Dashcam Install Help

[Jason Bourne]

thanks for showing this. I'm not a fan of having wires like that. That wire is rubbing against bare metal and that can allow water to leak in. I'd poke a small hole in that cent gromet above the orange and run the wire through there.

Definitely agree. that's the whole point of a grommet. and there's plenty of room to make a new hole in it.

 

[z3sty3]

I’ve installed a Thinkware F750 (same wiring as F770 and F800) which requires a switched 12v wire (for activating parking mode) in addition to a constant 12v power source. Figured i will share some pictures for anyone who’s interested.

I’ve tapped into the 12v battery in the frunk with direct connection, and a red wire located in the front passenger footwell area for the switched 12v source. Since the wiring cable already included a fuse for both the constant 12v and switched 12v wire, no additional fuse connection is required.

Here are some pictures attached.

View attachment 279606
The yellow wire (labeled BATT) connects directly to the positive lead of the battery. And the black wire (labeled GND) connects to the negative lead of the battery.


View attachment 279607
Pry open the rubber sealing, fished the wire next to the edge of the rubber from the frunk into the front passenger footwell area.


View attachment 279608
Another shot of the rubber sealing from inside the car, in the front passenger footwell area.


For tapping into the switched 12v source from the front passenger area, I used Posi Tap which I think it’s a bit easier to work with and less intrusive to the original wire. (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CMC5DII/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_8E-FAbKZ5SN4J)

Just wondering, which 12v source from the passenger area did you use?
I opened up the area and am wondering which worked for you?

 

[Fusion]

I’ve installed a Thinkware F750 (same wiring as F770 and F800) which requires a switched 12v wire (for activating parking mode) in addition to a constant 12v power source. Figured i will share some pictures for anyone who’s interested.

I’ve tapped into the 12v battery in the frunk with direct connection, and a red wire located in the front passenger footwell area for the switched 12v source. Since the wiring cable already included a fuse for both the constant 12v and switched 12v wire, no additional fuse connection is required.

Here are some pictures attached.

View attachment 279606
The yellow wire (labeled BATT) connects directly to the positive lead of the battery. And the black wire (labeled GND) connects to the negative lead of the battery.


View attachment 279607
Pry open the rubber sealing, fished the wire next to the edge of the rubber from the frunk into the front passenger footwell area.


View attachment 279608
Another shot of the rubber sealing from inside the car, in the front passenger footwell area.


For tapping into the switched 12v source from the front passenger area, I used Posi Tap which I think it’s a bit easier to work with and less intrusive to the original wire. (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CMC5DII/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_8E-FAbKZ5SN4J)

From what I remember, you should never use the ground from the battery. You should use another bolt attached to the body as your ground.

 

[clx]

Just wondering, which 12v source from the passenger area did you use?
I opened up the area and am wondering which worked for you?
View attachment 285065

I used a red wire that I pulled from that bundle of wires, it’s a bit thicker compared to other wires.

 

[clx]

From what I remember, you should never use the ground from the battery. You should use another bolt attached to the body as your ground.

Do you know why it’s not good to use the ground from the battery? Isn’t that ground connected to the same ground as other components? Do you know where else would be a good location for ground!

 

[gregd]

Do you know why it’s not good to use the ground from the battery? Isn’t that ground connected to the same ground as other components? Do you know where else would be a good location for ground!

It ties back to ICE vehicles. If for some reason the ground strap from the battery to the chassis comes loose, when you go to start the engine, all that surge of current will go through your device (assuming the device is grounded to the frame). "Bad Things" happen at that point. Related to an EV, there isn't a starting current, but there still are some substantial currents floating round from time to time, at least, more substantial than the camera's wiring is intended to carry. So, use the vehicle chassis for grounds, near the battery to limit any ground loops.

The other best practice is to fuse both the power and ground lines to prevent large currents from going the wrong way in the event of wiring issues elsewhere in the car.

 

[clx]

So, use the vehicle chassis for grounds, near the battery to limit any ground loops.

The other best practice is to fuse both the power and ground lines to prevent large currents from going the wrong way in the event of wiring issues elsewhere in the car.

Thanks for the explanation. Can you provide a picture where you hook the ground to? I’ve tried looking for a place where I can ground the cam to but I can only find 1 large bolt near where the battery is and it’s very hard to get loose (and didn’t want to risk forcing it loose in case I can’t make it as tight again).

 

[nhirsch]

I documented my always on install in attached PDFs. However about 2 weeks later had a service message. Seems the 12V monitoring system on the Model 3 is going to play havoc with always on dashcam installs. This needs to be fixed by Tesla. Having a battery that can power my house for a week or so should be able to keep a 12 V battery charged so that it can provide max of 350mw for the Blackvue dashcam with wifi on. Note, haven't used the 110V inverter function. This was just the dashcam and an occasional USB powered hotspot.

Service wrote the following:

Concern: Customer states car needs service/contact Tesla service alert is on.
Corrections: 12V Battery and Fuses General Diagnosis
Inspected 12 volt battery assembly, found aftermarket camera's installed and connected
directly to the battery. Due to the consumption monitoring capabilities of the model 3 this
installation directly at the battery will lead to alerts and or loss of 12v. Replaced 12 volt
battery as one time good will. Disconnected aftermarket power wires from 12v battery.

Concern: Remote diagnostics show that this vehicle's 12V battery is in need of an urgent
replacement due to frequent overcharging.
Pay Type: Warranty
Corrections: Battery - Auxiliary - 12V

 

[lunitiks]

"Frequent overcharging"?

