Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

redditsux4me t1_iy58s8e wrote

https://blendmount.com/mirrortap

For future reference ... Make life easier than all that wiring.

159

popsicle_of_meat t1_iy59fdk wrote

I don't see those taps having a 3rd wire to provide power when the car is shut off, though? At least not for my car. I don't think these would work if you want to enable parking mode.

50

redditsux4me t1_iy5byuf wrote

Best way is to tap it into a small lithium backup battery, and a circuit to prevent battery drain. Blackvue offers these but it's cheaper to cobble your own. I do prefer these taps where appropriate, though. Makes wiring much easier.

26

popsicle_of_meat t1_iy5cqbh wrote

But then I have to find a place for the battery. I always read that keeping lithium batteries stored in a car (with drastic temperature swings--up to 160F in some cases) was bad for batteries?

24

redditsux4me t1_iy5f1e9 wrote

Bad for all batteries, yes. New modern cells are much better at higher temps. The real problems occur at extreme low temps, where they won't charge or they get severely damaged by charging.

8

Throwaway56138 t1_iy5sxhv wrote

Or just run the wires a little longer like in OP. You're way overcomplicating this.

17

redditsux4me t1_iy5up5s wrote

How do you figure I'm over complicating this? I offered my input as someone who owned and operated three separate car stereo and accessories installation companies.

4

Arcal t1_iy8s5f6 wrote

This is why some dashcams now come with super capacitors vs lithium cells. No degradation of performance over time/temp and they charge near instantaneously.

2

on_the_nightshift t1_iy6agey wrote

Late model Subarus have a circuit that drains the battery from the factory!

https://www.carcomplaints.com/news/2022/subaru-battery-drain-lawsuit-settlement-reached.shtml

11

titosrevenge t1_iy6vu1u wrote

> Based on the settlement agreement, each of the 13 named plaintiffs will receive $4,000, and the attorneys who represented those owners will receive more than $4 million.

Fuckers

22

farmdve t1_iy8o40f wrote

I would avoid lithium ion batteries in hot climates and in general.

2

redditsux4me t1_iy9jz8u wrote

Yeah, that technology that is literally embedded in every computer, every phone, so many boats/RVs, and homes, is just unproven and scary. Best to just avoid all those things.

1

farmdve t1_iy9rlz0 wrote

Cars in the heat outside will generally reach 60c inside the cabin. A lithium ion battery hidden behind the dash may stay at those temps even after you've turned on the AC due to the restricted airflow.

In negative temperatures there are also anomalies and most cars need a few minutes to heat up.

1

MyMomSaysIAmCool t1_iy5hm9b wrote

Usually the mirror area has constant power for things like emergency buttons and map lights. And there's usually switched power up there as well, although sometimes it can behave oddly. For instance, my V60 has switched power that comes on when you unlock or open a door, and stays on until the car is off and locked, or off and unlocked for several minutes. That was perfect for my use, because it meant that I could start the camera just by unlocking the car. If a scenario ever came up where I wanted to record events in front of the car, I could just tap the unlock button.

15

_BindersFullOfWomen_ t1_iy5it92 wrote

Yep. When I installed my Valentine1 many years ago I used the passenger airbag light as the source wire. Was right there next to the mirror and it only had power when the key was in the ignition.

1

FullLegalUsername t1_iy85wh8 wrote

Chiming in for anyone who might see this. Please don’t tap power from the airbag circuit. Sending power or ground, even using a test light, on the wrong wire could cause your airbags to go off. Wires in yellow/orange plugs and loom are a no no.

Source: professional installer for 20+ years.

14

_BindersFullOfWomen_ t1_iy86jjs wrote

It wasn’t the airbag circuit though. It was just the light that tells you whether the airbag is enabled or not. Or are you saying that’s all part of the same circuit?

1

FullLegalUsername t1_iy87a97 wrote

I’m only saying to stay off of the airbag circuit in general, especially for a DIYer. I’m honestly not sure how the indicator circuit would be tied into the rest of the airbag circuit without seeing a schematic of the specific car, but I wouldn’t risk it. It’s like the number one rule in install bay.

6

_BindersFullOfWomen_ t1_iy87m1w wrote

That’s fair. I remember when I swapped out steering wheels; I was so paranoid I waited like 6 hours after disconnecting the battery.

