gmdebruyn

I know there is a huge fan base here for the Valentine V1 here, but I would be very interested to hear back from the K40 users here on the forum. Please either PM me or post to this thread your experience with the K40.

Also, which laser diffuser/jammer did you use, the K40, or the lidatek?
Is there any way to get a break on the price of the K40?
Where did you have the front/back indicators installed on the E55?

Thanks,
Gareth

Nickerz

Me too! Please post to the thread and share! I'm interested in the K-40 and just heard of another brand called Lidatek or something like that.

What's the cost of a typical install? Are there different types to choose from?

Nick

teflon

I've got a K40 in my 99 W210 E55. It's big plus - very stealty - most passengers ask "what's that flashing light/beeping"?. They don't even realize it's a radar detector. Probelms: You can guess - The thing is too sensative, and cannot be calibrated AFAIK. Traffic signs, stores, cell phone towers, and more set it off. You get so many false positives that you begin to ignore them. Also, K40 is terrible to deal with. I have been unable to get them to respond to emails _at all_. Phonecalls, rarely.

vitaman

The new ones have fixed a lot of these issues. The one I have now is better than the one I had 3 years ago. There's a City setting that eliminates 90% of the false alarms (in this regard it is far better than the V1 I had), and an easy to reach on/off switch. I had the V1 with remote display installed on a WRX and Escort SRX with integrated laser jammers on a Porsche. My next car (E55) will get a K40 within 48 hours of pickiing it up.

Nickerz

I visited my local K-40 dealer yesterday and he said the unit, installed and labor would run me about $600. After looking at my car, he said there are 3 places to install the brain. Either behind the black grille on my C55 or behind the silver grille (which I think I prefer) or under the front of the car (which he said is prone to breaking off if I hit a bad bump or the front scrapes over a high parking block).

One thing the guy told me that sucks on the K-40, is you can't shut it off or mute it. It's always on and can be turned down but you still may hear the beeps. THAT SUCKS! He said they can dampen the noise more by putting something in the speaker so you don't hear it when turned down.

Also, he suggested a very cool place to put the LED lights. The C55 has extra buttons (near where the ESP button is) and they aren't used for anything. He suggested placing the LED lights using the different black buttons! What do you guys think? I think it's a good idea! I didn't like the lights in the dash and really don't want them messing around behind the instrument panel, plus I don't think I could see them that well while driving.

Nick

vitaman

Actually, when a detector goes off, the 1st thing you do is check your speed.......
So the lights near the speedometer (behind the glass) is a great place.
Using the dummy buttons is also appealing (I hate dummies and the C55 has a ton of them), but not quite as practical.
All the latest generation K40's have a Highway setting, City setting (filters out a lot of CVS doors) and Off switch. There is also a volume control. That noise dampener thing is ridiculous. I would check around for some other installers.

zdkdeeier493

K40's website states that it's laser jammer is perfectly legal. These were outlawed after a legislation passed in Colorado closing a company that manufactured such devices. How is their statement legitimate? Have they been proven legal?

Nickerz

Yeah, I was told by the dealer that it's a misdemeanor in the state of California to have a laser defuser (jammer). I'm getting one anyway of course.

So Vitaman, the latest K-40's have a turn off switch!!!? I'm going to look into this! Thanks for the heads up!

Nick

gmdebruyn

are you guys getting any price breaks on the k40 install? it looks and researches as a great product, but its running $2000+ for radar and laser jammer.

Gareth

gmdebruyn

the quote i got was 2200, installed. includes everything including front and rear laser jammer.

Nickerz

Damn, $2200! I was quoted, $600 but I can't remember if this includes the defuser, if not, I would still be paying well under $1000 and this is installed, labor and everything.

Nick

PS I will call Thursday and confirm the exact specs for the price I mentioned above.

gmdebruyn

yea, make sure you are getting the undetectable one (meaning its all hidden) because thats one hell of a deal if you are paying that low.

Gareth

lorinserbenz

I sold K40 products for seven years so ( no longer in car electronics business) I am very familier with their offerings. I would opt for the Passport SRX over the K40. The K40's false way to much in urban settings. The passport also out performs the K40 in KA sensitivity which is the most used frequency.
Now this is were it gets interesting.... ESCORT, K40 and BEL are all the same company. If you compare their products you will see subtle similarities, for example the Escort and Bel dash mount units share the same displays. The older BEL dash mounts used the same displays as the current K40 RD850's.
What makes this marriage of companies strange is that the Escort products always perform better in testing. My guess is they want Escort to stay on top since its such a well know brand.
You will here people scream V1 ! V1! arrrows!! and swear its the best detector. Well at one time the V1 was the best but the Escort 8500 out performs it and its cheaper. Dont think I am promoting the Escort products , I personally have owned two V-1's and switched to the 8500 because its BETTER. The current V-1 is three year old technology, with no update in sight. Escort has deeper pockets and is constantly improving their products. Personally Id love to see a new unit from Valentine but I guess he feels that his product is still the best even if its old technologly.
Getting back to the K40.... Dont waste your money, its HIGLY overrated and WAY over priced. I have several friends with them and they cant even use them in the city because they are annoying... the sound they make after an alert will drive you bonkers.. its ticking sound..
If it were me Id save the money buy a 8500 or V1 and avoid holes and someone ripping your $50000 car apart... Trust me its NOT worth it.

gmdebruyn

lorinser,
thanks for the info. since you are not pro k40. which laser jammer do you recommend? k40, or the lidatek, or blinder? do any work in your opinion?
thanks,
Gareth

zdkdeeier493

*****. I wish you had posted earlier Lorinserbenz. My V1 just arrived in the mail today.

lorinserbenz

Gareth,
I had the SRX stand alone laser jammer in my Chevy Avalanche. I dont think it was 100% effective but it does work to a certain degree.
Laser is aimed like a real gun, you have a sight and you pick a reflective object on the vehicle. The jammers work if the car is targeted in the areas that jammers are mounted, but if the target is not in the coverage area of the sensor then they will get a reading. I got a ticket with the SRX and the cop that got me stated that he couldnt get a reading on my truck until I was 4 car lengths off him he blamed it on the huge plastic bumper. He said he was targeting my grill, which is where the two sensors were mounted. He said he was able to get me from my headlight. If I hadnt had the stereo playing so loud I would have noticed the SRX beeping and might have saved myself a ticket.

