jkipfmueller wrote:I completely disagree. After driving with a radar/laser detector for almost 10 years, it has saved my butt plenty of times -- no speeding tickets! If you're detecting radar, most modern detectors will give you plenty of advance notice (usually the cars ahead of you are getting radared). Laser is another story and with instant on laser aimed at your car, it's too late. Maybe you'll get some reflected laser from ahead to give you some notice, but it's rare.

I won't drive without one.

Also, these things also detect emergency vehicles, road hazards, RR crossings, road crews, etc. and alert you to their presence. That alone may save your butt -- regardless of whether you are speeding.

yes you are right. laser detection is a joke. It does not travel very far past the car its aimed at which will not give you adequate warning.

Headparot wrote:I agree that driving is a privilege that may be revoked by the government however, your reasoning doesn't exactly hold up. you don't need a license to vote either, but it is still a right.

We're now talking apples and oranges, but I'll reason with you. Voting yes is a right, but Also a privilege. Non-American citizens, some places felons can't vote, therefore it is a Right, but also a privilege because there is a "power" or "body" that can legally keep you from voting.

In the case of voting, rights & privileges are non-exclusive, meaning it can be both. When talking about driving, it is exclusive... exclusively, only a privilege.

ronkosto wrote:You are SOOOO RIGHT, stay right, pass left!

This is a great concept but there's no hope for it to ever be followed when they're offering driving tests in SEVERAL LANGUAGES OTHER THAN ENGLISH. When was the last time you saw street signs in Chinese, Spanish, Russian, etc. in the U.S.???

armyturtle wrote:Oh and let's not forget the numerous idiots who have KILLED PEOPLE simply because they were giving them a bit of a hard time on the freeway. I live just south of San Francisco and there are numerous cases in 2008 alone on several of our freeways where some @-sswipe had to pull his gun out and shoot someone for blocking, slowing, brake tapping... and even in one case (on interstate 280) for making a face at the speeder. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/04/10/BA8E103CLC.DTL

In almost all of the cases I'm referring to the person screwing around with complete strangers on the road have DIED. For what? Thinking they were going to teach some stranger a lesson? Yah right - someone is really going to improve based on you giving them a hard time passing you. We'll see about that when it's you next laying in the morgue.

Say word!!

dabomboo7o wrote:convicted felons are not allowed to vote. How much of a right really is it?>\

everyone (Americans anyway) is born with the right to vote at the age of majority, you have to pass a test to be allowed to drive. just because something can be taken away doesn't mean it isn't a right. you have the right to be free but you can be imprisoned for commiting a crime. lots of rights can be taken away. the difference is that priveleges are earned then lost for cause. rights are preexisting conditions.

minktheshrink wrote:I checked out radar detectors a while back and for the most part they work the same. Some are the cheaper ones (like this) and some are better and have fewer/no false alarms and have a better range. I had 2 at one point and just never drove on the freeway.

Something important to remember is that when the radar detector is going off that is when a cop is pulling the trigger of the speed gun so if you see the cop car real close he might have already got you.

Originally the speed guns were on all the time but they changed it so now it only comes on when you pull the trigger... making radar detectors a little less useful

Yes, with the laser camera that is true; however, if there are other cars in front of you and they get lasered, the laser detector should pick it up - at least the Valentine 1 will (www.valentine1.com). It has definitely saved me plenty of times this way.

Skizza wrote:We're now talking apples and oranges, but I'll reason with you. Voting yes is a right, but Also a privilege. Non-American citizens, some places felons can't vote, therefore it is a Right, but also a privilege because there is a "power" or "body" that can legally keep you from voting.

In the case of voting, rights & privileges are non-exclusive, meaning it can be both. When talking about driving, it is exclusive... exclusively, only a privilege.

Driving is a right, UNLESS you are caught breaking the law.

I would like to get some paint, anyone know where I can get F-22 Raptor stealth paint?

dabomboo7o wrote:Driving is a right, UNLESS you are caught breaking the law.

Wrong again. You have to pass not one, but two tests to gain the [/b]privilege[b] to drive. You are born with rights, they are innate...ideally at least.

Something that is due to a person or governmental body by law, tradition, or nature: "Certain rights can never be granted to the government, but must be kept in the hands of the people" (Eleanor Roosevelt). 7. A just or legal claim or title.

