Video: Are radar detectors affected by tint? BMW M3, VW, and Tesla glass tested!

[Randy at Radenso]

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This week we test if radar detectors are affected by glass and window tint!

Cars featured:
2019 Volkswagen GTI
2019 Volkswagen Golf R
2018 BMW M3 Competition Edition (aftermarket ceramic tint)
2020 Tesla Model 3

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[DocTJ]

YESSSSSS
thank you

FIRST lol
now to watch

Im back: first I was like who the hell is moving the windows! lol but then you mentioned it (separate from the coded comfort access in the BMW)
secondly looking at your Golf R in Lapiz reminds me of the Limestone Grey Golf R I had, one of the best cars i've ever had. Hope you're enjoying. (Had JB1 at the time and an AWE touring catback - too drony)

Interested to see what your future theories/results/discussion is towards the ceramic tint results

Again thank you for testing this and posting the results.

 

[Vortex]

Thanks for the follow-up video! Very cool to see and have it tested directly. Man your antenna / GNURadio setup is insanely useful...

On a related note, if you like, you can use Quicktime to do a screen recording of your MacBook while you shoot. This way you can overlay it as B Roll and not have to worry about reflections or your arm getting in the way. That said, I really liked the camera's view with being able to see both the laptop's screen and the window going up and down simultaneously. So just an idea in case it works better in certain situations, plus it'd be one less camera to set up.

 

[E2S2R]

Thanks for the video!

Sadly, my Model S has the older windshield. It's about $1200 to replace plus I have Prestige PhotoSync on the windshield so that's another like $600.

When I got my V1G2 I tested it in the car on a longer drive and I thought I'd get some leakage on the side windows or the little spot they left for signals to get through, but nothing. I ran up on C/O sitting stationary on a wide open highway with no cars and didn't get an alert until I was about 50m away.

 

[JohnBoy]

Very informative. Kudos!

 

[Brainstorm69]

Thanks, @Jon at Radenso. Another really informative video. Maybe you could test behind various frits in the future? I know it would have been harder to video, but would be interested in the results even without the video. It's really, really beneficial to be able to see the actual signal strength in "high resolution" in these tests vs. using a regular detector and just being able to say, well, it was 4 bars on the detector for each scenario.

 

[Boozehound]

@Jon at Radenso , thanks to you and the team for the presentation. I hope you're all doing well.

 

[Nick Murdock]

Very cool video, I've always wanted to see a test like this. Keep up the great work..!

 

[Jon at Radenso]

YESSSSSS
thank you

FIRST lol
now to watch

Im back: first I was like who the hell is moving the windows! lol but then you mentioned it (separate from the coded comfort access in the BMW)
secondly looking at your Golf R in Lapiz reminds me of the Limestone Grey Golf R I had, one of the best cars i've ever had. Hope you're enjoying. (Had JB1 at the time and an AWE touring catback - too drony)

Interested to see what your future theories/results/discussion is towards the ceramic tint results

Again thank you for testing this and posting the results.

The Golf R is such a ridiculously good car. It does everything well. I had a 2016 while I had my BMW M2 as well and when my 2016 lease was up I looked at a bunch of different replacements but couldn't find one that checked the same boxes as a daily. What I really would have liked was a more upmarket and faster version of the Golf R but without getting bigger - doesn't exist in the USA. So I just got another Golf R on lease and ditched the M2 to save for a GT3.

I just ditched my JB4 for a custom E85 tune on the Golf. With a downpipe, intercooler, inlet pipe, E85, and HPFP it's an animal. Low 11 second car that traps over 120mph. Not bad for a hatchback that flies under the radar - which is really important to me as a daily. I like being able to drive a fast car that people don't know is fast, and that I can drive into sketchy parts of the city without worrying about attracting attention.

 

[Exadata]

Totally unrelated to the thread but, thought those into SDR would be interested.

Researchers Turn AMD Radeon GPU Into a Radio Transmitter to Steal Data

What's the frequency, Kenneth?

www.tomshardware.com

 

[Maz3]

Very much enjoyed the videos as well - thanks!

