dash cams? yes or no? | Motoring discussion | Back Room Forum

Thu 20 Apr 2017 18:18

dash cams? yes or no? - concrete

I know this subject has been discussed previously but due to a family discussion this weekend some of us are now considering installing them. Won't bore you with details, but eldest daughter is a police officer and she shared some insights that made us think. We want decent kit but not an installation that requires an auto electrician. Preferably the power supply and the camera should be removable, quickly and easily if required. I know several forum members have them already and would appreciate some advice on which type would be suitable.

Cheers Concrete

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Thu 20 Apr 2017 18:35

dash cams? yes or no? - Stanb Sevento

Coincidentally I have just been given one as a present, Its a Viofo A 119. Very small and neat and sits at the top of the windscreen. Im no expert but it was recommended to my wife by someone how is. Looks easy to hard wire and Im just waiting for a couple of bits to arrive, piggy back fuse and a 12v to 5v converter, £6 for the bits and no clutter.

Can also be pluged into power socket but that would be messy in my car.

Edited by Stanb Sevento on 20/04/2017 at 18:37

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Thu 20 Apr 2017 18:57

dash cams? yes or no? - gordonbennet

In the family we've got four Transcend Pro 200's in service (i believe they now do an upgrade to that), not as small as some but i found the really small ones to be not that easy to program, due to tiny buttons and writing, for those of us no long in the first flush of youth.

The Transcends are a comfortable size and easy two work with, would recommend as they are proving reliable in service too.

So far not been needed in anger, and none of us are that petty as to want to post on youtube the bad driving of others.

A shining example of how useful cameras are, traffic jam on motorway middle of the night recently, one of my lorry colleagues is sat behind johnny foreigner, who when the traffic starts moving selects reverse and backs stright into the front of our lorry causing extensive damage, the at fault driver immediately jumps out and starts shouting 'you hit me', colleague points to camera at which point JF runs back to lorry jumps in and does a runner, not the first such flee i've personally witnessed by vehicles from elsewhere.

There's a chap on Youtube called 'Techmoan' who tests and reviews these things, might be worth looking him up.

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Thu 20 Apr 2017 19:47

dash cams? yes or no? - badbusdriver

The new citroen C3 has one built in. Cant remember the specifics, but something like, if you are involved in a collision. the camera saves 20 seconds (or thereabouts) of footage beforehand. Otherwise, you can use it to put photos or video clips on social media. I'm guessing it wont be long before all, or most cars will have them built in.

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Thu 20 Apr 2017 20:09

dash cams? yes or no? - Engineer Andy

A good selling point for the new C3, and I agree that (hopefully) in the near future most cars will have them, or at least all the wiring in place to a standard mounting/connection point. Would would be good as well is to have both front and rearward facing camera systems, say linked via bluetooth to a phone ap to garner the last (say) 30-60 secs before/after any accident or heavy braking/sudden and violent steering change manoeuvre.

I'm sure they can have those accelerometer and GPS do-dahs mobile phones have or such like to help reduce false positives. They might be introduced as a compulsary safety measure, wherby it could significantly reduce the number of dangerous drivers, and particularly help resolve cases where the offending driver scarpers or to stop 'crash for cash' criminals getting away with it so often. Its not as though anyone could argue they are an invasion of privacy, as they would only activate in circumstances where you or the other driver were involved in an incident, and not just driving generally. The result would also be (if they were widespread) almost certainly less accidents, shorter/easier claims and court cases, and hopefully much lower premiums.

I'm not normally one for having loads of gizmos in my car, but I would welcome these if they came as standard (but weren't overpriced).

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Thu 20 Apr 2017 20:19

dash cams? yes or no? - Stanb Sevento

Oh Engineer Andy I chickened out of getting a little GPS modual thing for mine. Do you always want your speed imprinted on a clip you are giving the cops or your insurance !!!

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Thu 20 Apr 2017 20:34

dash cams? yes or no? - gordonbennet

I chickened out of getting a little GPS modual thing for mine. Do you always want your speed imprinted on a clip you are giving the cops or your insurance !!!

