How Many Laser Jammers Do I Need?
October 2, 2019
That’s a great question, one that we answer many times a day here at K40. You see, there isn’t a “one size fits all” solution to laser jamming. This is why K40 offers Laser Defuser™ products a-la-carte so that you and your installing retailer can customize the perfect laser jamming speeding ticket protection for your vehicle.
What kind of car do you drive? Is it a black Corvette or a pearl white Cadillac Escalade? These vehicles require vastly different protection from police laser gun targeting due to color and size. It’s all about reflectivity: a beam of light hitting a flat reflective surface on your vehicle and bouncing back to the officer’s gun at the speed of light, allowing him/her to obtain your speed.
To understand how many laser jammers are right for your vehicle, let’s look at how police laser targets your vehicle in the real world and how laser jammers can buy you precious time to slow down and avoid a speeding ticket.
How do police laser guns work?
- A police laser is a concentrated beam of Infrared (IR) Laser Light that can instantly (speed of light) receive any moving object’s speed.
- Police officers must be STATIONARY/PARKED to shoot laser.
- Laser guns target at very short distances, typically 1000 feet or less.
- Laser guns target ONE specific vehicle at a time.
- At 1000 feet, the laser beam diameter targeting your vehicle is 30 inches or less.
- The closer you get to the officer, the smaller the beam becomes.
- Police are trained to target the front center mass of your vehicle, usually your license plate.
- Police aim for your headlights as secondary targets.
- Police rarely target your vehicle from the rear as you are driving away. It is possible but rare.
How do police laser jammers and K40 Laser Defusers™ work?
- Laser jammers receive the police laser gun beam and transmit back a light pattern that causes the police officer to receive a “no speed” reading or an error for up to 10 seconds.
- Laser jammers must have a clear, unobstructed view of the road ahead.
- Laser jammers should not be recessed or hidden behind anything (except IR acrylic).
- Laser jammers must be level and perpendicular to the road ahead. They should not tilt up, down, in, or out.
- Laser jammers must be kept clear of dirt and debris. They can’t jam what they can’t see.
So now that you know the basics about how police laser guns and laser jammers work, let’s look into how many Laser Defusers™ you might need.
K40 recommends a minimum of two Laser Defusers™, with three or more preferred depending on your vehicle’s size, to combat police laser guns used in North America.
The Porsche GT2RS example below shows that with three Laser Defusers™, this driver is protected from a center mass shot from a police laser gun. Both headlights are covered so that the vehicle is protected when the officer moves the gun to try secondary targets.
In this example, you see how a larger profile vehicle is a bigger, more reflective target. The officer has many options to obtain a speed reading. For this reason, MORE Laser Defusers™ are needed for complete protection.
The GMC Denali Hennessey below shows four Laser Defusers™. This driver is protected from a police laser gun from top to bottom and on both grille sides. When the officer moves the radar gun to try secondary targets to obtain the vehicle’s speed, this GMC Denali Hennessey is protected.
If you opt to protect the rear of the vehicle, K40 would recommend a minimum of one laser Defuser to cover the rear license plate frame. If you were driving away from the officer shooting police laser, this would be his/her best target.
As always, if you have any questions, K40 has a radar detector and laser jammer expert available 24/7 at 800-323-5608.
