Radar Detector need for Model 3

[CaptUAL]

Avoid All those costs and wiring problems. Just match the biggest number clearly displayed in front of you with the big black & white sign on the road. You’ll Never get stopped, endanger others, waste your time and money, or look over your shoulder again . What a concept

 

[LBM4]

Avoid All those costs and wiring problems. Just match the biggest number clearly displayed in front of you with the big black & white sign on the road. You’ll Never get stopped, endanger others, waste your time and money, or look over your shoulder again . What a concept

You must be as pious as a saint, or Jesus himself!

 

[MaskedRacerX]

My 12V DC adapter for my V1 uses a modular connector (J11/4-conductor), so you can just use any phone cord, and crimp on your own connectors. Super convenient if you're trying to slip a cord through a tiny space - and it also lets you choose your own size.

Of course, you need cable, connectors and a crimping tool, but the tool is handy to have on hand (get a good one that supports RJ45 connectors and you can roll-your-own ethernet cables as well).

This style from the V1 site:

 

[Willy’sEV]

No, the supplied power cord is the curly style and would be a pain to straighten to fit along the edges of the roof liner and down to the center console. I also don't think it is long enough.

On Amazon, type this in search bar: Valentine 1 Mirror Mount
For the power cord: Valentine 1 power cord 11.5ft

So, I went from my radar detector up to the roof liner, hid it along the liner to the passenger side, down the pillar to behind the glovebox, then hid it under the plastic pieces along the center console to the armrest cover. Plugged it into the 12V power outlet. I use a center console armrest storage tray that has a circular cutout for the 12V outlet, allowing me to do this.
Found here: Armrest storage tray with 12V cutout

Thank you LBM4

The mirror mount looks good.

Did you have to remove any trim pieces to snug the cord so it did not show?

I was thinking of using the mirror mount you suggested and the curly cord just hanging down and plugging into 12v receptacle. Perhaps that would harm my visibility and probably looks lousy.

 

[LBM4]

Thank you LBM4

The mirror mount looks good.

Did you have to remove any trim pieces to snug the cord so it did not show?

I was thinking of using the mirror mount you suggested and the curly cord just hanging down and plugging into 12v receptacle. Perhaps that would harm my visibility and probably looks lousy.

You don't have to remove anything. You just tuck the wire in all along the edges. It's pretty simple to do. I wouldn't have the cord hanging from the mirror down to the 12v recepticle. It will look ridiculous and you most likely won't be able to close your armrest.
I'll take some pics today of what I did and PM you.

 

[MaskedRacerX]

You don't have to remove anything. You just tuck the wire in all along the edges. It's pretty simple to do. I wouldn't have the cord hanging from the mirror down to the 12v recepticle. It will look ridiculous and you most likely won't be able to close your armrest.
I'll take some pics today of what I did and PM you.

If you wouldn't mind, could you just post them in this thread? I'm really interested to see how you ran the power cord.

 

[Willy’sEV]

You don't have to remove anything. You just tuck the wire in all along the edges. It's pretty simple to do. I wouldn't have the cord hanging from the mirror down to the 12v recepticle. It will look ridiculous and you most likely won't be able to close your armrest.
I'll take some pics today of what I did and PM you.

Thanks, would love to see them.

 

[LBM4]

If you wouldn't mind, could you just post them in this thread? I'm really interested to see how you ran the power cord.

It's very simple to run the cord. I usually hardwire my radar detector, but I'm not taking any chances with my Tesla, which is why I did it this way. Once you run wiring along the roof liner and trim pieces once, you'll be an expert at it.

 

[St☰v☰]

How about just obeying the speed limit... seems like a simple solution? So ~50 in a 30 zone. Wow, you could have easily killed someone. This is why you don't give children toys they can't handle. I recall a situation in LA where a 17 year old killed a mother because he could not control the speed of the Lambo his father gave him for his birthday.

Teen son of wealthy entrepreneur admits to West L.A. Lamborghini crash that killed 32-year-old woman: DA

A 17-year-old Lamborghini driver on Friday admitted to a gross vehicular manslaughter charge in a high-speed crash that killed a woman in West Los Angeles earlier this year, according to the Los An…

ktla.com

 

[terranx]

How about just obeying the speed limit... seems like a simple solution? So ~50 in a 30 zone. Wow, you could have easily killed someone. This is why you don't give children toys they can't handle. I recall a situation in LA where a 17 year old killed a mother because he could not control the speed of the Lambo his father gave him for his birthday.

Teen son of wealthy entrepreneur admits to West L.A. Lamborghini crash that killed 32-year-old woman: DA

A 17-year-old Lamborghini driver on Friday admitted to a gross vehicular manslaughter charge in a high-speed crash that killed a woman in West Los Angeles earlier this year, according to the Los An…

ktla.com

View attachment 759190

Not all speed limits are set with safety as the primary goal. Not all responsible drivers drive at speed limit, nor do all irresponsible drivers exceed speed limit.

 

[MaskedRacerX]

It's very simple to run the cord. I usually hardwire my radar detector, but I'm not taking any chances with my Tesla, which is why I did it this way. Once you run wiring along the roof liner and trim pieces once, you'll be an expert at it.

I've done it a few times, in a few different cars, I was just curious about the center console portion. Heck, I might knock around with this today

 

[St☰v☰]

Not all speed limits are set with safety as the primary goal. Not all responsible drivers drive at speed limit, nor do all irresponsible drivers exceed speed limit.

