GarminVaria RTL515 Radar With Tail Light(Return to Product Page)

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.

This is a super cycling product that is pragmatically helpful!

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.

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.

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!

The Varia is a wonderful and, I believe, necessary addition toward safer riding. Not only are you able to have several option for the rear light, but you get a very clear image on your GPS computer of the traffic mounting behind you.

Before the Varia, I was always guessing and mostly trying to listen to what traffic was approaching. Now I have such a better sense of what my environment is like in a split second on the bike. It allows me an initial snapshot and really eases my concerns especially on single lane roads, turn left endeavors and overall solo riding. I especially love it on group rides. I now have a better idea of what is behind me while passing others and when to hug the road. Equally, no more last second "car backs" but rather a much better heads up warning.

Wish I had purchased this earlier.

The Varia has exceeded my expectations. It provides a level of safety and piece of mind while on my rides. Highly recommend the Varia. It's a piece of equipment that is essential for my riding kit

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.

I didn't think I wanted or needed this, but my friend convinced me to try it. It's a game changer. The unit picks up cars well before I hear them especially on descents when wind noise blocks car sound. The display is excellent telling me the number of cars approaching and their closing speed. I love that closing speed information as I will move over as far as I can and as quickly as I can if I know a car is going really fast. A truly fantastic product.

I had always seen these on other bikes and never really understood how one could justify buying such an expensive "light". After just a few rides I won't ride without this. The peace of mind I have now knowing what is coming up behind me absolutely makes this little gadget worth the price. The ability to turn the light on/off from your head unit is also an understated feature but a nice thing to have to preserve battery when you're not riding on a road.

Having my head unit show overtaking traffic means I don't have to be constantly checking my mirror. So far (2 months daily use) it's been incredibly reliable and accurate, indicating how many cars are back there and their approximate speed. Other cyclists will light it up too, if they are coming up fast. I don't think it replaces a mirror, rather it augments it and more situational awareness is safer, given the often distracted and occasionally hostile drivers out there. I have not tried it in an urban setting, where all the input might be confusing or annoying, but on the rural roads I've been mostly riding lately it's been a game changer. I should add that I got the best price I could find anywhere from BTD.

Just installed on my wife's bike so we both know when traffic is approaching. Battery life sufficient for a few rides without recharging and light is nice a bright.

I ride a lot of great backroads in forested countryside. At 18-20 mph It's hard to hear or see cars coming from behind so it's hard for them see me too. Rtl515 bright light and early warning radar let me be seen and ride to the side with plenty of time. Still always check over my shoulder but this added check gives me more Confidence that I don't miss anything. Great to only charge 1 instead of 2 accessories also and takes way less space than sprig and radar I used to use. . I get about 4-5 hours on a charge. Just enough for most rides.

Purchased for a planned cross country trip. I am hearing impaired and I wanted something that would help identified vehicles approaching from the rear on open roads with no shoulders in windy or noisy environments. I now have ~ 1000 miles of use on it riding solo and in a group over the past month. Works great and does exactly what I had hoped. It gives you ~ 5-7 seconds of notification when vehicles are approaching @ 50-60 mph. This is more than enough time to make any necessary adjustments to your riding. My only gripe is the Garmin Edge 1030 audible alarm isn't loud enough for me to hear (common complaint). However, using the Varia App I am able to hear the phone audio alarm (volume controllable) and feel it vibrate in my Jersey pocket. I would recommend this product for anyone who wants to be aware of vehicles approaching from behind. On a side note. It would be kind of cool if the App or your control unit kept track of the total number of vehicles that passed you. Seems like it would be easy to write the code for an easy software upgrade.

My PDW asteroid taillight finally gave up the ghost so I decided to upgrade to the Garmin radar & taillight and I couldn't be happier.

Love the integration with my wahoo bolt roam, super easy to set up, has a great range for detecting cars, and the lights are bright and visible day or night.

As I'm sure others have noted, it only detects traffic closing with a speed differential so if a car is matching your speed, it can disappear from the display. This isn't really a problem, as you shouldn't be relying solely on the radar to tell you what's around.

Where it really shines is on solo rides on backroads where it will detect a car coming well before you'd be able to hear it.

Overall it's well worth the money and I wish I had picked one up sooner.

Ok......been using this product for quite some time so I feel my review is accurate. The visibility of the light itself is awesome and cagers should easily see you. The light patterns you are sure to find one that suits your need. The ability to sync to your Garmin or even other cycling computer and control is a plus. Battery life depending on light mode is good. If you are doing a several hour ride just make sure you select longest light mode and have light freshly charged. The radar works great in my findings and on long unobstructed straights you get several hundred feet of advanced warning. You can also get the widget for,your Garmin computer to allow you to see the total vehicle count that passes you and the distance back as they close in on you. The sturdiness of the product and water resistance is very good. As my title states......an invaluable piece of cycling hardware!

Occasional software issue--1/10 rides-- where audible car alert will not work on iphone 11 used as a control device through the Garmin app. The visual alert has never filed to work. This seems to happen once charge on the radar is at 40% or less. Annoying, and Garmin tech support is not particularly responsive, nor do they follow up.

That said, it's an amazing device, which detects cars flawlessly and I can't imagine road riding without anymore.

I have had the Varia for a couple of years. The light works fine and the radar works great with my Garmin 1030. The best/safest solution is to use the Varia with a bike mirror: one warns you to watch and by watching you can take evasive action if needed. If I were just starting out riding on the roads I would pair the Varia RTL515 to my phone and use a mirror while riding.

My son says this is all rationalization for buying the Varia RTL515 because riding on the road is crazy and to think my 73 yr old "catlike" reflexes will save me from being hit is a fantasy. But hey, I am a believer.

I've been riding for over 15 years on the same, primarily rural roads and know the traffic. However, in the last year, I added a mirror, which is suitable for looking behind but wasn't convenient. I purchased the Garmin Varia RTL51 5 Rear Radar on sale, and using it in conjunction with the mirror has brought back a comfort level to riding on the roads again. The Varia alerts me to an approaching vehicle (or vehicles), which I can check in the mirror, and then alerts me when traffic has cleared - good for multiple vehicles, especially trucks with trailers. I find the combination of radar and mirror immensely helpful and reassuring in providing another layer of safety on the road.

Garmin Varia RTL515 Radar With Tail Light is a great product. Family was a little concerned about my safety on the road, so they wanted to get me this light for my birthday. BTD had a great deal and discount over the holidays. Their price beat the most popular online store. BTD delivered even faster than Prime. - The light/radar is awesome. It turns on when Garmin computer turns on, and off when Garmin computer turns off. I choose the irregular flashing light setting that turns off almost completely when there is no traffic and it gets brighter and faster when cars approach. That is a great feature. My computer display shows all cars and vehicles approaching at any distance, and turns yellow, and red according to speed, plus green when is all clear. I prefer to hear the different beeps as well. My bicycle mates do not seem to bother all the sounds, they can also interpret the sounds by now. They even have an option to pair their devices to my light/radar. I love it.