Most of the dascams you can disable GPS, i'm saying nothing :-)

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Thu 20 Apr 2017 20:51

dash cams? yes or no? - FP

"Do you always want your speed imprinted on a clip you are giving the cops or your insurance !!!"

Yes, I do. I aim to drive legally and responsibly and if I ever need dashcam evidence I want it to show who's in the wrong and who's not.

I have a Nextbase 420, by the way. It gives excellent picture quality, even after dark.

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Thu 20 Apr 2017 22:31

dash cams? yes or no? - Smileyman

This evening a passing motorist swerved and ended up in a nearby front garden. If he'd had a dashcam he would have had evidence to present to support a claim against a (now unknown) 3rd party.

As already stated Techmoan is the man who is the guru on dashcams ... my device is a couple of years old and no longer on sale. I don't have GPS, in my opinion it just is not necessary, what counts is the recording of image to playback at a later time.

When I do change dashcam I am considering a two camera set-up, to record facing forwards and backwards, the alternative is just to get a second device!

Edited by Smileyman on 20/04/2017 at 22:32

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Thu 20 Apr 2017 23:40

dash cams? yes or no? - glidermania

Not sure why anyone wouldnt want a hard wired in dash cam. They can still easily be removed from the car. If you use the cigarette socket there's a chance you wont plug it in or put it on the windscreen the one time you need it.

Each to their own.

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Fri 21 Apr 2017 10:09

dash cams? yes or no? - concrete

Thanks to all for their comments. I will look at some today when I take SWMBO for some retail therapy. Get some ideas about size and fitting. I might get one for the rear window of the caravan too. That would be easy to set up and power. I shall also look at Technoman and get his comments. Great stuff. Thanks again. Concrete

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Fri 21 Apr 2017 11:00

dash cams? yes or no? - badbusdriver

Of couse the other plus point for dash cams is we get to see all those mental driving clips from countries like Russia!

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Mon 24 Apr 2017 20:28

dash cams? yes or no? - RafflesNH

8<

I shall also look at Technoman and get his comments. Great stuff. Thanks again. Concrete

Ah, you have understandably mistaken the correct spelling for TECHMOAN. (As in, likes to moan at tech!)

www.youtube.com/channel/UC5I2hjZYiW9gZPVkvzM8_Cw

Although he used to concentrate almost exclusively on dash-cams, I think he has got a bit bored with them now as reviews are becoming few and far between, unfortunately, as he is quite entertaining to listen too, as well as being informative.

You could also try dashcamtalk.com/forum/, but you may feel overwhelmed by the sheer number of the things. :-O

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Mon 24 Apr 2017 21:53

dash cams? yes or no? - alan1302

Although he used to concentrate almost exclusively on dash-cams, I think he has got a bit bored with them now as reviews are becoming few and far between, unfortunately, as he is quite entertaining to listen too, as well as being informative.

He's never concentrated on them - he does a mix of tech new as well as a lot of retro stuff. The reason his reviews on dash cams has gone down is that he's fed up with people seeing his review and then having a 'TechMoan' of their own if they have a problem with them and blaming him

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Tue 25 Apr 2017 20:20

dash cams? yes or no? - RafflesNH

Although he used to concentrate almost exclusively on dash-cams, I think he has got a bit bored with them now as reviews are becoming few and far between, unfortunately, as he is quite entertaining to listen too, as well as being informative.

He's never concentrated on them - he does a mix of tech new as well as a lot of retro stuff. The reason his reviews on dash cams has gone down is that he's fed up with people seeing his review and then having a 'TechMoan' of their own if they have a problem with them and blaming him

Have a cigar! I must have spent too much time in his dashcam pages on his website:
www.techmoan.com/blog/category/car-dvr-dashcams

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Tue 25 Apr 2017 13:09

dash cams? yes or no? - saluja

If it's hard wired then it will record instance of vandalism or other car hitting your site whilst you're away from the car. Some cameras have parking mode which helps reduce battery consumption and memory usage.

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Mon 24 Apr 2017 19:51

dash cams? yes or no? - Volts

The new citroen C3 has one built in. Cant remember the specifics, but something like, if you are involved in a collision. the camera saves 20 seconds (or thereabouts) of footage beforehand. Otherwise, you can use it to put photos or video clips on social media. I'm guessing it wont be long before all, or most cars will have them built in.

