radar detector installation
 

Has anyone done a permanent installation of their radar detector yet?

I have a Valentine 1 stuck at the top of my windscreen right now, with a wire hanging down and running back to the outlet between the seats, which is kind of messy. The power to the self-dimming mirror goes on with the ignition, so will work from that point of view, but is it 12V?

Also, I have a remote readout that will go either behind the nav door or on the instrument binnacle somewhere, so I have to figure out how to wire that up too.

P.S. I saw a few people wondering whether the V1 could "see" out of the back window from the top of the windscreen. The good news is that it seems to work fine.

The expense of the Valentine was well worth it: it spotted a trap that I would not have seen otherwise (the cop with the radar was in a gas station on the opposite side of the highway) within my first 200 miles in the car. The wife would not have been happy!

radar
 

flsunset,
I just wanted to tell you please check with your dealer first, if your sales rep didnt tell you , there is a controlled access network built into the car, if you mess with the voltage on the car and the system is not sending 12volts thru the car at all times you could encounter electrical problems.

Could you please explain exactly what that means?

I plan on wiring my V1 into the fusebox (using the fuse for the cig. lighter). Is there some kind of problem doing that?

Wiring
 

Dr.
I will find out more for you, and get you an answer tomorrow, I went thru the 350 Z training at Nissan, and the instructors did not recommend after market wiring not unless it was done by the dealer.

Thanks!

I was hoping to install my V1 above and to the right of the rear view mirror. It is big and I can barely wedge it in there; I have to put it a little further to the right where the mirror narrows.

Where are you mounting yours?

I tried the suction cups, but they don't work very well, so I was thinking of creating a metal bracket that mounts to something solid inside the headliner. But how do you get it off? It seems that everything is connected to everything else (interior trim parts) and so I may have to remove the dash to get started? I hope not.

I don't plan on wiring the V1 to the power locally at the mirror. I am using the remote display so I will run a phone cord under the headliner and down to the fuse box. Then I'll run the wire for the display and I think I will place it in front of the tachometer.

installed my v1 yesterdy.
 

here is how I did it.

I ran the rj11 cord from behind the rear view mirror, tucked in the headliner, going down to along side the a-pillar, to the fuse box.

use two speaker wires, I thing gauge 18, black and red. Stripped the red wire and just wrap the wire on one of the peg of the cig. ligher fuse, I believe it's 15amp, and plug the fuse in. Drill the wire (black) to the bracket around the fuse box to get ground connection. Use connector butt to make the connections to the V1 adapter plug, where you have the rj11 plug into.

works perfectly!

one thing to watchout, the surface behind the rear view mirror is not smooth, it has the black dotted material that acts as a shade. You have to use some water and apply pressure to make it stay there. I think that's the best place to mount V1 so you can still use the driver side visor.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Can you post a picture of your mounted radar detecotor ?

I was thinking of a remote unit but I want to see the car before I decide if there is a good place to mount it up by the grill.

How did you run the cord thru the headliner? I have the airbags in the A pillar, will that be a problem? I don't have the V-1 yet, but I know it is the best, and will get it soon.

<img src="http://apexi.servehttp.com:8080/ebay/radar1.jpg">

Just follow the red line, that would be your RJ11 cord from V1.

<img src="http://apexi.servehttp.com:8080/ebay/radar2.jpg">

Noticed the fuse with the red wire? That is the cig. lighter fuse.

<img src="http://apexi.servehttp.com:8080/ebay/radar3.jpg">

The pic. is kind of blurry, but my camera is not good with dark light area.

My Concern
 

Nice Install.

I am concerned about those black dots. While I do not think that they will affect the radar detection abilities, I am worried that they will limit the laser detection abilities of the V1.

Any thoughts ?

I don't think it will affect it since it's not metallic...But I am no expert, so it's just my opinion.

Any expert out there can enlight us?

btw, those black dots kind of hide the V1 out of sight, so I think it's great!

In the pics it looks like your mirror is at a slight angle. Is this correct, or is it level?

It's perfectly level. I just took the picture from lower angle, so it looks not levelled.

Ack! I took a close look at your detector and it's 1/4 inch slimmer than mine. I cannot fit mine in on the driver's side of the mirror. I have more luck on the passenger side, slightly further forward.

When did you get your detector?

I bought mine about 2 years ago. It has a separate round laser detector on the front just below the rear facing antenna.

Thanks Apexi350z for sharing your install. This is how have been planning to install mine, If and when I get my Z...7ish weeks
:(

I've had my Escort mounted like that for 5 years without a snag, well, sometimes the suction cup comes loose.......

What did you use to push the wire behind the trim? I used a credit card.

I use a small flat head screwdriver, but if I do it again, I thing credit card would be a great idea!:icon04:

I bought the original around 1997, but upgraded to the latest about 1 year ago. It's the latest version I believe, it's about 20% slimmer and has 4 leds that shows x, k, ka, and laser. I think it's also little cooler (temp).

It's not cheap though, I think it was $249 for the upgrade? you have to send the old one in. Check more info on their website.

The cost of the upgrade is calculated based on the serial number of your existing unit. I recently upgraded my 1995 model and the cost was $299. It was well worth it though, much fewer false alarms.

Detector install
 

First, I have a brand new V1 and one that I bought about 3 years ago. The new one is a little smaller and doesn't false alarm as much. But, that isn't to say that the old one sucks. It is still better than anything else out there. I direct wired mine to the z's fuse box. I have mounted it in the upper left hand corner of the windshield. I ran the wire down the a -pillar (with the head curtains) without any problem and installed it directly to the radio fuse. That way it comes on and goes off with the radio/ignition.