Fender cam (like tesla sentry)

adalex

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Dash Cam
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I'm sure this isn't the best place but it's the best place I can think of.

Has anyone been able/thought of how it might be possible to add dash cams to the front fenders and angle them out like the tesla? I'm sure cutting the fender would be required but wanted to know if anyone had done anything like that. I was also thinking of somehow adding cams to the inside of the side mirrors in a way where I wouldn't have to make any permanent modifications.

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Not many of the down the side cameras out there, and most are low resolution ( 720p ) and at least for this forum untested / unreported models.


These do not require any cutting / drilling of car, feed thru the door gap and stick in place on the front fender just in front of that gap and not "way" out on the front fender.

Thinkware also aired a 4 channel system a while back at CES 2019, but not put in production yet, that one should be 1080p on the side cameras

 
Personally i prefer cameras on the inside aimed to the side at a 90 degree angle, but this are more difficult as you have very different layouts in cars, and you have airbags ASO to contend with too.
My car have a little fixed glass on both front and rear doors, so i have put my side cameras on the rear side doors, that way i have been able to install it normally by sticking it to the glass, which you of course can not do on windows that can go up and down, so you need fixed door glass, or some cars also have a little window in the rear D pillar.

I dont feel it is nessesary to have a camera down the side, as anything coming up from behind is a potential sideswiping manner will be caught fine on the rear camera, and you actually do not need to record the impact itself to prove he / she did it.
 
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it will be hard to mount ( glue ) anything to side mirrors as most surfaces on them are curved in some degree, so you need a mount that exactly match that shape, which mean you would have to stock many mounts for a range of cars.
sticking something to the actual mirror surface i think would be illegal in Denmark, anyway you still have the challenge of feeding the camera wire into the cabin of the car, so you need to take the mirror off the car at the very least, something that most people are not brave enough to attempt or have the DIY skill to do
This are also much the case with inside glass side cameras if you do not have a fixed glass, in that case i feel it is best to mount off the top of the door trim plastic, but this area too are often far from flat so again you need a range of mounts to fit different door shapes in this area.

The G net and future thinkware system stick to the very back of the front fender, which are generally fairly flat, still i have to admit i do not feel 100% sure they will stay in place in the car wash ASO
 
My 360 coverage,,,,,, well not right up against my car, but a little distance and it work okay, though i would like wider angle lenses for my side cameras.


Street Guardian are also mindful of this multi channel stuff / side camera stuff, i make sure to keep poking the SG boss so he dont fall asleep at the wheel.
But there are many challenges to overcome in this regard, technically ASO it is no problem, the hardware is there, but how people can install it in / on their cars easy are a whole other matter.
 
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Yeah i saw that on some French car,,,,,, though i wonder how i spotted that little camera down there.

I am not a fan of such things for dashcam, i assume they are fish eye lenses, so need some processing to flatten the view out, and then if you are only interested in the 1/4 of the FOV that are out back you are also only using 1/4 of the sensor resolution.
I do think the bottom of many mirrors might be flat so you could stick / screw something to that surface, but again you are got going to be able to do that just like ( snap fingers ) and most people are not willing to pay a shop for 3-4-5 hours of work installing a dashcam.

No i think inside the cabin cameras are the way to go, though in regard to side cameras it will probably be hard to come up with a easy to install plug and play setup, do think some form of flexible mount are needed.

Not only do you have to be able to install the camera, you also have to remember that the glass in front of the camera need to be cleaned, so you can not have a none detachable camera right up against the glass, and even one that you can turn still give you precious little space to work with while cleaning the glass.

Cleaning my side windows where the K2S cameras are are a pain, the rear window have also bacome that as the A139 rear camera are not detachable ( dont have a mount ) so i can just turn it, so will have to magnet mount it like the DR camera back there.
 
I wonder if its possible to do a universal position like behind the fender well or something that only needs minor modifications (little hole) in plastic etc. What got me thinking about this is all the tesla videos where someone keys the car/speeds up and cuts people off etc. I did see a bunch of cameras that could go into the side mirror with a hole saw to make it fit, but its obviously permanent.

Found this

https://www.amazon.com/gp/B07JHD4QRN
Looks interesting but not sure how much of an issue it is with potentially someone messing with it.
If you put in "side mirror camera" on amazon it pulls up a bunch of different types
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I wonder if its possible to do a universal position like behind the fender well or something that only needs minor modifications (little hole) in plastic etc. What got me thinking about this is all the tesla videos where someone keys the car/speeds up and cuts people off etc. I did see a bunch of cameras that could go into the side mirror with a hole saw to make it fit, but its obviously permanent.

Found this

https://www.amazon.com/gp/B07JHD4QRN
Looks interesting but not sure how much of an issue it is with potentially someone messing with it.
If you put in "side mirror camera" on amazon it pulls up a bunch of different types
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That's a backup camera so not sure how you plan to make it function as a Dash Camera since it doesn't contain storage capabilities....
 
