I’m looking for technical help or recommendations on: Rear dashcam.
Having read elsewhere on the forum about someone being rear eneded, I was wondering how difficult it was to fit a rear dashcam.
I have already fixed a Nextbase front dashcam behind the mirror. The dashcam will take a feed from a rear dashcam. The options are a plug in rear dashcam, but this would mean moving the current dashcam so the view isn’t blocked by the rear view mirror, or a detached camera. In the latter case they’re normally mounted on the rear window which isn’t an option in a constable.
Has anyone successfully addressed this conundrum?
I would check out dash cams for vans and motor cycles that are externally mounted maybe on the underside of the boot lid?
May also be some in number plate surrounds.
The motorbike ones look very small.
I’m going to remove it at some point and spray paint the plastic bracket red to match the car. It’s a display holder from a screwdriver in wickes, screwdriver is handy too. If you drill acrylic, take it easy and use a sharp drill bit or you’ll crack it.
The plug in extra rear cams are ok but lower resolution. I had one in my Lexus and you couldn’t see number plates. The garmin mini is very clear and much more visible. Since I’ve had it I’ve not had any tailgaters. I drive top down unless it’s raining so it’s very easy to see, especially as people always look at these cars.
The NC headlining above the mirror has quite a lot of empty space, enough to store several metres of rear camera wire, and I had planned to put the companion rear cam alongside the Nextbase 512GW front cam, but just pushed to the left a bit to miss the mirror.
The first flaw in my plan was I did not buy the rear cam at the same time as the front cam and that particular rear cam is so rare and flaky I’ve now given up on finding a working one.
Another flaw is SWMBO likes using the sunvisor when passenger; but much of the time it’s just me in the car or it’s not too sunny.
The final flaw is the rear window is too small for a decent view out the back from relatively far forward.
However, the later 522GW pair work extremely well conventionally mounted in my Mazda3, and the rear resolution is definitely good enough for watching a tailgater, while the recording is up front so will survive even if the rear cam is wrecked.
I have considered trying a 522 rear ball camera with its neat magnetic mount somehow finagled into the ample space of the headrest loop behind the NC drivers seat so as to not be hit by the moving PRHT bits. This is a real possibility and avoids all the above flaws, BUT I’ve not come up with a mounting solution yet, because something will need fabricating.
I have my rear camera mounted on the wind deflector. I’ve off set it slightly so the camera is not too much in the way of the rear mirror.
It gives good results with the roof down and usable with the roof up.
Obviously I have to keep the wind deflector up all the time but that’s no great loss
I use a Viofo A129 Duo. Wire from the front camera is routed down the passenger A pillar, under the plastic sill cover on the passenger side and the under the rear panel. I have the wire exit through the large gap in the rear behind the roll hoops and up to the rear camera.
On the 522 rear camera, if you tap the main screen it shows rear view on its whole screen (hidden behind the mirror). So it might be classed as a reverse camera.
BUT while it is still infinitely better than nothing, beware of a few possible disadvantages in using for reversing something optimised as rear dash cam
. no width markings ‘carefully aligned’ on screen, so much less use at precision parking
. if inside rear window that can steam up, so no rear view,
. usually higher up and less down looking, so can miss that stump that is about to wreck the exhaust or bumper.
Thanks.
I have been wondering about a dedicated reversing camera that would display on my phone mounted on the dash.
Mounting it on the windbreaker could save problems incurred with mounting it above the number plate.
A misted up window would be a problem of course.
I bought the companion rear view camera that plugs into the side of the main Netgear camera and just moved it along the windscreen a bit ( better then nothing ? ).
I did think that i would be able to easily get male mini hdmi to female mini hdmi extension cable so that i could position the rear camera elsewhere, ( e.g. on the wind blocker ) , however finding such a cable is proving to be extremely difficult if not impossible. plenty of mini hdmi to hdmi about, but not many mini to mini.
I wish i had bought a ball camera now, like we have on our Suzuki Vitara and Fiat 500.
The cameras on the MX-5 have mostly been viewing the inside of my garage for the last few weeks.
It could if you could be bothered to access the Wi-fi on the garmin mini on the app on your phone. It takes about 30 seconds to access so it’s not practical.
Under the lip of the boot lid, in the centre above the number plate is an unused blank plastic insert that clicks in. This is the ideal place to put a reversing camera. Even the wiring should be relatively easy on the NC.
I used the equivalent plastic insert on the Mazda3 because that is where Mazda put their revcam.
Had the same conundrum, bought a mirror cam off amazon£30,clips straight onto existing mirror, front dash cam on back of mirror, reversing camera supplied as well, dead easy to fit, pop an sd card in, records front and rear simultaneously added bonus of reversing camera. Full HD and night vision is outstanding.
