Rear camera washer

[0CO2]

Living on the wet side of the Pacific Northwest - in rural western Oregon, one of my long-running pet peeves about my '21 Mach-e Job 1 First Edition (the first MME delivered to my fair state - making me an involuntary, de facto beta tester) is the rear camera. Peeve no. 1 - it is low resolution compared to other cars I drive. Even my cheap Chevy Bolt has a far far better camera than my twice-the-price Mach-e.

Peeve no. 2 - hey, it rains here. A lot. The winter is rain/mud season. OK, it's rain/mud season from October through June. So... makes me wonder. Doesn't it rain in Dearborn Michigan? Do they only test Ford cars on pristine tracks, or in the real world, 'cause in my real world for ⅔ of the year each time I drive the fluid dynamics of the Mach-e causes all manner of crud to collect on the rear camera rendering it nearly useless for its intended function. Is it just me, or do others find this to be an issue? Lousy Ford cameras. Full of mud. Lousy Ford garage door openers too. But I really digress here.

Today I discovered this item on Kickstarter, and its intended use case matches my requirements pretty closely, so I did the deed and pledged $99. I'll let everyone on the forum who is interested in this issue know how this gizmo works out for cleaning the ever-present gunk off the camera. I hope to get this thing in June or July, just about the time when the rain/mud things becomes a little less of an issue, but there's always next winter... Anyway, It won't solve my first pet peeve - the lousy resolution of Ford's cameras, but it might just possibly make the rear camera useful for doing crazy things like backing up the car when it isn't bone dry outside.



And for the record, I have no relationship with the folks doing this kickstarter project. I just think it might be what we need to retrofit the MME to have a functional rear camera, at least for those of us not living in the desert southwest. Unlike at least one other rear camera washer retrofit out there, this one requires no wires or drilling to install.

Wish my front camera washer still worked - but it doesn't. In practical terms this doesn't have nearly the same impact as the blocked rear camera 'cause the airflow around the front camera tends to clear it of junk whereas the opposite is the case with the rear camera.

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[Mr. Toejam]

I ceramic coated my lens. Helps reduce the grime. We don’t get much rain, but when we do, the oil, dirt, random grime and water make a nice soup to coat the lens. The ceramic coating did help with this, and if I just rub my thumb on my lens as I walk by, it’s clean.

the camera (the line graphics are terrible) and 1-pedal drive are better. I also like the regen paddle.

interesting product but seems a little “AS-SEEN-ON-TV” I could be wrong. I hope it works because it is a good idea

 

[Mach-Lee]

What I would do is tee off the rear window washer line, and somehow add nozzle in the rear gate. Then it would work like the front camera washer and wash the rear camera whenever you wash the rear window.

The back of the Mach-E does get extremely nasty, so I would have preferred they included a rear camera washer instead of a front one.

 

[JohnFoxeSheets]

Interesting. I have just asked a question to the project: the Mach E only uses the top two screws to secure the license plate. I want to know if that's sufficient. (I noted that on some cars on the bottom two are used, so they should respond for those situations as well.) Will be interesting to hear the response... I've never loved the fact that Ford uses self-tapping screws into plastic inserts for the license plates. I think this is very cheap and not especially secure. Hopefully that wouldn't be a problem for the Lens Lizard, but I think it might be...

 

[JohnFoxeSheets]

What I would do is tee off the rear window washer line, and somehow add nozzle in the rear gate. Then it would work like the front camera washer and wash the rear camera whenever you wash the rear window.

The back of the Mach-E does get extremely nasty, so I would have preferred they included a rear camera washer instead of a front one.

That's a good idea, though implementation would certainly be challenging since it would involve a lot of trim removal, as well as drilling at least one hole. That said, at least once done there should be no additional on-going support needed.

 

[0CO2]

Interesting. I have just asked a question to the project: the Mach E only uses the top two screws to secure the license plate. I want to know if that's sufficient. (I noted that on some cars on the bottom two are used, so they should respond for those situations as well.) Will be interesting to hear the response... I've never loved the fact that Ford uses self-tapping screws into plastic inserts for the license plates. I think this is very cheap and not especially secure. Hopefully that wouldn't be a problem for the Lens Lizard, but I think it might be...

