Installing a CF-100 in a 2008 Toyota Sienna van

[Gibson99]

I couldn't agree more. That said, of the cameras I've seen and used (which is an admittedly small pool) the CF-100 is one of the least obtrusive. It doesn't have flashing lights (you can disable the parking mode LED in software), and the status LEDs are simply on solid. there's no screen, and the brief voice prompts just help remind you that things are working properly (or not, in case of an SD card error, for example). I too want tiny cameras with a remote DVR box i can hide in the dash or center console or something, but nobody makes a good one yet. they exist, but they're low resolution and the mounts for the cameras are giant suction cups. jokiin, a manufacturer who frequents here, says they're working on a 2ch 1080p like that - tiny cameras, remote dvr - and may have something this summer or fall, depending on how prototyping and testing goes. ideally, it'll simply take +12v direct from the car (hardwire) and have battery discharge prevention built in, so you just hook it up to something like the car stereo power leads (+12v constant, +12v key-switched, ground) and don't need to mess with a lighter socket that may or may not be key-switched in some vehicles, and thus has parking mode already built in.

as for the trim in your auris - i used to be a mechanic at a toyota dealer so i got to work on everything. however, that model isn't sold in the US, so i'm not familiar with it. That said, almost all toyota trim simply snaps on around windows and doors. some use metal tabs that go under the door weather stripping, but that becomes obvious as the weatherstrip will come up with the trim when you try to remove it. on the sienna, the plastic trim around the back hatch window does indeed simply snap off. the tricky part is when the plastic clips stay on the metal body/door rather than coming out with the trim. then you have to use an upholstery tool like this to pull them out of the body without breaking them, then slide them back into the slot on the trim.

 

[Knobby]

Thanks for the reply. I guess in the US its a Corrola. Its based on the genIII Prius which I owned previously. Same running gear, but in most respects is a much nicer car to drive and live with, although Touring Sport is a misnomer. Its annoying that it has lots of technology that is useless but the bits that would be simple and useful are absent. I have never even seen the self parking demonstrated. Nice screen to show the reversing camera off but all other functions are duplicated on the instrument bezel. The analogue speedo is so well hidden from view its impossible to tell how fast its going. A vehicle battery the size of a torch is a worry, DAB, Bluetooth and other junc which may me of use to those whose life is long enough to read the manual. With nice discreet camera's in their parts bin one would think front and rear dash cams would be easy for Toyota, but the vehicles appear to be specified by marketing people who have never owned a car . Crash for cash scams here are prolific and most insurance companies give discounts for DashCams, but they are still seen as toys for NERDS by the general public. Everyone who uses them says they want remote,hiden car DVR,s but nobody makes them.

 

[Gibson99]

the corolla wagon (which they don't sell here anymore) was called the toyota matrix (and also sold as the pontiac vibe) and looked quite different. seems toyota has no interest in selling wagons here, except for the Prius-V, which they sell in the UK as a "7-Seat Prius +" according to their website. oh, and the Scion XB. and maybe the Venza, though they call that a "crossover"... whatever "crossover" is supposed to mean. I think the last proper wagon toyota sold in the states was the 1996 camry wagon. i used to want one, but that was because i wanted to turn it into a sleeper - supercharged (they actually did make a supercharger for that 1mz-fe 3.0L v6!), suspension mods, manual transmission swap (since it was only available with an auto)... but then i got married and had kids so that idea went away. we plan to replace my wife's minivan with a hybrid highlander some time soon.

as for your tiny battery - don't worry about it. that's only because the actual gas engine is so small. most hondas have batteries that small as well, and they're just as reliable as larger ones, but as a bonus, they're cheaper to replace. plus, the hybrid battery is what's called on to do a hot restart (car already "ready", running from battery), so the little baby battery isn't used much. in addition, if yours is like some of the prius (prii?) here, having that starter battery mounted in the interior, away from engine heat, means that the battery will last a lot longer.

 

[molson.david]

Here is my install: the dash cam mounted to the windshield via dual lock 3m nails on the passenger side behind the rear view mirror. Easy to remove and it's not abstracting the view.