Im of the understanding the C3 only records at the touch of a button see www.carmagazine.co.uk/car-news/tech/does-it-work-c.../

Not a dashcam as ive come to know them. and shouldnt be marketed as such

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Mon 24 Apr 2017 21:59

dash cams? yes or no? - badbusdriver

The new citroen C3 has one built in. Cant remember the specifics, but something like, if you are involved in a collision. the camera saves 20 seconds (or thereabouts) of footage beforehand. Otherwise, you can use it to put photos or video clips on social media. I'm guessing it wont be long before all, or most cars will have them built in.

Im of the understanding the C3 only records at the touch of a button see www.carmagazine.co.uk/car-news/tech/does-it-work-c.../

Not a dashcam as ive come to know them. and shouldnt be marketed as such

In the link YOU posted, it quite clearly states that in the event of an accident, the dash cam stores 90 seconds of footage, 30 seconds before impact and 1 minute after. And it also clearly states that they successfully managed to trigger the system by doing an emergency stop in a car park. Which then 'appeared in the apps memory banks as a 90sec event'

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Fri 21 Apr 2017 13:37

dash cams? yes or no? - Cyd

I use a Samsung Galaxy S2 (a previous phone of mine, but you could easily buy a suitable phone) loaded with Dailyroads Voyager. It comes on automatically (in the settings) and deletes old files constantly. It has a g-sensor threshold (setable). It is all completely free! Well, except the 4 quid I had to spend on a suitable holder and power supply on eBay. It could be argued it cost me 60 quid since that's what I could have got for the phone a couple of years back. The only downsides appears to be the dark video at night (car has front lights though) and the lack of super wide lens (but you can get add on lenses for smartphones anyway).

It will also run in background, so I also use the phone for Torque Pro and sometimes use live data.

A friend of mine was victim of an attempted 'crash for cash' and we're not far from Birmingham (UK capital for c4c!)

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Mon 24 Apr 2017 20:17

dash cams? yes or no? - Cymrogwyllt

Bought one for the latest chariot. Fixed to the bottom of the screen as it was best for me. I'd have loved to have one when a lad testing out his restored TR6 went airborne on a hump and spun taking out my car in the process.

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Tue 25 Apr 2017 13:54

dash cams? yes or no? - davecooper

Re dashcams recording speed. I can see why many people do not want their speed to be recorded, however, should you have an accident and the other party says you were speeding, woudn't it be useful to be able to prove them wrong, unless you were speeding of course!

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Thu 18 May 2017 12:17

dash cams? yes or no? - concrete

As an extra to this thread. Is it best to hard wire dash cams or use a connector lead from the car 12 volt supply? I understand wires can be messy. Looking at my Volvo XC60 it seems there are certain zones in the car where no one can go- airbags etc so it may be difficult to hard wire it. The dash cam may need to go on the dash because of the mirror and sensor housing on the inside of the screen. But because of these zones it may be not be possible to hard wire. Some people say don't use a connector lead, they can burn out etc etc some say they have no trouble with them. Any comments from direct experience would be welcome.

Cheers Concrete

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Thu 18 May 2017 15:25

dash cams? yes or no? - Finguz

We got 15% off an already excellent insurance quote from AXA by having one installed.

Edited by Finguz on 18/05/2017 at 15:25

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Thu 18 May 2017 16:03

dash cams? yes or no? - RafflesNH

"As an extra to this thread. Is it best to hard wire dash cams or use a connector lead from the car 12 volt supply? I understand wires can be messy. Looking at my Volvo XC60 it seems there are certain zones in the car where no one can go- airbags etc so it may be difficult to hard wire it. The dash cam may need to go on the dash because of the mirror and sensor housing on the inside of the screen. But because of these zones it may be not be possible to hard wire. Some people say don't use a connector lead, they can burn out etc etc some say they have no trouble with them. Any comments from direct experience would be welcome.

Cheers Concrete"

One of the most compelling reasons to hard wire is if power to your 12v cigar lighter (sorry, accessory) socket is turned off by the car after you park up and lock it up, like my BMW 3 series does. Then it becomes useless in parking mode, if your dashcam has one.

