DIY, hardwiring, external dashcam vs. new car warranty

Questor

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Dash Cam
Researcg in progress...
Folks,

First and foremost (aka disclaimer): this question and following discussion (if occurs) may be too trivial for you, or may challenge your beliefs, please don't be infuriated: I am not a car person. Never had, never needed, never wanted, have close to ZERO car background, and just a different common sense (long live diversity!).
I was able to get away with this for the first 40 years of my life; now with my new life in New England, USA it's a sort of too much trouble to go barefoot, so I got a brand new car, and diving into the dash cam world.

Here's the dilemma: My car is less than a month as bought. Any modifications will void the warranty for affected parts. I signed up for an extended service contract, but the dealership won't deal with custom solutions. All I want to have is a widest angle front/back dash cam with hard-wiring (for buffered parking mode and stealthy setup) and external rear camera (because of tinted glass). I likely will need to hire someone to do this job.
For reference, my car is 2015 Honda CR-V Touring (geez I love it).

But how do you people deal with new car warranty in your DIY projects?
Please advise.
 
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From what I understand of warranties, they're legally not allowed to deny a warranty claim unless they can prove your modification is what made the part fail.
 
use fuse taps, don't modify any factory wiring and avoid any grief

Agreed 100% They can't deny your warranty if you didn't modify anything. As to the rear camera, I have a tinted rear window and I'm thinking of buying a 2nd SC9665GC for the rear (I have one in the front and I LOVE it) I'll have to take a look at the menu on mine to confirm, but I believe there are settings for exposure so it could work through a tinted rear.
 
Agreed 100% They can't deny your warranty if you didn't modify anything. As to the rear camera, I have a tinted rear window and I'm thinking of buying a 2nd SC9665GC for the rear (I have one in the front and I LOVE it) I'll have to take a look at the menu on mine to confirm, but I believe there are settings for exposure so it could work through a tinted rear.

there are EV adjustments, we do have some users that have them setup for rear window duties and they do ok even through tinted glass
 
...I'm thinking of buying a 2nd SC9665GC for the rear (I have one in the front and I LOVE it) I'll have to take a look at the menu on mine to confirm, but I believe there are settings for exposure so it could work through a tinted rear.

there are EV adjustments, we do have some users that have them setup for rear window duties and they do ok even through tinted glass

I'm one of those using an SG9665GC in the rear and it's working out fine. Since I posted these samples I've upped the EV to +2/3.

Sample night video (no CPL):



... and a link showing how dark my rear glass is and a daytime video (with CPL):
https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/threa...-sg9665xx-a118xx-and-b40xx.11698/#post-151367
https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/threa...-sg9665xx-a118xx-and-b40xx.11698/#post-151367
 
I'm one of those using an SG9665GC in the rear and it's working out fine. Since I posted these samples I've upped the EV to +2/3.

Sample night video (no CPL):



... and a link showing how dark my rear glass is and a daytime video (with CPL):

https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/threa...-sg9665xx-a118xx-and-b40xx.11698/#post-151367

Wow that's quite dark! Do you find that with the exposure values changed the GC does well through the tint with the CPL on? Or do you have to remove it for night driving?
 
Wow that's quite dark! Do you find that with the exposure values changed the GC does well through the tint with the CPL on? Or do you have to remove it for night driving?
I'm too lazy to remove it so it stays on. :D

Actually, there's no real need to remove it at night. Here's a night sample with CPL and +2/3 EV:


You'll notice there are no street lights because of construction in this area. This is probably the worst condition possible other than no light at all.
 
I'm too lazy to remove it so it stays on. :D

Actually, there's no real need to remove it at night. Here's a night sample with CPL and +2/3 EV:


You'll notice there are no street lights because of construction in this area. This is probably the worst condition possible other than no light at all.