 

[Gibson99]

that is one SERIOUS radar mount! almost didn't even see the CF100 hanging out on the right edge. that's about how much of the camera i can see behind my mirror too. Now that it's getting hot outside again, I'm thinking about taking off the ball mount and replacing it with a small sheet metal bracket similar to how some folks mount their mobius. Something like this. This will do several things:
1) get the lens closer to the windshield for less glare/dash reflections
2) make it solid so it can't be as easily bumped out of aim by someone's hand or the windshield sun shade (and hopefully less likely to be covered by the shade for parking mode)
3) get it further away from the mirror so it can be mounted even higher, closer to the dotted area at the top, hiding the camera further

might have some other benefits too, but those are the ones i'm most concerned with.

 

[BusterDuster]

Lastly a word on safety. When routing cables in a vehicle with side curtain airbags, you have to be VERY careful. These two pictures show the rear camera's cable being routed over the driver's door into the A-pillar. In the first picture, you can see how the cable is coming out of the rubber weatherstrip/trim, and goes over the airbag (white fabric). This is what would happen if you simply tucked it into the weatherstrip, then into the top edge of the A-pillar trim, then in between the windshield and A-pillar trim. Basically this would bind the airbag and prevent it from deploying properly during a collision - obviously a Very Bad Thing. The second picture shows how I ran the cable BEHIND the airbag, and then in the factory clips near the windshield and factory wiring, so that the cable won't get in the way if the airbag ever goes off. It only took me an extra 5 minutes to unscrew the top of the A-pillar trim and snap the rest of it off, but it will pay off if the side airbags ever need to go off, because the wiring I added won't get in the way of the airbags.
View attachment 9041 View attachment 9042[/QUOTE]
Nice Installation! I have a Toyota Sienna too and I'm trying to settle on a dual system. The caution on the air bags is most excellent. Do you happen to know how long your cable was that you ran to the rear camera, did you need to extend it? Thanks

 

[Gibson99]

Nice Installation! I have a Toyota Sienna too and I'm trying to settle on a dual system. The caution on the air bags is most excellent. Do you happen to know how long your cable was that you ran to the rear camera, did you need to extend it? Thanks

Thanks. I didn't measure the cable but it was exactly long enough with only a few inches of slack at each end. It was as if it was made for this van.

 

[BusterDuster]

Thanks. I didn't measure the cable but it was exactly long enough with only a few inches of slack at each end. It was as if it was made for this van.

That's awesome that the cable length was perfect... FYI I found the specs and it says the cable is 6 meters.
The rear window of the Sienna are tinted, was wondering how are your videos at night?

 

[Gibson99]

That's awesome that the cable length was perfect... FYI I found the specs and it says the cable is 6 meters.
The rear window of the Sienna are tinted, was wondering how are your videos at night?

surprisingly good. you can see some screenshots in the first page of this thread. only one shot is from the front.

if you're wondering, the plastic trim at the back of the ceiling (where the 3rd row center seatbelt comes down) simply snaps on and off, as does the trim around the top and sides of the back glass. don't use any tools, only your hands. then to remove the rubber hose between the roof and the door, you'll need a small flat screwdriver to press the 4 tabs that hold it on the roof side, but you can remove it from the door by hand. the a-pillar trim has an airbag logo at the top - pry this out from the bottom with a flat screwdriver, then there's a 10mm bolt inside. once that's out, slide the trim up a half inch or so, then you'll see it has 2 tethers inside. that's to keep the trim from flying into your face when the side airbag goes off. it will be obvious how to take them off, but it's not easy to get your hands in there. you don't really HAVE to remove the tethers, but it makes it a lot easier to feed the power cord up from below. zip tie the power lead to the existing wiring, and avoid the airbags.

if you have an xle or limited with the power rear door, make sure you keep the rear cam cable clear of the door mechanism on the left rear. those gears will shred a cable in an instant. there's plenty of existing wiring you can zip tie to, to keep the rear cam cable clear of the gears.

this applies to the 2004-2010 sienna only. i don't know what it looks like in the current generation, 2011-up, and it's been too long since i worked on a first gen sienna, so i don't remember what those look like.