 

[nhirsch]

"Frequent overcharging"?

that's what it said. given dashcam is 350mw max with wifi turned on, can't imagine how such would cause frequent recharging. have same install (different model blackfue) in my Model S always-on and has been no problem for 4 years.

 

[lunitiks]

I agree.

I'd ask them though, why they wrote frequent overcharging (and not frequent "charging" or "recharging")...

 

[zkmusa]

I documented my always on install in attached PDFs. However about 2 weeks later had a service message. Seems the 12V monitoring system on the Model 3 is going to play havoc with always on dashcam installs. This needs to be fixed by Tesla. Having a battery that can power my house for a week or so should be able to keep a 12 V battery charged so that it can provide max of 350mw for the Blackvue dashcam with wifi on. Note, haven't used the 110V inverter function. This was just the dashcam and an occasional USB powered hotspot.

Service wrote the following:

Concern: Customer states car needs service/contact Tesla service alert is on.
Corrections: 12V Battery and Fuses General Diagnosis
Inspected 12 volt battery assembly, found aftermarket camera's installed and connected
directly to the battery. Due to the consumption monitoring capabilities of the model 3 this
installation directly at the battery will lead to alerts and or loss of 12v. Replaced 12 volt
battery as one time good will. Disconnected aftermarket power wires from 12v battery.

Concern: Remote diagnostics show that this vehicle's 12V battery is in need of an urgent
replacement due to frequent overcharging.
Pay Type: Warranty
Corrections: Battery - Auxiliary - 12V

Thanks for posting these guides. It’s very helpful!

In regards to your rear camera, are you concerned that the wire crossing the B pillar will interfere with the airbags? That’s my only concern.

 

[K-MTG]

I documented my always on install in attached PDFs. However about 2 weeks later had a service message. Seems the 12V monitoring system on the Model 3 is going to play havoc with always on dashcam installs. This needs to be fixed by Tesla. Having a battery that can power my house for a week or so should be able to keep a 12 V battery charged so that it can provide max of 350mw for the Blackvue dashcam with wifi on. Note, haven't used the 110V inverter function. This was just the dashcam and an occasional USB powered hotspot.

Service wrote the following:

Concern: Customer states car needs service/contact Tesla service alert is on.
Corrections: 12V Battery and Fuses General Diagnosis
Inspected 12 volt battery assembly, found aftermarket camera's installed and connected
directly to the battery. Due to the consumption monitoring capabilities of the model 3 this
installation directly at the battery will lead to alerts and or loss of 12v. Replaced 12 volt
battery as one time good will. Disconnected aftermarket power wires from 12v battery.

Concern: Remote diagnostics show that this vehicle's 12V battery is in need of an urgent
replacement due to frequent overcharging.
Pay Type: Warranty
Corrections: Battery - Auxiliary - 12V

What are the other options? Use the blackvue battery?

 

[Supertester777]

There are several cases of the 12v battery dying even without any Dashcam being used. So Tesla reasoning about the dashcam being the root cause is nonsense.

 

[Az_Rael]

In regards to your rear camera, are you concerned that the wire crossing the B pillar will interfere with the airbags? That’s my only concern.

You can avoid the airbags if you take the covers off vs just tucking. The main reason why I routed my rear cam thru the floorboard was to avoid the airbags. I still had to route around the A pillar one, but there are wiring channels under the cover you can use.

 

[Toast]

Its not just what they write for the dashcam, its the error message for some reason its throwing. My car is currently in the service center for I am fairly certain the same reason. I installed a dash cam about a month ago, a couple days ago got the contact tesla service message. And when I dropped it off they sent the repair email on what they were going to do and it said the exact same about freqent overcharging. So it seems that somehow the dashcam is throwing that error. I suspect software or something, but I am assuming I am losing my 24 hour access to dashcam when i get my car back.

 

[MP3Mike]

I am assuming I am losing my 24 hour access to dashcam when i get my car back.

I'm assuming your dashcam won't be hooked up to power at all. You will need to find a different power source to connect it to that won't cause the consumption monitoring equipment problems.

 

[Toast]

I'm assuming your dashcam won't be hooked up to power at all. You will need to find a different power source to connect it to that won't cause the consumption monitoring equipment problems.

Yes, thats what I was implying. I know it wont be hooked up, and I will find an alternative way to power it. I just meant I will be "losing" my current setup of running of 12v battery to give me 24 hours of recording. I will just grab power from in the cabin or something that will only give me access when driving, and maybe with time a software update will make it so I can go back to the way it was.

 

[Supertester777]

Yes, thats what I was implying. I know it wont be hooked up, and I will find an alternative way to power it. I just meant I will be "losing" my current setup of running of 12v battery to give me 24 hours of recording. I will just grab power from in the cabin or something that will only give me access when driving, and maybe with time a software update will make it so I can go back to the way it was.

The DR750 consumes just 350mA with Wifi and GPS turned on. Or we could explore if we can use this battery pack https://www.amazon.com/20000mAh-Rechargeable-Portable-Lithium-ion-Battery/dp/B00YK6DO80 and and use an invertor from the 12V plug.

 

[Fusion]

You guys could hook it up to the OBD for power also. They actually sell it and it's called : OBD Power Cable for BlackVue .
You can also make one for cheaper if sourced from China but it will take 1-2 months depending on the seller.