t2d2

iTrader: (8)

I received my backup camera today, and the new head unit arrives in three days. I might start on wiring the camera in the meantime.

Those of you who have added a backup camera to your SC, where did you run the wiring into the car? Did you drill a hole or run it through an existing panel clip hole, license plate light cover, etc.?

The other piece I have to decide is whether to tap into the reverse light for power or run it up front to a toggle. I'm leaning toward the latter for more control, but not having to flip a switch also has its appeal.

(I figure the SC forum is more applicable than the Audio/Electronics forum, since the question is specific to this platform.)

KahnBB6

iTrader: (5)

This is a good question. I've considered adding a backup camera function to my SC in the future (should I ever find a touchscreen head unit that I actually like) and this would be a key feature. I'm not the best judge of rear parking distance, myself

I had thought there must be a clean way to do it without cutting or drilling. I'd have to guess the license plate area is the best starting point. However if ANY kind of hole were required for this I'd want the most hidden away opening possible, buffered with an appropriately sized durable automotive rubber grommet.

I'd really like to know what other people have tried for this in their SC's. Barring that, anyone who's put a clean backup camera into an LS, GS or IS300.

The license plate area makes the most sense on an SC. Putting a protrusion anywhere else would affect the rear body curves, unlike some newer angular cars.

As for wire routing (Edit: WHOOPS! It was pretty late when I posted this, sorry t2d2! NOT the trunk lid. Yikes, what a long day I'd had...) I'd also create some RCA (assuming the connection is RCA) disconnects just behind the rear hinge area.

And then I'd run that wire to the LH rear quarter area where...

...Beyond the trunk lip there is a handy entryway location on the driver's side rear where the radio antenna and Lexus Phone (for those who still have that ancient TDMA Motorola gear in the trunk) wiring are located. You can very easily run your RCA or other camera wire through there and into the area just under the LH Driver's side rear passenger seatbelt is located under the seat cushions.

That way it would be very close to a factory wiring scenario with the exception of the camera mounting location and improvised wire entryway into the inside of the trunk lid.

Gee44

I have a backup camera on my 99SC and I have mine mounted in the license plate area. I ran the wires through the license plate cover up through one of the opened holes (cut a hole through the rubber cover). I also tapped into the backup brake lights for power and picked a spot on the car chassis for ground.

I have a touchscreen unit with a dedicated backup camera line. So, it automatically turns on when I go into reverse.

The camera was only about $15 and shows perfect in the daylight; night is little fuzzy but the backup lights helps.

SMWallis

iTrader: (1)

It is a simple install. Remove the front panel in the trunk. Drill a hole near the backup light for your camera wire - thread the wire from the opening near the backup light through your drilled hole and then to the back of the trunk. I chose the right hand side.

You will have to remove the back seat top and bottom, and the door sill. Run your wire. from the trunk to the back then under the carpet, down the sill and around the passenger side. You will then need to remove the center console to get access to your head unit.

t2d2

iTrader: (8)

Thanks for the replies.

Yeah, that's the key element. Wire routing once in the car is a piece of cake. I need to take the rear seats out to dye one more trim piece, anyway. I've been waiting on that so I can do this and a couple other small things on the list in conjunction.

I went with a license plate mounted camera (Esky EC-180-19) to keep it centered and unobtrusive.

You lost me there. The spoiler wiring runs down the trunk lid toward the hinge, i.e., away from the license plate area. Now, if you were drilling a hole in the trunk lid for a tiny keyhole style camera...

All the cameras I've looked at are RCA cables, with a short lead hard wired to the camera and then a full cable (or WiFi) within the car.

License plate cover? Is that an aftermarket cover or do the '99s have something different? I can't quite envision what you're talking about with the cover or the opened holes. The earlier models just have a flat space for the license plate, with two bolt holes at the top.

That's definitely the simplest method. Less wiring and no need to flip a switch along with putting the car in reverse. Both would be nice, but then you'd be turning on your reverse lights every time you flipped the switch.

I went with the big-$$$ $30 unit with good Night Vision reviews. I do think I received a used/refurbished one, though, so they want me to send it back for a replacement.

That's sort of what I was hoping to avoid if there's a clean path already... With a car parked outside in regular rain, drilling holes in the exterior isn't ideal.

