A Radar Detector Would Have Been Cheaper - Recommendations?

[ViperInBlack]

(I offered to use the citation money towards the purchase of a Valentine One...the officer was not amused...humorless).

Is Valentine One still the detector-of-choice (or has the latest ****** truly been improved to compete)?

Second question: Is there such a thing as "best price" on the Valentine One or is MSRP what must be paid? (painful thought)

Thanks in advance.

Alice

 

[radta7]

I would have loved to see the officer's face when you asked him/her that question about the citation money. So much for the warning huh?

 

[ViperInBlack]

Yeah, Rob...she was charmed by the question (not).

A woman with a gun.

I wanted to ask her if she had considered Adkins as a New Year's resolution, but she truly did not seem to want a new friend. Go figure.

As all the lights were blinking and the cops were in the street signalling...one can only rapidly consider..."could I outrun them?" Then you realize...they're not likely to forget the car."

You would have thought it was her school zone for heaven's sake. I never came all that close to any of the kids. Those little ones have great reflexes.

Nutz.

Alice

 

[Vipera Russelli]

Unless you get a used Valentine, I think you have to pay the MSRP since I don't think Valentine uses distributors (i.e., you have to buy it from the "M" that made the "S" regarding the "RP"). Then again, I could be wrong.

In all likelihood, once you use a Valentine, you'll never go back -- knowing whether the radar is in front or behind you is something you learn to really appreciate. Mine has paid for itself several times over.

On a somewhat unrelated subject, but speaking of police, every year I donate money to the Virginia Fraternal Order of Police (VAFOP), which is a fund for families of fallen officers. It's a good cause, really, and one that I feel very good personally about supporting. Besides, the police-badge-looking window sticker that reads "VAFOP Supporter" looks good low on my Viper windshield right above the VIN. Pretty good marketing on the part of the VSFOP, eh? Everybody wins!

 

[Bad_Byte]

Second question: Is there such a thing as "best price" on the Valentine One or is MSRP what must be paid? (painful thought)
Alice

I'm on my second V1. My daughter, who is very much like me in the need for speed department, inherited my last one. I'm a very $ concious person and really had a difficult time parting with the $$ for a new V1. I can say beyond a doubt it is the best accessory you can purchase for ANY Viper, old or new.

IMHO, you should 'Bite the Bullet' and buy a V1.

PS: You won't find them but a couple of bucks cheaper on E-Bay and for my money the warranty is worth far more than the hassle of dealing with a weirdo on E-Bay and saving a dollar.

 

[SnakeEye]

Valentine One is your best bet.

 

[SRTJOE]

Yeah, Rob...she was charmed by the question (not).

A woman with a gun.

I wanted to ask her if she had considered Adkins as a New Year's resolution, but she truly did not seem to want a new friend. Go figure.

As all the lights were blinking and the cops were in the street signalling...one can only rapidly consider..."could I outrun them?" Then you realize...they're not likely to forget the car."

You would have thought it was her school zone for heaven's sake. I never came all that close to any of the kids. Those little ones have great reflexes.

Nutz.

Alice

That's why you got the ticket it was a woman cop with something to prove.
I don't think you would have gotten a ticket from a male cop I mean come on
know A young lady in a black SRT-10 no ticket guaranteed!

Valentine One all the way.

 

[ViperInBlack]

Art & Marc:

They are within dollars difference on e-bay. I went ahead and ordered it.

Joe, the female cop was actually very nice. One is truly powerless in such situations. I should not have been speeding, but it is rather weird that they set up tag teams to derive sadistic pleasure in catching you. It would be just as effective to pull you over, tell you what you did, explain the importance of obeying the law. I am not certain court time is effectively spent on such matters.

My hesitation was the Motor Trend (etc) ads in which they compare a Bel or an ****** or ? against the Valentine and swear that the others are better (advertising dollars at work). I know the V-1 was the favored one on the Forum, but wanted to make certain that things had no changed with release of new devices.

Thanks for the input. Wish it were battery powered so that I could move it between cars.

Alice

 

[ViperBran]

I have a Valentine One and it works great. Keep in mind that when you buy a new one from Valentine, it has the warranty, and more importantly, the newest software (which I think is upgradable, not sure though). When you buy a used one on ebay, there is a chance you won't get the newest software and also a chance that maybe the unit wasn't functioning properly. You won't know until there's a State Trooper up your ass.

Good Luck on a great investment!

 

[NOMERCY]

I have three V1's. I use them all the time and they are worth every penny.