~50 in a 30 zone IS in fact irresponsible, plain and simple. I can only assume that you (and others i.e., MRX) do not obey the speed limit signs or you wouldn't have posted as you did. God help the people in the city in which you live when your M3P arrives...

 

[terranx]

~50 in a 30 zone IS in fact irresponsible, plain and simple. I can only assume that you (and others i.e., MRX) do not obey the speed limit signs or you wouldn't have posted as you did. God help the people in the city in which you live when your M3P arrives...

The speed I drive depends on the road I'm driving on. If it's going through a dense neighborhood with pedestrians, kids, etc- Yeah I tend to drive slower (usually just enough to keep pace with traffic). If the speed limit is 30 because it's a twisty road, but otherwise the only obstacles are vegetation and maybe animals? I'll go as fast as I feel comfortable going. Sometimes that'll be the actual speed limit. Occasionally it might be *slower* than the speed limit. Sometimes it might be more than double. The sign itself has very little impact on the speed I drive unless there's a cop around.

Never personally got into an accident. Last ticket I got was about 10 years ago.

 

[LBM4]

~50 in a 30 zone IS in fact irresponsible, plain and simple. I can only assume that you (and others i.e., MRX) do not obey the speed limit signs or you wouldn't have posted as you did. God help the people in the city in which you live when your M3P arrives...

You are the one that brought up a 50 in a 30. I see people without a strong side to an argument try to use extreme examples, like you did, in order to try and bolster their side.
No one, except you, has talked about speeding or violating laws. Having a radar detector in the vast majority of US states is not illegal, nor is owning one, an admission of guilt to speeding.
My reasons for owning a radar detector are my own and I don't need anyone judging me for it or making wild claims that I'll be doing 50 in a 30, simply because I own a radar detector. That's just complete nonsense. What's that saying about rocks and glass houses? :Wink

 

[LBM4]

If you wouldn't mind, could you just post them in this thread? I'm really interested to see how you ran the power cord.

Here ya go. I'm starting from the radar detector then pointing to where I hid the wire behind the roof lining, pillar lining, under glovebox, center console, up to under the armrest. Pretty simple. I used a plastic wedge that you get with most installs these days. They are either orange or yellow in color. If you don't have one, just put ducktape over a flat head screwdriver to shove the wiring behind the linings.

 

[MaskedRacerX]

You are the one that brought up a 50 in a 30. I see people without a strong side to an argument try to use extreme examples, like you did, in order to try and bolster their side.
No one, except you, has talked about speeding or violating laws. Having a radar detector in the vast majority of US states is not illegal, nor is owning one, an admission of guilt to speeding.
My reasons for owning a radar detector are my own and I don't need anyone judging me for it or making wild claims that I'll be doing 50 in a 30, simply because I own a radar detector. That's just complete nonsense. What's that saying about rocks and glass houses? :Wink

Absolutely.

I was the poster in the thread about the 0-N performance vs. other cars saying not to race on the street, and my standard response is to promote safe high speed driving on tracks, in a controlled environment. I haven't had a ticket in 25 years.

For me, it's about a little heads up on the highway, where I might run 76-77 in a 70 and will just drop down ~4-5MPH in case the local LEs are a little more aggressive for 6-7 over in a 70. I drive 15-20 in neighborhoods marked for 25.

 

[LBM4]

Absolutely.

I was the poster in the thread about the 0-N performance vs. other cars saying not to race on the street, and my standard response is to promote safe high speed driving on tracks, in a controlled environment. I haven't had a ticket in 25 years.

For me, it's about a little heads up on the highway, where I might run 76-77 in a 70 and will just drop down ~4-5MPH in case the local LEs are a little more aggressive for 6-7 over in a 70. I drive 15-20 in neighborhoods marked for 25.

Exactly!!!

 

[STS-134]

~50 in a 30 zone IS in fact irresponsible, plain and simple. I can only assume that you (and others i.e., MRX) do not obey the speed limit signs or you wouldn't have posted as you did. God help the people in the city in which you live when your M3P arrives...

Depends on what the limit SHOULD be in that spot. Do you honestly think that the speed limit here should be 45?: Google Maps I do 65-70 there and it's built like an interstate. Here's another spot with a ridiculously underposted speed limit: Google Maps

Now if the limit SHOULD be 30, then doing 50 is irresponsible. But if it should be 50, then why was it set at 30 other than to raise revenue?

 

[Willy’sEV]

LBM4
Great pics, I think I will give it a try. Valentine 1G2 units are on back order so will have to wait.
Thanks for the mount bracket and wire link from Amazon.

One more question: When you leave the car, do you have to unplug the 12v socket? I was wondering if still plugged in, is the battery discharging until unplugged?

 

[STS-134]

LBM4
Great pics, I think I will give it a try. Valentine 1G2 units are on back order so will have to wait.
Thanks for the mount bracket and wire link from Amazon.

One more question: When you leave the car, do you have to unplug the 12v socket? I was wondering if still plugged in, is the battery discharging until unplugged?

Because I don't want to rewrite an entire post I made previously, see here: https://www.rdforum.org/threads/110386/ This post actually discusses my experience putting a dashcam in the Model 3 but it's also relevant to anything plugged into the 12V socket (you will also find much more advice on RADAR detectors on that forum). The battery is of course discharging when stuff is plugged into the 12V socket but it's not using the 12V battery, it's using the main drive battery. Once the car goes to "sleep", the 12V socket powers off.