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Any way to COMPLETELY hide a radar detector?
Thread Starter
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Joined: Jun 2005
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From: Kansas City, MO
Any way to COMPLETELY hide a radar detector? I'm trying to figure out if there'd be any radar detector that would work well for concealing 100%. I'm not talking about getting a Valentine unit with the remote display... I'm talking about having this thing absolutely 100% hidden.
The reason is that my parents don't want me to have one, but I'd like to have it just so I can get a sense of cops if they're around me. Not that I speed much anyways (if at all), but I like being informed.
Anyways, can you think of what radar detector would work well to hide? And if you can think of one, what would be the best way to hide it? Where could I mount the unit but still be able to detect signals well? Is this possible at all?
I was thinking that if I could conceal the unit well, I could get a remote (meaning I'd have to get the Valentine) and I could hide it in the AC vent or something, and come up with a way to make it visible. I'd also need to figure out how to wire in an on/off switch.
The detector needs to be visible only when I want it to be. That means that I'd be able to get in the car and open a door / panel / switch etc. that reveals it.
Is this feasable at all? Or am I just crazy?
The reason is that my parents don't want me to have one, but I'd like to have it just so I can get a sense of cops if they're around me. Not that I speed much anyways (if at all), but I like being informed.
Anyways, can you think of what radar detector would work well to hide? And if you can think of one, what would be the best way to hide it? Where could I mount the unit but still be able to detect signals well? Is this possible at all?
I was thinking that if I could conceal the unit well, I could get a remote (meaning I'd have to get the Valentine) and I could hide it in the AC vent or something, and come up with a way to make it visible. I'd also need to figure out how to wire in an on/off switch.
The detector needs to be visible only when I want it to be. That means that I'd be able to get in the car and open a door / panel / switch etc. that reveals it.
Is this feasable at all? Or am I just crazy?
you could take it apart and put the sensor part inside your rear view mirror, foglight, or headlight and then LED lights somewhere in your dash like the speedometer. or near the radio.
There are a couple high-end places around here that wire systems into your car. Sensors are put on the front and rear of your car and then hardwired back into your interior. You'd have no idea the car had a radar detection system unless you were specifically looking for these tiny sensors. Try searching for something like that in your area.
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From: Long Island NY Portsmouth NH Sometimes CT
they dont want you to have a radar detector but they let you get a p1?? hmmmmm... when i told my dad about me puttin so much money in my car all he said was be careful....then again i dont live at home and i pay my car insurance
why dont you just pull it out and put it in ur center counsel and pull it out when ur driving? will your parents take it away? my dont like mine either, but what are they going to do about it???
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My parents bough me my first radar detector 
Anyway, the hidden systems are usually pretty damn expensive, I have mine mounted above the rearview mirror, it's pretty hidden up there, you have to lean into the car to even see it, from the outside it's hidden by the stock tint.
FWIW put something else up there for a while (like a garage door opener) then after your folks get used to seeing something up there, change it out to a detector
Anyway, the hidden systems are usually pretty damn expensive, I have mine mounted above the rearview mirror, it's pretty hidden up there, you have to lean into the car to even see it, from the outside it's hidden by the stock tint.
FWIW put something else up there for a while (like a garage door opener) then after your folks get used to seeing something up there, change it out to a detector
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I guy I was stationed with, in the Navy, hid his in his center AC duct. Close the vents and it was gone. He and it hard wired where a small micro switch would cut the power. Not sure how useful it was in the dash ... but it was hidden!
Originally Posted by 68ss_00ss_87_95
then again i dont live at home and i pay my car insurance
A lot of places do hidden installs. The places I found that do the most are Euro tuning places that do installs on higher end cars like BMW's and such.
By the way, not that I really want to fuel the fire of completely eluding the cops so you can speed all day, but there are things available on the market that you put behind your front grill that block the first instance (up to the first couple seconds) of radar you get slammed with. Then it turns itself off. My buddy has these installed in his grill with a switch under the dash. They seem pretty damn useful, especially when teamed with a detector.
Thread Starter
12 Second Club
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From: Kansas City, MO
Hmmm... I'm out of town right now, but when I get home, I'll thoroughly examine all posibilities. I hesitate to mount the sensors on the front/rear of the vehicle, since I read that detectors are more effective when they're higher. It would be SWEET if I could build the detector into the rearview mirror, but that seems like a very difficult task.
Thanks for the input thus far.
Thanks for the input thus far.
TECH Apprentice
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 319
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From: Glen Allen, VA
I saw one that had sensors in license plate frames for the front an rear. It was then wired into the dash. If the right turn signal flashed, the cop was ahead. If the left turn signal flashed, the cop was behind. I dont remember the brand though. Of couse, most of us dont run front plates (even though I am supposed to).
Originally Posted by 01ls1lover
i dont know but i took some perks and im feeln good
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 11,328
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From: Jacksonville, FL (originally from Toronto Canada)
For about $1500 you can get a remote radar/laser detector such as the Bel RX75 Plus with front and rear detectors, laser shifting, and a hidden display that consists of a single LED you mount in your instrument panel. Escort and K40 make similar units for about the same price.
BTW, it's a myth that mounting higher is better. For laser detectors you want to mount as close as possible to the likely target (because of the minimal spread of the beam). That means near the headlights or front license plate - the most reflective things on the front of the car. For radar detectors just about anywhere that's not blocked by metal parts will do. Radar reflects off of a lot of surfaces (including the roadway pavement) and the beam is so wide that you will pick it up even if another car is being targeted regardless of where you mount it on your car. That's why most detectors don't bother with a rear-facing antenna - you pick up reflections from behind just as quickly as a direct reception from a rear-facing antenna. The extra antenna is really only useful for the arrows on the Valentine 1 and the K40.
BTW, it's a myth that mounting higher is better. For laser detectors you want to mount as close as possible to the likely target (because of the minimal spread of the beam). That means near the headlights or front license plate - the most reflective things on the front of the car. For radar detectors just about anywhere that's not blocked by metal parts will do. Radar reflects off of a lot of surfaces (including the roadway pavement) and the beam is so wide that you will pick it up even if another car is being targeted regardless of where you mount it on your car. That's why most detectors don't bother with a rear-facing antenna - you pick up reflections from behind just as quickly as a direct reception from a rear-facing antenna. The extra antenna is really only useful for the arrows on the Valentine 1 and the K40.
Originally Posted by WhiteBird00
For laser detectors you want to mount as close as possible to the likely target (because of the minimal spread of the beam). That means near the headlights or front license plate - the most reflective things on the front of the car.
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Joined: Sep 2005
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From: Georgetown, DE
I guess it never occurs to anybody to obey the speed limits?? lol
I don't always either, but I am good at spotting potential target areas. I find it just as easy to learn where and wher not to speed. Only gotten one ticket ever in my SS.
I don't always either, but I am good at spotting potential target areas. I find it just as easy to learn where and wher not to speed. Only gotten one ticket ever in my SS.
Teching In
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 17
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From: Iowa Park, Tx
I always use to mount mine up between the headliner and passenger sun visor. It just sliped right up in there and all you could see was the display. I ran it to the fuse box and and on circuit that was only positive when i flipped the key over, it was pretty convenient, especially since i didnt have to drill holes or put a switch in that looked tacky. Just mount it there and then run the 12v wire along the front seem of your headliner...it looks clean. Why can't we all just drive the speed limit these days?? because i have a SS!! Im not spose to, nor are you other F-bodys or Vettes!!!