Backup Camera Question

[Voice of Reason]

Rearward visibility in this car is....interesting. I'm getting more and more used to it every day but can see that a backup camera would be very useful. My neighborhood is full of 3-8 year old kids so I worry every time I'm backing up that one has stopped behind me on their hot wheels.

So those of you that have that option on your cars, I have a few requests/questions. Ultimately I'm wondering if this is something that can be added to look and function 100% like it was factory installed.

- Can you post a picture of the camera to show what it looks like on the rear? I'm most interested in how and where it mounts.
- Can you post a pic or video of your display inside the car when you put it in reverse?
- And here's one I think only an engineer would know right now...or maybe a dealer by looking at a service manual. Does anyone think the wiring for the camera is already installed in every car and just not hooked up for those of us without the camera? I'm really really hoping they only made one wiring harness for the rear of the car and the wiring is all there, that way all we'd have to do is hook the camera up and then find the way to get the center display in the car to switch to it when we put it in reverse.

Thanks.

 

[Jack B]

It should be a base item. The camera is very good. It has a wide angle lens, therefore, you can see the side/rear area extremely well. On the 2014 grand cherokee I believe it can be upgraded after the fact. One would think this should be the same.

 

[Policy Limits]

its helpful as a reference but honestly I tend to look out of my mirrors so frequently that I didn't notice it the 1st couple of times in reverse. obviously it appears in the nav screen. definitely should be utilized in addition to, not instead of, the mirrors. In fact, I put a small hand held mirror in the car for driver's side front view when loading in the garage(watching the delivery driver unload off his trailor doing the same thing gave me the idea)

Will be back in the car this weekend and will take pics/video....

PS: nice color!

 

[Nine Ball]

I really disliked backing up in my '06 coupe, so I'm glad the '13 was offered with the camera. I use the backup camera all the time now, and I don't have to open my door and peek behind me like I used to. The Uconnect 8.4 is certainly camera ready, even if you do not have navigation. The head units are different models, the Nav vs Non-Nav, even though they appear the same. I have the Non-Nav Uconnect 8.4 in my 2013 Ram truck, and it is equipped with the same backup camera that my 13 Viper is. On most aftermarket head units, the camera is powered by the same source that powers the reverse light. When the head unit senses this circuit come on, it overrides the current screen and takes the camera feed. Cameras usually just have a simple 3 wire configuration. Ground, Power, and Signal (cable). Bet the head unit just has a plug on the back for Camera input, so you'll only have to splice into the backup lights to power the camera on.

Here are pics of my car, camera is very stealthy. I like how it shows the radii when you turn the steering wheel. Picture is very clear on the 8.4 screen, and has a very wide angle. If you are backing out into a parking lot lane, you can even see oncoming traffic in the lens, it is a very wide angle.

Tony

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Shows vehicle path when turning wheel. Very accurate from what I've experienced.

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[Policy Limits]

well there u go! ever see a countach owner back up?? now THAT is funny!!!!!!

 

[jdg1428]

Rearward visibility in this car is....interesting. I'm getting more and more used to it every day but can see that a backup camera would be very useful. My neighborhood is full of 3-8 year old kids so I worry every time I'm backing up that one has stopped behind me on their hot wheels.

So those of you that have that option on your cars, I have a few requests/questions. Ultimately I'm wondering if this is something that can be added to look and function 100% like it was factory installed.

- Can you post a picture of the camera to show what it looks like on the rear? I'm most interested in how and where it mounts.
- Can you post a pic or video of your display inside the car when you put it in reverse?
- And here's one I think only an engineer would know right now...or maybe a dealer by looking at a service manual. Does anyone think the wiring for the camera is already installed in every car and just not hooked up for those of us without the camera? I'm really really hoping they only made one wiring harness for the rear of the car and the wiring is all there, that way all we'd have to do is hook the camera up and then find the way to get the center display in the car to switch to it when we put it in reverse.

Thanks.

Yes wiring is in the car. You have to take off the panel the rear brake lights are in and it in there. Its the small white plastic one. Not sure if anything else needs to be program, it shouldnt.

 

[v10enomous]

I'll bet more guys have bumped or scraped the front than the back.

 

[Voice of Reason]

Nine Ball - Thanks! Those pics are what I was looking for. We should just trade cars to save the hassle of me doing this (IE: had I ordered a car it world have been white and exactly like yours).

Jdg1428 - I'm hoping your an engineer in disguise, your info sounds very specific about our car.

v10enomous - you're not kidding! 2 weeks ago the wife and I took it out to dinner. I dropped her off and then went to find my parking spot in the back near a retaining wall. When I got out and did my normal parking space walking around I was, no joke, a 1/4" away from hitting the front chin from the wall! Closest I've ever been in any vehicle ever without hitting. I was sure I bumped it and didn't notice but a check at home found nothing at all. The Viper gods were watching over my parking that night, now I'm extra careful and when I stop I end up nearly a foot away from the parking block. The car is 20" shorter than my last so it all works out in the end, right? Ha.

 

[Nine Ball]

My simple rule for parking Vipers, never pull into any spots that have a curb or parking stone. Always back in. I mastered this with my Z06 that had a $900 carbon fiber splitter on the nose.

 

[MoparMap]

They might look at me a little funny if I backed into a stall at Sonic for lunch, lol. I did get lucky though, the first time I took the car the hood is so long I had to keep pulling up to reach the order button. Got out and looked and was fortunate because the sidewalk/curb was low enough that I just cleared it with the nose of my 04 without scraping. I've since lowered the car a tad with my new suspension and now just park short and get out of the car to order.

 

[PilotaX]

I like the backup cam on my '13. Very useful.

Not to thread jack but has anyone tried reprogramming a backup camera to function as a rearview mirror? I was thinking about it as a way of improving aero on my race car (ie seeing if i could eliminate the side mirrors). It might also help visibility for cars that have significant blind spots.

 

[Nine Ball]

I like the backup cam on my '13. Very useful.

Not to thread jack but has anyone tried reprogramming a backup camera to function as a rearview mirror? I was thinking about it as a way of improving aero on my race car (ie seeing if i could eliminate the side mirrors). It might also help visibility for cars that have significant blind spots.

Others have done this on various other cars. Pretty simple, you just need to wire up a toggle switch that feeds the power to the camera. The radio will sense the camera powered on, and it will take over the radio screen. This might cause the reverse lights to come on also, which could result in some comedy behind you.

 

[PeerBlock]

My simple rule for parking Vipers, never pull into any spots that have a curb or parking stone. Always back in. I mastered this with my Z06 that had a $900 carbon fiber splitter on the nose.

Another "trick" is to park next to a shiny car and look at your car's reflection in the car beside you so you don't bump the concrete log if you want to pull in front-ways.

I like the backup cam on my '13. Very useful.

Not to thread jack but has anyone tried reprogramming a backup camera to function as a rearview mirror? I was thinking about it as a way of improving aero on my race car (ie seeing if i could eliminate the side mirrors). It might also help visibility for cars that have significant blind spots.

The area of visibility you get from the side mirrors would not be included by the backup camera. If you wanted to eliminate your side mirrors, you could get two small wide-angle cameras to replace them and add a dedicated LCD screen somewhere in your car. that would display the images from both cameras on one monitor.

Another thing you could do is get proximity parking sensors (they sell kits) and mount them on the side of your car, maybe right inside the wheel wells at the top, and then you'd have an LED bar inside your car that turns yellow then red as something gets closer. The LEDs would be green when the area is clear and then you could safely change lanes.