Note too that if the camera is situated anywhere within the area cleared by your windscreen wipers, then the fuzz will take a dim view if caught. As will an MOT tester, unless you remove it beforehand.

Edited by RafflesNH on 18/05/2017 at 16:05

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Thu 18 May 2017 18:16

dash cams? yes or no? - RichT54

I haven't hard-wired my dashcam into the car, I have just been attaching it to the windscreen and plugging it into the 12v socket in the dash as required.

However, after about a year and a half, it started getting intermittent and then failed completely. I bought a replacement power lead and luckily it started working again. I assume that the number of times it had been connected/disconnected and the lead wound up for storage, had caused the original cable to fail.

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Thu 18 May 2017 18:56

dash cams? yes or no? - Stanb Sevento

Note too that if the camera is situated anywhere within the area cleared by your windscreen wipers, then the fuzz will take a dim view if caught. As will an MOT tester, unless you remove it beforehand.

I fitted one a couple of weeks ago and went out of my way to make sure the lenze was inside the wiped area. Typical. Its a big high screen so Ive got to move my head to see it.

Cunning plan ? fit a shorter wiper for the test !!!

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Thu 18 May 2017 19:27

dash cams? yes or no? - FiestaOwner

Note too that if the camera is situated anywhere within the area cleared by your windscreen wipers, then the fuzz will take a dim view if caught. As will an MOT tester, unless you remove it beforehand.

I fitted one a couple of weeks ago and went out of my way to make sure the lenze was inside the wiped area. Typical. Its a big high screen so Ive got to move my head to see it.

Cunning plan ? fit a shorter wiper for the test !!!

This topic is of interest to me as I have just bought a Street Guardian SG9665GC dash cam and am waiting on it being delivered.

To hard wire it I am going to use a piggy back fuse holder. Just pull out a fuse for an existing ignition fed circuit (I intend to use the rear wiper circuit) and insert the piggy back fuse holder (the correct way round). If it is the correct way round, you will only need the top fuse in position to get power through the red wire. If you have it in the wrong way round you will need both fuses in position to get power through the red wire. Once you know which way round is correct for the fuse holder you can refit the original fuse in the lower position of the piggy back fuse holder.

Link to an example of a piggy back fuse holder below. Remember there are different physical sizes of fuses (as well as amperage ratings) so make sure you get the correct size of holder. I’m not endorsing this particular fuse holder, I’m just showing you what they look like.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Haobase-Add-Circuit-Fuse-Holder/dp/B01EFLD1JG

Fit the camera as close to the top of the windscreen as possible. If you can’t mount it behind the mirror, mount it on the passenger side as close as is possible to the mirror. The lens must be looking through an area of the windscreen swept by the wipers.

You shouldn’t have any MOT issues as there is a special notice issued to testers to cover dash cams etc on windscreens.

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/288417/mot-special-notice-2-2014.pdf

“To clear up some confusion when considering ‘view to the front’, from receipt of this special notice you should consider the following before failing for damage or obstruction within the swept area of the windscreen.

From the driver’s seat, check the view of the road through the swept area of the windscreen. Only fail the vehicle if there is damage or an obstruction -

in zone A, greater than a 10mm diameter circle and which materially affects the driver’s view of the road.
in the remainder of the swept area, greater than a 40mm diameter circle and which materially affects the driver’s view of the road.

Note: Where any damage or obstruction does not impair the driver’s view of the road, the vehicle should pass. If it only affects the driver’s view of the sky or the bonnet then this is not to be considered a reason for rejection. This is a general assessment of driver’s view – you are not required to speculate on the effects on tall or short drivers. Any manufacturer’s original design characteristics are to be accepted.”

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Thu 18 May 2017 19:38

dash cams? yes or no? - Theophilus

Surely if its mounted outside the area swept by the wiper blades the image will lose clarity in wet conditions (when arguably accidents are more likely).

Also - if it's not hard-wired the dash cam can be moved between cars.

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Thu 18 May 2017 20:12

dash cams? yes or no? - FiestaOwner

Surely if its mounted outside the area swept by the wiper blades the image will lose clarity in wet conditions (when arguably accidents are more likely).

