from quite the distance away...
Pompizzi,
I put a lot of miles with these top radar detectors and in my experience while instant-on radar can be a challenge to drivers, even those using radar detectors, the current top performing detectors (Beltronics RX-65, Beltronics STi Driver, Valentine One) that appear to do best at alerting to instant-on radar traps that are so common in the North Eastern region of the U.S. can and do provide ample warning provided you are not the only one on the road at the time and therefore are the one actually being zapped.
Laser is a different deal and even the mighty V1's laser performance, alone, won't likely provide any protection from a speeding ticket. This is where a countermeasure like Veil can and will help in many of those targeting scenarios - as your detector alerts to laser, the officer will likely need additional time to actually get a speed reading. It's during this critical time that Veil will buy you those few precious extra seconds of time to safely slow down.
I just spoke with a neighbor of mine this weekend who travels to Baltimore on a regular basis. He told me that in Maryland on I-95 they are using all kinds of unusual unmarked vehicles to enforce speed including a Blue Corvette, some Mustangs, and some Chargers - all with tinted windows and none with special plates. You're absolutely right, are job is getting more difficult. But, at least, it'll tend to keep you alert! That's the good thing, about it, I guess. I'll be heading down that way as part of our upcoming radar detector review, perhaps we'll see them and get a few PICs for the web!
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