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Solar Dashcam

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That solar panel cannot generate 5W continuously. Most likely 1-2W. Which will be fine to charge a battery and then charge a phone later. But not for continuous usage.

The cheap 1080p dashcam I have pulls 2.1W when idle and 3W when recording.

Why not hard-wire it into the battery? The HV system will turn on when the 12V runs low. You can't flatten the 12V like you can on an ICE.
 
Why not hard-wire it into the battery? The HV system will turn on when the 12V runs low. You can't flatten the 12V like you can on an ICE.

Some dashcams switch between driving mode (continuous recording) and parking mode (motion-activated recording) based on the 12V battery's voltage, which is higher when it's being charged. If the 12V battery is periodically charged by the HV battery when parked, wouldn't that cause the dashcam to activate unnecessarily?

Also, I wonder how much more vampire drain this will add, now that the HV battery will wake up more often to charge the 12V.
 
That solar panel cannot generate 5W continuously. Most likely 1-2W. Which will be fine to charge a battery and then charge a phone later. But not for continuous usage.

The cheap 1080p dashcam I have pulls 2.1W when idle and 3W when recording.

Why not hard-wire it into the battery? The HV system will turn on when the 12V runs low. You can't flatten the 12V like you can on an ICE.

Well, I am trying to avoid wires, or diassembling my $100K toy.
I've seen online tutorials on installing dashcams, they look scary :) .. and I'd hate to have wires running around.
My Tesla shows up in about a month, I guess I'll research this more when she's in the garage.

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Some dashcams switch between driving mode (continuous recording) and parking mode (motion-activated recording) based on the 12V battery's voltage, which is higher when it's being charged. If the 12V battery is periodically charged by the HV battery when parked, wouldn't that cause the dashcam to activate unnecessarily?

Also, I wonder how much more vampire drain this will add, now that the HV battery will wake up more often to charge the 12V.

Exactly, Tesla's aren't great at keeping the 12V battery in tip top shape to begin with. This additional drag will make the 12V die sooner.
 
If you're squeamish about disassembling your car, get a dashcam professionally installed for $350 or thereabouts. You won't see any wires.

Also, I've been running a LUKAS 5900 Duo (2 channel) dashcam in my Tesla for almost a year now. It's on 24x7 either in "driving mode" or "parking mode" (which is motion sensor based), and I've had ZERO adverse affects on my batteries or increased vampire drain. These things pull such little current it's really not an issue.

But that time when you're rear-ended and slammed into the car in front of you, and the guy behind you says it was your fault? You'll wish you spent the $500 for a dashcam. Or when this happens to you:

Why A Dash Cam Is Important - Auto Fraud On The Rise -Carcamerahq - YouTube
or this:
Top 10 Worst Insurance Scammers - YouTube

Exactly, Tesla's aren't great at keeping the 12V battery in tip top shape to begin with. This additional drag will make the 12V die sooner.

Really not true.

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Some dashcams switch between driving mode (continuous recording) and parking mode (motion-activated recording) based on the 12V battery's voltage, which is higher when it's being charged. If the 12V battery is periodically charged by the HV battery when parked, wouldn't that cause the dashcam to activate unnecessarily?

My dashcam activates parking mode based on motion sensing, not voltage. And even if it did, the current draw again is so low, so what if it "activates unnecessarily"?

You guys make it sound like dashcams are equivalent to power tools or halogen lights that are current hogs. None of these things are reasons NOT to get a dashcam. They are valuable and useful tools in defending accident or insurance claims. The really pose no threat to your car or battery health. Lots and lots of Model S owners have full time dash cams without any adverse affect (as well as many other 12V accessories). The computers and other systems in the car draw much more current when "asleep" than a dashcam would ever draw.
 
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My dashcam activates parking mode based on motion sensing, not voltage. And even if it did, the current draw again is so low, so what if it "activates unnecessarily"?