Also - if it's not hard-wired the dash cam can be moved between cars.

It must be mounted within the area swept by the wiper blades (for the reason you state). Behind the interior mirror if possible. Needs to be high up on the screen to get a good view ahead.

If it's hard wired through an ignition fed fuse, then the camera starts automatically when you start the car (or turn the ignition on) and stops when you turn your engine off.

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Thu 18 May 2017 21:58

dash cams? yes or no? - Smileyman

The dash cam I use has a long length cable, so I have wired it into the cigarette lighter, automatically comes on / goes off linked to the ignition circuit. (Actually, I have a 3 way socket - second is the mobile phone charger cable and third slot is free for any other item if required)

Just one word of note concerning the size of mimi sd card, I have an 8 gb card, is ok for perhaps 90 minutes driving, so make sure you either lock or download any image wanted or it will soon be covered over.

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Fri 19 May 2017 13:08

dash cams? yes or no? - Manatee

My last car passed 2 MoTs with a camera in the swept area.

It did not obstruct the driver's view, in fact was invisible from the driving seat as it was hidden by the mirror (camera on passenger side).

I have now transferred the same camera to the car's replacement, all wiring is hidden except the 2" where it disappears behind the front of the headlining. The power supply is plugged into a flying accessory socket hidden behind the trim below the glove box, and the lead from the accessort socket is connected to an ignition controlled live (the rear wiper) using a piggy back fuse.

The plug of the power 5V power supply and the socket are wrapped together wth self amalgamating tape to stopped the plug working its way out. The camera comes on when I start up, and goes off when I switch off. The 32GB mini SD card holds about 6 hours of 1080P x 30fps video, consistent with Smileyman's 90 minutes on 8GB.

The camera IIRC is a Mini 0806, no longer available. I had two of these, they tend to fail with overheating. One did, but this one seems OK after nearly three years.

I have just bought a DDPai M6+

amzn.eu/id9nX7e (Amazon) goo.gl/E3jgw5 (Techmoan review).

as recommended by well known reviewer 'Techmoan' which I will fit similarly to my wife's car.

It's a fit and forget thing. I haven't pulled the card from mine since I was stopped by the police for allegedly ignoring no right turn sign in Lincoln in January, so I could see exactly what I had done!

Edited by Manatee on 19/05/2017 at 13:11

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Sun 21 May 2017 14:28

dash cams? yes or no? - concrete

Thanks again chaps. Good experiences and advice. Speaking to an auto electrician this week. Might as well have it fitted by an expert. Cheers Concrete

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Tue 23 May 2017 11:02

dash cams? yes or no? - Wackyracer

I have just bought a DDPai M6+

amzn.eu/id9nX7e (Amazon) goo.gl/E3jgw5 (Techmoan review).

as recommended by well known reviewer 'Techmoan' which I will fit similarly to my wife's car.

I keep thinking about buying one of these. It would be good to get your opinion when you have got it fitted. I know Techmoan said his vibrated on the mount. Would be nice to know if the new mount really is better.

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Tue 23 May 2017 18:25

dash cams? yes or no? - wrangler_rover

I bought a £39.99 dash cam from Lidl in July 2015.
I took delivery of a new company car recently, Mitsubishi Outlander plug in hybrid.
Last week, after having had the Outlander for 5 weeks, I hit a deer on a motorway.
The front near side bumper was wrecked, so were expensive items like a generator cooler and electronics that are located behind the bumper.
I have the dash cam footage which is of good enough quality to back up an insurance claim.

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Tue 23 May 2017 19:18

dash cams? yes or no? - Reentrant

I found it really easy to hard-wire the power supply for my dash cam.

You need a "piggyback" fuse (£2 or £3 on eBay) and a 12v-to-mini-USB converter (£5 or so on eBay). The piggyback fuse went into an empty slot in the fusebox, (or replace an existing fuse otherwise). The plastic trim cover on the windscreen A pillar just unclipped so the wire could be dropped down behind it, then down into the fuse box and crimped to the flying fuse lead and an earth point. Tthe top run tucked under the head lining across to the interior mirror where the dashcam is mounted.

The whole job took no more than 5 minutes.

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