 

[ABADASP]

Alice you can buy extra suction cup mounts from valentine and move them from car to car. Check on this site for hard wiring instructions.Also valentine sells refurbished units but not much cheaper 3 V1`s in my garage.

 

[Steve 00RT/10]

I've had 4 V-1s all together. 2 at a time....both have been upgraded. Last I checked, it was $189 if you had the previous model. The first one I upgraded jumped 2 steps and cost $289. I think I bought it in 1994 or so. The car mags always neglect to mention the fact that once you spend the initial $400, they can be upgraded for less than the cost of a Passport. They can also be programmed a few different ways. Mike Valentine designed the original ****** many years ago. I could not go back to being 'arrowless.' I have been 'sandwiched' on several occasions and the arrows worked perfectly. Even though I have 2, neither are hard wired to the cars. I just unplug it from the lighter and move it to another vehicle when I need to. I keep a separate suction mount in all my cars.

Steve

 

[ABADASP]

Forgot to mention fight the ticket. Hire a lawyer in the county of the ticket (good ol boy network). It costs 150 to 200 more but stays off your record. Good Luck

 

[SNAKEPILOT]

I've been using them for a long time. When you eventually need to upgrade you'll receive a new detector.
The situational awareness provided by the arrows is unmatched by the competition.
They are a little more prone to "false" alarms, partly due to their sensitivity, but there are various programmable levels to work with.

How about traffic school?. Not as much fun as Viper Days but save the points...

 

[ViperInBlack]

Bought two Valentine One's, late this afternoon.

I am paying the ticket and taking the points.

I did the crime.

They were like velocoraptors: while I was watching to my side, they got me from in front...tag team specialists.

If I had not put on the Corsa, I could have burned her with my pipes...oh well.

Alice

 

[Viper X]

Good choice Alice,

I have two Valnetine 1's. They have saved me sooooo many times already. Once you get used to using them, they'll save you too!

Dan

 

[Joseph Dell]

One thing that many people don't know is that if you _call_ Valentine, they will sell you a "refurbished" V-1 for $300 instead of $400 for a new one. comes with a warranty too.

If you just ordered today, it might not be too late to call them back...

JD

 

[SylvanSRT]

i think valentine offers a reconditioned unit that comes w/ a full warranty at something(?) less than a new unit. i recomend getting several extra windshield mounts and cords, then i only move the unit car to car. The assy, conceled display is also useful(very in the yukon and not at all in the SRT).

 

[nevrenuf]

Alice

I am a long time Valentine user and have spoken personally with Mike several times about his product. I own several V1's and couldn't be happier. I drive "aggessively" and haven't had a ticket since I went V1 many years ago. If you'd like to try one out, I'd be happy to loan you one of mine for a week or two so that you can "try before you buy"...

Send me a PM if you'd like to check it out.. I'm in Lawrenceville....

Tom


EDIT >>>>> OOPS, missed the other posts while typing my reply.. sounds like you've got it covered... good choice Alice!.. Best of luck for no future tickets!

 

[ViperInBlack]

I appreciate seeing a consensus. My concern was that there would be multiple opinions, but it is clear that Valentine really has a product that everyone endorses. The tarrif was steep, I felt, but after being in the lock down and getting only an hour exercise yard once a day in the big house, that it was a cheap price to pay for freedom.

Actually, the ticketing experience was not at all objectionable. The officer explained what I had done. I did not act shocked, dismayed, resentful, confused or demented. I did not appologize. I threatened suicide twice, but I guess that has been used before. I also tried that one of "Why can't we all get along" but I saw her hand move toward the pepper spray. I started to sweat profusely and said "hey, like I am just coming down from a terrific high" and saw her eye the trunk.

So I stuck out my hand and said "I quit."

On a more serious note, I appreciate the advice, offer of a loan, and recommendations of refurbished units. When you get busted, there is always that: "I bet I could have avoided that ticket if I were not trying to solder that lead and just looked up."

Alice

 

[Fred(DrivingSchool)Kinder]

Love V1(have three), aside form being the best or among the best a great benefit is being able to return the unit for upgrades. You do have to pay depending on the amount of upgrade but this give you access to the latest capability at lower cost. Their quality and customer service is very good. I had a unit that seemed to be intermittent and at two years it died, they replaced it at no charge. I did tell them before one year that the unit had an intermittent problem.

 

[AG98RT10]

Yeah, get the V1. But BEL makes a dynomite unit (985?) that's a hundred bucks cheaper and works great too.

Sorry for the piggie inconvenience, Allie.

Hope for good things coming your way now, you paid your piggie dues for the year.

