Trunned, radar cars are able to flash you when you are speeding, without you realizing it. Fortunately, there are a few tips to spot them for sure.
Most motorists fear automatic radars scattered along the roads and highways. And rightly: these devices are capable of detecting speeding and taking photos of the vehicles in an offense day and night, which allows to automatically draw up and send the PVs to their drivers. Difficult to escape them!
But automatic radars are not the only ones to watch for drivers. Indeed, since 2018, many radar cars have been driven by private providers mandated by the state to carry out speed checks. There are around 400 in circulation currently. The latest regions concerned are Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Occitanie, where a call for tenders was launched to entrust the driving of these vehicles to private companies.
These are formidable control tools. Equipped with four cameras (two at the front, two at the rear) and a radar antenna fixed at the registration plate, they can detect speeding in a very discreet way, so that the driver is sometimes absolutely not aware that he was flashed. The system, connected to the 4G or 5G network, then instantly transmits offenses to the National Agency for Automated Offenses (ANTAI).
Radar cars are particularly discreet. However, they have some distinctive signs that allow an informed eye to spot them. Nine models are currently listed, namely the Ford Mondéo, the Citroën Berlingo, the Peugeot 508 and 308, the Volkswagen Passat 7 and 8, the Seat Leon, the Skoda Octavia and the Volkswagen Golf.
Private radar cars are registered as ordinary cars, and even if it is difficult to know them all by heart, several websites identify their license plates, supporting photos. It is also possible to recognize them thanks to their front plate, which is printed on a reflective plastic support, with a particular font. This plate is mounted on a retractable support, which allows access to the infrared radar hidden behind.
Through the windshield, several cameras can also be seen, including an imposing module located in the middle of the dashboard. Impossible to miss it! Likewise, it is possible to see, at the back of the vehicles, a large black square, which houses two small cameras. This is the infrared device used to flash. At night, its LED lights are also visible.
All these signs certainly allow to locate radar cars. 126 new vehicles will be deployed by 2025 in the south of France, thus completing the complete coverage of the territory by these mobile radars. But it is better to deploy your attention to respect speed limitations rather than monitoring the surroundings in search of a spy vehicle!