The vast majority of the 150 Miles per Week that I ride are on roads. The Varia Radar in conjunction with my Edge 1030 Plus make those rides far safer. The unit starts to flash as soon as it "sees" an approaching vehicle. I was told by a UPS driver that he could see the flash as far back as 3/4 of a mile in bright sunlight. That anyone who claimed they didn't see it was either blind or lying. Simultaneous with the intensified flash a display on the computer screen tracks the approaching vehicle. I have found it is quite easy to estimate the relative speed of the vehicle. As many as 6 individual cars have shown simultaneously in the display. The display is tinted red until the last vehicle has passed, then it turns green indicating the road is clear. No car has ever passed me and not shown on the display well in advance. It is absolutely essential when I have to move across the lane to reach a left turn lane. This unit is my second one. The earlier one was still going strong after more than three years of use, and many thousands of miles of travel. I mistakenly thought that the battery was weakening, and chose to replace it. That is fine. I gave it to a friend who will continue to use it, likely for many years to come. Of all the safety gear I have purchased over the years, this is the best. For those who might wonder, it is also usable with Wahoo computers.
I recommend using the Varia in conjunction with a dropbar end mirror, or helmet mirror, for knowing what's behind you. The Varia syncs cleanly with my Wahoo Bolt head unit, and is mostly accurate.
The Varia's cons are: 1) If a car/truck is keeping pace with you, it won't show up. It needs to be gaining on you. So, sometimes the car shows up on the screen only as it's passing you. 2) Ghosts. The vehicle icon stays on the screen sometimes even after there's no longer a vehicle behind you. Seems to happen most after making a turn. 3) "RADAR ERROR". I get this message occasionally, maybe once per ride. The quick fix is to Dismiss the message. Then it starts working right again, usually.
This RLT515 is a replacement for the RLT510 that I had been using for almost 4 years but sadly lost. It looks virtually identical but also now includes bluetooth and "peloton" mode. Unfortunately I've been having problems with my new unit throwing "0:FC" errors somewhat randomly during my rides. Some rides it performs great while other times it gets so bad that I have to disconnect it from my Edge 1040 solar. For instance I went for a 3 hour ride recently and it was fine for the first hour and a half then is started throwing the error several times a minute which is both frustrating and dangerous. The error came up probably 30 times in about as many minutes so I just disconnected it from my headunit and used it as a dumb light.
I never had these problems with my old unit and would go back to it in a heartbeat if I could find it. Searching the Garmin forums made it seem that it's a software issue and Garmin is aware of it. I love Garmin hardware but their software is utter garbage, hopefully they take care of this soon.
Today was my second ride using the Garmin Varia. I really like it because it warms you about cars that are behind you from a very long distance. All that information is shown on your Garmin head unit. The view on the screen contracts and there is a dot that shows the car as it approaches you. I feel much safer knowing what is going on behind me and this device works very well. I did get a sensor error message once for a short time. But it resumed working as it should shorty after. I'm glad I bought it.
Two things, an easy way to be made aware of cars approaching behind you and a really bright tail light to help you be seen by those cars. I will not ride without this, best accessory I've ever purchased
A lot of bike tech these days seems like overkill but that's not the case with this. It has made my commute safer and I wouldn't feel as comfortable riding without it. I use the Garmin 530 and the ap on my phone. I keep one earbud in while riding to get the sound alerts. I love the color sequence that it goes through: orange means a slower vehicle, red means a faster vehicle and green means all clear. After using since last May to commute, I can honestly say I have yet to see a false positive or negative. The only issue I had was my old pannier system blocked the sensor. so I had to swap that out. Otherwise, this thing works flawlessly and makes my daily commute safer. I hated the small mirror I used to use on my bar end which was way to distracting.
I've always used a rear view mirror attached to my glasses and thought there was no need for a Varia Radar sensor. Boy was I wrong'! Immediately on my first ride with it I was amazed as to how terrific it was. Now I rely on it every time I ride. Especially if I ride solo.
The Garmin Varia is a great device for informing you of any traffic (car or otherwise) overtaking you from behind. This device alarms (if you want) and has a visual proximity indicator, giving you ample time to shelter as close as possible to the side of the road.
I found the device to be most helpful not on busy roads while commuting, but on longer rides at those moments when riding two-abreast, it's a great reminder to fall into single file, as it alarms or notifies you with plenty of time to make this adjustment.
Hard to ride without it at this point!
If you're looking for more safety and want to know what's coming behind you this is the product you should have attached to your bike. It definitely sees everything that's coming towards you and gives a warning you do need a garmin computer for it to work properly.
