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Home > General (L494) > Anyone hardwired a dashcam in L494?

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RRSman

Member Since: 10 Feb 2015
Location: London
Posts: 1439

Violetpiano wrote:
RRSman,

Please do keep us updated - I go to / through Herts quite frequently so happy to visit the supplier / fitter to get mine done

Jas

No problem, will do!

Mon Sep 14 2015 11:48am

fkarim

Member Since: 14 Apr 2012
Location: London
Posts: 2216

Just a quick note to say I have hardwired my BlackVue. As a bonus, also made my rear sockets permanent live to enable CTEK trickle charging via the boot socket. I think both are working as expected.

Thanks to philmw's pointer about luggage compartment fusebox. This is indeed the best source of connections in RRS2

When I have a bit more time, I will post a guide with some pictures I took during the process. Current: Volvo XC90 T8 Inscription Pro PHEV with some optionals on top
Gone: MY16 RRS2 3.0 SDV6 Autobiography Dynamic, Carpathian Grey & Santorini Black Sliding Pano/Ebony & Ivory 2 Tone
Gone: MY13 RRS 3.0 SDV6 HSE Black Edition, Orkney Grey/Ivory
Gone: MY09 RRS 2.7 TDV6 HSE, Santorini Black/Almond

Last edited by fkarim on Fri Nov 27 2015 8:50am. Edited 2 times in total

Sat Sep 19 2015 2:07pm

rigsby

Member Since: 20 Apr 2012
Location: Portsmouth
Posts: 879

MY16 AUTOBIOGRAPHY Indus silver with some toys

2012 3.0 SDV6 Luxury gone, but a great motor

Sat Sep 19 2015 3:46pm

rigsby

Member Since: 20 Apr 2012
Location: Portsmouth
Posts: 879

I have a forward facing dash cam and I see there are also front and rear recorders, are these 2 separate units that need to be wired to a permanent live or is it one unit with 2 lenses mounted in the front ? MY16 AUTOBIOGRAPHY Indus silver with some toys

2012 3.0 SDV6 Luxury gone, but a great motor

Sat Sep 19 2015 3:48pm

Dave777

Member Since: 15 Feb 2015
Location: Sussex
Posts: 485

Thanks fkarim can't wait. Really want to fit one of these in mine. MY16 3.0 SDV6 Autobiography in Aleutian silver, stealth pack and toys.

Sat Sep 19 2015 5:25pm

fkarim

Member Since: 14 Apr 2012
Location: London
Posts: 2216

Blackvue Dash Cam Hirdwire Guide

I have a a Blackvue DR500GW HD single camera system with Power Magic hardwiring kit. Due to Power Magic, the camera always stays on when the engine is running and also when turned off (Parking Mode) until battery voltage drops below the specified threshold (only 11.8V & 12V are important as the other 2 higher values are for 24V batteries) OR a set number of hours elapses (24, 48 or 72). Whichever happens first makes Power Magic shut down supply to the camera. I have used it in my last 2 Sports and now fitted the same unit to the new one (I should really upgrade to a 2 channel/camera system!).

I will focus on RRS specific stuff as the camera and power saver come with their own instructions. Also, newer camera models may be different. Not everyone will be interested specifically in Blackvue anyway.

Some of the pictures are of bad quality due to brightness or phone camera losing focus. I only checked the photos at the end and didn't have a chance to retake. Apologies for that.

1. Turn the car off before doing any electrical stuff obviously.

2. Pull the right hand side boot trim by grabbing around the areas marked in the picture below. There are no special points to grip but it came off fairly easily for me:

Click image to enlarge

3. You will then see the luggage compartment fusebox:

Click image to enlarge

4. There is a fuse label/chart tucked in a thin slot under the fuse box. Take it out for reference. There is a fuse reference in the handbook as well but past experience of inaccurate/obsolete fuse listings means I don't trust the manual.

Click image to enlarge

5. Power Magic requires a switched live and a permanent live connector. I chose the 15A Fuse 44 (wiper symbol on the chart) for switched and the 15A Fuse 54 (trailer symbol on the chart) for permanent. The red Power Magic wire goes to switched and yellow goes to permanent. I peeled the insulation off the respective wires, took the above fuses out, connected the wires directly to the fuses as below and inserted the fuses back in their slots.

Click image to enlarge

Note: The above way to connect wires and fuses is a "hack" at best. In my previous Sports I used the below fuse piggyback connectors.