1

[deleted] t1_iy6h2yi wrote

[deleted]

−4

popsicle_of_meat t1_iy6hiq7 wrote

You need a 3rd wire to provide power for the 'parking mode'.

8

[deleted] t1_iy6lq75 wrote

[deleted]

−6

GTAsian t1_iy6tw13 wrote

OP has three wires (Batt, ACC, GND). If you only have two wires and your dash cam starts with your vehicle, then that means you're connected to an Accessory or Ignition wire and aren't able to use parking mode.

7

drewforty t1_iy6ae6x wrote

and even easier than taps: plug-and-play mirror dashcam harnesses: https://dongar.tech/products/subaru5pin

9

admiralinho t1_iy84tvl wrote

Dongar is awesome. Great product, easy to use, and awesome customer service.

I got one of his adapters this year, but it didn't fit, even though I bought the "right" one for my car. Turns out that I had a new mirror that hadn't been specced yet. The owner custom made an adapter for me to try, and I got it installed and working perfectly less than a week after my initial order.

3

sploittastic t1_iy5b3v3 wrote

Would you need to use taps? I'd imagine you could find a male and female set of the connector the mirror uses, and make a short cable with a soldered tap that's plug and play. I'd imagine this guy could hook you up

6

jonboy999 t1_iy8nsrd wrote

I've bought an OEM mirror harness for 2 Subarus. The camera wires just slot straight into it.

2

Kyanche t1_iy5fuyy wrote

Is the principle behind these sorts of things being safe that the wires going to the mirror have to be rated for 7.5A because the smallest fuse on that panel is 7.5A? So you can safely wire additional things inline without the risk of running too much current through the wires?

I've always been sketched out at the idea of tapping existing connections because I figured they wouldn't have much available overhead. Heheh. I mean, there's no telling if that mirror isn't already wired with lights and other things that take up the rest of the (presumed) 7.5A circuit?

It'd be much nicer if I could just make a little extension cable instead of sticking tap pins into the connector like that.

5

MyMomSaysIAmCool t1_iy5imt6 wrote

You're basically right. If the fuse is 7.5a, then the wires can handle at least that.

Typically automative wiring is a bit oversized, because you can't spec an exact wire size for a circuit's draw. You have to buy the size that supports it, and that may be a bit bigger. For instance, to run 15' of wire to support your 7.5a draw, you'd use 12ga wire. But that wire can handle 10 amps, so you have plenty of reserve.

And the fuses are also a bit oversized, because nobody wants a car that'll constantly pop fuses. The device on that circuit might draw 5 amps or less normally.

Dashcams draw very little power. Google says 0.5a at 5v is typical.

The result is that you have a healthy safety margin built in, and you're not risking much by plugging a dashcam into the circuit.

Empirically, I've done it on 4 or 5 cars at this point, and have never had an issue.

11

Kyanche t1_iy5l17o wrote

That's great news, because in our cadillac I so don't want to go digging through the A pillars and dashboard lol. In my Jeep it's simple and there's a gazillion videos of people doing it.

5

redditsux4me t1_iy5hge9 wrote

I agree. It would be ideal to have something that just plugs in on-line with the mirror wiring using factory matching plugs, but it's not my product. It's probably a cost saving method since this works reasonably well and securely.

As far as 7.5 amp wiring, unsure on that but. Probably sized to the maximum imagined current draw for a dashcam or radar detector.

2

5150_Ewok t1_iy7e4ju wrote

Eh…the wiring is easy enough to hide in a panel 🤷‍♂️.

New people don’t even notice my dash camera until the start up chime barges into our conversation

3

vitaminz1990 t1_iy6uolz wrote

As mentioned, doesn’t support parking mode. But I used something similar by tapping into my rear view power and it was such a breeze. Definitely recommend.

2

_Blitzer t1_iy8i6oi wrote

Even easier - get one of these, which has the USB connector built in. I've got a 2018 outback (very similar wiring setup to the 2023) and my dashcam install took all of ~10 minutes:

https://www.amazon.com/Two-prong-Universal-Dashcam-Adapter-MicroUSB/dp/B07BFRWC3X/

2

redditsux4me t1_iy9k5d0 wrote

That's a great option for cams that use USB. The Blackvue doesn't, however.

1

_Blitzer t1_iya4is1 wrote

Oh, right! Your blendmount solves that part nicely!

1