12/5/2011

Also see:

• Escort 8500CI ZR4 laser jammer review

Cockpit mounted control/display module of the Escort 8500CI custom-installed radar detector (shown here twice actual size). The thumb-size module is all that's to be seen inside the vehicle, protecting from theft—and official scrutiny.

• Escort 8500CI (Qi45) vs. K40 Calibre comparison test

Not everyone wants to advertise the presence of a radar detector. Aside from being irresistible to thieves, a detector dangling from the windshield invites disapproval from gents wearing guns and badges. In recent years there's another incentive to consider an alternative: some cars won't allow a radar detector to operate correctly. Several manufacturers' windshield solar tint contains a metal film that's invisible to the eye but which renders a detector nearly useless.

Others, like Jaguar, Range Rover and Land Rover, for instance, offer heated windshields with a fine wire mesh laminated into the glass. In a recent test we made the mistake of using a 2011 Jaguar XJ Supercharged for the target car and were baffled when none of the 11 models could detect most of our radars from more than a few hundred feet away, rather less than the six miles of range (and over 14 miles in the case of one model, a world record) they'd demonstrated in a previous test. Only when we closely scrutinized the windshield did we note the nearly invisible heating element wire mesh. But it's a safe bet that an XJ driver could've driven a lifetime without noting the detector's supernaturally quiet operation.

Escort Passport 8500CI components (from left): Cockpit-mounted control/display module, interface box and grille-mounted radar antenna.

The traditional solution has been the custom-installed remote radar detector whose components are built-in to the vehicle and not behind the windshield. Trouble is, these remotes are pricey. (The BEL STiR Plus, in our opinion absolutely the best remote model, costs $1,199 or $1,599, depending upon the version. The base version of the 8500CI lacks the BEL STiR Plus' GPS or Escort ZR4 laser-jamming system, but their omission helps lower its price to a more wallet-friendly $549. (Adding GPS bumps the price to $799.95; adding dual front laser shifters adds another $259. for a total of $1059)

The Escort Qi45 broke new ground as the first low-cost, easily-installed remote radar detector. Now its successor, the Escort Passport 8500CI, adds to that legacy. The 8500CI radar antenna mounts in the grille area, linked to an interface box under the dash. A thumb-size control/display can be placed anywhere it's convenient to see and operate. More important, we installed one in less than one hour, about 19 fewer hours than it took, for instance, to install an Escort Passport 9500ci in a 2005 Porsche Turbo recently.

Composite Ratings Maximum Rating Features Ease of Use   Radar-warning range   False-alarm resistance Overall Value

The display offers a choice of pilot displays including full-word (Highway), single-letter (e.g., H for highway); a single letter with a left-to-right red scanning dot, or a digital readout of vehicle voltage. The last option gives a real-time view of the electrical system voltage, a useful tool in spotting impending alternator or battery failure.

An amplified auxiliary speaker installs under the dash and broadcasts audible alerts at 108 decibels, loud enough to be heard in a top-down convertible at freeway speeds. This audio can be either tones or voice alerts, a user option. The latter is a useful tool to quickly become familiar with the different tones for each radar band and laser; some prefer to use voice alerts full-time and skip the learning curve entirely.

The 8500CI is available with a special version of the Escort ZR4 laser-jamming system whose jammer modules are linked to the grille-mounted radar antenna. Other systems, including those from Escort and BEL, route these wires through the firewall instead. Keeping the connections on the forward side of the firewall means not having to drill additional holes and snake the wires through the maze of underdash wiring, a major time-saving feature.

How does the Escort Passport 8500CI—like the Escort 9500ci, Escort 9500ix, BEL (Beltronics) GX65 and BEL (Beltronics) STiR remote—eliminate false alarms? Watch the video and learn more about the huge advantage afforded by GPS technology.

Unlike the Qi45, the Escort 8500CI Plus (but not the base 8500CI model) comes with integral GPS. In this application it won't help the perpetually-lost driver—but it'll certainly keep him protected against those pernicious red light and speed cameras that have already taken a foothold in 24 states.

An equally vital benefit is a near-total freedom from false alarms. Unlike a conventional radar detector that will dutifully alert to any stationary source of false alarms every time you drive past it, the Escort Passport 8500CI, like other GPS-enabled BEL and Escort detectors, identifies and progressively locks-out these signals. After it learns your driving environment, the detector refuses to alert to any fixed, non-police radar signal, making it almost supernaturally quiet. We've extensively tested this attribute and found it to be every bit as effective as promised.

For example, in a years-long field test, the Escort/BEL Defender camera database scored an impressive 95 percent accuracy rate in spotting cameras, significantly better than second-place finisher Cobra, which achieved only 66 percent accuracy.

In another test, to compare a conventional high-performance detector with the GPS-enabled Escort 9500ix, we recorded the number of urban false alarms. The difference between them was astounding. We noticed an even more dramatic disparity in a cross-country freeway test where the conventional-tech model, a Valentine One or V1 blurted 111 false alarms. In comparison, the Escort 9500ix uttered only 6 false alarms. For those who don't like being pestered by false alarms, the incorporation of GPS into detectors by Escort is a game-changing event.

The Escort 8500CI's performance mirrors that of the Escort 8500 X50 and BEL RX65, two dash-mount models that perennially rank as class leaders in their market segments. With its relatively modest price, stellar performance and stealthy, built-in design, the Escort 8500CI earns a best-buy recommendation.

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