---------------------------------------------------------
Excerpted from American Heritage Talking Dictionary
Copyright © 1997 The Learning Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

dabomboo7o wrote:Something that is due to a person or governmental body by law, tradition, or nature: "Certain rights can never be granted to the government, but must be kept in the hands of the people" (Eleanor Roosevelt). 7. A just or legal claim or title.

---------------------------------------------------------
Excerpted from American Heritage Talking Dictionary
Copyright © 1997 The Learning Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

That's a theory, i.e. must be kept in the hands of the people, as opposed to are kept in the hands of the people. She is right, that's the way it should be, but it isn't. Try not passing a driving test, driving without a license, getting a ticket, going to court, and quoting Eleanor Roosevelt....ur looking at the max fine.

& according to my previous posts, apparently, HTML is a privilege too...ahuhu

ionizer wrote:yup.... once you see laser, it's too late.
but for non-laser it still can provide a huge benefit.

Most detectors work on the premise that the radar signals shot at the cars infront of you spill over and you are warned, even for pulse types. IF there are cars ahead of you that is.. Laser is a bit more accurate, but there is still some spill through at times, but MUCH less often. Not likely to help you even if you have an expensive one as the likelyhood of catching laser spillover is slim at best.

BTW I have owned some high priced Escorts and some cheaper models of several companies, including one like this and they all seem to work about the same for me. All have saved myt butt in the past on radar on roads with traffic. If no traffic ahead of you, good time NOT to expect this to help you much.

On a laser scrambled, since emmitting light from a car is not illegal, I would suspect a modulated laser at the frequencies used by police laser all the time would do tyevtrick just fine. It's infrared, so no one would see it anyway, except for those Cadilacs that have the enhanced heads up night driving display.

Slowing down is always a great idea too. Driving 60 miles at 65 MPH takes about an hour. At 80 you save maybe 12 minutes ideally, but with street driving and traffic issues, your lucky to cut 8 minutes from the total trip since you can't go 80 all the time. Seriously, you wasted more than that here already. For 8 minutes, I am less stressed and don't worry about tickets any more, and a lot safer as well.

dabomboo7o wrote:well living is a privilege then, because the law is regulated by the Gov. So if you violate the law then your living PRIVILEGES will/could be revoked, suspended, or terminated.

Get over it.

Skizza wrote:Wrong again. You have to pass not one, but two tests to gain the [/b]privilege[b] to drive. You are born with rights, they are innate...ideally at least.

okok, but everyone has the right to receive a license to drive upon qualification. but yes, i see your point.

armyturtle wrote:Oh and let's not forget the numerous idiots who have KILLED PEOPLE simply because they were giving them a bit of a hard time on the freeway. I live just south of San Francisco and there are numerous cases in 2008 alone on several of our freeways where some @-sswipe had to pull his gun out and shoot someone for blocking, slowing, brake tapping... and even in one case (on interstate 280) for making a face at the speeder. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/04/10/BA8E103CLC.DTL

In almost all of the cases I'm referring to the person screwing around with complete strangers on the road have DIED. For what? Thinking they were going to teach some stranger a lesson? Yah right - someone is really going to improve based on you giving them a hard time passing you. We'll see about that when it's you next laying in the morgue.

OK, I admit, I wouldn't try messing with drivers in California. Some of those people are crazy.

Road Rage Statistics:
http://www.monkeymeter.com/citystats.php

I received an honorable mention for the photoshop contest here: http://www.woot.com/Forums/ViewPost.aspx?PostID=2932478

However, when I put in the coupon code HONMEN-FS as instructed in the thread, it tells me that "This coupon code won't work.". Any ideas? I was planning on buying this, but want to get my free shipping to work first. Thanks.

dabomboo7o wrote:convicted felons are not allowed to vote. How much of a right really is it?>\

I think we're onto something here, dabomboo7o :p

kalissa5 wrote:im not so sure about this one. usually the cheaper they are the less advanced they are. Cops are getting tricky with the economy and all so you need something good to warn you and this isn't it.
If you're looking for a good radar detector (for all you speeders out there) try the Passport series. While expensive, they'll do their job...every time.

Nothing will do the job everytime.

The US DOT has done research to show that people who typically drive below the assigned speed limit are in more accidents than those who drive faster than posted speed limit. So why is it then that cops do not pull over more people going slowly in the left lane who are obstructing the flow of traffic? All a radar detector does is protect the BETTER driver from getting a pointless speeding ticket.

WickedAndTorn wrote:How about just not speeding! *gasp*.. what a concept.

So have you ever gone over the speed limit?

45 in a 40?

