Rear *only* dashcam power source?

[yubbie2]

Hi all

23 Premium Mach-E here. I’ve had a front dashcam for a while, and used the clever dongar rear-view mirror power source. All good.
I want a rear dashcam, but for *reasons* I don’t want to deal with running wires from front to back and all that. I’m happy just buying a normal front dashcam and mounting it on the rear windshield. Is there a power source inside the rear powered liftgate I could tap into? Car on —> dashcam on. No need for parking mode.

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[noway]

Its pretty easy to push a wire with a plug on through the rubber tube going to the chassis. Lots of space for more wires. I have done it with both the coax and the jack style wires for blackvue rear camera. Its also very easy to route to the front under the roof from the glass. The top carpet is fastened with magnets.

Just do not route it around or in front of the airbag in the a-pillar. The wire will be invisible when it exit the rear glass. Remove the plastic trim and it will be obvious what is the airbag.

 

[yubbie2]

Its pretty easy to push a wire with a plug on through the rubber tube going to the chassis. Lots of space for more wires. I have done it with both the coax and the jack style wires for blackvue rear camera. Its also very easy to route to the front under the roof from the glass. The top carpet is fastened with magnets.

Just do not route it around or in front of the airbag in the a-pillar. The wire will be invisible when it exit the rear glass. Remove the plastic trim and it will be obvious what is the airbag.

Please reread my post. I don’t want to route the wires to the front or thru any pillars. I want to keep the rear dashcam powered by the rear hatch.

 

[kens]

Hi all

23 Premium Mach-E here. I’ve had a front dashcam for a while, and used the clever dongar rear-view mirror power source. All good.
I want a rear dashcam, but for *reasons* I don’t want to deal with running wires from front to back and all that. I’m happy just buying a normal front dashcam and mounting it on the rear windshield. Is there a power source inside the rear powered liftgate I could tap into? Car on —> dashcam on. No need for parking mode.

I recently added my front dashcam, and was considering doing the same as you by adding a second main unit to the rear.

I've been expecting I'd need to tap the power from the charging port in the rear cargo area. I'm not aware of anything in the hatch that would maintain power, everything there seems to be momentarily switched on. Hopefully someone will know of a source that'll work for you.

 

[Teslaeata]

Please reread my post. I don’t want to route the wires to the front or thru any pillars. I want to keep the rear dashcam powered by the rear hatch.

In the US do you have the aux power socket (used to me cigarette lighter) in boot/trunk you could take power from?

 

[Teslaeata]

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Shouldn’t there be a permanent live to wiper motor you could use? Might need to test for some power in there.

 

[E90alex]

I don’t think there’s any wire inside of the hatch that is always hot when on. There’s no reason for one.

 

[yubbie2]

No, I want only hot when the car is on.

 

[yubbie2]

I don’t think there’s any wire inside of the hatch that is always hot when on. There’s no reason for one.

Oh, wait. You mean hot when the car is on? Off when the car is off? Maybe wiper or rear camera?

 

[JohnFoxeSheets]

You might be able to use the license plate light, but current draw might be an issue. Honestly though, I think snaking the power wire through the harness boot between the hatch and the rear of the roof and then down to the right side 12V socket is likely your best bet. The camera will be on when the socket is on (which is whenever the car is on and then for a few minutes after shutoff).

 

[SimonT]

You might be able to use the license plate light, but current draw might be an issue. Honestly though, I think snaking the power wire through the harness boot between the hatch and the rear of the roof and then down to the right side 12V socket is likely your best bet. The camera will be on when the socket is on (which is whenever the car is on and then for a few minutes after shutoff).

he should be able to leverage 12v from the liftgate via splicing. I will confirm but in theory, I can wire up a plug-n-play harness same way we do for the liftgate module. Only wire will be in the trunk area which should be simple enough.

I would wire this attachment to our custom trunk harness and it should work. All completely plug and play.

 

[Delta5Delta]

he should be able to leverage 12v from the liftgate via splicing. I will confirm but in theory, I can wire up a plug-n-play harness same way we do for the liftgate module. Only wire will be in the trunk area which should be simple enough.

I would wire this attachment to our custom trunk harness and it should work. All completely plug and play.

Do you have a link?

 

[yubbie2]

You might be able to use the license plate light, but current draw might be an issue. Honestly though, I think snaking the power wire through the harness boot between the hatch and the rear of the roof and then down to the right side 12V socket is likely your best bet. The camera will be on when the socket is on (which is whenever the car is on and then for a few minutes after shutoff).

I think this is probably the right way. Least effort, simplest power. Just need to confirm you’re right about the plug powering down when the car turns off (or shortly thereafter). A right angle usb adapter will also allow the wire to sit more flush against the trim until it goes behind the scenes.

 

[JohnFoxeSheets]

Just need to confirm you’re right about the plug powering down when the car turns off (or shortly thereafter).

It does. I’ve used it to power a travel refrigerator and I can confirm the power goes off. At least it does on mine.

 

[markboris]

It does. I’ve used it to power a travel refrigerator and I can confirm the power goes off. At least it does on mine.

You can also change the power down time in FORScan if it stays on too long (or not long enough) for your liking.

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