 

[Gibson99]

forgot to mention... go to my youtube channel (in my signature) and find the video about I-10 to 610 to 290. It's in the cf100 section. that was recorded with the cf100 in the sienna. the front video is unmodified. the only thing i did to the rear video was cut off the top and bottom, then mirror it to make it look like what you'd see in the rearview mirror. the camera automatically handles gain, and you can see that there's very little difference between front and rear video brightness. and my windshield is not tinted. yes it's daytime, but it should give you a good idea of how the rear cam performs thru the factory privacy glass.

 

[BusterDuster]

forgot to mention... go to my youtube channel (in my signature) and find the video about I-10 to 610 to 290. It's in the cf100 section. that was recorded with the cf100 in the sienna. the front video is unmodified. the only thing i did to the rear video was cut off the top and bottom, then mirror it to make it look like what you'd see in the rearview mirror. the camera automatically handles gain, and you can see that there's very little difference between front and rear video brightness. and my windshield is not tinted. yes it's daytime, but it should give you a good idea of how the rear cam performs thru the factory privacy glass.

Thanks for all the info, man I was lucky finding this thread.
I have a 2005 Toyota Sienna le,
Been following the Lukas 7950 stuff on the forum but getting a little scared, many issues...
It's still very new, it would be nice if the Koreans would pound out the problems.
For me it seems perfect, I have a handicap van and like the wifi...
Having second thoughts, this cf100 is looking better and better.
Only thing, if you were in an accident you would have to pull the microSd
Slap it into your phone or tablet, and play video. Have you tried this?
Is the cf100 pretty stable?
BTY - Was this your accident on YouTube?
Incident US 290 at Huffmeister 11-11-14 6pm

 

[Gibson99]

Thanks for all the info, man I was lucky finding this thread.
I have a 2005 Toyota Sienna le,
Been following the Lukas 7950 stuff on the forum but getting a little scared, many issues...
It's still very new, it would be nice if the Koreans would pound out the problems.
For me it seems perfect, I have a handicap van and like the wifi...
Having second thoughts, this cf100 is looking better and better.
Only thing, if you were in an accident you would have to pull the microSd
Slap it into your phone or tablet, and play video. Have you tried this?
Is the cf100 pretty stable?
BTY - Was this your accident on YouTube?
Incident US 290 at Huffmeister 11-11-14 6pm

the cf100 seems fine so far, though i did have a sandisk ultra 64gb card die in it recently. when using a cam in parking mode, make sure you use a good quality card.

as for reviewing footage on the scene... well, there's one problem. the cf100 combines the front video and rear video into one .avi file. if you put the sd card in an android device (i highly recommend MX Player), you can play it but you'll only see the front video, not the rear. on a windows pc, you can use vlc media player to watch both front and rear, or you can use the splitter script i wrote (link in my signature) to break it apart into individual files, again, on windows only. can't offer any advice on ios or macos since i only have windows, linux and android devices here.

And yes that was my accident. Filmed with the A118.

 

[BusterDuster]

the cf100 seems fine so far, though i did have a sandisk ultra 64gb card die in it recently. when using a cam in parking mode, make sure you use a good quality card.

as for reviewing footage on the scene... well, there's one problem. the cf100 combines the front video and rear video into one .avi file. if you put the sd card in an android device (i highly recommend MX Player), you can play it but you'll only see the front video, not the rear. on a windows pc, you can use vlc media player to watch both front and rear, or you can use the splitter script i wrote (link in my signature) to break it apart into individual files, again, on windows only. can't offer any advice on ios or macos since i only have windows, linux and android devices here.

And yes that was my accident. Filmed with the A118.

I have a Samsung Note 8 tablet w/ MX Player,and use VLC on PC. I can toss that tablet into my handicap scooter basket anytime I'm driving, a laptop would not work. I've been in two accidents within the last year. Each involving some POS driver tailgating me. Long story but one was deemed not my fault and the other deemed over 50% my fault. Had I a dash cam there would be no questions, they each lied to the police. My insurance went up 56% (thank you AAA), they say base rate raise across the board, higher mileage and the accidents, I'm trying to get them to give me a discount with a dash cam and re-negotiate mileage. Hence, I'm looking for a very good dash cam solution. I can't be jacking around with things if something happens again, need to be able to whip out the tablet and show police evidence clearly. I think trying to show on a little LCD screen defeats the impression and you loose some of the veracity of what your trying to accomplish. Big clear picture is what works for me. You may have just a little time to make your impression/case which could be key. This is just what I think will work best for me in my handicap situation. My hands are numb and it would be hard to fiddle around with little buttons, small screens or removing cards and the such.

