See and be seen with Garmin Varia™ RTL515 rearview radar with tail light. It pairs with your Edge™ bike computer, other Garmin device or compatible smartphone to alert you of vehicles approaching from behind up to 153 yards (140 meters) away.
When used with your compatible smartphone, the Varia™ app helps increase your awareness with vibration alerts and more. With daylight visibility up to 1 mile, motorists will be able to see you from a distance. The radar's compact vertical design allows for device mounting on most road-use bicycles. And peloton mode provides a low-intensity flash that is kind to other riders' eyes when riding in a group.
B-Stock - This product has one or more B-Stock units available. These units can be purchased at a discount (see option select). B-Stock units were returned from other customers and may have missing or damaged packaging materials. These units are otherwise as new. The full manufacturer warranty applies. Click Here for more information.
CALIFORNIA PROPOSITION 65 WARNING: This product can expose you to chemicals including (Cadmium, Phthalates, Bisphenol, Nickel (Metallic), di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate "DEHP"), which are known to the State of California to cause cancer and/or cause birth defects or other reproductive harm. For more information, visit www.P65Warnings.ca.gov.
Light Type: Rechargeable | |
Mfg PartNum: 010-02376-00 | |
Max. Runtime: 16 hours (day flash) / 6 hours (solid mode) | |
Mfg Warranty: 12 Mo. Parts & Labor | |
Warranty URL: https://www.garmin.com/en-US/legal/consumer-limited-warranty/ | |
Safety on the road has always been a concern. As a result I often am twisting my neck to see if there are cars behind. This is especially true when I ride 2 abreast with a friend (I choose to change to single file if I know a car is behind). Yes I have tried every mirror option available (helmet, bike handlebars, etc...) none of them consistently gave me the confidence that I knew what was behind me.
But the Vario does what it says. An audible as well as visual warning, well before I can hear a car coming. It was 100% accurate-I was quite impressed. What happens when 1 car passes you? Well, the noise of the 1st car makes it impossible to be certain if there is another car or now, so you have to turn your neck, which invariably means you sway a bit (even if just a little) in your lane. The Vario addresses this too. The red warning lights stay on if there is a 2nd or 3rd car until all cars have passed-genius.
I am a Wahoo user and it paired just fine with my Elemnt Bolt, full functionality.
Why almost perfect? One of my concerns is the poor driver who may drift out of their lane and hit me (much more of a problem with Cell Phones). My preference would be to have a camera that would show me that a car was getting dangerously close so I could head to the ditch and have some control of the outcome. Radar can't do that. So it is not all I could want but it is a massive improvement.
Had I realized how well it works I would have bought it sooner. Game changer!
Up to 5 cars displayed each look like a lady bug crawling up the side of display . Typically picks a car up at 6 seconds back and triggers a beep on rural roads . Battery life is 2 ea 50 mile rides but should be longer . Weight and aero drag are minimal .
This is my second Varia, bought for a bike I have in a different location. I've been using the first one for about three years now, and it is terrific. The new one is the same. The light itself is very bright, and the radar works well close to 100% of the time, even most of the time when riding in a paceline, but that is the occasional time when it won't pick up an approaching car because of interference from the back of the pack. Its range is excellent, picking up an approaching vehicle from about 1/4 mile back. Highly recommend.
I'm not familiar with other, similar units ' although there are a few. I purchased this because of my experience with other Garmin products' and it was on sale! So far, I've not been disappointed as it does everything I'd hoped for. One thing I've noticed is that if using the screen on your phone, the traffic icons are spot on' as opposed to shutting the screen off and relying on the audio alert only: in this case, there could be two cars when you're expecting only one. That said, I still use my mirror to be sure. I also like the fact that you're given plenty of time before traffic comes near you' just in case you need to do some emergency maneuvering. If you're curious about radars, definitely check this one out!
BTW: I use an IPhone 12 with the Garmin Varia app. I understand it will also work with Ride with GPS, but I haven't tried that as yet.
Won't ride the road without one of these. Bought a second one for my wife's bike. I have had mine for years, read the reviews on the competition that has come out since then, but saw no reason to try something else. Great investment in your safety and situational awareness.
This is one of those, 'didn't know how much I needed this,' purchases. The radar picks up cars further back than your ears can hear. I feel much more aware of what's behind me at all times. Can't imagine riding without it.
It works well with my Wahoo Bolt 2, though it doesn't remember my preferred flash settings (takes 15 seconds to configure pre-ride).
Battery life is fine. I can get several rides out of one charge if I'm only doing flash alerts. If I'm also using it as a persistent rear light it needs to be charged by the end of the ride.
Included seat post mount uses silicon bands to secure. Better clamp-based options out there.
Product itself is good. Word to the wise. Get a tether to attach to the device, because if you ride off road, the Garmin mount is not reliable. I've lost two of these lights out in the woods. The tether costs about $10 on Amazon.
When I saw the price drop, I decided to finally take the plunge and buy this. I have mine paired with my Edge 1040 and I am honestly amazed at how well this works. You can easily see when cars are behind you, how many there are, and also get a sense of how close they are. As soon as it senses a car, you get a beep and a red gradient overlay appears on the sides of my Edge, along with dots on the right side showing how many cars, relative spacing between them, and how close they are to you. If the car turns off before it passes you, the red gradient overlay turns green and then fades away. It's a very simple, intuitive and effective interface, that really doesn't take anything away from your normal display. I really regret not buying this a couple of years ago! Highly recommended.