You guys make it sound like dashcams are equivalent to power tools or halogen lights that are current hogs. None of these things are reasons NOT to get a dashcam. They are valuable and useful tools in defending accident or insurance claims. The really pose no threat to your car or battery health. Lots and lots of Model S owners have full time dash cams without any adverse affect (as well as many other 12V accessories). The computers and other systems in the car draw much more current when "asleep" than a dashcam would ever draw.

I'm keen to get a dashcam, but I was really concerned about vampire drain as I can't charge at home. My car (when it arrives) will sit in my apartment's underground car park at night and I'll probably supercharge it once a week or so. I can't even monitor it via the phone app or VisibleTesla because there's no 3G reception underground. Glad to hear that there's no noticeable additional drain.
 
The problem with 12V batteries - its all about probability.
Older style lead acid batteries (which 99% cars use), the plates would actually become fragile and brittle if not kept charged, and that caused the battery to fail and the battery dies. The newer style are gel style, which is what Tesla uses now. They cost more (like 50 bucks more), but they last longer. Lower probability of failure, but still they can fail. The problem is, Tesla being energy efficient does not supply enough current to keep the 12V happy. If you drive a lot, its not an issue. But if you drive < 5K a year (like me), then you have a higher chance of the 12V crapping out. This would be the same if you had an automatic and to save on gas if you pull your car in neutral on every downhill. Some cars keep the alternator engaged (german cars, toyotas) even in neutral, but some cars (like Hondas/Acuras/Infinitis) disengage the alternator when in neutral. You do this neutral hypermiling for a month, you'll need a new battery.

So while I agree with Hank that the camera draws very little current, don't underestimate the power consumption of a draw that is on ALL THE TIME. It does increase the probability of battery failure, albeit by how much - its hard to guess. Batteries are random luck to begin with. But yes if you left the camera running in an airport parking lot in the dead of winter for 2 weeks, it does increase your risk significantly .. I feel so .. and its what I will make my risk assesment on.

That said, you could buy a jumpstarter lithium ion battery pack for 40 bucks on amazon. It can give you a jumpstart in a pinch, and doubles up as a flashlight. And even out of warranty, Tesla 12V battery replacement will be 4-500$ (battery itself is $130-$150, plus maybe 1-2 hours of labor, Tesla decided to bury the 12V battery in a deep orifice of the Model S .. Why Fremonters .. WHY!?).

Lets just say, the 12V battery in Tesla isn't the best engineering.

There are three things every self respecting Tesla owner must have in their trunk,

1. That jumpstart battery
2. Jumpstart cables
3. The Tesla tire repair kit (50 bucks, but also can be used to keep your tires at the right pressure, use it every month).

I am making a very nice list of "what to purchase after getting your Tesla" :)
 
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Generally, the Tesla 12v batteries don't just die without warning unless under extreme circumstances (there are exceptions, but they're rare).

In most cases, the driver and Tesla Motors gets an advance warning that the 12V battery needs service. That doesn't mean it's about to die, it means that it does need to be replaced "soon". I never got a message in the dash -- I got a call one day from TM telling me my battery needed service, they came out to my house and replaced the battery -- of course, fully under warranty.

The only time you'd need the jumpstart battery is if your main pack has died (due to bad charge route planning or extreme weather, traffic, etc) and you've also run down the 12v battery running the touchscreen and other systems (heat/A/C) waiting for tow truck. Once the 12v pack also dies, you'd need the jumpstart to get the car into tow mode once the tow truck arrives (assuming you didn't put it into tow mode before).

Otherwise, it's not like the 12v pack is going to suddenly die from running a dashcam (assuming the main pack has a charge).

But yes if you left the camera running in an airport parking lot in the dead of winter for 2 weeks, it does increase your risk significantly .. I feel so .. and its what I will make my risk assesment on.

I really don't think this is true at all. If you park at the airport in the dead of winter for 2 weeks, and your main pack has sufficient charge, the dashcam will have no affect on the 12v battery, as the 12v battery is periodically recharged from the main pack as needed. You're not going to drain or damage the 12v battery in this scenario. And if your main battery is too low to maintain a charge and recharge the 12v battery periodically, and both go dead, the 12v jumper pack isn't going to help you much other than to get the car into tow mode.
 