You were lucky to have the dash cam, it clearly shows who was at fault. Apparently you didn't really need to use it because the other party confessed to his guilt. Really shows the value of having a black box cam, great video!

I was thinking of replacing my interior lights with led's too. I found on amazon, here is the link, do you think these are the right ones? Or is is there something better? Cheers Brother

 

[Gibson99]

yes, that's the exact kit i bought. our vans use 2 different types of bulbs for the interior lights, but the kit i received has the wrong quantity. after i emailed him, the seller was quick to send me the right ones. on my 2008, the 2 map lights, the 4 dome lights and the 2 at the bottom rear of the sliding door openings (on the body of the car, not on the door) are all the little 168 wedge bulbs. the 2 bulbs in the front doors and the one in the cargo area are festoon style, which looks similar to an old glass fuse but with pointy metal ends. apparently whoever put together the kit thought the ones in the sliders were also festoon. that said, i contacted the seller and he's sending me 2 more of the wedge base bulbs for the sliders. he said i didn't need to worry about sending the extra festoon LEDs back to him. i only emailed him about it a few days ago and haven't received the new ones yet, but it sounds like he takes it seriously and will probably fix the kits for future shipments. check to see if maybe your sliders use festoons instead of a wedge. mine is an 08 with the updated headlights, grille/bumper and tail lights, so it's possible (though unlikely) they changed this light too. the lens by the slider on mine pops off real easy with a small flat screwdriver. the map lights and dome lights aren't as easy, but it's not too bad.

funny (sad?) thing about that wreck. i got a summons to appear as a witness. seems that guy is contesting the ticket he got for "failure to observe a traffic control device". i was told to bring any relevant paperwork or evidence. called the courthouse and they said to put it on DVD, but i'm bringing it on my tablet too, just in case. i'm not doing it out of spite. his insurance company paid to have my car fixed, but if the guy gets the ticket dismissed, i don't want his insurance company to turn around and try to get money out of me or my insurance company, claiming that since the ticket was dismissed, their client was not at fault. when i re-edited the video to point out all the signs and road markings he ignored, i counted 4 different signs (there were some behind us at the beginning of the video), plus 2 separate painted road markings, all clearly indicating that the left lane was left only, and my lane was left or straight. sure, it was a construction zone, but they didn't skimp on signage... plus it's been that way for a very long time. driver was apparently going to visit someone at the hospital you can see on the right, just past the intersection, and said he wasn't familiar with the area... but the signs are universal across all 50 states, so that's no excuse.

 

[BusterDuster]

yes, that's the exact kit i bought. our vans use 2 different types of bulbs for the interior lights, but the kit i received has the wrong quantity. after i emailed him, the seller was quick to send me the right ones. on my 2008, the 2 map lights, the 4 dome lights and the 2 at the bottom rear of the sliding door openings (on the body of the car, not on the door) are all the little 168 wedge bulbs. the 2 bulbs in the front doors and the one in the cargo area are festoon style, which looks similar to an old glass fuse but with pointy metal ends. apparently whoever put together the kit thought the ones in the sliders were also festoon. that said, i contacted the seller and he's sending me 2 more of the wedge base bulbs for the sliders. he said i didn't need to worry about sending the extra festoon LEDs back to him. i only emailed him about it a few days ago and haven't received the new ones yet, but it sounds like he takes it seriously and will probably fix the kits for future shipments. check to see if maybe your sliders use festoons instead of a wedge. mine is an 08 with the updated headlights, grille/bumper and tail lights, so it's possible (though unlikely) they changed this light too. the lens by the slider on mine pops off real easy with a small flat screwdriver. the map lights and dome lights aren't as easy, but it's not too bad.

