Wired LCD Rear View Mirror Cam Install

Great write-up.
I remember reading it a while ago, but yesterday I tried to wire my aftermarket rearview camera without looking at your way.
It turned out - that's the best way :)
I have retrofitted the OEM Navigation screen and have a video converter in the glovebox - so my wires start from the glovebox all the way through the passenger side of the vehicle - just like yours.
For now I left the wires in the D pillar tucked, because I had a major headache with fishing the wires through the hatch.
After reading your post that it turned out easier than you thought - perhaps I need a harder, steel-like fish wire to make it through from the top, to the rear defrost opening first, and then to the camera location.

After my disappointment yesterday that couldn't finish the wires, at least I mounted the camera - at your location
I used this camera:
https://www.ebay.com (commissions earned)

It's for 09 Toyota Camry
The look is like yours - OEM like.
Will post pictures at least for the camera
And will try these days to deal with the wires once again.
 
Last edited:
Looks like a nice unit, best of luck with it. Glad I could help out someone else with the job. I did use a fairly stiff fish wire, if I remember it was just a piece of #14 solid copper wire or something like that.
 
I will try with anything that I can find at home, and if not I should order some pro fish wire-puller :) like this https://www.ebay.com (commissions earned)
or this one
https://www.ebay.com (commissions earned)

I attached a couple of pics of the camera mounted (excuse the dirt - it's been raining for 3 straight days around here)

I hope that OP doesn't mind posting pics and stuff, but I hope that the more the info the better for the ones interested in retrofitting the rearview camera.
 

Attachments

  • Camera.jpg
    Camera.jpg
    383 KB · Views: 331
  • Camera Close.jpg
    Camera Close.jpg
    345.7 KB · Views: 346
twintrbo: Did you consider to route the cable over the headliner? At first glance, it seems the easiest way, since you have to route it from the rearview mirror to the top of the hatch.
 
I did but it's hard to get a snake across the entire roof in one shot. In addition, there is no way to fasten it to anything without dropping the headliner, if it rattles around you are out of luck. Oh and will it affect the curtain airbag? It seemed like more issues than following the factory route.
 
OK, so now I have it working :)
I found a fish wire that was really hard and pretty thick - it worked from the opening of the rear defrost to the camera location. But from this opening to the rubber grommet of the hatch I used a lot thinner and flex wire.
The picture provided by the camera is good. I have attached two pictures.
You can see in the botom the line of the bumper.
The car behind can be seen when I get at about 3 feet.
I have a rear parking assistant (parktronic or whatever else can be called) and I can see when I get the constant beep and always get to full stop I have about 8 inches more that I can use to get in or out of tight parking spaces

The picture is a little fade and not in good contrast in bright sunshine, but I guess the reason is the video converter I have, that manages the different inputs of the camera and the WD TV Mini Player that I use, that screws up the video signal making it brighter.
 

Attachments

  • Camera1.JPG
    Camera1.JPG
    560.3 KB · Views: 367
  • Camera2.JPG
    Camera2.JPG
    431.8 KB · Views: 431
The lines are part of the camera. When I have plugged it to my home TV it was really nice picture - along with the lines.
Still I don't think they are necessary and it would be better to be without them, but most of the rearview cameras that I found with mirrored picture are with lines.
 
Thanks for making this. Came in very handy for me last weekend.

I used the Gentex GENK332 and a MITO Camera and only managed to slightly crack two trim pieces.(cryhard)
 
No problem, glad it helped! Maybe one day Mazda will decide to install it as OEM but until then, we do it one 5 at a time :)
 
Ha ha ha, yeah easy, LOL! :)

Ah, and great question.

1) On the steering wheel, there is a button on the right side, top down view of a little car like icon, with a V in front of it, push that and ..ta-da!, front cam is now on. Now the cool thing is, safety in mind, it only displays the image on the dash "TV" if the car is going less than 3km an hr. So no you can't use it to drive down the road, :( BUT you can creep RIGHT up on someones ass in STAND STILL traffic so the guy/gal behind you can squeeze by, or pull up enough so someone can make a turn behind you, etc. Japan traffic gets tight :eek:

2) The really cool thing is the Red, and Yellow lines, on the TV screen, (like the rear camera has) that move when the steering wheel is turned in that direction, to show you, your danger zones and clear zones when pulling out of a parking space, backing in, etc. etc. They overcompensate for safety again, but it's great NOT having to turn your head to back up, and the rear one is like that FISH EYE camera like, just a little, so you can get a great range left and right.

3) If you push the button again, off it goes... but if after a long drive, you forgot that you'd used the camera before and you come to a stop, POP up comes the front camera and the kids, go awwwww! from the back seat, whoops movie interruption. Tee he.

Only takes a second to push the button and back to the movie. ... gee you know I should put up a video of that huh?

*Note to self, make video of camera system.

Peace!(rei)

Where is the camera mounted at the front of the car? I'd like to install a front camera in mine and would replicate the OEM position if possible. Thanks!
 
Wiring into the hatch !

Now comes the hardest part of the install, fishing the wire from the top of the hatch, around the window and into the bottom half. I thought I was going to be here for days doing this but it turned out to be so simple in the end. First off remove the little rectangle plug on the side of the rear window, in here you will see the wire for the defroster grid. If the factory got the wire through, so can you! I bent my fishing wire to about the path I wanted it to follow, this helps it go where you want it to. Then I fished it into the hole where the boot was and just slowly pushed it in, jiggling if it hit any obstacles. Surprisingly it went pretty easy but I could not locate it even though it was where it should be. The thing here is that when you look into the rectangle hole, you can see some body structure, and even though you would expect it to wind up on top where you can see it, it comes out under the channel, not over it. You will need to fish through a fairly narrow opening to get to the void under the glass (with the hatch up) but its very possible. Picture 3 shows the exit point. At this point you can crack a brew and enjoy being past the halfway point.

First post from a 2009 mazda5 owner since 09. Just now adding a DVD receiver and backup camera. Excellent info here but having some problems with the step listed above. I'm trying to install a backup camer starting at the rear. Cannot for the life of me fish from the tailgat latch area around the window to the rectangular access window by the rear defroster connection. I know this is an old thread but thought if anyone else has done this maybe they could help me out. Feeling defeated...

Mike
 
First post from a 2009 mazda5 owner since 09. Just now adding a DVD receiver and backup camera. Excellent info here but having some problems with the step listed above. I'm trying to install a backup camer starting at the rear. Cannot for the life of me fish from the tailgat latch area around the window to the rectangular access window by the rear defroster connection. I know this is an old thread but thought if anyone else has done this maybe they could help me out. Feeling defeated...

Mike
Hi Mike,

I have similar problem, there are two places in a tailgate - both on those two corners facing from defroster connection cable in a middle of tailgate.

Any luck with yours?
 
Back