Aftermarket Camera It Can Be Done!

129875 Views 213 Replies 78 Participants Last post by Elkhunter, Dec 28, 2021

BPD138

Discussion Starter · Sep 24, 2007 (Edited)

It can be done! Aftermarket rearview camera using the factory navigation plug. No need for a video converter or to find the backup light wire under the dash! Total cost was about $70.00 and about three hours of work. Best of all you don't need to spend $300.00 on a video interface!

The reverse signal is already in the navigation unit so when you put it in reverse it automatically switches the video display to the rearview camera. Thanks to PUG and his wiring diagram I was able to figure out which wires to use. It did take a little courage and some trial and error to get it working. See PUG’s diagram here http://www.ridgelineownersclub.com/forums/showthread.php?t=16231

The back of the navigation unit has a seven (7) pin plug for connecting the factory backup camera. Pin one (1) on the navigation unit is the pin all the way to the left. The Molex plug that I used is a six (6)-pin plug.

Plug type to use is a Molex, part number is WMLX-103. Available from www.Frys.com for $2.85. Frys part number is 1899306.

The factory plug on the back of the navigation unit has a pin configuration as follows:

Pin (1) is a constant 8 volts dc. I assume that is the voltage the factory camera uses but its not enough to power an aftermarket 12vdc camera.
Pin (2) is the video ground or shield
Pins (3 & 4) are not used
Pin (5) is the video line (center pin)
Pins (6 & 7) are jumpered together. I’m not sure what they do but they have to be jumpered together.

Although there are seven pins on the factory navigation plug you only need four of them to make it work. Looking at the picture below Pin (7) would be all the way to the right. As you can see it is jumpered to pin (6). This plug needs to be inserted into the back of the factory navigation unit under the drivers seat so that pin (1) on the left is not used.

In the next picture below, the plug is inserted so that the pins all the way on the right are used and pin (1) has nothing on it.

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BPD138

Discussion Starter · #2 · Sep 24, 2007

License Plate Camera picked up on Ebay for $64.99 (no one bid on it). I had to notch the license plate to allow the wire to pass through the hole behind it. Not the prettiest thing but it did the trick.

The camera needs power and needs to be activated when the truck is put in reverse. In order to do this I tapped into the backup lights on the passenger side of the vehicle. Lower the tailgate and remove the two 10mm hex bolts. Once the screws are out all it took was a little wiggling to remove the tail light assembly. As someone had pointed out before, the orange wire is ground and the green with a black stripe is +12vdc. I pushed everything back into the plastic casing with the exception of the two splices and taped it up.

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BPD138

Discussion Starter · #3 · Sep 24, 2007 (Edited)

I had to remove the bed liner against the cab and on the driver’s side to run the video wire into the cab. A word of advice here, remove the left and right upper and lower tie-down hooks. It makes removing the back panel and side panel easier. Also remove the two nuts securing the roof trim and pull the left side up. You can get the upper cargo light panel out without removing it but it’s tough to get the upper clip back in when reinstalling it unless you lift up the roof trim. I ran the wire inside the driver’s side of the bed up to the back of the cab. You can see the white oval shaped piece of plastic on the back of the cab. It has three rubber flaps on it. I assume its something to do with how air circulates around the cab. I ran the wire through there into the cab using a coat hanger. Attach the video wire to the coat hanger and poke it straight down and to the left (drivers side) through the plastic port. You do not have to remove the rear seat, just fold it up and remove the lower center section of trim that covers the seat belts and seatbelt anchors. Grab the end of the trim and pull gently and it will come free and then work your way along until it comes off. Go inside the cab and through the bottom of the seat I was able to get my hand behind the back seat and grab the coat hanger without any problems. Sorry but I forgot to take a picture of the wire going through the plastic port.

Pull the wire out the bottom of the seat and tuck it up under the driver’s side plastic molding.

Remove the driver’s side sill trim and tuck the wire under the carpet. I used a coat hanger to feed the wire under the carpet and “insulation’ so that it came out behind the driver seat. The carpet can be pulled back from under the heating vents and you can reach your hand down under the carpet to grab the wire/coat hanger.

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BPD138

Discussion Starter · #4 · Sep 24, 2007 (Edited)

Although you can't see it, I did wire tie everything to keep things neat and tidy. The lines on the navigation display are from my digital camera not the rearview cam. The rearview picture from the camera is crystal clear. Must be something to do with the monitor refresh rate.
And there you have it!

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Swarf_rat

· #5 · Sep 24, 2007

According to the factory manual, pin 6 is Camera Shield ("shield for terminal No. 1 to No. 7") and pin 7 is Camera Adaptive ("Control signal for rearview camera"). A bit cryptic, but I suspect that pin 7 is the sense line that tells the Nav unit that a camera is present (it knows somehow). So what you did was ground that signal using the shield ground, enabling the function.

Good work!

schwejo

· #6 · Sep 24, 2007

thanks! ...and perhaps this has come full circle now with the ability to feed the wireless vr3 cam into the OEM nav display?

http://www.ridgelineownersclub.com/forums/showpost.php?p=157899&postcount=1

Scottacious

· #7 · Sep 24, 2007

Did the camera that you got flip the picture so what is shown on the drivers side is actually on the drivers side?

BPD138

Discussion Starter · #8 · Sep 24, 2007

Yes. The image is reversed. I think just about all the rearview cameras on Ebay have a reversed (flipped) image.

