Whenever I drive my car and have the escort 8500 x50 right there by the dash, it tends to heat up because of the sun. Even if the car is air conditioned, it's not enough air for it to cool down.

Do you guys think that heat will do damage in the long run? I put it by the A/C every now and then to cool it down?

any ideas?

thanks

 

put tinfoil around it

 

he was joking....

its a trick... get an axe ! ~Ash

if the radar is left out on the dash while its parked... im sure it will heat up past suggested levels and quite possibly get stolen.

check the web site for operational ranges... if the unit is warm to the touch no big deal , if its so hot you cant hold it... perhaps you have a manufacturing defect (contact manufacture)

not much you can do if its warm or so. if it breaks send it back for repair.

ppp

 

It will heat up in the window, but that can't be avoided while driving-it has to be designed for that kind of heat. I agree with not leaving it visible when parked for heat and theft reasons. If it gets very hot when it is not in the sun, as PP (can't bear to write out his handle!) suggested, it could have a short. A previous model of mine went bad and when I tried to fix it I must have caused a short and the circuit board got very hot. R.I.P.

 

Put the radar on the upper part of your windshield, by the rearview, should't get as hot and i've been told the rader picks up a better more efficient signal up there then on the lower part of the dash .I prefer the lower dash so i dont have to look up but after a few long distance trips it seems especially over hills the radar picked up quicker when the radar was on the upper part of the windshield.

Before i get flamed, i coudl be imagining it but don't care, mine is hardwired now so i cant do much. Solves your problem of the radar heating up.

 

No flames!! I suspect you are right about the reception being better if it is higher up, but I'm not sure it will change the heating. Anything sitting in the sun under glass (especially a black object like the detector) is going to get hot. I don't think he thinks the heat is coming from the dash itself.

Where is yours hardwired from? In the grill?

 

Believe it or not from the information I've seen, the higher the detector, the better and there are several reasons why. First and foremost, the higher up the detector is, the more range it has because it can recieve singals from all directions more effectively (rear, sides, etc). Second, the radar needs to be at a position where it is able to intercept signals thus the car in front of you, thus should be postioned in a manner that allows a line of sight through the rear window of the majority of cars. It cannot properly detect oncomming signals if it is below this and has a line of sight at the rear bumper or hatch of the car in front of you. Sounds a bit odd I know, but I've read several articles that mention this. Finally, being higher up and out of the sun is a significant aid. Infrared signals from sunlight bouncing off the road, hood, etc, can disrupt the proper function of the detector and hinder its accuracy. Therefore as you can imagine, detectors are most accurate at night.

 

I keep mine up high, right next to the rear view. The top part of my windshield that is tinted seems to keep the temps in check. Although I wouldn't leave it there when I park. Here in AZ, the sun WILL melt it if you leave it on the windshield during summer.

I love my x50! Already paid for itself within a couple months of purchase.

 

great feedback guys. so basically, I'm ok with the heating problem. I mean escort probably designed their product in a way where heat will not be a factor during those long drives. Kumar, thanks for that idea of keeping it higher, I'll check that out.

And quack, x50 is a pretty efficient and accurate detector. I love it.

 

take radar detector down when not in use. Put in glove compartment so people wont break into your car to steal it.

 

haha yea...i got that part down. i'm just talking about driving with the radar by the windshield.

 

I have the V1 which sits flat parallel to the dash or at any angle you want it to be. Anyone know of anything to make the passport more sturdy. I cant stand it dangling down like a $50 radar from wal mart. I think it looks careless.

 

Alright you guys i dont know where you heard that you should keep it high but if anything lower epsecially if you have a detector that detects laser. Reason being is laser is a beam that is only 18" wide when 500 ft away while a radar is some 20 feet wide at 500 feet. When police try to hit your car they aim for the flat spot on your car so most police have their radar aimed towards the flattest points on your car. A. your head lights and B. your license plates the last place any officer would want to do is aim at the top of your windsheild where its a reflective curved surface. So keep it low and you will be better off just make sure nothing is blocking it like winsheild wipers.

 

In the manual it says that the unit will defineately get hot. I had my previous model (8500 non x50) for a long time and had no problems except with the crappy suction things that would warp from the heat. I went through 3 sets of those but never had a problem with the unit itself.

-SF

 

My V1 manual states that the best place for it is right under the rearview mirror.