80 in a 60?

Cops ticket irregardless of how much you're over the limit. I'll assume that you are a perfectly law-abiding citizen.

I on the other hand, drive with the flow of the traffic. Thus, I may be over the speed limit and so I like to have piece of mind that I'm not going to be out a week's pay.

But what do I know.

I contain illegal activities and am a STREET RACAR.

fortgeorge wrote:He might mean they are do to the fact that anything suctioned to your windshield is illegal.

Other than that they aren't illegal at all in CA.

yes it USED to be illegal to have suction cups attached to windshield, but NOT anymore. these are 100% legal in CA, including windshield suction cups.

so,.... no woot off this month?

Here's the link to a .pdf of the owner's manual from the Whistler website: http://www.whistlergroup.com/manuals/xtr/xtr500-550man.pdf

JohnnyLemonhead wrote:they are not at all illegal in CA. not at all. VA and DC are the only illegal places.

This is true, you can have one, but not have it on, in VA, but you cannot even posses one in D.C.

Don't waste your time though, this is junk. You'll be alerted of radar as the cop begins to record your license number. If you are serious about speeding and serious about radar/laser protection, invest in a high end passport, or I bought a valentine V1, and I have been ticket free!

JohnnyLemonhead wrote:I've been pulled over several times with one and several times without one. the reaction was the same in all instances: the cop could care less. either wrote me the ticket or didn't write the ticket, but never seemed to notice or care if I had a detector. I've been let off with one and I've been ticketed without one. I think most cops know before they even get to your window if they are going to write you or not.

I spent a short time on a police force and I can tell you as a rule of thumb if an officer comes to your window with a ticket book in hand...nothing is going to get you out of it but if he does not...be polite and you may get only a warning. They do not really care about whether you have a detector or not.

Headparot wrote:You, sir, are a fool. It is the lonely patrol cop that keeps the drunk driver from killing your mother when she is going to pick up more pizza pockets for your basement lan party. It is the detective that busts the pervert serial killer than is going to use your pasty skin to make his next human suit that saves you. it is the narcotics officer that stops the bikers from poisoning you with meth. People that make blanket statements about hating the police are mostly idiots (or criminals). Sure, there are jerks among us, but there are jerks programming computers and bagging groceries and playing football and going to college. So what. If you have a problem with a cop, file a complaint, but show a little respect or compassion to someone that works long long hours in a dangerous job for low pay in order to keep at dumbass like you safe from harm.

and yes, these work okay, but there are plenty better ones around. You will get a ticket for sure if you get caught with one.

"lawl" I meant to attack the police trafficking force but for you to put all those blatantly obvious statements abroad on a discussion board is a pathetic attempt to insult another. You could have simply answered the question I had asked and be on your way but you had to be immature to slander my name. Well for your information I am probably more well-off than an ignorant beligerent fool like you, and as for the whole "dumbass" statement, I guess I'll used the clich'ed line "takes one to know one".

*YAY* My very own!
^_^!

I own a Whistler XTR-140 which is a model lower than this (doesnt have real voice or setting saver) and although it has false alarms that wouldn't set off the $150 models, it does the job and warns you plenty ahead of time.

R70Runner wrote:Bottom line, a good cop, with good radar, IE instant on, will still beat you 9 out of 10 times with a detector. Nice insurance for that 10% and for the lazy and cheap police that still use the old style... Better then nothing

You think so but i had my radar detector save me from at least 15 tickets where the cops use on and off. It only gives you about 5-10 seconds to react(maybe like 300-800yds) to react but most detectors can pick up a signal from a good distance and if you don't just brush it off your good

This is a POS and I wouldn't bother with this. I am an owner of a Passport Escort 8500 x50 and YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR! Also, before you even considering buying you need know HOW they work. You have to understand they aren't fool proof, it isn't an excuse to speed and if you abuse it you WILL get pulled over.

Cheaper detectors = more false alarms, less ramp-up speed.

Expensive detectors = less false, longer range, faster ramp-up speed, more options and better with laser.

That said, I paid $300 for my RD and it's saved my ass plenty of times. I bought it because the new car I bought was a little quick and I was afraid of getting pulled over. Plus, I was always a bit paranoid and now I'm not. You MUST know that if you get hit with a laser they will have your speed instantly. The point of this is that you hopefully have a car in front of you that got hit with the laser and if your RD is good enough (Passport of Valentine) it should see that laser and alert you. You need to know what your cops are using in your areas. Here in Iowa I've never encountered them using POP guns and barely using laser. Therefore, I don't use POP mode on my RD.

