I know the subject of radar detectors has received a lot of attention on here in the past but I am posting my questions in order to get the latest information from those of you who may have joined recently and have experience to offer.
I have been doing a little research on radar detectors and at this point I am favoring the Valentine One. Whatever unit I decide on I want it to be hardwired into my car and not plugged into the power port. I would like to hear from those of you who chose to mount your detectors this way and where you mounted them in your car. My car is an 06 LS Ultra. Thank you.

 

Moved to car chat...

 

on my is300 and gs400, i hardwired and mounted the unit right "behind" the rear view mirror

 

I see you are in NC. Whatever detector you may decide on, I wouldn't advise bringing one north into VA...they are illegal here. Police have the authority here (verified by courts) to impound them if caught. In some cases, if you are stopped by police for something else, they can even search your car for them.

And if you think THAT's bad here in VA, farther north, in MD, it's worse.....they have speed cameras, though they give you a margin.

 

^^That's why my next detector will have GPS capability. To eliminate false alerts and provide the location of speed traps/cameras.

Really glad I don't live in VA BTW.

 

They take the serial number of the radar detector the first time, if they bust you with it again, they take it.

 

VA is not the only place in America that detectors are outlawed. And, at least, while we do have red-light cameras, we don't have speed cameras like some other jurisdictions.

 

As far as I know it's only VA and D.C. that outlaw them. Now I should mention that I live in a state where it's illegal to pump your own gas, so I digress.

 

OK, I didn't mean to dwell on where detectors are legal and where they aren't. I just brought the matter up as a courtesy to DNC, the original thread poster, to let him know that VA, just to the north of his own state, is considerably less tolerant of detectors than NC. He may or may not have known that.

 

A guy I know hardwired a radar detector in the same spot that rominl mentioned above.

I wish I had the money to replace my really old Cobra radar detector (had it since 2001). I know, el cheapo.

I don't have mine hard wired since I move it to my Lexus for long trips.

Oh, I believe radar detectors are illegal in Canada as well.

 

Come on guys, you are getting off the subject.

 

They are legal in Alberta, British Columbia, and Saskatchewan. In Ontario, they actually rip/cut it out of your car if you are caught with one. So if you ever come up for a visit, make sure to not have one in your car.

 

I am rocking the Passport 8500 and have had one before this one. They are great, especially in the middle of the AZ desert at 140 mph. It can usually pick up the cop about 1.5-1.6 miles before you can get a visual . It really is a passport. I still use it in LA but just leave it on top of the dash so the cops cant see it.

 

I was also the one that brought it back to your original point.

I don't own a detector myself, but many of the ones I've seen are folded up behind the sun visors. And I believe there are cordless models now that don't leave a tell-tale cord plugging into the power port.

 

if you were to get one, then i suggest you buy the valentine 1. it saved me from countless of tickets and i would recommend it to anyone. I have owned a passport 8500 and it failed me countless of times. Even my friends are jealous of this "black box". Now the best way is to hardwire it behind the rear view mirror. I know a guy with a GTR that did just that with the valentine1.