Since you live in MA, you should be aware that most of the State Troopers use laser and not radar when doing side-of-the-road speed traps. Thus, on MA highways your radar detector will not provide you much warning or protection. I find my V1 is mainly helpful at finding town police and out-of-state police that have not transitioned to laser (yet).

 

Laser is still not capable of being utilized in a moving vehicle so most local police departments will not transition to it. They may add a few Lidar guns to their arsenal, but there won't be a full switch

 

thats guys for all of your help thus far. Currently and for the next 2-3 weeks im rockin my buddys 8500. Lucky me. His car is at East Coast Swappers getting an engine transplant into his RS! Ive just been taking it down whenever i get to my house. Im still looking for a good way for me to conceal a V1...

 

mounting the v1 next to the visor/mirror is a very effective way and it's pretty concealed. seriously, there's no point getting a concealed type when you can basically hide it away just like that. sure, you can see it somewhat, but the v1 is about as good as it gets, and you can still move it to other cars if you need it.

i have a v1 and it's amazing. my parents were also against my buying a radar detector but i just used my own money. it definitely helps i've had numerous counts of cars beside me getting pulled over because they weren't expecting to see a cop but i saw it coming way earlier on

 

I just hang my V1 off the sunvisor. You can't even see it outside the car while driving, unless your lower, which isn't a problem. You can hide the wiring very easily and leave it in the car. It uses a phone cord, rj 45 I believe, so it is not as obvious.

 

Nice setup I love my V1!!

Have you had to send yours in to get updated yet?

 

I have a strip of window tinting that goes along the top of my windshield. I placed my radar detector up there to hide it. I also extended the power cable so that I could run it underneath the headliner and a-pillar. I also mounted it to where the mount bracket slides underneath the headliner. It is very stealth. I also ensured that the window tint didn't contain any metallic particles to avoid interference.

 

so whats the point of the concealed display in the hazard light location if you still have the regular display up by the rearview mirror? do the lights only go off on the one where the hazards are?

 

When you attach the concealed display unit to the V1, it recognizes the concealed display so and will disable the regular display except on power on self-test.

A few other additional points:

1) Radar detection is like an antennae - the higher up in the car the detector is, the better. The picture posted is exactly how it should be mounted (IMO) in an Evo.

2) To reduce visual signature of the detector while looking into the car from the front, spray paint the suction cups black (this may be going overboard for some people).

3) Don't waste your money on any other detection system than a V1. Valentine was developed by Mike Valentine, who has had a long record of kicking all the other guys' butts for over a decade. The performance disparity continues, despite what Bel & Escort may try to get you to believe on their websites and whatever "tests" they've done with Car & Driver.

4) The durability of the Valentine unit is truly exceptional. I've had the same unit since I graduated high school (2001) and it's on every day. Regardless of how hot (+150 deg F in car during desert summer) or cold (20 deg F in car during desert winter) the unit gets while you're not in the car, it functions perfectly and beautifully every time when you start up.

5) The customer service of Valentine is top notch. When I call in with a question, I speak to someone who sounds like they *SPEAK* English (hey, I wasn't born here and I still feel this is important). Any problems, concerns, questions are answered immediately and resolved the first time around.