You'll need a bike computer or Garmin watch, but assuming you have one (or both), this is a very worthwhile piece of safety equipment. It's quite reliable and easily understood. It pairs with your computer like any other sensor. I used to rely on listening for cars and looking over my shoulder before moving out into a lane. I still do both, but there are many times when I hear nothing and the Vario beeps to let me know someone is there.
I've had one of these for over a year and put it through some cold temps. Battery life has been great so far, as advertised even down into the upper 30's. The system itself can track multiple cars and has a nice beep warning when they are coming up on you. In an urban area, this can be pretty often, but it keeps you from veering into a car you wouldn't have seen otherwise.
It only comes with a mount to attach to a seat post, so cannot mount to a bag without some modifications. I poked a couple holes into my bag to get the screws in an it works great. Only other downside is no strap like the GPS's have to catch the unit if it falls off, so far it has not fallen off.
This is a great device for making me aware of vehicles behind me. I used the Varia app on my smartphone and strapped the phone to the bar. I was constantly amazed by how far away the radar sensed vehicles behind me. Both the graphic and audible alert on the phone are great! However, I do not like the large phone on the bars so have purchased a Garmin Edge 830 to use instead and hope the alerts on the Edge will help as much as the phone app did ! I was more relaxed riding having this one more tool in the box (besides listening, looking behind me and using a mirror). The radar picked up vehicles often before I could see any detail in my mirror or hear it so it helped me stay alert and avoided those last minute surprises that can happen when a fast vehicle suddenly shoots around you.
This radar simply works. using it for months now and only 1 time it missed a car that followed another one. It gave me the confidence to know vehicle is coming up behind me and not get scared by someone suddenly fly by next to me. the light is also nice and bright.
Four years ago I got the RTL510 version of this (no bluetooth) and paired it with a Wahoo Bolt. That combo has been the single best bit of kit that I have added in ten years. If you ride in urban areas I would probably skip it as the radar will go off constantly, but in suburban and rural areas it is absolutely worth every penny. My first unit worked perfectly, the only reason I upgraded tp the RTL 515 is that after about fifteen thousand miles the battery life degraded from just over four hours to just over three (with the light on solid... if you use the flasher it has much longer life). Just finishing a month in France riding almost every day and the newer RTL 515 has been every bit as solid, with battery life exceeding 4.5 hours on solid. The few times I have gone out without it I feel naked. This from a guy that never used a tail light because it seemed like just one more think to complicate my life.
Another on-line review said there are two kinds of people: those who don't have a Varia and don't see the need for one and those who have one and wouldn't ride without it. I moved from the first group to the second.
Easy interface with Wahoo computer. I turned off the audible alerts: TMI and annoying. But glancing down from time to time I see what's coming well before I hear it. I've tried to catch it making errors but so far have not been able to. Even tells you how many cars are coming. The LED alerts are usually washed out in daylight so are not that helpful.
I have my Varia RTL515 mounted on the back of my seat bag so the radar unit is positioned high for maximum distance and no interference from the rear tire. Although I like using it on small group rides it seems to be most beneficial on solo rides, keeping me aware of all rear approaching vehicles in plenty of time. The unit works as advertised and is living up to my expectations although I would have liked longer battery life. Isn't that always the case.
This device makes a wonderful addition to my cycling experience. I get notified as traffic approaches and how many vehicles there are within 253 feet behind me. I can see the speed of their approach and I am notified when all is clear. Also, the light flashes more intensely and quickly while traffic is approaching and so it provides better information to the drivers behind me about my presence. The only downside experience I had was a with the Garmin 830 controlling the light, type of flash and turning it off. Now, I could intervene on the head unit and reselect the flash type I wanted, but turning the Varia off that became a problem, surprisingly. It turns off the light when the Varia is switched off but leaves the Varia's Bluetooth on which runs down the battery. I did find the command in the settings to turn this feature off which works better for me.
All the reviews raving about how good this product is are true. I feel naked riding along a public road without this gadget. Now with that said, in true Garmin fashion it is grossly overpriced for what it is, but I think as a safety device it still delivers enough value to be a good buy. Just don't pay full price for one.
Battery life has been fine for me as long as I remember to charge it every couple of rides. (I ride almost every day)
The mount is crap. Buy a proper seat mount and you will be much happier and your device will be much more secure. I strongly recommend the BUP Labs mounts. They are excellent.
I had seen others use it and grew accustomed to hearing the audible alert in a group ride. I found myself missing it when I rode solo so I purchased one. It's a little big, not aero and the mounting system is goofy. Despite that, I give it five stars for the safety it provides. I don't ride without it.
There are some roads that I ride that require me to constantly turn and look for cars approaching from behind. With this new radar those days are over. I now know when a car is approaching so I can get over on the shoulder. Love it.
