Radar Detectors.

lamitay, Feb 8, 9:34pm
Are they worth the money or not! and also can anyone tell me whether they were ever made illegal or not.
Thanks
morrisman1, Feb 8, 9:45pm
Depends if you speed or not. If you are like me and get a little enthusiastic about your driving on a quiet road with nobody else in the car then maybe yes.

Even the cheapie ones can do the job, i borrowed one off a mate (who paid like $60 for it off here) and it picked up a cop on a straight road with about 30 seconds notice. They dont work so well on the windy/hilly roads unfortunately.

I dont condone reckless speeding, treating the road as a race track, those drivers deserve to be caught but sometimes its easy to get caught out 10km/h over the limit.
jono2912, Feb 8, 10:23pm
I got a Uniden one off here, it's 7 years old and has actually saved me countless times.

Before that I got a brand new $100 one off here, cobra or something, and it was useless.
toshibanz, Feb 8, 10:25pm
Bought a Cobra one off here (user name black something) for about $250 . Piece of garbage, doesn't pick up a camera pointing straight at me, nor does it pick up a radar from very far away.So a complete and utter waste of money.!
footplate1, Feb 9, 7:54am
I am still happy with my old Valentine.No longer go at high speeds they way I once did but, for those times when I inadvertently go over the tolerance, it's handy to know if there is a patrol in the vicinity.
And, it's handy on, say SH 27 when I sit behind a faster car by about 500 metres on those long straights.
the_chooky, Feb 9, 7:56am
They are not illegal,but dont let the cops see you using it.
If you get pulled up,make sure you get off the windscreen and under the seat before he sees it. Otherwise you'll get a ticket for anything he can think of, even if he has to go round the back and smash your tail lights.
lamitay, Feb 9, 8:52am
Sounds like NZ police alright haha, Cheers For all of your help I am definitely going to buy one now.
elect70, Feb 9, 12:57pm
No matter what you buy none can outwit the instant on,by the time you react its too late ( unless only 3or 4 overmight be quick enough before he locks on ) still its good if hes pinging someone else up the road .
kiwi_fisherman, Feb 9, 1:24pm
Best radar detector was the Bel RX65. Not too cheap but well tested in the USA against the Hawk and the Bel won hands down. Was rated better than Valentine and is easier on the eye and has voice alerts. Not a cheap unit but well worth the investment for the occasional lapse in concentration.
stimpy73, Feb 9, 2:05pm
True that, this has been replaced by the Bel STi, I have one on my bike and its legend. Without it I may as well not ride. Worth every penny.
sw20, Feb 9, 2:43pm
I remember writing off my first car. My one and only crash. When I was 19. I was in A&E with suspected concussion and Mr Plod came in and gave me my radar detector back that he found in the paddock that I inadvertently landed in.
intrade, Feb 9, 2:45pm
most usless ones where rockymountein when we talk radar and V1 are one of the top and beltronic from what i recall
spead, Feb 9, 3:18pm
no. Dont speed and it wont be an issue.
owene, Jun 28, 8:07pm
The guy above is right - once you can hear them, what's the point coz they have your speed locked in their wee brains and that's it. Simple. Waste of money. Don't speed.
matthew111, Jun 28, 8:11pm
dont speed and you never have the need for one. Plenty of people get very large tickets anyway even with a detector.
carstauranga001, Jun 29, 7:39am
Rubish
fordkiwi27, Jun 29, 7:55am
why!a lot of cops will just flick it on,and by the time you hit the anchors,sometimes too late
fiatracer, Jun 29, 9:06am
Not true.

A decent one will pick up bounced signals, and will certainly warn you well before you come across the patrol car - assuming other cars ahead of you have encouraged the officer to turn their radar on.
321mat, Jun 29, 9:14am
I Agree.
Bel make some tremendously effective radar detectors.

I do not speed any longer, BUT, I have found that having a radar detector has actually made me a better driver, BECAUSE everytime the darn thing beeps, I find myself checking my speed, and so I think it is very effective at "reminding" me to drive conscientiously, especially since the 5-0 are starting to ping anyone who is even 5km/h over the limit.
ntalke, Jun 29, 9:30am
Had a series of Bel's over the years,currently have a Bel STI/XR

Have to agree it's best to stick to the speed limit as instant on can be deadly radar or not

Lots think Patrols drive around with radar on contantly but they target the ones they think are speeding
carstauranga001, Jun 29, 1:28pm
Saved me $$ (and more importantly demerits) many times and at the least you can scrub some speed off. It might only be a second or two but the cop has to get the speed set on the machine to show you. Most recent was queens Birthday weekend coming down the Kaimais. I knew about the 104 km thing so was carefull, pitch black and the radar goes off. Braked and lookked at speedo. As we were going downhill it had snuck up to 115. I expected a ticket for maybe 107 or something stupid like that. Nothing! I must have got under 105. Having said that most speedos read about 5km/hr high so was probably doing 110 and scrubed of 5+ before he set the reading. So yes they do work. Even better if they are checking the cars in front of you. I have had warnings at least a km before I've seen the cop, more than enough time to slow down. I wouldn't ride without mine now.
owene, Jun 30, 9:51am
Bounced off what! Open road, no fences no trees coming into town, cop behind bridge. Am perplexed about what therf bounces off in that circumstance.
fiatracer, Aug 14, 4:11am
well, if you take my comment and place it into a completely fabricated geographical location. you can remain that way