That’s a good observation. Some thick double-sided tape along the base of the frame might be sufficient reinforcement. We shall see…

 

[JohnFoxeSheets]

That’s a good observation. Some thick double-sided tape along the base of the frame might be sufficient reinforcement. We shall see…

Mike Klein (the guy doing the Kickstarter) replied already and said that it's fine. He said, "Yes it's just fine! We tested it on a Rav4 for an extended period. The Rav4 did have foam bumpers for the bottom counter pressure."

However I realized while looking at the rear of my car that the license plate is quite inset compared to the location of the camera. So the nozzle would need to protrude quite far (I measured about 4.5") to clear the rear curve of the tailgate. That seems like it could be an issue. I just asked abut that and we'll see what he says...

 

[tbrumleve]

Agreed the camera resolution sucks. I’m in the Portland, OR area and I have to wipe off my camera nearly daily when it’s raining. It’s become habit.

 

[Kamuelaflyer]

I ceramic coated my lens. Helps reduce the grime.

I did that to my car when I first got it. 5 years later, it still works great. It’s not like there’s a lack of rain in Hawaii after all.

 

[Jimrpa]

Living on the wet side of the Pacific Northwest - in rural western Oregon, one of my long-running pet peeves about my '21 Mach-e Job 1 First Edition (the first MME delivered to my fair state - making me an involuntary, de facto beta tester) is the rear camera. Peeve no. 1 - it is low resolution compared to other cars I drive. Even my cheap Chevy Bolt has a far far better camera than my twice-the-price Mach-e.

Peeve no. 2 - hey, it rains here. A lot. The winter is rain/mud season. OK, it's rain/mud season from October through June. So... makes me wonder. Doesn't it rain in Dearborn Michigan? Do they only test Ford cars on pristine tracks, or in the real world, 'cause in my real world for ⅔ of the year each time I drive the fluid dynamics of the Mach-e causes all manner of crud to collect on the rear camera rendering it nearly useless for its intended function. Is it just me, or do others find this to be an issue? Lousy Ford cameras. Full of mud. Lousy Ford garage door openers too. But I really digress here.

Today I discovered this item on Kickstarter, and its intended use case matches my requirements pretty closely, so I did the deed and pledged $99. I'll let everyone on the forum who is interested in this issue know how this gizmo works out for cleaning the ever-present gunk off the camera. I hope to get this thing in June or July, just about the time when the rain/mud things becomes a little less of an issue, but there's always next winter... Anyway, It won't solve my first pet peeve - the lousy resolution of Ford's cameras, but it might just possibly make the rear camera useful for doing crazy things like backing up the car when it isn't bone dry outside.



And for the record, I have no relationship with the folks doing this kickstarter project. I just think it might be what we need to retrofit the MME to have a functional rear camera, at least for those of us not living in the desert southwest. Unlike at least one other rear camera washer retrofit out there, this one requires no wires or drilling to install.

Wish my front camera washer still worked - but it doesn't. In practical terms this doesn't have nearly the same impact as the blocked rear camera 'cause the airflow around the front camera tends to clear it of junk whereas the opposite is the case with the rear camera.

Stop giving Ford ideas. Now they’ll decontent the rear camera based on feedback that owners are dissatisfied with it

 

[Jimrpa]

That's a good idea, though implementation would certainly be challenging since it would involve a lot of trim removal, as well as drilling at least one hole. That said, at least once done there should be no additional on-going support needed.

Ford heard you and did you one better - now you get neither!

 

[Jimrpa]

Something I don’t get - $187,000? That’s a lot more than my car is worth. I’ll keep using spit and Starbucks napkins

 

[Blue highway]

Agreed the camera resolution sucks. I’m in the Portland, OR area and I have to wipe off my camera nearly daily when it’s raining. It’s become habit.

+1 on this. I wipe the camera before I get in most times. ...Only a couple more months of rain here in Portland...

 

[MrLoganRoss]

In the Seattle Area. I wipe it off as needed before getting in. Keep a little rag in the driver’s side rear door pocket

 

[CameraCarl]

What I would do is tee off the rear window washer line, and somehow add nozzle in the rear gate. Then it would work like the front camera washer and wash the rear camera whenever you wash the rear window.

The back of the Mach-E does get extremely nasty, so I would have preferred they included a rear camera washer instead of a front one.

"... instead of a front one (camera washer)..." Does your car have a front camera washer? I don't think my 2023 does. Is this another thing that Ford cost reduced?

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