Most of us deal with the same handful of headaches on our daily commute, from aggressive drivers and traffic congestion to the occasional speeding ticket. Here in Detroit, where I live, there are even some unique road and infrastructure designs that can make rush hour driving a challenge.

Over the past few years, I’ve picked up three pieces of tech that address some of these issues, while also having the potential to save me money. None of them changed my vehicle per se, but they changed how I drive it.

Here’s a look at the radar detector, dash camera, and usage-based insurance program that have made the biggest difference in my daily commute, along with why each one might be worth adding to yours.

Radar detectors help me avoid speed traps

My Escort and Uniden detectors catch police cruisers hiding in traffic

The average speeding ticket fine in the United States is around $150, but the true cost often shows up later. According to Insurify, drivers with a speeding ticket on their record pay an average of $127 a month for liability insurance, compared to $98 a month for drivers with a clean record.

A high-quality radar detector can prevent this, provided you know how to use it where you live.

For example, law enforcement officers in the Detroit metro often drive Ford Explorers and Chevy Tahoes with low-profile roof lights. Given how common Explorers and Tahoes are, they blend into heavy traffic and can be difficult to spot visually from any meaningful distance. And then there is the Michigan Left.

The best way to describe a Michigan Left (i.e., the indirect left turn) is that in order to actually turn left, you need to turn right first. At certain marked intersections, you cannot make a direct left turn. Instead, you would turn right and proceed to the furthest left lane, which forks off into a dedicated U-turn lane. At that point, you would make the U-turn and proceed back the way you came and through the intersection, essentially completing an extended right turn.

While the Michigan Left infrastructure design has been shown to reduce congestion and crash rates, law enforcement can use it to their advantage to pull over unsuspecting speeders.

Telegraph Road here in the Detroit metro is a good example. You can be in the left lane, cruising past traffic, but coming the opposite way, also in the far left lane, is a law enforcement officer. They can clock you, quickly move over into their dedicated U-turn lane, spin around, hit their lights, and pull you over.

With traffic on Telegraph Road moving fast but still nearly bumper-to-bumper, officers driving a nondescript Ford Explorer or Chevy Tahoe are difficult to see until they are right behind you. However, with a radar detector, you will be alerted to them coming the other direction well in advance.

My go-to radar detectors are the Escort MAX 360 MKII or the Uniden R8. The dual-antenna design of both radar detectors extends the range and provides directional alert arrows on the display, so I know where the radar source is coming from. Both units have solid material construction, including the corresponding power cables and windshield mounts.

Radar Band Detection

X, K, Ka

Companion App

Drive Smarter

The Escort MAX 360c MKII is the follow-up to the standard MAX 360c radar detector. This enhanced version features longer-range detection with its updated dual-antenna platform and increased false alert filtering through Blackfin DSP integration.

My dashcam will protect me if an accident happens

G-sensor and parking mode save footage before it’s gone

While I don’t have as many dash cams as I do radar detectors, the VIOFO A119 MINI 2 unit I got back in 2023 has served me well. Admittedly, I don’t use all its features every day, like the voice-activated commands and smartphone app, but the built-in G-sensor and emergency recording features are what I like most.

The G-sensor works by detecting sudden changes in speed, such as the jolt of a collision or hard braking while trying to avoid an accident. When it senses one of those events, the camera automatically locks the footage from that clip so it can’t be overwritten by loop recording. While there are many benefits to having a dash camera, proving you were not at fault in an accident is at the top of the list.

My VIOFO unit also has a feature called “buffered parking mode with auto event detection,” which means it can record footage before and after a “triggering event.” For example, if someone walks past my vehicle or bumps into it, the camera will automatically start recording, saving footage from 15 seconds before and 30 seconds after the event. I didn’t have the kit originally when I got the A119 MINI 2, but I bought it after the fact.

At the same time, I also ordered the optional circular polarizing lens that VIOFO sells. The filter reduces reflections and glare from windshield glass, road surfaces, and infrastructure. The footage above, shot during the elevated air quality alerts in Detroit, has the little polarizing lens attached to the camera.

Usage-based insurance makes me a better driver

Don’t know if I will keep it, but it seems promising

Credit: Carl Anthony | How-To Geek

Usage-based auto insurance generally falls into two categories: pay-per-mile or safe driver. The program through my insurance provider is the latter, for which I can receive a discount if I score high in these specific areas:

• Zero phone distractions.
• Following and obeying the speed limit.
• Steady braking, acceleration, and turning.

Usage-based insurance is a new addition to my everyday commute, so I’m curious to see if my rate will eventually drop (I did receive a $53.00 discount on my six-month premium just for enrolling, however). I expect that, if all goes as planned, I’ll save about 10% per month on my premium. I will take those savings and then apply them to my vehicle loan in time.

My insurance provider mailed me a small beacon to affix to the upper portion of my front windshield, near my rearview mirror. Once I did that, I downloaded the companion app, entered my vehicle info, and paired it with the beacon.

My 14-day scorecard currently consists of 12 trips and 272 miles. According to the app, I need improvement in the phone distraction category, but I’m also wondering if that’s a false positive that will count against me in time. On four of those 12 trips, I needed to use Google Maps. Even though my phone was resting in the center console, I think the tracking app from my insurance provider is seeing that my phone screen is on and docking me.

I’m undecided about whether to keep the usage-based insurance, as I want to see what potential discounts may materialize in the future. If nothing else, for now, it keeps me honest about watching my speed and driving more defensively.

What using all three has taught me

If you spend a lot of time behind the wheel in a big city, where traffic, weather, and law enforcement patterns keep shifting, one or more of these tools might be worth a look.

For me, the radar detector keeps me honest about my speed on roads where officers are present. The dash camera gives me evidence if something goes wrong, evidence I would not otherwise have. And the usage-based insurance program, while still new to me, will likely have a financial incentive.

Again, none of these three tools replace being a sober and alert driver, but each gave me a layer of awareness or protection I didn’t have before.