Dashcam Hardwire Advice

[hhcd80]

Hi all.

I know this subject has been covered to exhaustion on these forums, but I thought I might ask in case there has been any updates/recent "gotchas" since those threads have been posted.
Thinking of getting myself a new dashcam (Probably the Viofo A129 Duo or one of the upgraded 4K versions.) with parking mode and hardwiring kit (Probably the HK3) to replace an old dashcam which is currently powered by the 12 volt lighter socket.
Did a dry run where I practised removing and refitting the glove box since I heard that dampener rod is pain to reattach (It is but it can be done with enough stubbornness and foul language patience 🤣).
While I had the glove box out, I took a picture of the fuse box to see what available fuse positions there are.
It turns out the last owner of the car had a dashcam in here before and left a fuse tap in what looks like position 37 (Left Headlight). Is this an appropriate place to wire in a switched supply for a dashcam or should I move the fuse tap to somewhere else?
What would be an appropriate fuse position for the "ACC" wire for the parking mode?
Car is Octy VRS Mk.3 prefacelift (66 plate for presumably MY16?)

Many thanks in advance.

[ExSEAT]

On both of my VRS (pre and post FL) I uses the rear wiper fuse, never had any issues at all. Instead of wiring straight to the camera though, I wired a 12v socket and put it in the glove box. I then plugged the camera into that, giving me the option to just remove the camera whenever and an extra socket should I ever need it

[hhcd80]

9 minutes ago, ExSEAT said:

On both of my VRS (pre and post FL) I uses the rear wiper fuse, never had any issues at all. Instead of wiring straight to the camera though, I wired a 12v socket and put it in the glove box. I then plugged the camera into that, giving me the option to just remove the camera whenever and an extra socket should I ever need it

How would that affect a parking mode? Most dashcams need to basically be turned off for that to work.

[ExSEAT]

9 minutes ago, hhcd80 said:

How would that affect a parking mode? Most dashcams need to basically be turned off for that to work.

Ah so you want to use parking mode? In which case you want a permanent live like the actual 12v socket and a 'magic box' to monitor the voltage so it doesn't eat your battery and leave you stranded. 

 

Parking mode was never really for me!

[hhcd80]

1 hour ago, ExSEAT said:

Ah so you want to use parking mode? In which case you want a permanent live like the actual 12v socket and a 'magic box' to monitor the voltage so it doesn't eat your battery and leave you stranded. 

 

Parking mode was never really for me!

Yeah that is the intention. The Viofo hardwire kit I mentioned has the "magic box" you mentioned but I am not sure where the "ACC" cable for it would go on the fusebox. Any insight in that would be appreciated.

[BogdanB]

This may help you 70mai - Hardware Kit Installation Demo Video - YouTube

 

In short, red wire on permanent voltage, acc wire on ignition-on voltage.

Edited 31 March, 2022 by BogdanB

[nickytheshaft]

I personnaly use the rear wiper too. 

Turns the cam on and off with the car. 

I use a 70MAI

 

[hhcd80]

8 hours ago, BogdanB said:

This may help you 70mai - Hardware Kit Installation Demo Video - YouTube

 

In short, red wire on permanent voltage, acc wire on ignition-on voltage.

Thanks. That answers one part of the question.

Anyone suggest what the most reliable permanent and ignition on voltages are on the 66 plate VRS TDI I have? I read some owners having a few problems with some dashcams and the stop-start system.

[nickytheshaft]

42 minutes ago, hhcd80 said:

Thanks. That answers one part of the question.

Anyone suggest what the most reliable permanent and ignition on voltages are on the 66 plate VRS TDI I have? I read some owners having a few problems with some dashcams and the stop-start system.

I have a 2014 vrs TSI and so Issues at all with start and stop. The cam stays on until I open the door, which shuts down all the electronic

 

[hhcd80]

1 hour ago, nickytheshaft said:

I have a 2014 vrs TSI and so Issues at all with start and stop. The cam stays on until I open the door, which shuts down all the electronic

 

OK thanks.
So to sum up so far.
Rear wiper (Or possibly the left headlight as originally attached) fuse position would be a suitable switched voltages.
And what about a permanent one for the parking mode? I've studied the fusebox and am not sure. Maybe the fuse position for the 12 volt power socket since that seems to be permanently on anyway?

[nickytheshaft]

1 hour ago, hhcd80 said:

OK thanks.
So to sum up so far.
Rear wiper (Or possibly the left headlight as originally attached) fuse position would be a suitable switched voltages.
And what about a permanent one for the parking mode? I've studied the fusebox and am not sure. Maybe the fuse position for the 12 volt power socket since that seems to be permanently on anyway?

 

I thought about the permanent one but i don't want to drain my battery. The 70mai have an inbuilt battery to start recording if the car has a choc so I went with the rear wiper.

I would stay away from the headlights, blowing a fuse on theme or shorting theme in any way will be more dangerous than a simple wiper.

[VRS_White_Hatch]

1 hour ago, nickytheshaft said:

 

I thought about the permanent one but i don't want to drain my battery. The 70mai have an inbuilt battery to start recording if the car has a choc so I went with the rear wiper.

