For folks interested, here's my install.
I used the Valentine One main unit, the concealed display, and SAVVY.

Placement

• See the photos below.
• The main unit slots in perfectly just above the rear view mirror.
• The remote unit works very nicely mounted on the hood of the instrument cluster (see photo). It looks off-center in the photo but it's actually centered...it's just lens distortion. By positioning it in this spot, you (a) minimize internal reflections from the sun against the windshield; and (b) have it set back far enough that your eyes don't have to travel far off the road to glance at the display. It also sits just inside and at the center of your field of vision so alarms are very obvious.

Installation and cabling

• The SAVVY unit is dead easy to install. The OBD connector is just under the (USA) driver side footwell, near your kneecap. I'd recommend a
  right angle connector
  right angle connector
  to minimize the plug profile. The underside of the footwell isn't covered, so it's very easy to run cabling....you don't need to take anything apart.
• The cable routing should be pretty obvious. The SAVVY unit has sockets for both the main V1 unit and the (optional) concealed display. I had an installer run the main unit cabling up the driver side A piller and just inside the roofliner. The concealed display was a little trickier. There is enough room under the edge of the instrument hood to tuck the cable in so it isn't visible.

 

very clean looking.... I have the 9500ix and will probably use this product BlendMount Radar Detector Mount Escort Beltronics Valentine One V1 once my car gets in

 

Ah come on do it right!!

Put the display in the rear view mirror. You have a very cool car don't string a bunch of crap all over the interior.

Store V1 Mirrors
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Uh. No thanks.

Do you own an F-Type coupe? The coupe rear view mirror has been crafted to echo the exact shape of the rear window...it's a really nice detail. Why would I replace that with large OEM mirror with a flashing display visible to any cop behind me?
On top of that, I still need to mount the detector unit, since it isn't built into the mirror.

Perhaps you drive while staring at the rear view mirror, but I prefer to look forward, so having the display unit in the middle periphery of my field of vision is a better solution for me.

 

Radar-Mirror.com will install the V1 remote into the Jaguar factory mirror. He did mine with a one day turnaround. A little more out of the way than the dash mount, but much more discrete.

 

Do you guys check out the reviews on that detector? radartest.com has always said awful things about it.

 

Lots of different opinions on different detectors, but I've been using Valentines ever since he split from Cincinnati Microwave and swear by them; so do other reviews. I don't put as much credibility on sites that sell units since Valentine 1's are pretty much sold direct, so Radartest might have a business reason to trash them?

If I hadn't pulled this one out of my BMW I might have tried something else... :-)

 

the V1 is great, it's just a little outdated at this point. the new escort 9500 pretty much sets the bar, but is also 5x the cost and for most people will need professional installation which just further adds to your cost

here's a pretty good review comparing the two.

 

It's a good detector, but it is far from state of the art. They haven't significantly updated the product in years. If you want the best setup today you need both a radar detector and a laser jammer. Radar detectors will not give you any meaningful protection against laser.

For radar the best products today are the Beltronics STIR+ ($1200), the Passport 9500ci ($1500), and the Stinger VIP (front and rear radar only $4500)

For laser the best product is the Antilaser Priority ($1000-1200)

You need to run both one of the radar detectors plus the Antilaser, otherwise you just have a false sense of security. I run the Bel STIR+ and the Antilaser Priority.

For those who really are serious about avoiding tickets, you should also buy an aircraft collision avoidance warning system. I use the Zaon MRX and it has saved me from some big tickets on long distance trips.

 

You guys are pretty serious. With that said, how on earth can you thwart instant on radar coming from the opposite direction in a moving Highway Patrol vehicle? I would gladly spend big bucks to defeat that.

 

the video on the antilaser website, while a little cheesy, shows the end result ... they basically don't get a speed reading from the laser.

i currently don't run anything and luckily haven't had any speeding tickets in the past 7-8 years. i do try to keep it pretty reasonable though, and pay attention to traffic patterns, slowing it down while passing through known speed traps, etc.

 

In my opinion running nothing is a better answer than just running a Valentine One.

When you run nothing, you have no delusions about ticket protection and you drive sensibly and take calculated risks. Running a half baked setup leads people to think they can beat speed enforcement up until the point they encounter a sharp shooter with a lidar gun.

Even with a top notch setup like mine you still need to be very disciplined on where you speed.

 

Well if it is a deserted road then nothing. However most roads have other cars and so there will be short blips from instant on. The problem is most radar detectors won't pick up those blips.

It's all about processing power and sensitivity. A traditional radar detector is too slow to pick up a short blip. However a band segmented radar detector is more targeted and faster in its scans and so can pick up a decent amount of instant on. Check out a test conducted at Radardetectorforum.com on this.

The Stinger VIP product I mentioned above uses a patch antenna (similar to the US Navy) which can scan multiple frequencies at once and this type of product is very good against instant on. However it is also very expensive - $3k for front only, and $4.5k for front and rear.

 

What the hell do you do when it tells you to "climb [or] descend NOW"!

 

Eject! Eject!

 

I think my comment Lots of different opinions on different detectors, has now been well verified :-)

As for Laser, I have it on my Chev Suburban (4 emitters up front to counter the school bus front end) and it mates nicely with my V1 in that car, but so far I can't bring myself to put laser hardware on the front of the Jag. To each his own but I disagree that it's less then nothing. V1's are "chatty", but it does have an off switch and lots of ways to configure the detection.

On the age of the Valentine, I do wish they would come up with a more discrete design, but they upgrade the FW quite regularly. You do have to pay for the upgrades and some are more useful than others, I'm a couple revs down myself since the newest features are more for Europe. You can even get a discount from the older hardware (it's thinner than it used to be).

 

Or you can invest in ALL the gadgetry Alexander Roy incorporated in his never-ending quest for (personal) glory and cross-country speed records (NY to LA in 31 hours 4 minutes) along with other high-jinxs, which I JUST finished reading about in his book called "The Driver".

Good read and might provide some food for thought for some of you.

 

Yes I have everything he has except the CB Radio and the custom nav systems. Except I have the more modern versions.

 

Now that's most impressive!

 

I'll just add that the Waze app has really been a game changer for me, on top of the V1.

Knock on wood, but since getting my first V1 in 1999 I've received 1 speeding ticket in 16 years... And that was in the city when I had the V1 switched off (in the days before SAVVY). So the V1 has had a 100% detect rate for me.

There are probably better products out there but just wanted to share the reason I've stuck with Valentine.