Generally, the Tesla 12v batteries don't just die without warning unless under extreme circumstances (there are exceptions, but they're rare).
.

And that advance replacement stuff is fabulous engineering.

I actually had the fortune of chatting with a Tesla service manager for HOURS, and he was very patient in explaining me all details in depth.
I forgot the exact numbers, but Tesla monitors voltages of the battery. 12V battery isn't exactly 12. It's 12+x when new. 12-y when dead, and 12-z when about to die .. where x<z<y (sorry forgot exact numbers .. but you get my drift).

And Tesla detects that and replaces the battery proactively. .. as long as you are under warranty that is :) (4 years!).
And this approach DOES reduce the probability of you getting stranded by a lot, which is great! I wish all cars did this.
Well they do actually, batteries have an eye on them, and judging by the color you see there, it tells you the health of the battery.
Still a bit of a crapshoot, but its a lowtech way of solving the same problem, except, nobody looks at that eye :)

Still with this approach of proactive battery replacement, you are safer, but .. still not immune.

12V battery, I feel, is not an exemplary example of Tesla engineering. They could have done better.
For one, you are carrying that heavy battery around all the time - the weight savings alone is worth the research.
But then, no car is perfect.
 
I'm keen to get a dashcam, but I was really concerned about vampire drain as I can't charge at home. My car (when it arrives) will sit in my apartment's underground car park at night and I'll probably supercharge it once a week or so. I can't even monitor it via the phone app or VisibleTesla because there's no 3G reception underground. Glad to hear that there's no noticeable additional drain.
They use 5W max, so even running full time (not sleeping) would be 200hrs per KWHr battery used. True usage would be less than half that (due to sleep) so you'd be looking at about 1KWHr per month. Not much.
 
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They consume a lot of power especially at the quality the cameras we sell. They incorporate GPS, Speed Function, Cloud Capabilities, Motion Sensing and more. We stock BlackVue cameras if anyone is interested.
You sell Blackvue (great cams). But from their own website for the top-spec 650 the power usage is even less than I quoted above:
Avg. 280mA (3.36W at 12V, when GPS and Wi-Fi is On)
Avg. 190mA (2.28W at 12V, when GPS and Wi-Fi is Off)
 
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You sell Blackvue (great cams). But from their own website for the top-spec 650 the power usage is even less than I quoted above:
Avg. 280mA (3.36W at 12V, when GPS and Wi-Fi is On)
Avg. 190mA (2.28W at 12V, when GPS and Wi-Fi is Off)

I don't see how solar will be able to keep them on 24/7. I've seen these installed without the smart battery hardwire kits and they will kill the 12 volt battery on board, so I highly doubt solar power will keep them on. Also I'm referring to on board solar battery charger on the camera itself, I don't think it would have enough solar paneling on a tiny camera to maintain a charge.
 
I've just done some rough calcs.
It would need about 1 x AA battery for every hour of operation, and a 10W solar panel to charge the batteries enough for each day.
That's 24 AA batteries and a panel about 30x20cm (12x8').
That pretty much explains why there's none on the market:)
 
It makes no sense to install expensive solar panels on the roof when you have an EV with a huge battery. Cars are parked in garages or in the shade and in many regions you go weeks with heavy overcast skies. It would really be a silly idea to use solar panels to power one little thing in the car when everything else is powered easily from the 12 Volt and main battery which is recharged every day regardless of the sun. Solar panels make little sense installed on cars. They are best installed on roofs, angled towards the sun and free of shade where they can harvest as much as possible.

Next thing someone suggests to put a little wind generator on top of the car to charge the battery LOL
There would be an advantage in having a solar powered dashcam which didn't need to have any wires. Wires are the thing stopping me (and probably others) from installing a dashcam. I don't want to tear into the interior of the car to hide wires and I don't want them draped over the dashboard.
 
I thought about the wire thing. Yes you need to run wires in the headliner. But that's not intrusive. There are already plenty of wires in there.
The other thing you would need is a decent size battery to power the dashcam at night and during low sunlight. You would need quite a good amount of solar and batteries to reliably run the dash cam.