Fantastic! Thank you for the sample! I'll have to pick up a secondary GC and figure out how to wire it in the rear :D

To the OP, I hope this helps. In my mind, a camera inside the rear window would be much easier to install and, in the case of the samples I've seen here from the SG9665GC, just as clear, if not more so than an external would be. With an external camera you have to worry about rain/dirt ect getting on the lens. I have a backup camera on my Subaru Outback and if it's raining I end up with water droplets on the lens all the time, making it almost impossible to see anything. As for buffered parking mode, I can't offer any advice there, since that's not something I was looking for in a dash cam.
 
I'm one of those using an SG9665GC in the rear and it's working out fine. Since I posted these samples I've upped the EV to +2/3.

Sample night video (no CPL):



... and a link showing how dark my rear glass is and a daytime video (with CPL):
https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/threa...-sg9665xx-a118xx-and-b40xx.11698/#post-151367
https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/threa...-sg9665xx-a118xx-and-b40xx.11698/#post-151367

Did you do an install thread? I'd like to see how you mounted it.
 
Did you do an install thread? I'd like to see how you mounted it.
No, I did not. It was just a matter of determining where on the rear hatch I wanted the camera and affixing the mounting plate. From there I just tucked the wiring (power and GPS) behind headliners/molding/carpet/etc. until I got to the power source. I did have to leave a fair bit of power cable visible to allow the hatch to open. The specific routing will obviously be different for every vehicle. I have a 12V accessory outlet in the rear passenger area that I used to power both front and rear cameras using a dual outlet USB adapter/converter.

This is how the wiring ended up using a couple of 90 degree USB connectors. (The rear seat in my vehicle is seldom used and when it is it's by adults so I'm not too concerned about the location of the wires. If necessary I could hide them away better than this but have no real need to.) I like this because from the front passenger area you can't see anything except the GPS antenna and the wires as they exit the headliner and go into the camera - and most of that is hidden behind the mirror.

RearPower.jpg


This is the USB adapter I use to power both cameras:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/B00MSYQ94W
 
Folks,

After 3 weeks of reads and doubts I decided to go with 2-ch ThinkWare 750. Ordering in the next days.
I'd rather get some professional help with hardwiring, concealing, weighting options (such as put the main unit on windshield after-market tint strip vs. swap front with back, etc.)
As follows from my post starting this thread - I'm not a car person, hence no garage, no tools, not even sure about using right words, new in town as well as to car world.
I did talk to an installer at local BestBuy, and also putting a request to Amazon installer service to probe the waters.
These people all do somewhat similar jobs (remote start, audio, alarm, backup camera), so I have something to begin with.
But all things equal, I'd rather hook with someone who did it before, can possibly improvise, and doesn't mind to spare some time in exchange for some hard cash.
Anyone here from New England?
Closer to Boston, MA area, maybe?
Drop a line here plz, if available and interested.
 
a good car audio installer is ideal for this type of work, they're familiar with running cables, removing interior trims without breaking trim clips etc
 
Overall dashcam installation should be fine for BestBuy-guys, nothing complicated, but from my experience in regards to local similar chain of "bestbuy" @Halfords is that I do not 100% trust them, - they are limited with knowledge of removing trim panels, etc. ( they are OK with changing car battery, bulbs, etc ). Best is to talk to car audio and- or alarm system installers as @jokiin mentioned.
 
Thanks guys!
In fact I spoke today to someone who does exactly that: remote start and car audio and such for bestbuy. I wanted him to check my car and get some feedback on feasibility/challenges, but the guy was totally booked off, and I will visit him next weekend.
I will keep in mind the core question (and many thanks for is one!!!), which is indeed going to be an acid test: how confident is someone about handling internal trims/panels without breaking clips/pins/etc. This is a less than 1 month old car with full service contract, and I don't want to give anyone any reason to void any warranty.
Thanks again,
-me.
 
as mentioned fuse taps are the way forward if you know which fuse ports are free however since your not a car person this is out of the question. your best just hiding the cables in the trim and going directly to your car power port.
 
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