Click image to enlarge

Power Magic wire goes in the connector and crimped for a reliable joint. Fuse is taken out of the fuse box slot and inserted in the piggyback connector, along with another fuse in the connector. The connector is then fitted in the fuse box slot. Hence 2 fuses use the same slot: one for the original circuit and one for power saver. I only had mini blade fuses and piggyback connectors but the fuses in this car are a different size. They are not mini or even micro. They look closer to mini fuses but the blades (legs) are wider and I couldn't use my connectors here. Googling afterwards suggested they may be "micro2" but could someone in the know please confirm that's what RRS2 uses? Once I know what size fuses these are, I will try to get some spare fuses and piggyback connectors and revisit.

6. The black wire from Power Magic is for earth/neutral and comes with a fork connector at the end. I loosened the below bolt slightly (which already had another earth wire), inserted the fork terminal of the black wire and re-tightened the bolt.

Click image to enlarge

7. Plugged the white Power Magic plug in Power Magic. Plugged the cigar lighter type plug of the camera power cable in the cigar lighter type socket connected to Power Magic. Tucked the power saver and cigar lighter plug/socket in places where they can't move. Could have taped them too but that only occurred to me when I had finished and packed up.

Click image to enlarge

8. Dropped a piece of string through the slot shown below, next to the glass between C and D pillars. Tied the string to the end of power cable (the plug that goes into the camera) and pulled the cable up.

Click image to enlarge

7. Tucked this cable behind the C pillar trim. There may have been an easier and more discreet way of feeding this cable into the trim but I don't mind a couple of inches of black cable on display on black trim next to privacy glass. Not that obvious.

Click image to enlarge

8. Tucked the rest of the cable above headlining from C pillar to the windscreen, taking it out at the top centre of the windscreen (behind rear view mirror) for connecting to the camera.

Click image to enlarge

Warning: It is very tight where A, B and C pillar trims meet headlining. With hindsight, I could have used some thin (but not sharp!) object to push the cable into those areas. My finger tips are still hurting. At least the trim and headlining are undamaged

9. Plugged the power cable into the camera but it didn't switch on straightaway so started the car and it powered up. Stayed up after I switched ignition off. I guess Power Magic requires the car to be on for the first time.

10. Turned camera wifi on, connected my phone to that wifi and used the live view on the phone app to find a suitable position for the camera. Stuck the camera holder to the windscreen using the double-sided adhesive thingy, mounted the camera to it and adjusted up/down by rotating to the desired angle.

Click image to enlarge

11. This step was just for me to make the rear power sockets perm live so I can connect my CTEK for maintenance/trickle charging through the boot socket when needed. Took the rear power socket relay (R10 in this car) out and "jumped" its power terminals in the fuse box using a fuse holder with two spade connectors at each end. Stored the relay so it can be plugged back in when I feel I don't need the charger to keep the battery topped up (next Spring perhaps). Not as neat as Land Rover's own solution but I already had a charger and all the required accessories so I didn't spec another charger when ordering the car.

Click image to enlarge

12. Put the boot trim back in place. The shape of this side panel makes it easy to align trim clips to their respective slots but still best to ensure positioning before pushing it home. I removed and put this trim back many times and managed to avoid any damage to the clips!

The camera stays on when car is off. Enters parking mode after the usual interval and exits parking mode when the car moves, all as expected. Checked after several hours of leaving the car alone and camera and charger still doing their jobs.

Hope this helps.

EDIT: I undid the jumping relay mod to make boot power socket perm live a few weeks later. Properly hardwired a comfort connector in the boot fuse box instead. Current: Volvo XC90 T8 Inscription Pro PHEV with some optionals on top
Gone: MY16 RRS2 3.0 SDV6 Autobiography Dynamic, Carpathian Grey & Santorini Black Sliding Pano/Ebony & Ivory 2 Tone
Gone: MY13 RRS 3.0 SDV6 HSE Black Edition, Orkney Grey/Ivory
Gone: MY09 RRS 2.7 TDV6 HSE, Santorini Black/Almond

Last edited by fkarim on Sun Aug 14 2016 5:48pm. Edited 1 time in total

Sat Sep 19 2015 11:49pm

Dave777

Member Since: 15 Feb 2015
Location: Sussex
Posts: 485

Thanks fkarim good job. Just need the rear one now! MY16 3.0 SDV6 Autobiography in Aleutian silver, stealth pack and toys.

Sun Sep 20 2015 8:26am

rigsby

Member Since: 20 Apr 2012
Location: Portsmouth
Posts: 879

Thanks for the write up Fkarim, very helpful r MY16 AUTOBIOGRAPHY Indus silver with some toys

2012 3.0 SDV6 Luxury gone, but a great motor

Mon Sep 21 2015 1:36am

rigsby

Member Since: 20 Apr 2012
Location: Portsmouth
Posts: 879

My Blackview and Power Pro should be here some time today with a bit of luck. Where is the best place to position the rear camera with regards to wiring it in ? Any photos of its position or pointers would be helpful. I took the rear panel trim off earlier and there seems plenty of room to fit the Power Pro there as per the instructions from Fkarim so Im going to have a go at it when it turns up. Ive got the fire extinguisher handy though MY16 AUTOBIOGRAPHY Indus silver with some toys

2012 3.0 SDV6 Luxury gone, but a great motor

Wed Sep 30 2015 8:12am

Violetpiano

Member Since: 03 Jun 2014
Location: London
Posts: 561

RRSMan,

Any news about the supplier / fitter in Herts?

