Radar/Laser Protection Question

[Twitch Massacre]

I have a question for some of the members here with integrated radar/laser protection systems (9500ci and Bel STiR). I know there are a lot of you out there, some of you I know personally, but instead of just asking you guys individually I figured I would tap into your collective knowledge.

I have been 2+ years without a speeding ticket despite not having had these systems installed in any of my cars during those years, believe it or not. That streak ended yesterday when I was pulled over on I-75 south bound. I was speeding most of the way as fast as 120mph at times when I saw a line of police vehicles stopped at the side of the road at a distance. I immediately began to slow down to the 70mph speed limit when one of the vehicles began to pull out and slowly make it's way onto my lane. It immediately "lit me up" and I proceeded to pull over. I figured I had just failed to slow down in time and he had tagged me from afar. However, the police officer, who was refreshingly polite for a change (I usually get the ones with the cheating wives, in a bad mood all the time) informed me that their plane had been the one that tagged me a few miles back, going 90mph at the time. I even heard the pilot radio in to him to confirm that he had in fact pulled over the right vehicle. He proceeded to write me a ticket for $294 and I was on my way.

Here is where my question comes in. Being that I was tagged by a plane, and assuming that he used a laser to tag me, would a system like the 9500ci or the Bel STiR been able to protect me in such a situation? I've seen a few of these systems installed on a few cars, some in the flesh on cars of members here, and I know that the laser shifters are usually placed in the air dams and sometimes with the optional rear shifters above or around the license plate area. I was under the impression that these shifters would only be able to intercept and fool the laser gun if it is being beamed at the front or back of the car. I am assuming that, if in fact the plane used a laser to tag me, it was aimed at the top of my car, which makes me wonder if the shifter would have picked up on this and in such case prevented them from getting a reading on my speed or even warned me of being hit by the laser. I'd like to get some insight on this as, if these systems can actually help in this case, I would be dropping my car off this week to have the system installed right away as I am now extra freaked at the fact that there's a damn stealth plane (for all I know) spying on my driving and tagging me.

[Time]

All the systems you talked about only work when the cop reading your speed in on the ground so they would not help with Helios and planes.

More than likely they have a plane or helio with a person or camera that time how long it takes for you to cross from point A to point B then with some simple math they have your speed.

In this case your only sensible protection would have been a police scanner bc you could have herd the aircraft calling down to the cops other cars that were speeding.

Edit: also waze, it seems to be the best and cheapest countermeasure.

[Hunter5179]

You won't get any coverage from above with these systems. There are a couple of system's that do detect low flying planes that are the size of crop dusters the police use to spot speeders and report to the officers on the ground like what happened to you. I forgot the names but there is a forum member named stealthpilot that knows all about countermeasures. Maybe search his name and message him.

[MattUK]

A roof mounted missile launcher?

[PhantomCypher]

Aircraft have usually have a spotter and a pilot. The spotter paces you by starting a timer from a marked spot on the highway and calculates how long it takes you to reach the other marked spot down the highway. Can't beat/block that other than being invisible.

In Ohio they were able to cut costs in half by making the pilot the spotter. It is the most successful program in the US as a result while many states like Virginia have cancelled it altogether due to the rising costs of aircraft.

[bigbrian]

There is no way to beat the plane. Another pain in the ass is the jammer only jams laser and not radar. I've got bel stir and alp jammer installed (nice stuff) and I still get tagged (and ticketed) via radar. Although these devices I have installed "detect" radar and "jam" laser you are still not completely stealth.

Sucks on the ticket man. I've kinda chalked them up to the price you pay for driving one bad ass machine.

Brian

[Twitch Massacre]

Originally Posted by bigbrian

There is no way to beat the plane. Another pain in the ass is the jammer only jams laser and not radar. I've got bel stir and alp jammer installed (nice stuff) and I still get tagged (and ticketed) via radar. Although these devices I have installed "detect" radar and "jam" laser you are still not completely stealth.

Sucks on the ticket man. I've kinda chalked them up to the price you pay for driving one bad ass machine.