funny (sad?) thing about that wreck. i got a summons to appear as a witness. seems that guy is contesting the ticket he got for "failure to observe a traffic control device". i was told to bring any relevant paperwork or evidence. called the courthouse and they said to put it on DVD, but i'm bringing it on my tablet too, just in case. i'm not doing it out of spite. his insurance company paid to have my car fixed, but if the guy gets the ticket dismissed, i don't want his insurance company to turn around and try to get money out of me or my insurance company, claiming that since the ticket was dismissed, their client was not at fault. when i re-edited the video to point out all the signs and road markings he ignored, i counted 4 different signs (there were some behind us at the beginning of the video), plus 2 separate painted road markings, all clearly indicating that the left lane was left only, and my lane was left or straight. sure, it was a construction zone, but they didn't skimp on signage... plus it's been that way for a very long time. driver was apparently going to visit someone at the hospital you can see on the right, just past the intersection, and said he wasn't familiar with the area... but the signs are universal across all 50 states, so that's no excuse.

I'm going to order those too. I read the reviews and they said that the qty was wrong too... I'll probably go through the same as you, hope I can figure out how to replace them. I am really sold on led's. Replaced some in the house that I got off Amazon and their just sipping electricity. Good luck with your summons.

 

[BusterDuster]

yes, that's the exact kit i bought. our vans use 2 different types of bulbs for the interior lights, but the kit i received has the wrong quantity. after i emailed him, the seller was quick to send me the right ones. on my 2008, the 2 map lights, the 4 dome lights and the 2 at the bottom rear of the sliding door openings (on the body of the car, not on the door) are all the little 168 wedge bulbs. the 2 bulbs in the front doors and the one in the cargo area are festoon style, which looks similar to an old glass fuse but with pointy metal ends. apparently whoever put together the kit thought the ones in the sliders were also festoon. that said, i contacted the seller and he's sending me 2 more of the wedge base bulbs for the sliders. he said i didn't need to worry about sending the extra festoon LEDs back to him. i only emailed him about it a few days ago and haven't received the new ones yet, but it sounds like he takes it seriously and will probably fix the kits for future shipments. check to see if maybe your sliders use festoons instead of a wedge. mine is an 08 with the updated headlights, grille/bumper and tail lights, so it's possible (though unlikely) they changed this light too. the lens by the slider on mine pops off real easy with a small flat screwdriver. the map lights and dome lights aren't as easy, but it's not too bad.

Ordered LED kit today, let you know what it comes with.

 

[Gibson99]

I received the two additional 168 LED bulbs yesterday. I'm holding off installing the kit just yet... Might be trading in the van early next week. Already have enough aftermarket to remove as it is: Bluetooth, dashcam, HIDs... Plus all the usual stuff like CDs and car seats for the kids...

 

[BusterDuster]

I received the two additional 168 LED bulbs yesterday. I'm holding off installing the kit just yet... Might be trading in the van early next week. Already have enough aftermarket to remove as it is: Bluetooth, dashcam, HIDs... Plus all the usual stuff like CDs and car seats for the kids...

Got my led bulbs, they sent 10 of the wedge type and only 1 of the 32mm festoon style bulb. There are also two festoon style bulbs needed in the mirror by the visor, but might be different. LOL, this guy needs a little quality control. Guess I'll be emailing this guy too. Put a few in though and their really bright, cool beans.

 

[Gibson99]

the kit didnt say it came with the lights for the mirror in the visor (aka vanity lights). just map, dome, cargo and courtesy (door). im not real worried about that, since our mirrors dont get used at night anyway.

but ya, a little qc is a good thing.

 

[BusterDuster]

the kit didnt say it came with the lights for the mirror in the visor (aka vanity lights). just map, dome, cargo and courtesy (door). im not real worried about that, since our mirrors dont get used at night anyway.

but ya, a little qc is a good thing.

Your right, I was watching a video where this guy was replacing then in a Sienna, he must have had a different kit replacing the vanity bulb. don't care about that.
Saw a measurement the old bulbs draw 0.31 amps and led's pull 0.11.
When I lower my handicap ramp to enter the vehicle I think they all go on except cargo.
So that is a difference two amps draw, not bad on my sears battery.
Having a problem getting the bulb out for the ones with the reflector, can the reflector pop off? grrrr
Any suggestions?