Was on the fence about shelling out for this - I considered myself a very aware cyclist. The RTL515 proved me wrong, big time. My senses cannot beat a radar system this accurate. Under most circumstances, we cannot hear a car coming up behind us if near one or more cars already. Both engine, bike, and road noise make it nearly impossible. With more electric cars on the road now - it's even more difficult to detect. This radar will pick up an approaching car/motorcycle/cyclist/etc just under 500 feet away. 2-3 seconds before you hear it, no matter how good your hearing is - the radar will alert you beforehand. Alerts can be setup on the head unit via tone and / or on-screen. Additionally, you can be alerted via the Varia phone app through vibration or tone in the jersey pocket. Which makes this a standalone product that doesn't require any bike computer. I use it with the 840 - it forms an ANT+ network with the UT800 front light - allowing for full control from the computer. Although this is not new tech by any means - Garmin's put a lot of work into it. There frankly is no price on the peace of mind these products provide.
I've been on the fence about getting these, but decided to bite the bullet knowing they were almost likely to get more expensive. And I really should have gotten them sooner! Integration with the head unit is seamless (Edge 540), display is clear and intuitive without overloading me with information. Not many false positives (reading cars that weren't there) and no false negatives (missing cars that were). Bonus: It does a great job of picking up smaller vehicles (other bikes, scooters) that come up quickly. Light is really bright and I have no doubt it is really easy to spot.
The only thing I wouldn't use this for is my commute--it would just be going off non-stop while I ride through the city and I'm not sure the warning would outweigh the noise.
If you have a saddle bag that potentially obstructs the radar function, I'd suggest getting a mount that affixes itself to your saddle bag and maybe a protective case and lanyard to attach to the seat rails for extra peace of mind. Surprised Garmin doesn't at least provide the saddle bag mount as standard.
I got this when I saw a sale pop up. I needed a new blinky for my bikes and was toying with a cheapo radar model, but this was reasonable with the sale.
So as a light, it's great. Very bright, has different modes like they all do, etc. All of the boxes are ticked there.
The radar component is a gamechanger. You don't realize how much goes on behind you, and this thing lets you know how many cars are coming, which is a great feature. Knowing one is pretty good, but however it figures out that there are 3 or 4 coming, awesome data to have.
One thing you probably never thought of is using it in a time trial race. If you want to hug the yellow line and corner faster, you can drift over and take better lines because you know the road is clear (take a quick peak just to be sure).
The one hiccup I've found is if a car is going the same speed as you. The car seemingly turns off, but it didn't, it's just not registering with the radar. You'll either get no dot back, or it'll keep coming and going and drive you nuts. So, like previous paragraph, you still have to check, you can't just rely on the beeps and dots.
Battery life seems fine, never had an issue, I do wish it had a USB-C rather than the silly Micro-USB plug. I've also had it hit with spray from my back tire in many rain storms and it is still going strong.
Easy to pair with your head unit too. No issues.
If you have more than one bike, find some mounts so you can share it around, I tried going without it, and it just feels wrong.
I've been road riding with one of these for close to 20,000 miles and it has been nearly flawless. I ride a mix of city streets, county highways, and desert single lane roads. The radar gives me a much better sense of surrounding traffic than would a combination of hearing and head-turning. False-positives are rare and seem to happen when turning right at intersections. Missed cars are extremely rare, but the RTL515 is still not a substitute for looking over your shoulder when changing lanes or passing parked vehicles.
I'm using the RTL515 with a Garmin 530 Edge unit. The dot and colored band on the side of the screen works well and is easy to see in your periphery vision or a quick glance down. It's not like you're reading a number or deciphering data to see that a car is gaining on you. It's simple and safe.
My RTL515 is a few years old, but as far as I can tell it still uses a USB Micro cable. This is literally my only gripe. USB-C is easier to use and should last longer.
After observing my friend using his Varia radar light, I had him hook my Garmin Edge to his light and got to experience first hand as long as I stayed close to him. My wife asked what I wanted for Christmas and the deal was done. Installed easily, but then had to learn a few things as the pictograph directions are sketchy. Luckily my buddy knows all about it. I especially enjoy that if one is not paying close attention it will chime and let you know another bike is coming up faster than you are.
After observing my friend using his Varia radar light, I had him hook my Garmin Edge to his light and got to experience first hand as long as I stayed close to him. My wife asked what I wanted for Christmas and the deal was done. Installed easily but then had to learn a few things as the pictograph directions are sketchy. Lucky my buddy knows all about it. I especially enjoy that if one is not paying close attention it will chime and let you know another bike is coming up faster than you are.
I use this on nearly every ride, unless I'm purely on singletrack, and it's been so useful for detecting traffic that I can't imagine living without it. When my first one died after years of use, I bought another one the same day. It's especially helpful on gravel roads when it's hard to hear rear approaching drivers, and it's also invaluable when riding and chatting side by side, since it saves us from having to constantly look over our shoulders. Sometimes I think that drivers should buy these for all cyclists because we probably get over so much quicker, when appropriate.
The Garmin Varia RTL515 has improved my overall feeling of safety on the road ever since I turned it on. It has a very bright light that is easily seen by motorists. The radar is great at picking up traffic coming up from behind and it will notify you on your had unit and start blinking to make motorists aware of your position. I would 100% buy this product again based on how helpful it is in ensuring safety.
The rear facing radar warns you about approaching vehicle's at a great distance. It shows dots representing approaching vehicles and has a yellow bar meaning the vehicle's are approaching at a more normal rate of speed and a red bar warnings vehicles are approaching at a rapid rate of speed. This product by no means replaces taking a look behind you before making any evasive maneuvers, but it is an added piece of mind that I greatly appreciate!
