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Should you decide to run new wires from the kick panel J/B instead, the "Curtain Shield Airbag" diagram below suggests that you have enough room to do so.
The "fuse tap" pictured below is a convenient way to tap power from the J/B.
So next question for the community is what about the air bags in the A-pillars, can that trim be removed to run a wire up to the roof w/o affecting airbag operation?
The pillar trim can be removed (carefully) without incurring air bag deployment. (Disconnect battery.) Use care not to damage the pillar trim itself. A plastic trim tool works well to remove (pry) it. Accessing power at the junction block utilizing an independent, dedicated power wire with inline camera fuse is the preferred way to wire the after-market accessory.
OK, thanks so much. It is all making sense now with the diagrams. I can easily find the LG-R wire and slap a fused lead to it. It will really be a slick install since the camera fits nicely above the mirror.
I really don't want to fiddle in the area of the airbag curtain.
Finished and very happy with how it turned out, thanks to those that provided input. Below are some pictures. Additional expense $5 for fuse holder and pack of fuses from Radio Shack.
1. view from old location, hanging lower in windshield, tilted from always hitting it with my sunshade
2. night view from old location of completely dark Alabama road, cars off in the distance
3. view from new location
4. new location from outside
5. new location from inside
I'm surprised no one suggested tapping into pin 1 of the the rear-view mirror. Overhead J/B "O6" terminals 26 and 27 are the same switched circuit (only live when ignition=on). It's way easier to splice into pin 1 of the rearview mirror (and considering the mirror is removable from the car) than it is to splice into pin 26/27 inside a thick wire cluster up inside the roof. I'm using pin 1 of the rear-view mirror and it works perfectly fine.
If I recall correctly, the current draw from the rear-view mirror is shared with O6 pins 26 and 27, so it doesn't matter where you splice in. If you are running 2 or more devices, then maybe you'd want to spread them out over different circuits.
I recently acquired a Thinkware F800 Pro dashcam, and since I already tapped into the rear-view mirror circuit for another device, I decided to follow my advice above and use a different circuit for the hardwire kit. I used the 7.5A SECURITY fuse as my constant 12V source (yellow hardwire), the 7.5A D-ACC as my ignition-switched 12V source (red hardwire), and the nearest 10mm grounded bolt as my ground. See attached pics - hope this helps someone.
I ran the dashcam power wire along the headliner to the left, into the top and back of the A-pillar, inside and down the grey outer fuzzy trim, and through the emergency brake area and into the fusebox.
I ran the rear camera wire along the passenger side headliner, down the windshield edge of the A pillar, followed the edges out to the door, down the back of the window vent area, into the passenger kick panel, into the grey fuzzy trim piece, under the scuff plate, then under the rear scuff plate, up the side of the rear seat, and tucked into the rear tray.
Also note that you cannot mount the F800 Pro's rear camera at the top of the rear window if you have a sunshade - it will bump the camera every time it's raised or lowered. Mine is mounted just above the rear middle headrest as viewed from the driver seat, one or two defroster spaces above the 3rd brake light, as I didn't want the camera in my field of vision.
I've been trying to do this but cannot remove the front A Pillar. Does anyone know how to remove the A Pillar from an 04 UL? The middle tabs seem to pop out just fine, but it's the top bolt that I cannot figure out how to remove or get access to. Any help?
I didn't quite understand that part of the manual about pushing up then pulling, and couldn't find any videos online, so instead of risking breaking the clip, which the manual seems to indicate is non-reusable, I just tucked the wire into the A-pillar by prying up a tiny bit, pushing the wire in a tiny bit, and repeating that many times. You can only get a few millimetres of wire in at a time this way - it's a slow but steady process.
It took awhile (30-60 minutes) but I was able to tuck the entire wire into the A-pillar without breaking anything and without removing the A-pillar. It was definitely an exercise in patience.
Be sure to measure your lengths very accurately before you start so you don't have too much or too little slack on the windshield side of the wire.
If someone could post a video of removing the LS430's A-pillars, it would surely be appreciated by the community.
I'm surprised no one suggested tapping into pin 1 of the the rear-view mirror. Overhead J/B "O6" terminals 26 and 27 are the same switched circuit (only live when ignition=on). It's way easier to splice into pin 1 of the rearview mirror (and considering the mirror is removable from the car) than it is to splice into pin 26/27 inside a thick wire cluster up inside the roof. I'm using pin 1 of the rear-view mirror and it works perfectly fine.
If I recall correctly, the current draw from the rear-view mirror is shared with O6 pins 26 and 27, so it doesn't matter where you splice in. If you are running 2 or more devices, then maybe you'd want to spread them out over different circuits.
StanVanDam, do you know which rearview mirror pins I should tap if I were to use this Invisicord to micro-USB to power my dash cam?
As I already mentioned, pin 1 on the rear view mirror connector is your 12V ignition-switched source. You can easily find your ground by poking around with a voltmeter with IG=ON, and I'm pretty sure it's pin 4. About pin numbering, when you stare down the open barrels of the connector with the harness clip on the top, pin 1 is the first on the left.
Wouldn't it be easier for you to hardwire to an IG=ON fuse in the fusebox (like my previous post shows) instead of trying to hide that cord and box somewhere near the mirror?
09-15-14, 04:17 AM