Cheers
Jas Current RRS: MY18 SVR
Previous RRS: MY15 RRS 5.0L Autobiography

Wed Sep 30 2015 8:32am

RRSman

Member Since: 10 Feb 2015
Location: London
Posts: 1439

Hi Jas,

Details are: http://www.avrmobiles.co.uk/acatalog/dash-...meras.html

I never used him as he is not an authorised BlackVue dealer or installer but he said he can do a fitting in my RRS.

I'm still looking to have this done but need someone who knows what they are doing.

Wed Sep 30 2015 8:48am

Farmer Chalk

Member Since: 02 May 2015
Location: London
Posts: 535

rigsby wrote:
My Blackview and Power Pro should be here some time today with a bit of luck. Where is the best place to position the rear camera with regards to wiring it in ? Any photos of its position or pointers would be helpful. I took the rear panel trim off earlier and there seems plenty of room to fit the Power Pro there as per the instructions from Fkarim so Im going to have a go at it when it turns up. Ive got the fire extinguisher handy though

A good question and one I wish I had asked previous to my install....
Firstly do not fit the rear camera centrally at the top of the screen. The reason for that is when it rains that area never gets cleaned by the rear wiper and therefore you'll see absolutely nothing.. Fit it slightly to one side at the top of the swept area.

Secondly if you're trying to run the camera lead through the rubber grommet at the the top off tailgate it's an absolute

. You're likely to break the plastic clip which holds the rubber to the upper rain channel.... Nightmare if you do because if you do water will pour into the rear roof area. The clip itself is part of the tailgate loom and cannot be replaced without replacing the entire loom.
The other issue is the tailgate is a bonded panel and there was nowhere I could get the other end of the camera lead to exit from the upper tailgate without drilling an additional hole.... I got round it in the end by cutting a notch in the boot lid end of the grommet and exiting the wire there.....not the neatest but it works....

The easy alternative is not to run it through the rubber grommets but run the wire straight from the rear headlining upto the rear window but you would have to leave a surplus loop for when the tailgate opens!

Good luck!

Wed Sep 30 2015 9:18am

Bodsy
Site Sponsor

Member Since: 03 Feb 2007
Location: Shropshire
Posts: 2162

I've fitted loads of these devices to Rrs/d3/d4, but not yet to the L494.
I'd be happy to work together to do this for someone local, take a few pics for you all whilst fitting etc.
I can't imagine it's going to be much different to any other vehicle in the range. Panels pop off the same way. Bodsys Brake Bible
Software Updates Contact me
RRS Timed Heat/Remote kits - Contact me
BAS Engine Re-maps/ EGR Blank EuIII and EuIV
Clock On The Dash/ SNOTM /3Flash / BT Update /Service Reset/Error Codes read\ Gearbox Reset
See it HERE

Wed Sep 30 2015 9:52am

Bodsy
Site Sponsor

Member Since: 03 Feb 2007
Location: Shropshire
Posts: 2162

Oops, just seen fkarims write up

That rear panel would pop off so you could feed the wire hidden instead of thought the vent. Just makes it a ballache if it needs to come off again.

I would run the wire not thought the headlining, but down under the footwell plastic panel and then up, but both ways would be fine I'm sure. Bodsys Brake Bible
Software Updates Contact me
RRS Timed Heat/Remote kits - Contact me
BAS Engine Re-maps/ EGR Blank EuIII and EuIV
Clock On The Dash/ SNOTM /3Flash / BT Update /Service Reset/Error Codes read\ Gearbox Reset
See it HERE

Wed Sep 30 2015 9:58am

Violetpiano

Member Since: 03 Jun 2014
Location: London
Posts: 561

RRSman wrote:
Hi Jas,

Details are: http://www.avrmobiles.co.uk/acatalog/dash-...meras.html

I never used him as he is not an authorised BlackVue dealer or installer but he said he can do a fitting in my RRS.

I'm still looking to have this done but need someone who knows what they are doing.

Thanks RRSman,

I think I would prefer an authorised dealer / installer to do mine to. If you come across one please do let us know.

Cheers
Jas Current RRS: MY18 SVR
Previous RRS: MY15 RRS 5.0L Autobiography

Wed Sep 30 2015 10:30am

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