 

[VENOMUS]

Is there a way to hard install the V1 so it is a clean and professional look? I hate the look of wires or crap sitting on the dash and not crazy about using suction cups to secure this thing to the windshield or just clip it to the visor.

In the process of having my 04 powered up with Cam, heads, controller upgrade, Corsa Track exhaust, 3.55 and other goodies. With all that power I want the radar detector becouse I know I will be needing it.

Thanks in advance for any advise!!!!

 

[SnakeEye]

Mepop ... a convenient and well suited location is to the slight up and right nearly snug against the rear view mirror. The suction cups on the V1 mounting bracket do work very fine and best of all the unit is not readily visible from the outside...even with the top down (as long as the passenger visor is in the forward position). In this location the unit is still within good sight range for a quick warning response and also is easily in reach for muting and such...no conceal accessory is really needed. As for power, the cord can be neatly routed and hard wired to the cig lighter and thus switched on with the ignition. Only worse thing than not having a V1 is forgetting to turn it on—problem solved, car running unit is powered. This install can be done in short order and without much trouble. Good luck.

 

[Jcoopacr2000]

Along with most every one on this site, I use and endorse Valentine.Cant begin to tell you how many times it has saved my butt. Wife too, she picked up my driving habits years ago. She drives her Town and Country faster than i usually drive the Viper. That thing is almost stealth, cops dont pay it much attention, when the V1 goes off, someone else gets pulled. Got to be way more alert in the Radar Red Viper. No tickets for 20 years for either of us, so even the old Escourts worked pretty good. Sending my V1s back for re programing soon as new one arrives.You know, Valantine should be a sponser of this site!! Or of our V10 nationals? V for Valantine? Roof? How about that ?

 

[Kai SRT10]

I own a Valentine 1 and an ****** SRX.

From using them both for more than a year, and using them both in the same car for a month (so I could compare them), I can tell you first hand that the radar detection capabilities of the two are so close as to be almost identical. Don't believe any magazine or advertisement that tells you that there is a difference in radar detection range. It simply is not true.

So . . .

Here are the differences:

Valentine 1 has directional arrows that tell you where the radar is coming from. This is very useful.

The Valentine 1 mounts on your window, with a dangling power cord.

You can easily move the Valentine from one vehicle to another.

The Valentine 1 detects radar, and sort of detects laser (but not very well.)

To mute the Valentine 1, you need to press a button on the detector unit itself.

The Valentine is a lot cheaper.


The ****** SRX doesn't mount on your windshield. The radar detector node is mounted out of sight behind the front facia. There are two laser jammer/detectors that get mounted on the front of your car, and one laser jammer/detector that mounts on your license plate bracket. The controller box goes inside your car. The box is small. about 1/2 the size of a pack of cigarettes. Installation of an ****** SRX is not a do it yourself job. When installed, the system is very discreet. There is no dangling power cord, and no detector on your windshield.

The ****** can't be moved to another vehicle.

The ****** has a seperate mute button that you can mount anywhere, so it doesn't have to be mounted on the control box.

The ****** detects and jams laser. This is the only real defense against laser, because laser is virtually undetectable by any means until you are being targeted. The laser jamming is very effective. I know from first hand experience that it works very well. I don't know what things are like where other folks live, but here in Colorado, laser is becoming the tool of choice for the highway patrol.

The ****** picks up highway safety broadcasts (not super useful.)

The ****** is very expensive. Plan on spending about $1300 for the device and installation.

As I said, I own both. I have the ****** installed on my Viper, and the Valentine gets used on my other vehicles. I like the cleaner look of the ******, and the laser jamming is invaluable. I would have received at least 4 tickets in my Viper if i did not have laser jamming.

Both are good units, but if cops in your area use laser, I would spend the extra money on the ******.

If you look closely, you can see the laser jammers mounted in the front facia:

You must be registered for see images attach

Here is the laser jammer on the back:

You must be registered for see images attach

Kai

 

[FikseGTS]

have you had them laser you from the back? I've never seen the police doing that.....

 

[Kai SRT10]

have you had them laser you from the back? I've never seen the police doing that.....

Once. There is an overpass on an interchange on the way to the airport (and the track) where the police can park and be completely hidden from oncoming traffic. They then get you from behind as you go past. Usually I remember about it. The one time I forgot, by jammer saved me.

 

[Joseph Dell]

I thought laser _jammers_ weren't legal... is this something super-secret that isn't passive?

JD

 

[slaughterj]

I thought laser _jammers_ weren't legal... is this something super-secret that isn't passive?

JD

Laser jammers are legal (unless your state has said otherwise) - radar jammers are illegal due to federal laws (and many state as well), but most haven't addressed laser jammers.