Brian

Yeah, I try to look at it the same way, my only concern is that the plane will become the norm on this highway I travel through so much, and having no real way of protecting myself from it, it really freaks me out. Specially after having had my license suspended a few years back and knowing how much BS that is. I'll just have to pay the ticket and do whatever possible to avoid the points, and maybe look into some antiaircraft missiles as suggested by MattUK.

[Schnell_1]

Twitch, I am in the same predicament... 1 window tint ticket and 3 moving violations in the past month LOL. My streak ended with a bang! Anyway, I've contracted an attorney with a 70% winning rate, and she only charges $50 per ticket and I don't even have to go to court - she'll represent me there.

This seems like a nice ROI becuase the DMV points are killers and must be avoided at all costs. I'm sure Miami has a litany of competent traffic attorneys. Even if they have you dead-to-rights and you THINK you are completely guilty, your case can still be dismissed because of the inherant flaws in traffic law enforcement (human error, calibrations, quotos, officer history, etc.). As a temporary measure and for peace-of-mind, just yelp "traffic lawyer" and spend $50-100 to retain services.

[Twitch Massacre]

Originally Posted by Schnell_1

Twitch, I am in the same predicament... 1 window tint ticket and 3 moving violations in the past month LOL. My streak ended with a bang! Anyway, I've contracted an attorney with a 70% winning rate, and she only charges $50 per ticket and I don't even have to go to court - she'll represent me there.

This seems like a nice ROI becuase the DMV points are killers and must be avoided at all costs. I'm sure Miami has a litany of competent traffic attorneys. Even if they have you dead-to-rights and you THINK you are completely guilty, your case can still be dismissed because of the inherant flaws in traffic law enforcement (human error, calibrations, quotos, officer history, etc.). As a temporary measure and for peace-of-mind, just yelp "traffic lawyer" and spend $50-100 to retain services.

Most likely my next step. I'm sure there must be a loophole that can get my ticket dismissed. I mean, surely a judge can be convinced the pilot made a mistake. It's worth a try.

[bigbrian]

Originally Posted by Schnell_1

Twitch, I am in the same predicament... 1 window tint ticket and 3 moving violations in the past month LOL. My streak ended with a bang! Anyway, I've contracted an attorney with a 70% winning rate, and she only charges $50 per ticket and I don't even have to go to court - she'll represent me there.

This seems like a nice ROI becuase the DMV points are killers and must be avoided at all costs. I'm sure Miami has a litany of competent traffic attorneys. Even if they have you dead-to-rights and you THINK you are completely guilty, your case can still be dismissed because of the inherant flaws in traffic law enforcement (human error, calibrations, quotos, officer history, etc.). As a temporary measure and for peace-of-mind, just yelp "traffic lawyer" and spend $50-100 to retain services.

This is good advice... Thank you!

I just called a local attorney here in Wichita KS and they will fight the ticket to try and have it amended to a lower non-moving violation. They charge $150 which is a bit higher than you state above. I am sure I could shop around for a lower priced place but $150 is fine with me as long as they get the job done.

Brian

[Schnell_1]

Originally Posted by Twitch Massacre

Most likely my next step. I'm sure there must be a loophole that can get my ticket dismissed. I mean, surely a judge can be convinced the pilot made a mistake. It's worth a try.

Ya, it was the other highly modded orange M6. In Miami, that is a probably a reasonable defense. LOL goodluck

[Twitch Massacre]

Originally Posted by Schnell_1

Ya, it was the other highly modded orange M6. In Miami, that is a probably a reasonable defense. LOL goodluck

Hahaha. You never know... Maybe the pilot wasn't wearing his glasses.

[Time]

Originally Posted by Twitch Massacre

Yeah, I try to look at it the same way, my only concern is that the plane will become the norm on this highway I travel through so much, and having no real way of protecting myself from it, it really freaks me out. Specially after having had my license suspended a few years back and knowing how much BS that is. I'll just have to pay the ticket and do whatever possible to avoid the points, and maybe look into some antiaircraft missiles as suggested by MattUK.

There's a device that you can get to detect small aircraft. Most small aircraft use them to detect other small aircraft so they don't fly into each other. Might be expensive though.