I'd be interested in the impact to the signal passing through plastic body panels painted with metallic fleck paint vs non-metal paint.

 

[Vested Llama]

May I ask, what hardware you're using for the receiver?

 

[Riptide]

Thank you for the testing.
It does not surprise me that the glass/tint did not reduce the dbs of such as strong close signal.
What you observed in the one test with the ghosting signal, however, does imply that they likely do have an effect on weaker signals that would be more realistic in an actual encounter.

 

[Jon at Radenso]

May I ask, what hardware you're using for the receiver?

Sure!

High performance laptop/desktop with at least a quad core (clock speed does matter)
OSX or Linux
Gnuradio Companion with GR-Fosphor installed

Ettus Research B200 Mini: https://www.ettus.com/all-products/usrp-b200mini/

DS Instruments 30ghz mixer and LO Generator: https://www.dsinstruments.com/store...-hybrid-integrated-mixer-lo-generator-source/

Sage Millimeter WR-28 Antenna plus waveguide: https://www.eravant.com/20-dbi-gain-wr-28-2-92-mm-female-connector-rectangular-horn-antenna

Sage Millimeter SCT-KFKM-U8-R 90 degree adapter: https://www.eravant.com/dc-to-40-ghz-2-92-mm-female-to-2-92-mm-male-coaxial-adapter-right-angle-90

For the cable, we made our own but you could use something like this: https://www.eravant.com/dc-to-40-gh...xible-high-performance-coaxial-cable-assembly

Post automatically merged: Apr 26, 2020

Thank you for the testing.
It does not surprise me that the glass/tint did not reduce the dbs of such as strong close signal.
What you observed in the one test with the ghosting signal, however, does imply that they likely do have an effect on weaker signals that would be more realistic in an actual encounter.

Not quite. Signal loss is signal loss. Remember, the ghosting signal isn't real. The ghosting signal is basically the main signal being a little bit stronger due to less attenuation of the close signal.

 

[aim4squirrels]

Nice video.

@Jon at Radenso,

On the BMW test when you lowered the gain to get rid of the secondary false signal, did you happen to do an up/down window test that wasn't apparent in the video with the gain reduced? Just a curiosity point to know if the window was in some way attenuating the signal... I'm wondering if the side mirror was contributing to the discrepancy in some way.

The only face touch was when you got confused by the results you saw with the BMW window and you broke character for a sec. Your on camera demeanor and comfort has improved greatly!

 

[Riptide]

Not quite. Signal loss is signal loss. Remember, the ghosting signal isn't real. The ghosting signal is basically the main signal being a little bit stronger due to less attenuation of the close signal.

And the fact that it was a little bit stronger with the window down means there was signal loss.

 

[CarefulDriver]

Will we see another Friday video anytime soon?

 

[Jon at Radenso]

Will we see another Friday video anytime soon?

I have an idea for one I might shoot today. We'll see how crazy the day gets.

 

[CarefulDriver]

I have an idea for one I might shoot today. We'll see how crazy the day gets.

Thanks for super fast reply! We will appreciate any content you make.

 

[DC Fluid]

An FYI,
I can notice a difference in reception of locked out stationary sources with my R7 in truck vs motorcycle.
F150 mounted high just under roof behind the Ford shaded emblem above mirror.
Motorcycle as per picture.
1) I think the motorcycle plastic windshield has slightly less attenuation than the glass in the truck.
2) Being so close to the headliner perhaps the steel body of the truck has some effect to signal blocking vs the open air motorcycle environment.
3) Motorcycle mounted it picks up signals locked out in truck hundreds of feet before lock out kicks in. Settings identical.
I can even turn down K from 40% to 30% and still pick up half the lockouts early on bike.
4) Off axis and every direction on bike it picks up signals better, with exception directly from behind as the rider body does block weak signals. Truck has a clear view out back window for detector and works well.

So maybe the custom remote external antenna models gain a few points advantage getting outside the box....