Hardwired a radar detector

[bobmbx]

Oh boy. What a mess.

Spent most of Saturday hard-wiring a radar detector in my '17 EL. I have it mounted on top left of the rear-view mirror, and the power cord runs inside the headliner (alongside my dashcam), pushed in from the leading edge near the windshield, running over to the passenger A-pillar, then down inside the door seal to about level with top of the kick panel.

Had to fabricate my own tap in the fuse as the "new to me" fuse box style now uses the mini-LP fuses and the pre-fabricated taps won't work, as I found out the hard way. The fuse box design prevents conventional taps from seating fully into the fuse slot. I'll post some photos eventually.

********.

 

[jeff kushner]

I just mounted mine just-above the wipers, center dash and use the power/silence cord to my dash mounted 12V power plug. It makes it easy to remove to install on my bike or my other car, as well as removal for trips into VA where detectors are illegal.

jeff

 

[tim5055]

I haven’t checked yet (no need) but Ford usually has a spare fuse and wire capped off under the dash for such installations. I just installed a dash cam in my F250 and there was a spare fuse in the box that fed a blunt end capped wire taped to the OBD2 wire.

 

[Trainmaster]

Don't have a 2017, but the 2008 XLT does have a spare 10amp fuse position. It's the one that powers the subwoofer amp in the Limiteds and EB's. It powers a male spade connector.

 

[bobmbx]

Don't have a 2017, but the 2008 XLT does have a spare 10amp fuse position. It's the one that powers the subwoofer amp in the Limiteds and EB's. It powers a male spade connector.

The fuses marked as "spare" in the owners manual are not switched. I wanted a 12v switched power supply. Next, I need to find a 5 volt switched source for my dashcam. The kick panel fuses are all 12v. I ended up using the 10 amp (removed in the pic) just above the 15 amp at the bottom.



Here's my setup. I thought the pic would be a lot better than this.

 

[jeff kushner]

WHY DO YOU HAVE A RADAR DETECTOR IN VA.? You DO know they are highly illegal and yea, your State police do have "detector-detectors" and they will make you destroy your own detector or face the ticket/fine.

jeff

 

[Trainmaster]

You DO know they are highly illegal

jeff

What's the difference between "illegal" and "highly illegal"?
I guess speeding then must be "super highly illegal".

 

[Big Brian]

I just have mine mounted temporarily on my dash. They say mount it as low as you can since the fuzz aim the radar gun at the headlights or the license plate and its more likely the detector will pick up the signal mounted as low as possible on the dash

I only use it on long trips otherwise it sits in the glove box.

 

[jeff kushner]

Come on ...LOL......"Highly" indicates they will actively LOOK FOR YOUR DETECTOR as opposed to just nailing you for it if they happen to pull you over with it. A few years ago, my son went to the Univ of South Car so I used to ride down to see him a few times each year but I never failed to remove it prior to crossing into Va. Since they are illegal in the State, I'm just curious why someone would hardwire one in place?



jeff

 

[jeff kushner]

"Super highly illegal" was what I was doing in WV in my SLK when the fine LEO decided he wanted to chat......he was VERY kind though......and listed the speed low enough that I could drive away, but only barely.

The cost of having fun......LOL


jeff

 

[Flexpedition]

they will make you destroy your own detector or face the ticket/fine.

Its a $100 fine, which is cheaper than most speeding tickets. Zero points to your license. And its at the officer discretion to seize the detector if he/she feels it needs to be used as evidence in a trial. But when said trial concludes, you get you detector back.

 

[JExpedition07]

That’s why you have a radar detector and a radar detector detector detector @jeff kushner..... always one step ahead

 

[chuck s]

Ford non-switched outlets drive my crazy and periodically kill my battery. My '07 was especially vulnerable with GPS and Valentine 1 on the dashboard. The Garmin on the '17 dash can still do this. When the Garmin and Sync disagree I always take Garmin's advice as the maps and data are upgraded several times a year and the '17 Sync still thinks it's 2015 or something. For you non-Virginia drivers note Valentine 1 can be powered via the OBD2 port which switches off. The same interface can be set to mute alarms under certain speeds.

There's at least one radar detector claimed to be undetectable by the radar-detector detectors in many police cars. The radar-detector detector senses an intermediate frequency inside the radar detector and all but one or two use the same basic circuitry with the rest being software. Not yet tried one!

The VA State Police stopped my wife last summer when they viually spotted the Valentine 1 on her dash. Made a U-turn to pull her over! First traffic for her with her Army Nurse Corps license plate frame. Wasn't even plugged in, just sitting there. They're looking for them, maybe closer on out-of-state cars (still had Ohio tags on the car). Cop made her put it in the trunk.

I sold three (3) Valentine 1 units last fall when we moved.

-- Chuck

 

[bobmbx]

WHY DO YOU HAVE A RADAR DETECTOR IN VA.? You DO know they are highly illegal and yea, your State police do have "detector-detectors" and they will make you destroy your own detector or face the ticket/fine.

jeff

This one is immune to SPECTRE 1 and VG-2 radar detector detectors.

https://www.amazon.com/Cobra-ESD7570-Performance-Detector-Detection/dp/B004RO3QPQ

 

[07xln]

WHY DO YOU HAVE A RADAR DETECTOR IN VA.? You DO know they are highly illegal and yea, your State police do have "detector-detectors" and they will make you destroy your own detector or face the ticket/fine.

jeff

What are they going to do pull you out of the car and make you stomp it on the side of the road lol!!

 

[bobmbx]

What are they going to do pull you out of the car and make you stomp it on the side of the road lol!!

I want that radar detector and I want it now!

 

[chuck s]

That's why God made VISA...

-- Chuck

 

[Cookieman00x]

There are kits on Amazon that have a 12 volt adjustable dc converter that come with a fuse tap. They make for an easy install of GPS or dash cams. I just ordered Meknic SV-PC02 to install my dash cam this weekend. They come with a fuse tap for standard and mini fuses.

If I cant find a DC switched in the headliner area (dont have a sunroof so I'm sure there is an unused circuit there somewhere) then I'll use the fuse tap.

I am also going to work on making a built in wireless phone charger.

 

[jeff kushner]

Its a $100 fine, which is cheaper than most speeding tickets. Zero points to your license. And its at the officer discretion to seize the detector if he/she feels it needs to be used as evidence in a trial. But when said trial concludes, you get you detector back.

Yes, agreed that is what their law basically says...but while DC will permit you to keep them of the four actual cases I'm aware of (worked in Va for years) none were permitted to keep their detectors. Two confiscated and two rolled over with the owners car at the command of the officer.

Granted, all these occurred 10-15 yrs ago so maybe things are different but as someone who rides 3-5 mph faster than traffic because I enjoy living so much, my RD is vital gear on my bike when I cross State lines.

I'm not suggesting that I know more than anyone else...just my experience.

jeff

That's the radar detector, right under the strap behind the windshield....priceless!

 

[NASCAR Mike]

I have an Escort Redline. It is invisible to radar detector detectors. Also, VA state law does not allow police to destroy or confiscate your radar detector if you are caught. They are allowed to take the information from the detector (make, model, serial #) and they can tell you to place in the trunk or rear area of your car. They must return the unit back to you. Besides, a $100 fine with no points beats a speeding ticket any day.

I also use the Waze app on my cellphone. It shows radar traps very consistently.