Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums Modifications General Mods Radar Detector Position

Hey Guys,

What is the best location for a Radar Detector. I know you should avoid the top tinted part of the windshield, as it can affect performance and sensitivity.

I've also hear that you want to keep it as low as possible, but make sure its not blocked. This is because cops will aim a gun at the biggest part of the car, the chassis, and not necessarily higher up on the car.

So where is the best location?

Smack dab in the middle of the windshield is the ideal position. But I usually mount mine right below my rear view mirror so it's not as noticably to the cars behind me.

I have it right in the middle of my windshield, I don't care if other cars notice it (though yeah they might group around me instead of speeding ahead BUT then they're also a good shield grouped around you). And it doesn't matter where a cop aims the radar because you're not trying to detect when he's aiming it at you, you're trying to detect when he aims it at other people.

Anyone familiar with how in naval architecture the sonar equipment is sometimes located as far out on the low edge of the bow as possible, to get the best look ahead? I'm waiting to see if someone eventually develops a small bump-like sensor housing for your roof, rather like some of the current radio antennae, so as to get the farthest look forward and behind over hills and other traffic.

When, I had mine on my ranger, I put it in the grille, and put a plastic sealant around it, then soddered wires to the holes in the board where the leds were, then ran them into my cab and mounted them right above my steering wheel, and pointed them in the general direction of my eyes. worked great till i started getting head aches because they were flashen off and on all the time, due to the traffic police forces we have lol. then, I started covering it with my hat which led to tickets. now I don't have one anymore. Gonna get one again and do the same thing but in my contour.

V1's site says grill mounted is not high enough. You want it higher to catch as much as possible over hills and such, though when mounted conventially you don't want it so high in your windshield that's it behind the tint.

lol, i had an 8 inch lift on my truck, it was plenty high lol.

my V1 goes right in the middle of the windshield.

When you raise your truck, yes, your grill mounted sensor is raised from the ground also. But your truck cab windshield and roof are still even higher. By feet. Don't you want to "see" over hills sooner with your sensor mounted higher than your grill?

I have mine velcroed to the dash to the left of the instrument cluster. This means that I have it as close to the center of the roadway as possible.

I have found through years of use in the Contour that I get better 2-lane road and median hiding cops in this position with little effect to those on the right shoulder.

Another advantage is that it looks part of the cluster to other drivers on the roadway.