I'm still undecided if I like this camera. The camera quality and picture are good and it works perfectly. However, I'm thinking a camera mounted higher up would give a better view. I'm just not sure I want to be drilling holes in my tailgate.

schwejo

· #9 · Sep 24, 2007 (Edited)

You have probably seen the same cameras that I have at FRY’S, they do have a pretty good selection of small cameras that would tuck pretty easily into the gate release or maybe even behind or in a hole in the top plastic gate cover. I’ve seen some pictures somewhere, but can’t recall what kind of room is in there, but some of the cameras are pretty small, like the cylinder ones that install like door peephole. I don’t mind cutting holes in plastic parts that are replaceable without some huge effort. Some of the little wireless ones can also be powered by a 9v battery (for your covert operations) No, just thinking about the 9v pin on the NAV unit, but a wireless model does make wiring it all up a little easier assuming that there aren’t interference problems. One of the wireless camera options at FRYS has a receiver that will handle 4 cameras, so it would be easy to wire one in the front if you had a particular need. That may be overkill, but I think the receiver is $40 or $50 and each camera is $30, so does add up, but still less than OEM. I have the VR3 wireless camera and its works very well. I mounted it on top of the hitch cross member, and I'm not that happy with the vantage point that it provides, but after having 3 neighbor boys crawl in the back one day I realized that any license frame cam would very quickly be used as a step by someone or have something set on it which would mean that isn’t an option- even if I were to be careful with it, it is in a vulnerable place when the gate is swung open. I have added reverse sensors which I use more than the reverse cam, but now I am going to attempt to get the vr3 camera to display on the NAV because that screen is in a much more useful position and then look into mounting the camera in a more useful place as well…. or so it seems?!

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RTLSULLY

· #10 · Sep 24, 2007

The Info On The Back Up Camera Is Very Helpful . Does Anyone Know If You Can Hook-up A Second Video Source To The Factory Nav. I Have A Dvd System Mounted In The Headrests For My Kids But I Can't See The Screens From The Front And Getting Directions From A Five Year Old Drives Me Crazy. I Would Like To Be Able To Flip The Video On Long Enough To Get It Started. Any Help Would Be Greatly . Thanks Sully

bongus

· #11 · Sep 24, 2007

schwejo said:
...but now I am going to attempt to get the vr3 camera to display on the NAV because that screen is in a much more useful position and then look into mounting the camera in a more useful place as well…. or so it seems?!

Have you considered something like this? Works really well and is right next to the rearview mirror.

schwejo

· #12 · Sep 26, 2007

That does look like a very nice solution. I do like the display location, right next to the mirror- would seem like the most ideal solution even better then right in the middle of the dash. Ive already replaced the OEM mirror with a Gentex one or maybe Donnelly? with compass and temp display. I'm wondering the size of the video mirror because you mention liking the larger size of the mirror. That is also something I like about the one I installed, from a wrecked Chevy Tahoe, its somewhat bigger than the OEM Honda and I feel it gives a much better view of things.

bongus

· #13 · Sep 26, 2007

schwejo said:
I'm wondering the size of the video mirror because you mention liking the larger size of the mirror. That is also something I like about the one I installed, from a wrecked Chevy Tahoe, its somewhat bigger than the OEM Honda and I feel it gives a much better view of things.

I initially purchased the OEM autodimming mirror with compass to replace the stock mirror (compass only). The Honda autodimming mirror was much smaller than the mirror I replaced (it was more oval than rectangular). The VideoMirror is more in line with the stock mirror shape but it appears to be a bigger viewing area. The monitor of the VideoMirror measures 3.5". Refer to this link for a more detailed description of the VideoMirror.

schwejo

· #14 · Sep 26, 2007

Getting a little off the main thread topic but....

I went to the video mirror link that you posted and was pleased to see that it is a Donnelly product. I'm not so familiar with their consumer products but I do have some good "hobbyist" experience with OEM Donnelly and Gentex mirrors. They both seem to have very robust products!

bongus

· #15 · Sep 26, 2007

schwejo said:
Getting a little off the main thread topic but....

I went to the video mirror link that you posted and was pleased to see that it is a Donnelly product. I'm not so familiar with their consumer products but I do have some good "hobbyist" experience with OEM Donnelly and Gentex mirrors. They both seem to have very robust products!

Apparently, Magna Donnelly manufacturers many OEM mirrors for the auto industry. I've had the mirror installed for about 6 months and I have noticed any problems. It functions just as described. The biggest problem I had was getting the mirror. It took awhile for the Hitchcam (the authorized dealer for the VideoMirror) folks to deliver the product.

schwejo

· #16 · Sep 28, 2007 (Edited)

Well you win some and you lose some. Unless anyone has any bright ideas, looks like using the wireless VR3 to drive the NAV display isn’t going to work as hoped. The video image itself is very clear on the NAV display, it’s just upside down. From previous posts it sounds like other cameras should work, just not the VR3 as hoped. As someone already posted the buttons on the VR3 have no affect and I suspect that there isn’t a place tap into the VR3 in a place where you could get an adjusted signal. Anyone know more about the VR3 to say otherwise? Still a big thanks for the wiring diagram. This was the topic of quite a few posts and it just took someone to sit down and work it out. I'm still going to get another wired camera.

On another note, I have a scanner radio that I occasionally turn on when I'm working out in the garage. There was just a call to police dispatch that a lady was requesting someone to go to her home because she left her brown Nissan running on her driveway yesterday when she left for the airport. (Assume she got another ride?) Ohwell, no one is completely immune, I guess?

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bongus

· #17 · Sep 28, 2007

Have you tried turning the camera upside down? That should address the picture problem on the Nav screen.

schwejo

· #18 · Sep 28, 2007

Good grief, yes of course what was I thinking?

franc944

· #19 · Sep 29, 2007

So can we manually put the dash screen to this input without putting the vehicle in reverse?

schwejo

· #20 · Sep 29, 2007

I am in reverse to display this image. I haven’t looked at the schematic, but it was posted earlier in the thread. Maybe its something as simple as grounding or energizing a particular lead. Seems you should be able to fool it.

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