New camera install (Cheap Ebay cameras)

I didn't like the gap because the camera was loose and could fall out. So I cut an insert made from a For Sale sign. Actually two pieces one on the outside and one inside. They bind the camera nicely in the slot. There are pictures of it in this thread somewhere.

edit: here is the post.

 

us_matrix: I cutted a similar plug as a original one from scrap of plastic (3mm thick). I milled the rectangle hole in the center to glue up the camera (hot melt glue used). I made a mortise around the perimeter of new plug just to allow slide it into the factory opening. Finally, I sprayed the plastic to match the car color.

 

When one installs the back-up camera do I need to drill a hole in the back door to run the video/power cable through or do I put it through where the back door opener is?

 

I didn't need to drill any holes when fitting my camera.

You can get the cables through the rear tailgate cable tube, a black rubber affair at the top. It's a tight fit though and lubricating the cables helps get them through. I used a length of thick nylon monofilament line, the stuff used on heavy duty strimmers (weedwackers in US-speak, I think) as a pull-through, by feeding this through the rubber tube, then taping the camera wires to it, applying some water-based lubricant and pulling the cable through into the space between the roof and the headliner.

A word of caution with the cheap cameras. Mine fogged up internally a few weeks ago and has now lost the distance lines and the video has turned upside down, for some reason. I suspect that these cheap things off ebay aren't well sealed. I've ordered another one and when it arrives I intend trying to improve it's internal weather sealing.

Jeremy

 

That's good to know you didn't have to drill any holes. I was referring to



I ran the cable through the spot in the center where the back door opener is. I found the documentation for Toyota's rear camera , at Toyota Publications, and the Rear Camera install instructions for step 42 and 43 show that you drill a hole in the back. Hence I was wondering whether what I did was bad and whether I should redo it.

 

I ran mine though the same place you did. Just make sure it protected from the sharp metal.

 

I did NOT drill a ny hole just ran the cable through the rear rubber handle opener.

 

I had a similar problem with the Camry09 camera from autodvdgps.com. It became foggy after 2 month of usage. The seller sent me a new one as a replacement and the current one is okay until now (8 month+).
I opened the old camera with Dremel tool to examine the interior of the camera. It is pretty simple - CCD chip, some electronic video chip and manually adjusted optics fixed in the focus position by small srew. There was a problem on tiny anti-glare piece of glass between outer and inner lens. Actually the antiglare layer was evaporated (or looks like that). When I removed this glass, the picture from camera was clear again, but the camera is not usable for the real application, because the housing broken by Dremel. If I can say the weather seal is pretty good - the interior of plastic housing is filled with some elastic rubber and same parts are hot glued. The outside lens and plastic box were sealed together with the rubber as well. I was surprised how hot the inside electronic is when the camera is operating/powered.
The good picture/video

Blurry video


Camera surgery

 

Yes, that blurry video looks like mine. My camera stopped working altogether yesterday. From the gradual failure, first going foggy, then losing the distance lines and now complete failure, I suspect that it may be water damage. I'll do some surgery on mine once I take it out.

The original camera came from the ebay seller factorykiss. The replacement has come from a different seller but looks to be the same camera. If it looks as if the first camera has failed from water ingress then I'll see if I can seal the new one up a bit better, but from your photos it looks to be fairly well sealed already.

The reason I think it might have something to do with the inside getting damp is because the fogging up only started with the onset of sub-zero temperatures here, which makes me think that condensation might be the problem.

Jeremy

 

On my other car I had completely avoided dealing with the splicing of the camera into the reverse light. I just ran the camera wire straight to the center armrest console area, then connected it to a generic light switch. To activate the camera, I simply flick the switch on. I actually like it better this way because I can still activate the camera anytime, even without shifting into reverse. Sometimes when I'm bored sitting in the car I turn on the camera for fun to see what's behind me.

 

Anyone tried this camera?

TOYOTA PRIUS CCD NTSC Car Rear View Backup Camera - eBay (item 270648923175 end time Apr-11-11 04:15:21 PDT)


TOYOTA PRIUS CMOS NTSC Car Rear View Backup Camera - eBay (item 270648923086 end time Apr-11-11 04:14:53 PDT)

 

I purchased the Camry camera awhile ago but have not installed it as yet. I seem to remember reading in one of the threads experiences of water entering and fouling the camera.

Have you or any others experienced this type of failure?

Are you still happy with the camera performance?

 

Yes, I had the same problem. Moisture enters via the edge of the lens surround and mists up the inside of the lens. The problem seems to be exacerbated by the fact that the camera runs slightly warm when powered up, which expands the air inside the lens. Moisture tends to collect around the lens area, so when the camera cools a tiny amount of moisture gets drawn inside. This then forms a misty layer inside the lens, severely blurring the image.

I've only discovered this by taking a camera apart. The replacement I've just bought clearly has the same poor seal in this area, as when I carefully dripped a tiny amount of thinned polyurethane varnish into the tiny seam between the lens surround and the case (using a needle) it immediately wicked into the gap and ran right around. I'm hopeful that this will have sealed up this potential leak spot and that this camera will last longer than the last one.

The rest of the camera is very well sealed internally, mostly potted with sealant. It's only the area around the lens that seems to be a potential leak point and this seems easy to seal.

The good news is that replacing the camera is a lot easier than fitting it for the first time.

Jeremy

 

It certainly is meant to be wet in there! When I took the rear external trim panel off to fit the replacement camera there was a "tidemark" at one end (my driveway slopes) showing that around 1/2" of water had been collecting inside there.

The camera that I had problems with came from the ebay seller factorykiss and wasn't IP67 sealed. It had two self tapping screws holding the two case halves together, with quite a lot of what looked like silicone sealant inside. There was a lot of water inside the case, most seems to have been pulled in through the lens area, as the sealant wasn't bonded to that part of the case.

Interestingly, even though the circuit board was covered in white corrosion and had obviously been running while soaking wet, when I dried it out the camera came back to life and seems to work OK. If I can find a way to turn off the distance lines I might find a use for it elsewhere.

The replacement camera I have was physically exactly the same shape as the old one, but seems to be glued or welded together, there are no screws holding the two parts together. It looks as if it might be better sealed than the old one and, now I've added some extra sealing, I'm hopeful it'll last more than 6 months. Interestingly the new camera was about two thirds of the price of the one from factorykiss, but it did take 8 weeks to arrive.

Jeremy

 

Anybody ever look into retro-fitting a factory camera? They run about $700 new, but I found a used one on eBay for $200. Search for item #290543493720 for the listing I saw..

It is Toyota part # 86790-47040 for the 2010 Prius. Seems like those Chinese cameras are a big disappointment, considering all the effort it takes to install one...

 

Just wondering.

I bought a license plate mounted rearview camera and rearview mirror with LCD screen for the camera.

What is the reasonable price to pay for installation? I am talking about the "respectable" company, not a private indivuidual/friend/mechanic, but a company that does a lot of A/V/aftermarket auto mods?

Any ideas?

Thanks

 

I don't know... I have had mine installed for what 18 months and through two AK winters and it still works fine. I even used a high-pressured washer on the unit and no water leaked in... hit and miss I guess.

I suppose if the unit does fail, I could probably hook up an OEM unit without any problem later.