Back story: Wife was in a catastrophic crash last year, fractured her C2 vertebrae, had emergency spine surgery which fused C1-4. She'll permamently have restricted range of motion in side-to-side rotation

...and yet she wants to get back on the bike. (Eventually.)

We're modifying her cockpit to make the rider position compatible with her newly titanium-reinforced forward head restrictions, and we're adding some swanky bar-end rearview mirrors. But she loves the idea of Garmin's Varia rear-facing radar as an added weapon in her arsenal of tools to compensate for not being able to easily look over her shoulder.

Thing is, she hates Garmins. She has a Wahoo ELEMNT and loves it.

Anyone know if there's a way to get the Garmin Varia radar to talk to the Wahoo ELEMNT head unit? ...maybe to display on the Wahoo's Quicklook LEDs?

Thanks.

(I also posted this in the Electronics/Gadgets subforum, but since this is related to riding with a fused spine I thought maybe there'd be some ideas here also. Apologies for double-posting.)

Back story: Wife was in a catastrophic crash last year, fractured her C2 vertebrae, had emergency spine surgery which fused C1-4. She'll permamently have restricted range of motion in side-to-side rotation

...and yet she wants to get back on the bike. (Eventually.)

We're modifying her cockpit to make the rider position compatible with her newly titanium-reinforced forward head restrictions, and we're adding some swanky bar-end rearview mirrors. But she loves the idea of Garmin's Varia rear-facing radar as an added weapon in her arsenal of tools to compensate for not being able to easily look over her shoulder.

Thing is, she hates Garmins. She has a Wahoo ELEMNT and loves it.

Anyone know if there's a way to get the Garmin Varia radar to talk to the Wahoo ELEMNT head unit? ...maybe to display on the Wahoo's Quicklook LEDs?

Thanks.

Duplicate threads merged. Please do not cross post.

It took me literally 10 seconds to find this: https://cyclingtips.com/2019/08/waho...aria-friendly/

Why would you even bother merging them when the only difference is the acknowledgement that they are cross-posted and the reference to context only pertinent to the other subforum it was cross-posted to? Just delete the second message, Jesus.

I guess you are lucky if a radar would be of use to you. Around here I can't think of a ride I did when it would not continuously alarm for the entire ride. Make sure to get a way-bright daytime tail light, or better a couple of them 350 lumens on the taillight seems to be bright enough for daytime use.

I've used the radar (first gen) since it first came out, and it really has helped to take the surprise element out of riding with occasional cars. If I use it in heavy traffic, it is just annoying. I do have to augment it with a second, brighter, tail-light (Cyglo)

Thanks for your post, as this is useful information about cross-compatibility I was not aware of.

I hope your wife is able to enjoy cycling as much as possible. It is remarkable she is eager to continue. Great that you are so supportive.

Two types of cyclists. Those that love the Varia, and those that have never used it.

Caveat; Not really useful in an Urban environment.

But where I am in rural UK? Indispensable! Light is bright enough, and it pairs with Wahoo easily.

I’ve had both the 1st Gen and now the 2nd Gen. Bought a 3D printed mount that attaches neatly under my seat.

Love it.

​​​​​​It doesn't just tell you there's a car behind you, it tells you how many and their relative positions. So you have a pretty good idea when to merge into a gap in traffic while you're paying attention to the road ahead of you.

Can't say anything about Wahoo but I can say the radar is very useful. And that's based on experience using it in a city, not imagining how it might be.

^^^ This! I have a second generation RTL510 radar and use it every time I'm on a public roadway. And to answer the OP's question, yes it does work with the Wahoo Elemnt/Bolt and Roam. In fact, it works slightly better on Wahoo products than it does on Garmin products. Instead of a little yellow dot on a black background that appears on the Garmins, the Wahoo products display an icon of the car(s) behind you and their relative position to one another and to you. Wahoo also warns you of when the radar battery is low and when it's disconnected, something that only the Garmin 1030 does (according to the radar's Owner's Manual). Wahoo has better visual and audio cues as well since it uses more tones than Garmins and also uses the LED lights. The only thing it doesn't display (on either brand computer) is what lane the car(s) are in on multi-lane roads. For that, you still need a mirror. If your wife has a second generation radar, all she needs to do is to have the latest Wahoo firmware. If she has a first generation, she needs the latest firmware for both the Elemnt and the radar.

I have one connected to my wahoo, works fine. Good luck!

Yes. they do. It's pretty easy to see that on their website. Nice implementation.

I'm guessing here but you've never used one, right?

Exactly right. The current version is also a very good taillight which reacts to the position of the car to you which adds to visibility. version 1.0 had a taillight that was the next thing to worthless.

Yes, but you knew exactly what to ask for. Bugs me (my issue I know) that people respond like you did. If you go to the Wahoo site it doesn't sell or say anything about where you can get a radar unit or what is compatible. If you are new to this it'd be odd to know what to ask for directly. You'd think at least there would be some pointing to what would be compatible on the Wahoo page.

I provided an (easily found) answer to the OP's post, using the obvious search term in google, and the OP "liked" my response. You are the only person with a problem.

Probably misread and like I said, my problem. I guess you are in the clear.

Just purchased and installed the Garmin radar. Wow! So easy it is incredible. Long story, but I purchased a Garmin GPS for my recent motorcycle trip on the MidAtlantic Backroads Discovery Route and after 5 nights a 3-4 hours per night trying to get it to consistently load gpx files I sent it back. There is a problem with hom they connect with Apple products. However, it took just a few minutes to connect my new radar with the Wahoo Bolt.

have the garmin varia and a garmin unit. sounds like the crossover garmin/wahoo thing works which is awesome.
varia has been a game-changer. yes...in the city in can get annoying but still useful. in the country-indispensible...
esp on the longer downhills. even in the city when it's beeping every few moment, it comes in handy. the varia alert +
a quick, partial head turn to the (mostly) left or right to let an approaching vehicle know you're aware of their presence is
huuge. my anecdotal sample in the last four months is less aggro and more understanding drivers. may it continue...