Anyway, just putting in my 2 cents since I've had some experience with a good RD and understand how they work.

dabomboo7o wrote:okok, but everyone has the right to receive a license to drive upon qualification. but yes, i see your point.

I think we have a lot of people getting very confused about the differences and similarities between "rights" and "privileges". A privilege is when a person is enjoying a special right beyond the advantages of other people.

For instance, saying that somebody has a right to something upon qualification...does that not, by definition, mean it's a privilege to have a license? I mean, a blind person will never have the right to drive. They don't even have the choice of qualifying, ever. Or voting -- Children, felons, psychopaths, etc., are not allowed the right to vote because their opinions are considered uneducated or confused; thus, the privilege to vote. Even saying "the right to vote is a privilege" is a misnomer because twice you are essentially saying it is a form of right.

A right, on the other hand, is owed to anyone by just claim, by law, etc. Even a 5 year old has the right to free speech. If a man obtains a felony, he still has the right to have an opinion on issues.

fortgeorge wrote:Because I make too much to take the pay cut and I do that because a speeder killed my cousin when he tried to pass another car and clipped his bumper making him roll 7 times.

Quit trying to make your criminal(speeding is a crime you know) self look like a victim.

Blaming all speeders for your relitives death is just stupid. That's about the same as me blaming my Middle Eastern neighbors for blowing up thousands of innocent people.

There are responsible ways to go speeds that you are certain you, the road, and your vehicle can handle safely, and then there is a way to drive irresponsibly by being too agressive in ways that you, other people, your car, or the road cant deal with quick and efficient enough.

When I haul ass down my local highway at 115mph, you can bet your gambled ass that I can handle every bit of it. But not only am I a professional racer, have the right equiptment and training, and am prepared for the dangers on the road mind and body, but I only do it in situations when I know that there will be no traffic that I wont be able to see in the distance far enough to slow down to a safe rate of speed, along with a firm 5 mile an hour over max stance with passengers.

But hell, If I run around on congested highways cutting people off at 90 miles an hour, by all means blame me. Please!

JohnnyLemonhead wrote:they are not at all illegal in CA. not at all. VA and DC are the only illegal places.

maybe he meant canada

bugdave wrote:If you are ever pulled over for anything, take the detector down as your pulling over and place it somewhere that isn't visible.

Oh yeah - this will make the cop REAL comfortable. To see a driver fumbling about trying to conceal or grab something. I would highly recommend you NOT do this.

docb wrote:Oh yeah - this will make the cop REAL comfortable. To see a driver fumbling about trying to conceal or grab something. I would highly recommend you NOT do this.

And more than likely the cop will have seen it there anyway and would know that you were trying to hide it. Best to just not have it in sight in the first place.

ionizer wrote:no, the people endagering the public are the idiots going 55 in the left lane

if everyone understood the concept of "keep right, pass left" i wouldnt need to go 80mph by you to make up for the time i spend behind a moving convoy of morons who dont stay right.

last time i looked the speed limit is 70 mph so slow down and enjoy life MORON!!

OGMaverick wrote:Because he can do what he wants as his profession while still legally making you slow down on the roads, without being an officer.

In WA (and maybe more states) the left lane is "for passing or overtaking another vehicle ONLY" So you morons (at least in WA) that make people pass you on the right are breaking the law, not just "legally" being an A-Hole.

It's a simple concept, slower cars to the right, it's also safer, as p1ss1ng people off doesn't make them safer.

ionizer wrote:no, the people endagering the public are the idiots going 55 in the left lane

if everyone understood the concept of "keep right, pass left" i wouldnt need to go 80mph by you to make up for the time i spend behind a moving convoy of morons who dont stay right.

How does that saying go? Everyone going slower than me is a moron. Everyone going faster than me is crazy.

Everyone should save their money and slow down. You'll still get there.

can you turn the"voice alerts" off???

dollarxgeneral wrote:Would this work on affixed speed traps?

Like on some roads here they have affixed radars and cameras that take your picture and you get a ticket in the mail if you speed. Would these work on that?

No, it does not work. I got a mailed ticket in Montgomery County, MD with my radar detector on. They set the radar above you with a narrow beam, and cameras are located infront and back to focus on licence plate. However, you have to pay for the tickets, but you do not get the points. If you do not pay for the ticket ($250.00), your car registration is cancelled.