I would stay away from the headlights, blowing a fuse on theme or shorting theme in any way will be more dangerous than a simple wiper.

Good thinking. 

[hhcd80]

1 hour ago, nickytheshaft said:

 

I thought about the permanent one but i don't want to drain my battery. The 70mai have an inbuilt battery to start recording if the car has a choc so I went with the rear wiper.

I would stay away from the headlights, blowing a fuse on theme or shorting theme in any way will be more dangerous than a simple wiper.

 

I thought the battery drain protection on the hardwire kit I'm using would prevent though? Alternatives for a safe permanent power feed for the parking mode would be appreciated.
Also if the headlight is problematic, it does make me wonder why the last owner put a fuse tap there originally and left it in. Given what you said I'll probably remove it and replace it with a tap off the rear wiper for the switched feed.

[BogdanB]

The 70mai hardware kit does have low voltage protection for 11.6V/23.5V.

[Dooge]

Following for this, I have a Garmin dashcam which on my previous car was just wired into a USB adaptor in the cigarette lighter. 

 

I have a hardwire kit however and planned to use a piggyback system as above. The car gets used daily so not so worried about draining the battery overly but want to make sure it's done the best way I can and being reversible if I need to. 

 

From what the OP is saying I am guessing the fuse box is behind the glove box? I was also thinking 12v boot socket fuse for ACC connection? 

[hhcd80]

2 hours ago, Dooge said:

From what the OP is saying I am guessing the fuse box is behind the glove box?

Yes that is the case at least for RHD cars. Be advised it is fiddly to remove and reattach. 

[Dooge]

9 hours ago, hhcd80 said:

Yes that is the case at least for RHD cars. Be advised it is fiddly to remove and reattach. 

Thanks buddy, Ill have a look at a few Youtube vids. Did you figure out what you are going to use fuse wise?

[hhcd80]

13 hours ago, Dooge said:

Thanks buddy, Ill have a look at a few Youtube vids. Did you figure out what you are going to use fuse wise?

Haven't got the camera and hardwire kit yet, but from some further research, the best switched outlet would be the rear windscreen wiper position while the best permanent voltage for the dashcam'sparking mode would be either the 12 volt socket position or the one for the car infotainment head unit. Anyone else want to correct me or provide alternative advice on that, please do. 

[Leodis41]

Only thing I would add is that on my 1.5tsi every time it restarts after a stop start, the camera restarts as the voltage drops below the cut off limit of 11.5v.

i had my battery tested at a specialist who told me it’s quite common with AG cars for this to happen.

i just turn off stop start as it is annoying and Sod’s law says the accident would happen when the camera was restarting!

[Simoneale1973]

I'm picking up my 63 plate 2.0 SE on Saturday, and coming from a 13 Plate Greenline Fabby I'm excited... anyhew...

 

My current Dashcam in the Fabby is a Thinkware F750 which I wired into the Rear Wiper fuse and popped a socket on the end (tucked under the panel on the side of the dash) Never been able to use Parking Mode, but it does the job, Switching On and Off with the Ignition!

 

I was looking to move the Dashcam over to my Octy next week some time, and I've seen on Thinkware and Amazons websites, they do an OBD2 power adaptor... it's got a through connector so you can still plug a diagnostic in without unplugging. Apparently it comes on and off with the Ignition and also activates the Parking options! I'm seriously considering it!

[hhcd80]

Little update. Finally purchased a Viofo A129 Duo Plus and spent about 3 hours installing the hardwire kit. Had some problems trying to loosen the bolt for the ground point and spent most of the time trying to figure out a cable routing that was as neat as possible but without removing bits of interior trim (I didn't want to risk setting off the airbags in the A pillar). The final installation would not be considered professional but it is neat enough that I can live with it and it has the advantage of being easy to remove if I have to for any reason.

[EnterName]

On 18/05/2022 at 01:23, hhcd80 said:

Little update. Finally purchased a Viofo A129 Duo Plus and spent about 3 hours installing the hardwire kit. Had some problems trying to loosen the bolt for the ground point and spent most of the time trying to figure out a cable routing that was as neat as possible but without removing bits of interior trim (I didn't want to risk setting off the airbags in the A pillar). The final installation would not be considered professional but it is neat enough that I can live with it and it has the advantage of being easy to remove if I have to for any reason.

Where did you ground the wiring, @hhcd80?

I've spent a few hours today plumbing my A129 Duo in and spent ages hiding all the wiring, which I just need to connect to the fusebox now. Trying to decide where to ground it.

[hhcd80]

2 hours ago, EnterName said:

Where did you ground the wiring, @hhcd80?

I've spent a few hours today plumbing my A129 Duo in and spent ages hiding all the wiring, which I just need to connect to the fusebox now. Trying to decide where to ground it.

Used a bolt next to the fuse box, next to where you remove the side panel of the dashboard. Conveniently it had a negative ground spade connector already attached from the previous owner who hardwired a camera.

[EnterName]

I used this one. Made a mess of the installation first time as didn't know about the airbag in the A-pillar.

Tried to get the trim off, but it's really tightly wedged in, so didn't risk forcing it. It looks fine now it's all installed, though.

[hhcd80]

@EnterNameThat's the one I used as well.