GarminVaria Radar 2 RTL510 Rear Light(Return to Product Page)

I love this thing! It�s boosted my confidence on rides alone and in groups. I really like knowing when a car is behind me with plenty of warning time. I especially love how it goes crazy if a car isn�t slowing down to warm you to look out or go off the road, god forbid.

I have had a couple false positives w o there bikers, the signal reflecting off certain materials, and the audio alert will not keep going if multiple cars are in succession behind you (good and bad I guess).

Battery life is great late 3 50 mile + rides before a charge and was pretty idiot proofed to pair w my wahoo bolt.

I bought two, one for myself and one for my wife. We both really like having them, but it's no substitute for keeping your eyes and ears open. After you receive it be sure to check for any software updates and read the instructions carefully. They do work really well and alert us to approaching vehicles well before we hear them coming. We gravel road ride and if you ride gravel you know that you spend most of your time riding the hard packed center, getting an early alert means we can move over to the shoulder earlier (which means less aggravation for drivers). One complaint I have is that if you don't have much seat post extending from the seat tube (or you have a large/low saddle mounted toolkit) it may be difficult to mount it to your bike. If you mount it too low you will have problems due to interference from the rear tire.

This is one of those products you think you dont need until you have one. Then you wonder how you rode for years without one. I ride in a fairly rural area, and usually am alone, especially ow given the ongoing pandemic. The Varia alerts me to cars approaching from behind before I can hear them, and is effective even on curvy roads. Its really helpful on longer descents when you cant hear much besides wind noise. I dont think Id use a Varia in an urban setting where there always are cars behind you. But its is really helpful in the country and in suburbia.

The Garmin Varia Radar 2 Rear Light is probably the best investment I have made on my bike. It isn't as flashy as my carbon wheels but hands down this light is awesome. Paired with my Garmin 1030 gps computer, I can ride on the back roads of my town knowing that a car will not sneak up on me and I can ride a little further off the shoulder. On my head unit I see how far a car is back (and it lets you know way in advance) and you can see multiple cars closing in on you.

You can also easily detach the unit from the dock to charge it. It lasts a decent amount of time, but I do wish my 1030 would let me know the battery life of the light. It will let you know when it is low (if you just started your ride that is useless) and the light will last a while longer so that is good.

I really can't say anything negative about the light. I got it on sale but even at full-price this light is well worth the investment. The only thing is you either need a Garmin computer or you have to buy the head unit that shows you where the cars are. I think that is $100, so you are better off just buying a Garmin 130 for a few bucks more.

Ive been riding for years and cant believe I never knew about or bought the radar until now! Most of my rides are solo so having an extra piece of mind of where cars are at during my ride is awesome. When paired with the right head unit, it beeps when it deducts a car and shows you a visible alert on how far back the cars.

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE my radar!!!

Received the Varia RTL510 today. Great service! Connected it to my Garmin 1030, which was easy and straight-forward. Took it for a ride over a mixture of roads and bike path. The Varia correctly identified cars from considerable distance, and tracked multiple vehicles as they approached. I was never surprised by one. On the trail it functioned perfectly as a tail light. it never gave a false positive for other riders or runners. You don't think you need this, but you do, and you will love it.

Got a great deal on this a couple months back and now i dont know how i road ride without it. It shouldn't be used in place of head-checking but its still great. Lets you know right when the cars are coming and how close they are to you. I feel so much safer on country roads now that I have this tool. Every cyclist should have one!

This device took just a few moments to pair with my Garmin. I ride on suburbanrural roads and this picks up any vehicle closing in on me - sometimes trailing cyclists. Between this and my drop mounted mirror I am never surprised. Would be nice if it made some noise to alert me when it picks something up since I need to look at the road, not the Garmin. Also - the mount would be nice to have an option to clip onto the back of a saddle bag since it is a bit hidden on the seat post. The light blinking feature is great for following cyclists who see it and know a vehicle is approaching. All in all, well worth the money as an additional safety feature that does what it says it will

On my rides the Garmin radar light gives an extra sense of safety. I love having time to prepare for a car passing you. I also like being able to see in my 1030 if it safe to move off the right side of the road if conditions warrant it and to do it safely without turning your head and looking back. Both me and my girlfriend are using it at all times and we both love it as do quite a few of my cycling friends. This product is a life saver!

Sceptical of the benefit of these, but bought one to try and found it has made me much more comfortable in traffic. When I see a problem, for example in the road surface, a glance at the computer tells me if I am being closely followed or about to be overtaken. Most important, this is without turning my head or refocusing my eyes to the rear. Much safer and faster than before!

Maybe these should be mandatory?

I noticed in a photograph that Chris Froome was also using one.

I have young kids and I feel like this little light provides a small amount of insurance that something bad doesn't happen. I've had this for a few months and am pretty confident saying that this isn't a gimmicky product. It works well, integrates with my Wahoo Elemnt BOLT and does what it's supposed to - let's me know when cars are near or coming fast and helps me be seen by them.

The light part of this is really nice. It's bright and lasts a while with a couple different modes. In the end its like most other lights. The radar is great for a specific kind of ride. On my commute where there is a large bike lane and I know there will be cars passing me pretty much constantly, the radar is not very useful and borderline annoying. However, on rural rides with little to no shoulder, it's awesome. It give you warning well before the car can sneak up on you. It shows multiple cars as they approach, and gives a color coding for how fast the next car is closing. Green, yellow, and red are the colors that indicate, fast, faster, and really fast respectively. If you've got the extra $$, go for it.

I like many things about this light. It replaced my USB rechargeable tail light and I have programmed it to turn on and off automatically with my Garmin 1030. I have also added a battery level field for the Varia to my 1030. It performs better than the first generation Varia by sensing vehicles much farther away. The battery also lasts a long time.

I didnt know I could like a rear light as much as I do the Varia radar light. Works awesome on the roads around Boise.

The unit is ANT so other Edge users (ANT is multiple device vs BT 11) can add your sensor and get the benefit too. Pretty cool additional perk.

Originally I thought why would I spend $200 on a tail light for my bike? Well, so far it has been the best money I have spent. Cycling on the road has inherent dangers. With the radar I have a tool that lets me know what is coming up behind me. Combined with mirrors, it certainly helps.

I've had this for about three months now. It picks up cars at a good range, but you do need to point it straight back, and for those of us who do long distance rides where we need a large saddle bag that is a challenge. I've been mounting it on the left seat stay when I do that, but then it doesn't point straight back or quite level. It's a pity that there aren't more mount options. Also for long distance, it would be nice if there was a mode where it just acted as a radar, and not a light. The battery could last much longer then.

Light catches all oncoming traffic. But it can also alert you of other bikers you are riding with. Also can drain your battery on your computer quickly.

I'm not sure I can ride without this anymore. It has saved me at least three times from major accidents with cars behind not paying attention. This is now a MUST for when I go out riding.

Here in the Midwest cyclists don't always get so much respect from motorists. Knowing when cars are approaching is a huge enhancement to rider safety. This thing just works! Paired with a Garmin Edge 530, I know when vehicles are approaching, and I can easily judge their closure rate.

I ride mostly solo, and this unit removes the surprise of cars coming up, even when you have a mirror. Two negatives involve my Garmin 520. Battery life is cut in half while using the Varia -a four-hour ride totally depletes it. If I put the Varia in standby mode at a coffee stop, the only way to have the Garmin re-recognise it is turn the 520 off (unacceptable in the middle of a ride) or go into the menu, deactivate, then reactivate. These issues will hopefully be improved by firmware updates, and I don't consider them deal-killers.