9500i passenger side visor mounting options?

[passport_9500i]

Hey all, I did a forum search and attempted to find another thread to post this to, but no luck. Escort sells a visor clip that is totally worthless. Once the clip is hooked to the 9500i, and the clip and unit is then slid onto the visor, the unit ends up jammed up against the underside of the visor, making the buttons completely inaccessible. This is a TERRIBLE design. I miss the clip my old Whistler came with, which offset the unit down about a half an inch, making the top of the unit fingerable (see the image below). I don't care for the custom RVM mounts being sold and still want to visor mount the unit. At this point I'm thinking of taking both clips to a machine shop (I still have the Whistler clip) and having a machinist cut a hole in the Whistler clip to match the hole in the passport clip (size and location). Would appreciate any other suggestions. Thanks!

Here is the awesome Whistler clip:

And here is the cheesy passport clip:

[Super Dave]

Welcome to the forum! Yes that Whistler clip is way better. If you could get someone to cut it right that would be ideal. Have you thought about just using the suction cups and putting it all the way at the top of the windshield by the visor in the same spot? Would that work? Do you have a tint strip that would hide the suction cups?

[CJR238]

Get 2 Escort visor clips and attach the 2nd one to the bottom of the 1st by self tapping screws or heavy duty double sided tape. Now you will have plenty of "fingerable" space.
You could also use this same method with your old Whistler clip. You may want to get some felt to prevent scratching the top of the RD from the Escort clip.

[passport_9500i]

"Have you thought about just using the suction cups and putting it all the way at the top of the windshield by the visor in the same spot? Would that work? Do you have a tint strip that would hide the suction cups?"

I want to get the unit off of the windshield altogether. I previously found the visor to be a decent place (Whistler), and after rigging a temp mount and testing, surprisingly the 9500i does not lose GPS signal, even with the roof over it! I do not have a strip of darker tinting along the top of the windshield so signal interference is not expected.

Comment: would be nice if they added a gps signal strength bar graph in the future. But if it says "gps connected", well I guess it is.

Suction cups are fine, but my experience has been, with all suction mounted electronics (rd, gps unit, etc.), that severe daytime temperature differences as well as changes in atmospheric pressure, along with a slow flattening of the cups, will inevitably cause the unit to fall and require a constant re-mounting. It may be different with THESE cups, but I guess I'm stuck with the old way that worked for the past 8 years.
===
"Get 2 Escort visor clips and attach the 2nd one to the bottom of the 1st by self tapping screws or heavy duty double sided tape. Now you will have plenty of "fingerable" space.
You could also use this same method with your old Whistler clip. You may want to get some felt to prevent scratching the top of the RD from the Escort clip."

Good idea. I looked at the two of them (clips) and know of a couple of liquid welding products at the hardware store that probably would work great. I might buy a drimmel (sic) tool and machine the hole myself. The tape idea is probably a no-go unless the adhesive can withstand (e.g.) 130 degree internal temperatures (summer) without failure. The felt idea won't be necessary if I can rig the 9500i to the Whistler clip, as the Whistler clip allows the unit to be suspended without external contact with the housing.

[Esoterica]

Escort specifically does not list that clip as an option for the 9500i because they worry having your 9500i mounted so close to the roof of your vehicle will cause GPS reception complaints. I can't say I've noticed any GPS problems when I've visor mounted mine (rubber bands), but do know they specifically don't list that visor clip for the 9500i for that very reason.

I recently ordered one of these myself...

http://www.countryjoycrafts.com/Conn...arDetector.htm

I haven't received it yet, but the people around here who are using it seem to be very happy with it. Of course you're still going to find what I have with mine mounted just under my RVM, the buttons would be better placed on the bottom of the 9500i than on the top of it. At least its not very often that you even need to use the buttons on the 9500i though.

As far as strong tape, tape technology has advanced considerably in the past couple years. 3M has "VHB" tape on the market that has been designed to replace screws, rivets and welds for fastening steel and other materials in industrial and construction applications. Discovery channel or History channel one just had an episode not too long ago about modern adhesives and they were showing this new tape by 3M actually connecting a semi to a trailer and not pulling apart. They used the same tape to attach the outer glass skin on the new Burj Al Arab hotel in Dubai.

