A129 Pro + HK-3 – second kit broke down in one week

[ed0]

Hi,


I bought Viofo A129 Pro dashcam with Viofo HK-3 hardwire kit cable and brought my car (2021 VW Touareg eHybrid) to a company, which specializes in installing dash cams, alarm systems, etc. (it is the biggest and most reputable in our country|) to hardwire the dashcam.

After the dash cam was installed, everything was great for 4 days. Then I started my car in the morning and the dash cam did not turn on. I plugged in the car charger cable and everything was fine. I brought my car back to the dealership and they told that the HK-3 cable was faulty – there’s no voltage coming out of the black module (box) of the cable. So I purchased another HK-3 hardwire kit, the company replaced the cable and everything was working again. But after 5 days the same problem – dash cam did not turn on after starting a car after the night. Everything works fine with a car charger cable. 2 hardware kits in one week. I don’t think the problem is with the kits (the seller told they have never had any HK-3 kit returned), but I don’t know what to do. I don’t want to purchase the 3rd hardware kit cable, to pay for the reinstallation of it and the same situation to repeat for the 3rd time…

I don’t use the parking mode and don’t have plans to do it in the future.


What could be the reasons? As far as I understand, either the cable was indeed damaged/defective twice (because of some unknown reason), or it was just a voltage cut-off because of the vehicle’s battery discharge (maybe plug-in hybrid cars let the battery to discharge more, as my car has an additional 18kW battery).


What are your suggestions? Since I don’t use parking mode, maybe I should use just a normal 12V cable without any voltage cut-off features? On the other hand, if for some reason something damages the hardware kit cable, my dashcam can be damaged, if connected directly.


Thanks in advance!

 

[Nigel]

Do you have a multimeter, or anything that can check the voltages? Or a friend who can check it?

Can you take some photos of the installed kit and how it is connected?

It is possible that the car battery has discharged and the low voltage cut off activated, and if the HK3 does not have the ACC cable connected properly then it may not restart. I think for that to happen, they would have needed to connect the ACC cable at some point, so it seems unlikely this is the problem, but without checking what they have done, nobody can say what is wrong.

 

[ed0]

Do you have a multimeter, or anything that can check the voltages? Or a friend who can check it?

Can you take some photos of the installed kit and how it is connected?

It is possible that the car battery has discharged and the low voltage cut off activated, and if the HK3 does not have the ACC cable connected properly then it may not restart. I think for that to happen, they would have needed to connect the ACC cable at some point, so it seems unlikely this is the problem, but without checking what they have done, nobody can say what is wrong.

Thanks for the reply!
I can't check anything, as I don't know how it was connected and everything is hidden.
But do I need the HK-3 hardwire kit at all if I don't use the parking mode? Maybe just a normal cable without any voltage cut-offs will be fine?

 

[Nigel]

But do I need the HK-3 hardwire kit at all if I don't use the parking mode? Maybe just a normal cable without any voltage cut-offs will be fine?

As long as it powers off when you are parked then it should be fine, although the cable might not be as neat as the professional install if you don't have a hidden accessory socket.

If your accessory sockets stay on when parked, as some do, then there is a significant risk of flattening the car battery, since there is no low voltage cutoff on the accessory socket, unless there is one provided by your car, which is possible, I don't know much about VWs.

I can't check anything, as I don't know how it was connected and everything is hidden.

This makes it very difficult for anyone here to help with the problem!

 

[ed0]

This makes it very difficult for anyone here to help with the problem!

I understand... I thought that maybe someone could give some thoughts on what the problem might be.
The company that hardwired the dashcam is really reputable, they have installed thousands of dashcams, therefore, it shouldn't be related to their work quality. On the other hand, two non-functional kits in one week, when the seller never had a cable kit returned previously, also indicates that this couldn't be a coincidence. Therefore, I think this might be somehow related to my car...

 

[gamesfrager]

I had what I thought a faulty hard wire kit, until I connected both the accessory wire to a switched fuse and the power wire to a constant 12v, then it started powering my camera.
If you say this was working fine before, then I would suggest checking the fuses the kit connects to.