I assume thats just a backup camera so no recording capabilities, though you of course could add a recorder.
There is a range of X channel recorders for analog cameras available, i myself had such a 4 channel setup in my car many many years ago, not something i would recommend as i t is just low resolution analog cameras, and today at least for dashcam use you should not accept anything less than 1080p
Many of the daschcam systems are also targeted at commercial vehicles such as bus or semi trucks where you would put the camera on the mirror "tree" in which case it can be just about any shape.

I assume with those analog cameras you would need a monitor with several inputs to display 2 or more cameras, unless you get a recorder in which case it can probably mix several inputs like my old system also did.

I am myself in the market for a good reversing system as with age my back are less and less happy about getting flexed to look over my shoulder when reversing, but for this i want a proper reversing camera and possible a nice LCD to replace or attach to my existing mirror.

Here is a video of my analog 4 channel system ( back in 2013 ) i am talking in Danish but the visuals also give some knowledge, the system was connected to my 2 X DIN headunit with a 7" screen.


This video demo the perspective from my rear camera.

I guess you could use that to reverse buy aside for it dont have a range of useful reversing camera features i would like.
 
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Not many of the down the side cameras out there, and most are low resolution ( 720p ) and at least for this forum untested / unreported models.


These do not require any cutting / drilling of car, feed thru the door gap and stick in place on the front fender just in front of that gap and not "way" out on the front fender.

Thinkware also aired a 4 channel system a while back at CES 2019, but not put in production yet, that one should be 1080p on the side cameras


I think that wiring a side camera at present would require 2 individual units. I.E. Vifo A139's which aren't even in production. The main unit could go on windshield, and the two small cameras are mounted on the side windows. Although, with a Sedan type vehicle, this is far more difficult. SUVs / Trucks have fixed glass that offer a better position without having to figure out how to remove door panels and route the wire in a manner that won't bend or catch.

None the less, you'd then need a second Viofo A139 so you could have a 2nd Front Facing Unit (Main Camera), an interior facing unit, and then one facing out the back glass.

Easily achievable (for a price) in a Sedan or Truck. Far more difficult in a Sedan with having to figure out how to get wires from the car into the doors and then remove paneling. None the less, a four channel camera would simplify everything except of course you'd lack an interior cam, still.
 
the two small cameras are mounted on the side windows. Although, with a Sedan type vehicle, this is far more difficult. SUVs / Trucks have fixed glass that offer a better position without having to figure out how to remove door panels and route the wire in a manner that won't bend or catch.
What are you talking about? My truck has no fixed side glass at all. And I route the cable to my rear cam in both cars and trucks overhead across the headliner.
 
overhead across the headliner.

I have looked in above my headliner ( from the back of the car ) and it do not appear possible to route anything that way, unless i can somehow force my way thru what look to be blocked.
It would otherwise be a nice direct route, but it look blocked in my car, but maybe i should do a poke around with something to see if looks are deceiving.
 
@kamkar I don't know if it's feasible for you but if you can find a junkyard (breakers) with an example of your car in it without the headliner intact then you could see where the places are that cabling can be routed. Or maybe a pic of the same online. Except for the cars where the headliner is a molded shell attached to the metal roof by glue there's almost always going to be an open cable path if you can find it. Even those will have a cable path but you may not be able to access it without pulling and ruining the headliner.

Phil
 
Yeah i have been thinking along those lines myself, when looking above the headlined it look as if there are reinforcements across the cabin in the headliner, but whether this are just a "fold / mold" in the headliner itself or there are some kind of brace in there i have no idea.
But it look like it follow the shape of the roof, so either i will have to push over it, or push thru the headliner "fold/mold" itself as it look to be a inch or so tall.
Also maybe i should just look for a headliner and hope it have good pictures to better gauge what is what that way.
TBH i dont think it will cost much for a new headliner should i destroy the old one, hell i am a practical guy so i could probably do without it and just glue a inch or so of noise insulation on the roof.
 
There's usually metal ribs above the headliner holding the roof up, but those almost always have spaces or places where wiring can go. For the glue-in type use a bicycle flag pole or a fishing rod without the line-holding eyes to kind of poke a path through. Just watch inside so you don't poke through where you don't want to. When you reach the other end, attach cable and pull the pole out with it. You'll hit those metal ribs though, so you need to know exactly where there's a path past them or over them.

Phil
 
I have looked in above my headliner ( from the back of the car ) and it do not appear possible to route anything that way, unless i can somehow force my way thru what look to be blocked.
If I can do it in a late model Audi with a sunroof, I’m pretty sure it can be done on anything. Headliners don’t need to be something to fear. Grab a fish tape and get to work :)
 
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