How to Hardwire Your Radar Detector

Would you like to have your radar detector power on with the turn of a key???

Have you ever thought about how convenient it would be if your radar detector automatically came on when you started your vehicle, but thought it was too complicated to do yourself?

Here in this 8 minute video, I share the best & easiest method for direct wiring your radar detector to you vehicle’s power source. The process, although may seem rather difficult, is actually very simple. Believe it or not, the entire process takes approximately 10 minutes to accomplish.

How to Hardwire Your Radar Detector, the Easy Way

#1 This is one of the most important steps, consult your vehicle’s owner’s manual.

Open your vehicle’s owner’s manual to the section about your fuses.  All vehicles are different & the type of fuses vary greatly. Therefore it’s very important that you make sure you’re buying the correct stuff when you visit your local auto parts store.

#2 While you are looking at your vehicle’s owner’s manual, be sure to look over the section regarding your vehicle’s accessories, specifically which one’s power on & off with the turn of your key.

This is important, because you want your radar detector to power on & off with the vehicle’s ignition. The reason is so, your radar detector isn’t left powered on when your vehicle is off, otherwise the next time you go to start your vehicle you may find that the radar detector has drained your battery.

#3 Pick up an “Add-a-Circuit” from your local auto parts store.

Please keep in mind that just as is the case with fuses the “Add-a-Circut” comes in different sizes too. You want to ensure you get the correct size for your particular vehicle.

The “Add-a-Circut” has two ports on it. One port has a wire coming out of it, the other port has slots for the fuses. You want to take the fuse you removed from you vehicle’s fuse box & insert it into port 1 on the “Add-a-Circut”. You then want to put a 2^nd fuse that matches the first fuse into port 2. Please remember, that you must use a fuse that is either rated the same or higher as the fuse you are putting in port 1. Never use a fuse that is rated less.

It is recommended that you keep the fuse that comes with your radar detector, as these are typically only 2.5 amps. Instead use a higher rated fuse, such as a 10 amp, but again make sure you do not use a lower rated fuse, then the one you placed in port 1.

#4 Connecting the wiring harness to the “Add-a-Circuit”.

There are 2 wires coming out of the wiring harness. The first wire is red, this is the “positive” wire.  The other is black & is the “ground” wire.

Take the red “positive” wire & insert it into the wire connector on the “Add-a-Circuit”.  Then using a crimping tool, crimp the connector on the “Add-a-Circuit” to secure the red “positive” wire into place. The black “ground” wire should not be connected to anything at this point.

#5 Connecting the “Add-a-Circuit” to your vehicles power source.

Take the “Add-a-Circuit” & plug the fuse like connector into the fuse box where you removed the fuse earlier.

Next take the black “ground” wire & attach it to a metal screw or bolt connected to your vehicle’s metal frame.

Now you have completed the power part of the installation!

#6 Now I am going to share, how to connect the Escort Live! direct wire interface. If you don’t have Escort Live! then you can move onto the next step #7.

The interface has two ports on it. Port 1 is where the short wire power connection goes.  Port 2 is where the long wire connection leads to your radar detector.

**Tip**: If you are using Escort Live! direct wire, use industrial velcro instead of the included double sided tape. This will make life much easier later on, if you should need to remove the Escort Live! interface.

#7 Now you need to run the long wire to your radar detector.

Take the wire & install it into the molding of your door frame. The wire should easily tuck into the molding along the door frame of your vehicle.

Next continue tucking the wire into the door frame molding, continuing on into the head liner of your vehicle. Keep doing this until you reach your rear view mirror, this is where you want the end connecting to your radar detector to come out at.

Connect the wire to the port on your radar detector & place your radar detector into the mount you have chosen.

At this stage you are finished, well done! However, if you do have the Escort Live! direct wire interface you have just a few more small things to do.

#8 Take the wire leading from the fuse box & plug it into the port marked for the power on the Escort Live! direct wire module. Take the other wire, that leads to your radar detector, connect it to the 2^nd port on the Escort Live! direct module. Keep in mind the other end of the long wire is already connected to you’re radar detector.

Now you just need to place the Escort Live! direct module onto where you installed the industrial velcro earlier.

That’s all there is to it! This installation with or without the Escort Live! direct wire module, should literally take approximately 10 minutes. However, you want to be sure & do this right, so take your time & don’t rush.

Shopping List

• “Add-A-Circuit”
• Fuses (make sure the fuse at least matches the amp rating of the first one)
• Crimping Tool (unless you already have one)
• Industrial Velcro (only needed if using the Escort Live! direct wire interface.)

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me through the email address provided in the video.

Also if you found this video helpful, please share it via Facebook, Twitter, Google+, email etc.

Thank you for watching & as always please drive safe & drive smart.