The K40's I know for a FACT do not work in diffusing laser (thats what K40 calls it). My friend has one on is Tahoe and a mutual friend who is Pinellas county deputy offered to test it for use and he got a reading EVERY time.
I felt bad after seeing this because when I had my store I bet I sold 300 or 400 of those license plate diffusers!
I haven't had any experience with the Blinder product but my guess its the same as the Escort.
The SRX is a good product but its not fool proof by any means.

lorinserbenz

The nice thing about Valentine is they have a no questions asked return policy.
Id buy the 8500 and try both together to see which works better for your location.
For years I was staunch supporter of the V1, but after using the 8500 I feel its a better product... for now...
The current V1 has been around for a LOOONG time without a software update. There are 10 reviews that show the 8500 beating the V1, yet the V1 doesnt get changed or updated. Plus Mike Valentine always complains about how the tetsing is not fair. If all the other detectors are tested in the same way then how is it NOT fair?
The Escort products that came out after the last aluminum Passport were flat out garbage. Valentine came along and nearly put them out of business. Then Bel bought Escort and put a ton of cash into R&D and finally started producing good products. Since then Valentine has drug their feet and held the Car and Drive review as its holy grail for selling detectors. I guess they dont read other reviews or just claim unfairnes in testing.

Personally I like the arrows the V1 has and the bogey counter. In theory it works great, but in the real world its down right annoying. On my daily drive there are areas that ALL the arrows would be lit and Id have a 9 on the bogey meter! In other words the V1 is WAY to sensitive, even in the city mode and the ultra city mode (cant remember what its called?).
Try both and seen which works better for you..

lorinserbenz

Nickerz,
The K40's dealer cost is about $550 or so. They most inportant factor in the K40 is the install. MAKE SURE the shop doing it is familier with taking a Mercedes apart. Having been in the car audio business for a number of years I have seen some HORRIBLE radar installs.. I had a customer that brought his LS400 in with a HOLE in the brake booster from a botched K40 install....

gmdebruyn

know any good sub installers in the bay area lorinser? i want to upgrade the stock E55 sub with a new driver and better standalone amp.

so if i were to go laser jammer, you'd recommend a standalone product like the one you said, or perhaps the lidatek? i guess you just have to play the percentage game and bet that they laser your bumper or license plate. you can't put the detectors/jammers everywhere.

i'm leaning towards the 8500/V1 and the lidatek laser jammer.

Nickerz

Thanks lorinserbez! The install going wrong is my biggest concern too! I'm planning a trip to LA in Dec., so I'm thinking about buying the V1 or the 8500 to test out and see how I like it and if I do, maybe I'll just keep one of the two.?

I really don't like the idea though of having it stuck on my windshield. Looks like crap. I did read on V1's website that they have free upgrades for any V1 bought, so if they do improve on their technology, you get the upgrade software for free.

I'm definitely thinking of doing the V1 vs. 8500 challange and returning the one I don't like.

Nick

gmdebruyn

i hate having it stuck up there too. for my 4-runner though, i mounted it on the visor clip (visor clip on side of visor closest to windshield) so it was as flush as it could be to the roof. i then ran a remote wire under the headliner, down the side and under the dash where i hardwired it to the car and added the remote display. the remote display is on top of the steering column just behind the steering wheel, in front of the dash. i drove around with it for 2 weeks and finally asked my girlfriend if it looked bad (she can't stand things that look sloppy) and she hadn't even noticed it. its also nice to look down and see the display and i hardly notice the V1. it actually sits higher than my garage opener.

lorinserbenz

www.radartest.com seems to cover all the different dectectors available. I was suprised to see the Bel unit perform so well. Guess I need to try one out!

Nickerz

So according to that article, the Bel Pro RX 65 beat out both the Escort X50 and the V1!? Wow! From the pics below...doesn't the V1 look outdated? I know it is but the fact that it was introduced in 1991 or 1992 and it's still competing with the best, says a lot for it.

Bikr Boy

Going West on I96 in Michigan today at 90 mph when I saw a Sheriff's car in the median......my Valentine 1 didn't utter a peep, so I figured he didn't have his radar on. WRONG!! He whips up on the freeway and pulls me over. Asks me if I know why I was being pulled over. I tell him " I really have no idea." Not about to confess to speeding. Tells me "looks like you had a perfect record.... until now." Ticket says "sth. radar". What happened to my V1 detector? Looks like it doesn't pick up whatever this radar was, which means I need to pick up a new brand of detector.

gmdebruyn

i doubt cops right up whether they used laser or radar to ticket you. probably just categorize it under "radar" since thats been around for a bit.

there's a cop that sits in the same place in town each day and my V1 never goes off. with everything else it does. I suspect he's using laser, but i will find out when my Blinder system arrives. Will report back to group.

So far from my research and own tests, Escort 8500 and V1 are at the top of the food chain. And Lidatek and Blinder are the top end for laser jamming.