its not just the paint either, on a Z28 you could sitll get a reading with out a problem because of the headlights, but with a firebird with lights down there is nothing to reflect.

 

I don't normally reply to law enforcement related issues but since I am a LEO, I just thought I'd interject.

I've operated Lidar (laser) for years now and in all my experience, NEVER has the color of the car mattered. I've busted just as many black cars as I have yellow cars....the laser doesn't discriminate.

Also, although many publications say that laser is aimed at a license plate, I find that to be false also...or at least not 100% realistic. As long as I get a good tone from anywhere on the front of you vehicle, I'll get a reading (ie windshield, grill, whatever).

Now this much I have found to be true....the more aerodynamic the car, the harder it is to get a reading because the Lidar isn't able to reflect as easily.

But honestly, any LEO that says he can pinpoint your license plate with a Lidar/laser device is a far better shot that I am.....and I've got pretty steady hands. The reason I say that is because I often get accurate speed readings from cars up to 800 feet away, sometimes more and sometimes less. At that distance, it very difficult to pinpoint that little license plate. I shoot for the front of the car, or that back depending on the set-up.

Just my .02 worth.

 

you got a lot of nerve coming into a post like this and being like "oh when I laser people".

 

umm.....? he just proved wrong a few myths about laser. I dont see how he did anything wrong.

 

no he didnt proove anything, he stated he didnt notice a difference. I just picked up 5 more mags all stating low profile dark colored cars do a lot better vs radar.

 

color doesn't make any sense. it's just a damn wave travelling through the air. Color doesn't matter. The only way it would matter is that it makes it harder to aim because you can't quite tell where the car starts/ends at night as well...

 

its not a "wave" its a 32" wide beam of light.

 

light = waves

 

The beam of light gets Wider the farther away the beam is sent. That said, 32 inches at 200 feet will be alot wider at 500.

 

I know this is a late snip but according to Valentine 1 the best place to Mount the detector is up high because a longer sight line to the horizon helps and for lasar moving away from the hood helps and its sun reflections helps alot http://www.valentine1.com/moreinfo/p...ng_pg17-18.pdf

 

Acording to extensive testing done by speedlabs, the lower the better..So I guess go which ever way you perfer.

 

Basically when it comes down to it mount it high. You have a slight gain in radar range but give up the laser. That being said if you have a all in one system with no external laser readers then even if you pick up the laser its too late. Mount it up high and make sure its level. All the experts say that you can loose alot of range by pointing it in the gound or in the sky.

 

http://valentine1.com/laserhowto/

Here is a better page for describing how laser hits you and why you should mount it high.

I've tried low by the wipers, in the middle (below the rearview mirror) as well as up high. I've found that the higher the better. And it also gives you a smidgion of better radar performance up there. (I tried pulling over to the side of the road with a constant radar source up ahead...Mounted it all over the windshield while checking signal strength. Higher was better)

 

just wanted to point out that all color is is an absorbtion of light to certain degrees. Light waves hit a colored surface and reflect only certain frequencies of these are reflected back. Black is dark due to the fact that very little of the light is reflected back to your eye. Logically the same would happen with a laser, although I dont know much about them it makes enough sense to me to warrent some merrit.

Just my .02

Jared

 

Well said... in all theory, color of the car actually could inhibit/catalyze the frequencies of light sent back to the source. Whether or not this could have any effect on your personal accounts is yet to be determined... but in theory, it quite possibly could.