Show us your FRAC installation

Can you make me a video [/QUOTE]
Get your drill ready. I’ll bring the GoPro.

 

[/QUOTE]
Woot! And by the way there is literally NOTHING behind that area for a good few inches.

 

I was on the FRAC buy list, but I decided to go with an aftermarket HU that has front and rear camera inputs. While looking at different placements for the front camera on a 2018 honeycomb grill I decided to do what @azTony did for his install. I used double sided 3M tape between camera and underside of grill so I didn't have to torque down the nut too tight. I didn't realize the shaft was just a tad too high as it put a little pressure on the wire with the hood bulge hitting it. Carefully used a hax saw to snap it and thus reducing the height. Not perfect...but you can't really see it now with some spray paint on the thread and nut.

I still don't have my HU yet, but the video line, camera and power line are installed (video line is tie wrapped in the passenger kick plate). It was pretty fun getting the RCA cable through the boot. I also made the camera hook-up easy to switch out the camera in the event the $17 buck camera dies on me. The connections for power and video are all up front behind the grill for an easy switch.

Now...just need to work on getting my HU and see how the camera works. Because of the position, I'm thinking the bottom part of the screen will be showing bumper. However, I'm not sure where else would be a better spot for the camera with these grills.


Mask up for some spray paint:



Close up you can see it's not exactly OEM. I put some silicone on the thread bolt and hole so water doesn't seep in.



Doesn't look too bad from right in front






And from about 4-5 feet away can hardly tell it's there

 

Nice job, that look pretty tight.

 

Thank you. Took longer than I had anticipated...but that's the norm.

 

Better to your time than to rush it, I took my sweet *ss
time, it was first time taking everything apart on my truck and didnt want to break everything.

 

I have mine mounted temporarily underneath the logo. I was going to use Sugru to glue it in place once I am satisfied with the location. I'm concerned it's too low.

 

so wher did you end up mounting the camera permanently? Do you pick up any park of the bumper?

 

What is your picture quality like? Do you pick up any park of the bumper?

 

I finally got my camera hooked up to my head unit. The place where I have mine I have about 2.5 feet of unseen space between my bumper and the obstacle. The Toyota plastic emblem extrudes too far and blocks the view from below the camera.

I'm going to try and drill the mounting hole closer to the front of the truck. I have maybe 1/4 to 1/2 inch where I can drill a hole to get a better view of my bumper.

If that doesn't work, then I'll do @2018 TRD Sport The picture is great... but the real use for this mod was to see where my bumper is relevant to the obstacle in front of the truck. Currently... 2.5 feet of unseen space due to the Toyota emblem blocking the view just doesn't cut it.

 

so you plan to drill on the same part of the grille just 1/2" more toward the front? I was looking at mounting it where you have yours - not too many good spots on the honeycomb grille

 

Just looked at the grill again. Is front edge of your camera flush with the front of the grill? I am wondering what the view would be like from he hole below the medallion.

 

Yes. The front edge of the camera is flush with the grill. If I do drill further towards the front, the camera will stick out from the grill.

I went ahead and ordered this camera:

NOAUKA Waterproof Night Vision Car Rear View/Reverse/Backup Camera 160° Degree Universal Color CMOS Back up Parking HD Front View Camera

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...ailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1#customerReviews

That will hopefully give me some more options for mounting it under the Toyota emblem. I'm going to try this camera before I drill another hole in the top part of my grill for the existing camera.

Agree with you... the honeycomb grill lacks decent mounting areas. Looks good though. The PRO grill has some good options as do the pre 2018's w/o the TSS.

 

@taxque It is still mounted using double stick tape and hasn't moved yet. I attached a piece of sheet metal with a hole in it to the camera which helps support it from falling. The tape just keeps it from sliding off.

In this position it just barely shows the front of the bumper. It is at a good height.
This is a screen shot of what the DVR recorded with the camera.

The edge of the bumper is the curved dark band of gray just at the bottom of the "6". You can see a little more of the right side because it is crooked.

 

Thanks - that actually is a great view. How did you record it? I am thinking of running 2 single lines to the camera so I can ogle on and off the distance lines on the careen. If you could send me a close-up of the mount I would be very appreciative.

Greg

 

Greg,
I used this:

eBoTrade Dirct Mini Security Metal DVR Micro Sd Card Recording with Charger
You have a great idea about running a toggle for the distance lines. Test the wire before you get too far because the colors of the wires for the distance wire and reverse view were switched on my camera.

I'd get you a picture of the mount, but i'd have to take it off truck. When I remount it I will try to remember to take a pictures.

I drilled a hole on a small piece of sheet metal then used the supplied nut to attach the sheet metal to the stud on the camera. With a small gap between the sheet metal and camera, I used double stick tape with the backing still attached. I slid the camera behind the grill with the gap pinching the horizontal rib. I pulled the backing off the tape and it stuck. It was just going to be temporary, but it's staying in place.

