I am jumping in here before the thread gets closed.
I have been using radar detection since the mid-eighties and have always used Escort/Passport products. I currently use a 9500ix and a Solo (when I rent cars). Are they foolproof? No. Do they prevent tickets? No. Do I use them just so I can feel protected and speed more? No.
It is foolish to think that a good radar detector will keep you from getting pulled over. It is equally foolish to make statements about how useless they are.
Effective radar detection like the kind you get with higher-end units has saved me from several tickets over the years. I have always driven vehicles that can easily exceed posted speed limits and they do not always provide feedback about how fast I am going. I also do not drive along looking constantly at the speedo. Radar detection helps keep me mindful of who may be out there looking to cite folks. Several dozen times, I have been lit up, quickly glance down and check my speed and then slow down if needed only to let someone else get the hit.
On the flip side, the last speeding ticket I got was about 5 years ago in one of my 240Z's. Heading up hwy 99 toward Yuba City at o'dark thirty in the morning (the road is two lanes on each side with a turn lane running down the middle) I saw a CHP coming the opposite direction. My radar emitted a single beep and as he passed, I saw his brake lights come on in my side view mirror.
He got me going over the limit by a bit. I asked how he got me, because he saw my detector. Instant on radar was the reply. It is hard to counter that, I said, and he agreed.
Radar detection is smart, in my opinion, but it is not a panacea. You still have to use your head, pay attention, buy good equipment and do not drive like an idiot.
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