DIY: radar detector hard wire

[tedesj]

This doesn't have much info, but their web site has instructions for making your own power cords and hard wire installation:

http://valentine1.com/Moreinfo/pdf/power_cords_pg20.pdf

and all the rest are here:
More Information about the Valentine One

[fiji-blew]

Does tint effect the radar detector performance at all?
i mean even a little bit?

[Civicn33b]

i dont understand... the harness i bought from best buy has one (black/white) wire with a fuse in it and a fork shaped metal connectoe on one end and another one (black) with the same kind of end. At the other end of the harness there is an adapter to utilize a male end plug in type of power instead of the phone power cord. I just bought this x50 8500 and all it came with was the radar/ coiled cord/ carrying case. Im not the best with electrical things, is there a more detailed DIY?

[benmunger]

Originally Posted by Civicn33b

i dont understand... the harness i bought from best buy has one (black/white) wire with a fuse in it and a fork shaped metal connectoe on one end and another one (black) with the same kind of end. At the other end of the harness there is an adapter to utilize a male end plug in type of power instead of the phone power cord. I just bought this x50 8500 and all it came with was the radar/ coiled cord/ carrying case. Im not the best with electrical things, is there a more detailed DIY?

unscrew the 12v plug. inside is two wires. the center one (red) is "+" and the outer spring one (black) is "-"

[calircr]

Originally Posted by fiji-blew

Does tint effect the radar detector performance at all?
i mean even a little bit?

depends on what kind of film is used. I've heard that if you mount it up high and have a tint strip up top it can affect it a little if it's a metallic film. I have a tint strip up there that goes past the little arrow in the upper left corner. That arrow is basically how much tint you can have on the upper half of your windshield. I haven't had any problems with my v1 picking up the poe-poe.

[hanky]

Thank you sooo much dude! this is my fist mod to my SI, just got it last week.

I had my V1 wired from the fuse box all the way up though the A pillar in the drivers side in my old car (Ford Focus ZX5) and thought about doing it the same way in the SI but this is waay easier. Thanks so much, was so easy to do thanks to you guide. To any 07 coupe SI owners trying to do this, its the same wire - the THICK GREEN one, just like the guide says.

- Hans.

POS: Will post pics of the end result when I get home. Im parked in the School lot posting this in my laptop from the site :-)

[lambdachi]

Another confirmation... Purple wire for 06 Civic EX Sedan!!!

[eforer]

Purple wire +1 07 si sedan. Works like a charm.

[SpareNoExpenses]

I hardwired my x50 tonight into my LX coupe. I have my detector in front of my rearview right below the dot matrix. Some say I lose rear detection, that's fine but when they ride behind me they can't see it at all and I can still see the display from the driver seat. I just went and bought the Belltronics hardwire kit from circuit city because it's all the same. I really needed the functionality of the button and I located it in the change tray on the left of the steering wheel. Grounded it onto the frame and got my 12v using a fuse extender with pinout into #8 on the fuse panel. I don't see why you would not just use a phone cord if you were tapping into the sunroof.

I ran the line to the detector under the weatherstripping in the door and then under the ceiling liner. It worked absolutely great and tucks away well! I'll post pictures of the setup if anybody is interested in what it look like. Good write up guys, I had been planning this for quite some time but this really motivated me to get off my ass!

[calircr]

i'll post a pic of how it's placed in my car too when I get home.

[nycboy7]

im not really sure why its not working but i connected the ground to the screw and the positive to the green... I have the solo S2 and when i turn it on manually it is reading around 14.7 volts. When i turn the car off the radar detector turns off... Sounds like everything is working good but when i go to turn the car back on the radar detector does not turn back on like it should.... Does anyone know what can possibly be going on? Any input would be great. Thanks

[B-Stylz]

Originally Posted by Undispu7ed

Just an update, for my 08 Si coupe the pink wire was the 12V power.

Can anyone else confirm the pink wire is used for an '08 Si coupe? I will be doing my install soon.

[Noyty]

The "dot matrix stuff" is the radio antenna. My 08' SI sedan doesn't have it, instead the antenna is now integrated into the rear window.

[Arcage]

Here's my V1 installed, hardwired the same way as OP. I have a 07 si sedan. +1 for the purple wire, used voltmeter to ensure it was it.

[Noyty]

Originally Posted by Undispu7ed

If you guys are having trouble with mounting the radar with suction cups, go to a tint shop and have them tint the windshield with a strip. Costs 10 bucks at every reliable tint shop from where I live. Its main purpose is to block the sun when you're driving, but it's also useful for that.

Don't do that. The tint strip will greatly reduce the effectiveness of the detector's ability to pick up radar.

[Chase]

Originally Posted by Noyty

Don't do that. The tint strip will greatly reduce the effectiveness of the detector's ability to pick up radar.

Proof please, basically what you are saying is that a tint will not let radio waves through.... Tint blocks certain amounts of light, not radio waves.. please provide some proof..

[nismo1982]

Hmmmmmm have anyone successfully hardwired V1 yet? I have 08 SI couple and i found 2 wires having power without turning the keep and when i turn the engine one, no other wires have power.

[Arcage]

Originally Posted by nismo1982

Hmmmmmm have anyone successfully hardwired V1 yet? I have 08 SI couple and i found 2 wires having power without turning the keep and when i turn the engine one, no other wires have power.

Just hardwired my V1 a few days ago. I have an 07 Si Sedan, and I've heard that the 08's are different. Is the one that is hot when key is turned not hot otherwise? That would be your best bet if so. Just make sure you have the key out and your door is open when you test for non-hot. Then turn your key to ACC to see which one goes hot.

[SpareNoExpenses]

I posted my X50 up in front of the mirror to avoid it being seen from behind as your much more likely to get singled out if they know you've got the heads up. You can only see the display from the driver's seat but I run it in dark mode most of the time anyways.

I don't know why people are buying the hardwire kit if they arn't using the separate mute and alert module. I would hate to splice any wires, so fuse slot #8 which is unused from the factory, was perfect for using an add-a-circuit tap with a 10A inline fuse. Slot #8 is powered on in assessory mode so I used this to hardwire my XM as well. I put my mute module in the change tray to the left of the steering wheel.

Here are pics of the wiring and all:

From the rear: (AND NO I HAVE NOT LOST SENSITIVITY IN REAR DETECTION)


Driver's View:


The addon module so I don't have to reach up as mess with anything (in view of the cops):


How I wired it:

[SpareNoExpenses]

Originally Posted by Chase

Proof please, basically what you are saying is that a tint will not let radio waves through.... Tint blocks certain amounts of light, not radio waves.. please provide some proof..

Yes, the tint strip will affect your detection with both RADAR AND LIDAR. Quoted from here. The reason it affects LIDAR is obvious as the term LIDAR stands for for light detection and ranging, which is concentrated light. The tint strip would be in between your detector and the beam, affecting the performance of the detector.

Quoted from the website I listed above:
"The basic element in a laser speed gun, also called a lidar gun (for light detection and ranging), is concentrated light."

As for radar waves, yes they are radio waves. As the tint strip would not affect the RADAR as much as it does LIDAR, it will still affect it. Radio waves are affected by anything that gets in the way (including air, which is why FM stations can only broadcast in a certain distance.) If there are any talented HAM operators on the board, I would love to hear the input on exactly how much.

Pretty much every new speed gun purchased that is used by law enforcement are now LIDAR as it is way more accurate. I bought my detector to be protected from this, so I wouldn't mount it behind a strip of tint.