[passport_9500i]

Escort specifically does not list that clip as an option for the 9500i because they worry having your 9500i mounted so close to the roof of your vehicle will cause GPS reception complaints. I can't say I've noticed any GPS problems when I've visor mounted mine (rubber bands), but do know they specifically don't list that visor clip for the 9500i for that very reason.

I recently ordered one of these myself...

http://www.countryjoycrafts.com/Conn...arDetector.htm

I haven't received it yet, but the people around here who are using it seem to be very happy with it. Of course you're still going to find what I have with mine mounted just under my RVM, the buttons would be better placed on the bottom of the 9500i than on the top of it. At least its not very often that you even need to use the buttons on the 9500i though.

As far as strong tape, tape technology has advanced considerably in the past couple years. 3M has "VHB" tape on the market that has been designed to replace screws, rivets and welds for fastening steel and other materials in industrial and construction applications. Discovery channel or History channel one just had an episode not too long ago about modern adhesives and they were showing this new tape by 3M actually connecting a semi to a trailer and not pulling apart. They used the same tape to attach the outer glass skin on the new Burj Al Arab hotel in Dubai.

ahhh. Yes, THAT tape. I am sure it would do the job and withstand extreme conditions. As to the rvm mount, I researched that solution extensively. The stem on my 2001 pathfinder rvm comes almost straight down to the top.
I'm not sure the mount is long enough to project the rd down to the underside of the rvm. I may actually throw my hands up and go that route. If I do, then I'll measure and go through the motions before ordering. But my whole reason for wanting to get the thing up out of the way is because underside-visor mounting is way less noticeable and less likely that a leo will see it when approaching the V-hicle on the driver's side. Also makes it less noticeable to thieves it would seem.

Their site says "Plain Escort Mount will NOT fit the 3/4 or 23mm in the following cars: Nissan Pathfinder 2003". The 2001 and 2003 are the same style, which didn't change until like 2006. I think it's the mirror stem configuration I described. I may call them to see what they think AFTER I do some research and throw said hands up. Thanks for the advise

[Esoterica]

I have definitely seen some weird RVM mounts in some vehicles that that option would not work at all with. That 3M VHB tape is crazy expensive too, specially since you'd have to buy an entire roll just for a little 1/2 inch long piece. Having the rest of that roll on hand and itching to use up could potentially be a dangerous temptation to apply it to other uses where such permanency may not be a good idea, particularly if you have a woman around who likes to utilize items found in the kitchen utility drawer to repair things around the house. Tape always seems to be their first favorite choice. Once she learns of the potential of such tape you could find your toilet seat permanently fixed in the down position and items she regularly has to pick up after you permanently mounted where ever you left them laying last.

You can machine some custom metal parts with only a cheap vise, a dremel tool and a small block of aluminum if you had enough motivation. You could probably easily make a custom mount that would work with your RVM neck.

As far as anti theft, I wouldn't count on a high mount being a secure alternative. Security through obscurity only seldom works.

[mswlogo]

I use the stock clip on the passenger side and it works fine.

GPS works better with Choke.

I can access and feel the buttons but I can't see them.

You can't blame escort because they don't recommend the Clip but just offer it for folks that want this option.

That Whistler Clip looks interesting though.

If you're gonna have a machinist do some work you might try to get an offset also done so it's mounted as close to the windshield as you can get it.

[TSi+WRX]

9500i -

In addition to the 3M VHB tape (which so far is an "untried" solution), you can also go the route of MEM-TEK's advice here:

http://www.radardetector.net/viewtop...gh+temperature



Also, even after many, many years of detector usage, I'm still a suction-cup user. ops: I currently re-mount twice per year, during the spring-to-summer weather change and once again at the fall-to-winter change.

I do find that, at least with my local conditions and vehicles, that temperature is key (that, and, of course, a CLEAN windshield mounting surface).....however, certainly YMMV.

One thing I do to my above-eyeline/eyeline accessories is to "safety tether" them to something - typically, since my devices are close to the interior RVM, I use a small Zip-Tie to effect such tethering to this stalk. You may also find this useful/helpful.

[mswlogo]

One of the main reasons I mount on the visor is someone seeing it not for temperature.

That goes for cops and goes for theives seeing it.

I never take it down.