Cost: $110 + Valentine One Construction Date: July, 2002 I chose to
mount the concealed display in the clock position to truly make
it “concealed.” In addition, the concealed display is ideally
placed to observe while driving. I have never been fond of the
idea of sticking a goofy looking plastic block right in front of
my speedometer/tachometer (which is what many people do with
their remote viewing unit).
I went
to my local automotive salvage yard and picked up another
Integra clock so I did not need to destroy mine. The clock does
not even need to work since this design only utilizes the clock
shell. I then gutted the clock itself and affixed the concealed
display.
The remote audio adapter allows you to control the volume, mode
setting, and the power without physically moving to the back of
the vehicle (where the brain of the system is located). The
audio adapter was intended for motorcyclists since it has a
headphone jack. I chose this location because only the driver
knows it exists. The remote audio adapter also allows you to
control the V1 without taking your eyes off the road or changing
your driving position.
For those of you who are not familiar with V1’s - the entire
system is wired/powered via phone cord. I give the designers at
Valentine 1 props for this design because it makes custom wiring
jobs very easy and inexpensive.
Total costs for this project is about $110 if you already have a
V1. The concealed display is $39.00 and the remote audio is
$49.00. Expect to pay about $10 to $15 for a used Integra clock
from a salvage yard.
I doubt
too many people would guess what’s under the hat.
There was only one casualty during this install. The Type R hat
needed some holes for laser reception. You don’t need to cut
holes for radar but it does help improve reception. Benefits
No need to remove the detector every time you park in public
Reduced chance of theft
No front windshield obstruction
No reaching to adjust volume, modes, on/off settings
Improved radar/laser reception
Police will never know you have a radar/laser detector
Disadvantage
No clock
The advantages of having this system far out weighs the lack of
a clock. I drove around town for about an hour already and the
V1 still continues to work excellent. And the display in the
clock came out better than I could have anticipated. As you guys
can see, the unit fits PERFECT with all the arrows and display
features visible. This project was a blast to work on from going
to the auto salvage yard to wandering the hardware store. I hope
to do more of this kind of thing in the future.
