I have been having trouble with the Fastrak occasionally not being recognized when installed in the MINI. I have been using the location in front of the rearview mirror, fastening the Fastrak transponder to the windshield with velcro patches. I have been reading about those who use tha rear panel of the sunroof as a less visible location. I was wondering if any of you NorCal folk had tried that and if it was successful. I use the same transponder in my F250 pickup truck and have never had a problem with it. I was wondering if perhaps the location on the MINI is just a little too low for the scanner to pick up 100% of the time.

On a side note, it was really great meeting a few of you motorers at John's European Auto Service yesterday. I learned quite a bit and have been enjoying the 15% reduction pulley they installed for me. I am so glad I didn't decide to try a project like that myself. This occured to me several times during the procedure. Anyway, thanks for the warm welcome into the group. Looking forward to seeing you on the roads sometime soon.

 

Heya, Rick right? It was nice meeting you too and make sure you get those spark plugs taken care of NGK Iridium IX (one colder) at about $13 per plug, or Denso IK22s (bit more expensive) should be the right kind. Hope to see you on the April delta run!

 

I hold the Fastrak transponder up to windshield every time. I found that it always works if I have it 6 to 8 inches below the top of the windshield glass. When it is higher than this, it didn't always work in my MINI. I also found that I had to travel 40 mph or lower for it to work. When I zipped through at 45mph or more, it would not work. I received about 6 notices from the Fastrak office while I was figuring this all out.

The reason I don't keep the transponder on the glass with any of my autos is that the first 3 I had failed. I think they got cooked by the sun. I've been using the latest two for 4 years or more each.

 

i was told by fastrak, that even if it doenst go off, fastrak will check your licence plate to make sure you have an account. i got worried one day when i went though and forgot to take out my fastrak.

best way to double check is to call them up.

by the way i never received any notices for that day.

 

I have not affixed it anywhere as I take it from car to car. However, I do not hold it - I throw it in front of the steering wheel on the dashboard and take it off after clearing the toll booth. DO NOT HOLD IT!!!! One time it did not register when my passenger held it up. I received a citation from CalTrans. I called them and they advised that the small shaking movements caused by breathing or holding it at arm's length make it impossible for their system to read.

It is possible that the location you have mounted the transponder causes it to bounce or vibrate. This may be the reason it was not read.

 

I don't think it's bouncing. I have it velcro'd to the windshield, in the position that is specified by Fastrak. It's only bouncing as much as the whole car is bouncing.

 

+1 for just tossing it on the dash when going through a reader. One thing to consider is that the transponders do have non-replaceable (at least not by the end user) batteries that do run low. If you've had the transponder for a long time or use it often, you may be getting to the end of battery life. You can contact the toll agency for a replacement with no charge if I remember right.

 

Hi Rick....

Twas great meeting you also at John's........

We just lay the transponder in the center vent on top of the dash
behind the auto ac sensor and it works every time. Don't think it's
ever missed a beep there.

Motor Safely and hope to see you at the Great Fun In The Delta Run

Rick

 

I applied a suction cup to wire zip ties around the fastrak. I didn't want to affix the velcro to the windshield since I rarely drive over the bridges.

 

I've used this method with success as well