ripperAZ
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- First Name
- Ripper
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- Mar 4, 2022
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- 2022 Ice White Mustang Mach E AWD EX BATT
Well done outstanding information and you have every right to protect yourself from speed traps and radar and laser and planes and all the restI've commented in a few other threads about different Radar Detector Mounts. I previously mounted a less expensive model and posted those. This is a detailed install of the Mag Mount devices which are for specific to Escort models Escort IX, Escort IXc, Max 360c, Redline EX, MAX 3 Redline 360c, and MAX 360 newer (2019 and later).
For the older style which has the metal that slides into the detector you can see how I mounted that here.
Reason We Need A Mount Solution?
The windshield of the MME is specifically designed to block IR which also interferes with radar detection, known as IRR (Infrared Reflection). The only area of the windshield that doesn't have IRR is where the black dots exist around the rear view mirror. For anyone with "FasTrak" or other transponder these need to be placed in the black dot area as well in order to work properly.
The position on the black dots relative to the headliner present a challenge for mounting. This is why people have struggled with mounting options.
Do Radar Detectors Even Work?
In almost all of the threads about radar detectors, someone has to chime in and say "just slow down" or "those things don't even work". Please be mindful that not everyone want's to slow down. If it were I, I would tell you to speed up or move over. We all drive differently, stay out of my way and I'll stay out of yours! I don't care if you want to drive under the limit, just do it behind some 18 wheeler (you can draft that way).
Do they work? Most definitely! I'm in California where I disable X and K bands all together. Only on Federal land do they use those in CA. All other radar in CA is either KA Band or Laser/LIDAR. This eliminates all of the false alarms caused by door openers etc.
What about the cop on the side of the road using LIDAR? Well if he shoots that thing at you, you're toast! These detectors aren't for those situations, however I have noticed that many of those officers will leave their radar on and that's a dead giveaway to detectors. You still have to be aware of your surroundings. Most of the time if there is a cop on the side of the road, he's also on Waze ...
Don't they just turn the radar on and off? Well yeah they do, but when he turned it on for the car, 10 cars ahead of you, you should have been warned.
In summary, radar detectors are a tool, one of many, that make me feel more comfortable driving. Escort will even pay for your speeding ticket if you get one, so the investment doesn't go to waste.
Now on to the Mount:
The first thing that I did was to take the handle to the mag mount and remove it from the suction cup plunger so to remove the plunger from the actual mount. Then unscrew the bolt and remove the magnet, screw, nut and washer from the base.
Once that is complete, take a hack saw and cut the mount along the top of the ridges that lead down to the bolt holes. It should look like this when done:
Once it's cut you'll notice that the radius is grooved. This will cause issues with the VHB tape and result in failure of the bond to the window. In order to fix this we'll fill the radius groves and the half-moon cup with epoxy. I used JB Weld plastic to plastic epoxy, which you can get at Home Depot. Rough up the inside of the cup a little, place wax paper on the edge as a mold and put it in a vise.
NOTE: if you don't have a vise, fill the entire cup with epoxy and then cut after. You'll just be wasting epoxy, but you could reverse those steps in that situation.
Once the epoxy is in place you'll want to use a straight edge to remove the overflow but be careful not to create a void or dip in the epoxy. You want it slightly higher than the plastic.
Now with some 1000 grit wet sandpaper, sand it down until the epoxy is no longer on the plastic and is level to the plastic.
Once that is done clean the underside of the plastic with rubbing alcohol to remove any contaminants.
Now apply some 3M VHB tape to the underside of the mount. It should touch the radius and the support arms as shown below:
Get an knife and form the VHB to the plastic so that we don't have a sticky fly trap in the window. Don't do this on the counter otherwise you might have a significant other that will make you sleep in the car.
Reattach the bolt, nut and washer to the base. Then let's go to the car and attach the base to the detector for placement.
With the VHB tape still having the protective film on it, find a place where this mount can go all the way to the headliner. Position it how you want it. Then clean the window with some rubbing alcohol and let it dry.
Remove the protective film from the tape and place the mount where you previously aligned it to.
Let the VHB tape do it's thing for 24-72 hours. 3M says 72 hours for a full hold whereas 24 hours is supposed to be 90%.
Once the VHB has "bonded" attach your detector and off you go!
Now if you could just determine a nice mount for my Valentine one and get it posted before December when I'm likely to get my car it would be a nice Christmas present
Just sayin. well done mate. Great
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