Gee44

In my license plate area, there are 2 holes (if you zoom in on the pic, they are at both ends of the license plate) where I feed the wiring in or I could have taken out the license plate light cover and feed the wire in that way. You don't see the wiring since the license plate is covering it up.

t2d2

iTrader: (8)

^ Oops, I didn't realize that was an attached pic in your last post. I thought it was part of your sig.

Okay, so I took off my license plate and I see what you mean. There are two openings in the bumper cover just behind it that the wire can easily pass through. (There are also the two you highlighted, but I didn't notice them with my darker color.) Then, it's just a matter of choosing a route from there into the trunk. There's bound to be an existing grommet back there somewhere, similar to the ones for the tail light harnesses.

Gee44

That's it...That's exactly how mine looks and easy to feed the wires in. From there, the trunk had some grommets to feed the wires in as well. So, it was easy to tap off the brake light harness.

t2d2

iTrader: (8)

Awesome, thanks. I may try wiring up the camera end of things today, rather than wait for the return label. It's only a couple small nicks in the finish and greasy video jack that make me think it was used/returned, so probably not worth waiting a week or more for a new one if it tests out okay. On the other hand, I'll probably dremel out a rear brace on the mount so the wire can pass straight to one of the bumper cutouts instead of curving up above the license plate, at which point it wouldn't be returnable.

t2d2

iTrader: (8)

Well, this is a bit of a problem. The only two unused holes I see anywhere are alongside each of the tail light grommets, and the 20" lead on this particular camera is a couple inches too short to reach without getting stretched and pinched. So, I'll need to either get a different camera, drill a new hole closer to the license plate, or do the RCA hookup outside the trunk, i.e., exposed to the weather.

Option C is a no-go, so I'll probably just bite the bullet on B: drilling a new hole. I've got a pile of plugs and grommets to choose from, so drilling a hole to fit one of them looks like the way to go. I'll just have to seal it up as best I can.

KahnBB6

iTrader: (5)

t2d2-- Thanks for the heads up. I corrected my original post. I was quite tired last night after a long day. Obviously no need to route license plate wiring through the trunk LID on an SC

Looks like you got most of it solved. I'd go with a different camera that has longer RCA's, myself. I also would not want the RCA's exposed to the weather.

Drilling a new small hole that will be covered up by the liner doesn't sound too bad so long as you seal the newly exposed metal and fit a grommet in there.

Still, some company has to make a camera solution with wire leads longer than 20" since this is a popular aftermarket feature for cars.

t2d2

iTrader: (8)

That makes much more sense.

I inquired with Esky if any of their models have a 24"+ lead, since it doesn't tend to show up in the specs. If not, I guess I could restart my research with that aspect in mind... The camera options are dizzying, with virtually none of them being familiar brand names, so I tried to narrow it down to a brand with consistently good reviews and then pick a model from there that looked to have the best features. For example, a lot of the miniature ones have issues with the NightVision lights being too close to the camera lens and washing out the picture.

SMWallis

iTrader: (1)

Who said anything about drilling a hole in the exterior???

Looks like you finally figured it out for yourself though.

t2d2

iTrader: (8)

Fair point, although drilling holes into the trunk isn't all that much different since the bumper isn't sealed off to the rain. It's mostly just run-off around the tail lights, though, so probably not much direct water gets in there. It would be more condensation than leak.

t2d2

iTrader: (8)

The new head unit arrived yesterday. It's one of those that has a +12V wire for the backup camera, in addition to the RCA video input. The manual doesn't specify anything about that, but looking at info on other such setups, it must require the reverse signal to tell it to switch over to camera display, rather than doing it purely by the presence of a video signal.

Do SCs have anything up front that can be tapped into easily for a reverse signal, or will I need to run a wire up from the tails? I imagine there's something under the steering column, and possibly the A/T shifter indicators, although that seems to be a fairly sealed display unit.

I haven't found any cameras with longer wire leads yet. Esky confirmed that they don't have anything that fits the bill, and most of the other brands look identical in the pictures (probably just rebranded stuff). Gee44, did you use the same grommets up by the tail light harnesses, and were your leads long enough to reach?