[Hunter5179]

Originally Posted by bigbrian

There is no way to beat the plane. Another pain in the ass is the jammer only jams laser and not radar. I've got bel stir and alp jammer installed (nice stuff) and I still get tagged (and ticketed) via radar. Although these devices I have installed "detect" radar and "jam" laser you are still not completely stealth.

Sucks on the ticket man. I've kinda chalked them up to the price you pay for driving one bad ass machine.

Brian

Yeah, I use a V1 in combination with the the Bel and laser jammers.. adds that extra layer of radar protection but still it can happen.

[bigbrian]

Originally Posted by Hunter5179

Yeah, I use a V1 in combination with the the Bel and laser jammers.. adds that extra layer of radar protection but still it can happen.

Do you find the V1 works in situations where the bel stir doesn't? Are you using it for the added rear and side detection?

Curious to hear your thoughts using both at the same time in regard to how the V1 helped you in situations where the bel didn't perform.

Brian

[Hunter5179]

Originally Posted by bigbrian

Do you find the V1 works in situations where the bel stir doesn't? Are you using it for the added rear and side detection?

Curious to hear your thoughts using both at the same time in regard to how the V1 helped you in situations where the bel didn't perform.

Brian

Yeah, I use it for added protection especially from the rear. I usually turn it on when I'm on the expressways/freeways. If it's quiet out in the city or residential areas I will also turn it on. Yeah I feel that it does help having the v1 along with the Bel for sure. There were a couple of times the v1 saved me from behind at night. It alerted me before they were able to get close enough to read my speed.

[bigbrian]

Originally Posted by Hunter5179

Yeah, I use it for added protection especially from the rear. I usually turn it on when I'm on the expressways/freeways. If it's quiet out in the city or residential areas I will also turn it on. Yeah I feel that it does help having the v1 along with the Bel for sure. There were a couple of times the v1 saved me from behind at night. It alerted me before they were able to get close enough to read my speed.

Definitely going to have to think about getting one now. I assume you have it wired up through the rear view mirror?

[Hunter5179]

Originally Posted by bigbrian

Definitely going to have to think about getting one now. I assume you have it wired up through the rear view mirror?

Yes it is hardwired up there. Nice and clean

[RPiM5]

Yes, there is a defense. I'm a pilot. I flew both military aviation and civilian aviation. Stealth.Pilot is the only one I know of to actually mount one of these in his car. Florida sees the most frequent use of aircraft speeding enforcement. California is the second most. The spotter in the plane or helicopter just paces your speed while flying above you and then reports it to ground police state highway troopers. Anything is beatable.

Get this system for you car if you want to be able to get situational awareness of when an aircraft is near you.

Zaon MRX

http://www.digitalreviews.net/review...-reviewed.html

http://www.amazon.com/Zaon-MRX-A-Por...pr_product_top

This is system is good enough to let you know when a police aircraft is near you. As shown in the video it can be used on the ground and can detect aircraft in the air from miles away.

Another thing I suggest is downloading a police scanning app for your iPhone or Android phone. 5-0 Radio works great. Just tune into the net where you are located, preferrably the one that the highway patrol is using. The police officers in the aircraft need to be able to communicate to the police officers on the ground and intercepting their communication will definitely let you know if you are being targeted.

Also, I'm not 100% about Florida law, but if you decide to fight the ticket and go to court, most states, have written in law that you have the right to face your accuser, or the police officer who paced you, in this case it would be the one in the plane or helicopter who saw you and called you in. Since the officer that pulled you over on the ground did neither radar, laser, or pace you, the officer in the aircraft must be present in court. I'm not sure about Florida if they would actually go to court if subpoenaed, but it's worth a shot.

Also, I recommend finding and hiring a traffic lawyer for this one. I think that air tickets should be relatively easy to get out of, there are just too many variables since no accurate speed measurement device was used to cite you.

Good luck and May the Force be With You.

[x6Hawkeye]

That's good to know! I love in ATL and enjoy those speeds on I-75 as well. I have an integrated 9500i with jammers on my X6 50i and 650i.... Seems I'm not invisible!