Valentine 1 Radar Detector.

Can't believe people here don't discuss the pros and cons of Escort vs. Valentine.

I guess the TT people drive a hellavalot faster than the people on this forum.

Califonia Highway Patrol does not use radar so radar detectors are not widely used here. Radar is used by sherrifs in town to enforce small problem areas and that's where radar detectors get all those false positives anyway, at least from my experience. So for the once every 10 years I get a radar ticket it's not worth 10 years of driving paranoid and the cost of keeping up with new versions of radar detectors.

And if CHP uses laser and you know a laser is in the area, then the V1 is very sensitive to it and can help. Of course, if the laser is pointed at you, one is almost toast anyway

Thanks for the info.

Unfortunately the CHP's begun using radar up here in NoCal on a few freeways in the Bay Area (I-280 and H-85 in my location).



BT

These Euro mirros are fantastic!!! Now I feel totally comfortable, as there are no blind spots anymore. Inadequate rear visibility was one of the major drawbacks of the Coupe, in my book. I had had a couple of nasty situations when I couldn't see a car lurking in a blind spot on the right.

Interesting fact: the driver side mirror (heated/auto-dimming), was made in the US . The other one was made in Germany, and they both were ordered in and arrived from Germany in MB OEM boxes.

MB-BOB...stock

Photo radar (both stationary and portable) are becoming more and more common here. I don't think there's any way to detect photo radar with any in-car equipment?

Tim

I didn't know this. What do they use?

I might be going to Europe in the next couple of months.


Would anyone be interested in me picking up some mirrors? I'm starting to think that it might be worthwhile to pick up some if and when I go. Could be an interesting mod, no?

I ran a little test by repeatedly driving past a parked photo radar van. My Uniden detector, which works well enough for everything else, would not detect photo radar in time, even at 30 mph.

Eyes can work OK. Here in BC photo radar was always installed in a minivan which was always parked. Watching a whole line of traffic slow as we passed a parked minivan was quite funny. Photo radar was sufficiently unpopular that the present government did away with it a year or so ago, after they were elected. I keep meaning to send in an information request for year-over-year accident statistics.

I guess Europeans don't know how to use peripheral vision! The mirrors are good tho. I just don't want to make a bad habit (which i'm good at) of just depending on mirrors. Besides, in aggressive driving, I am the one who picks my spot or lane entry point. Quick 80-90 degree head turing is all that is needed to see if other cars are changing into the same lane. Picking upcoming cars is another technique. I look at the mirror, pick the red honda that is following the black porsche, then cut in right after the porsche passes (checking once to see if any other car is is moving into the lane).

Here we might have the clue as to why the mirrors on North American cars are different. IMHO turning your head to look at traffic conditions behind, especially in aggressive driving situations in traffic, is a dangerous practice. But MB in their wisdom knows that most of their client base learned to drive this way in the days before cars sold here routinely came equipped with two good outside mirrors.

It takes about half a second to turn your head, focus on the traffic behind, and turn back again to focus on the traffic ahead. If you think the coupe has a large blind spot to the rear quarter, you should try my 1970 Lotus Europa. This car has only one outside mirror (on the driver's side) and blind spots that are large enough that you cannot safely enter traffic from an oblique angle without reorienting either the car, yourself, or both. I sometimes have to turn my head in traffic in this car but I hate and feel really uncomfortable doing so. 60 MPH is 88 feet per second. Some of us do not leave 44 feet between ourselves and the car in front at that speed, a tedency that worsens in commuter traffic.

vadim, did you install the mirrors yourself?

well, i just called clairparts, and they wouldn't get me the euro part. he said he had to get me the US part based on my vin... so, tommy, i'm in... but let's try to do something about the price. group buy anyone else?

The problem with rearward visibility is that most people adjust their mirrors by including the side of their car in the view as a reference point. This is wrong. You should adjust your mirrors much further out than that for a slight overlap in what you see in your rear view mirror and the side mirrors. Adjust them so when a car's front on either side is at your rear, the car fills the mirror. This would normally be your blind spot if you turn your head.

Once you get used to doing this it will become second nature and you'll be able to change lanes without looking back. I learned this in my daughter's advanced driving class. The Euro mirrors do this for you by widening the field of view but it's a lazy approach and may hurt you in the long run when you get used to it and depend on it and then drive a different car.

I am going to buy the mirrors so would be very interested in a group buy.

Nathan

Not really... I've been using this technique on a lot of cars, but the Coupe still had blind spots, due to small mirrors and wide pillars. The Euro mirrors fix this very nicely. You still have to adjust them far outwards, but now you get a much wider angle, plus they show sides of the car as a nice bonus.

That's a good point.

You can't idiot-proof everything.

If people can't change their driving styles/preferences for different cars, maybe they shouldn't be driving either car.

Just drive faste rthan everyone sle, you wouldn't have this problem!!!

That may work if you drove on one road and never had to merge on a freeway or change lanes. But many accidents happen because people turn their heads getting on a freeway to check out the traffic and don't pay attention to the person in front of them stopping. Set your mirrors right and you can merge without taking your eyes off the road in front of you.

I'm in. Let see your bringing back 20 left and right mirrors. 20 sets of Euro Weather Mats. 20 set of Bi-xenon Headlights for the coupe. What else am I forgetting???

I’d start looking for really large Samsonites now. Maybe you could fill a box car and have it shipped.
.

If you go to a country with right hand drive will the mirrors be wrong?

I'd be hitting the main part - have done London already, and let's say that fish and chips are better over here.

Well, I'd have to set limits, of course, so that users like edvpt wouldn't abuse my good nature. :p

That's why I was thinking about the mirrors - should be easy to fit into a dedicated carry-on or sumthin, right next to the coke, I mean baby powder.

20 Audio 10's and 20 cd-changers. And most certainly tommy should bring back 20 C32 Sportscoupes.