The only thing I would do differently is to replace the cheap cables supplied with the DVR with better quality ones. The supplied cables ends do not attach to the DVR securely. It can give an intermittent video signal!

 

I don't have a build page per se, but mine was installed under the supervision ...(who am I kidding) by @BlueBottle. Thanks for the clean install. For some reason I can't seem to be able to upload images. Had this issue also before when I was trying to upload images of my step. Will look into it later.

 

UPDATE on new camera with honeycomb grill.

I spent a few hours today removing my original camera and replaced it with this one:

NOAUKA Waterproof Night Vision Car Rear View/Reverse/Backup Camera 160° Degree Universal Color CMOS Back up Parking HD Front View Camera

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B077G1Y92M/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Originally, I could only see 2.5 feet out from my bumper due to the Toyota emblem protruding out beyond where I had mounted my first camera in the top center honeycomb hole.

With this new camera in the same location I can now see 11" in front of the bumper. Huge improvement and it looks better than having a bolt sticking up through the top of the grill (now I have a tiny little screw to hold the camera in place).

I trimmed some of the metal base of the camera to get it as close to the front as possible instead of recessed within the honeycomb.





This will make the camera look out over the Toyota emblem (not by much...more pics below).

Next I mounted the camera in place. The larger hole was from my original camera. Obviously, if you are using this camera that hole won't be there. I'm running out of surface space for mounting screws...but that's my problem.



I put some two sided 3M tape sandwiched between camera and grill. The screw tacked it down nicely. You can also just follow the existing TSS wiring too.





Here is the camera secured in place. If I didn't use the first camera with the bolt, I'd have plenty of space to secure the camera to the grill. I just put some black electrical tape over the top for now. Hides it very well, and may become a permanent patch..



Now for some profile pics with it installed on on the truck








Now for the reason to do this mod...

I setup a ruler with a red bit holder to see how close I can see an obstacle relative to the front bumper. That's 11" on the ruler to the front bumper.





And now for my view from the head unit (I'm using the Pioneer AVIC-W8400NEX). I know this is the FRAC thread and I was originally on the order list until I couldn't stand my OEM head unit. Regardless, for those with the 2018 grill and TSS the camera and mount location are still relevant.



It's not 4K video...but it does the job. I likely could tweak the mount and angle a bit to get a few more inches over the emblem, but it's freaking hot out and I'm done for the day.

 

Great job! I bought the same camera. I'll swap it out one of these days.

 

Nice installation! The 2018 grills are definitely a little more challenging.

 

Would you mind taking close of pics of how you mounted your camera? Thanks.

 

Trying to decide on camera placement. I have a 2018 and would like input on above or below emblem pros and cons if there are any. Thanks in advance!

 

See @bowhun2r post above. I would install it above the emblem like he did. It will give you a less obstructed view downward.

 

Hey TundraTex,
The FRAC is still working great. FYI, I left my camera below the emblem. This is a screen capture from the DVR. It just shows a bit of the bumper at the bottom. It actually helps judge how far things are from the bumper.

The FRAC really helps since the front parking sensors don't really cover things directly in front of the truck!

 

Could you post how your camera is mounted in the grill. I looked at below the emblem, but I really didn't see much to attach to the camera. The honeycomb directly underneath the emblem really doesn't have a nice flat surface to attach to the camera.

Thanks,
Scott

 

Good deal. Always nice to have multiple options.

 

Thanks @TundraTex. Simple install even for a novice like myself. Cameras and VIM working great! Thanks again for an easy but solid mod!
https://youtu.be/p_7ec0wsZMw

 

Great Job!

 

Posting another successful FRAC harness installation ....with thanks to Mr. TundraTex's advice on forum use.
Since most pics are duplicated in every install, I only included a couple of pics of how I managed the passenger firewall area, and the products used.

This shows 'split' duct which runs from the transition wires, all the way through the firewall for about 10" into the passenger compartment, then up to and behind the passenger side vent cover.
The excess extension wire is coiled and taped onto the top of a vent/plenum with just enough wire to reach the head unit.

• I used 3/8" 'split' duct from the camera to the transition wires, then 3/4" duct (routed just below the radiator cross member-- plenty of room) over those wires. To keep everything covered and protected, I put a 6" piece of 1"duct over the area of the two different sized ducts. From there, 3/8" 'split' duct to the drilled access hole in the firewall.

This pic shows the sealant I used....it's the greatest thing since pockets on shirts...!! stays soft/pliable and it's easy use. I've even used it under the windshield trim ( on a @#$% G#C truck) to keep it quiet. Ended trading that truck for a dog....then shot the dog.

• 

In retrospect, I could have taken more pics; it was hot, late and I ended up going to emergency room for fluids due to heat exhaustion. No fun.
STAY HYDRATED

 

Glad to hear the install was successful and you survived the heat! This place is a great resource because of the members and because the admins don't tolerate any trolls. I say it often but it bears repeating; this is the best Tundra Forum on the planet!