Anyone have their dash cam wired for parking mode?

Have a dash cam that I was able to connect to the factory cam connector but it doesn't run in parking mode. (Which I knew when I installed it.) Looking for a way to run it when I'm parked at work for 7-8 hours. I know there are hard wire kits but was also considering running a Powercell backup battery for this. Anyone done either a hardwire kit or battery backup?

 

the oem plug should have a constant 12v wire and a switched power. What harness or wire did you tap into?

 

I have a hardwire kit for mine but I haven't tried parking mode because even though this is my daily driver there are times when it sits for 3 or 4 days. You can get battery backups that last for a while and the cams supposedly have a low voltage shutoff. But I would find myself having to go into the settings often to turn parking mode on and off which is too much of a PITA. For me anyway. Although having said that someone clipped my bumper in the parking lot about a month ago, and it would have been really nice to know who did it. So, I may reconsider.

Hard wire kit installation is easy peasy using fuse taps in the fuse box behind the glove box. I bet it would be fine to run parking mode for 7-8 hours or even overnight without a battery backup... assuming you drive the truck enough to keep the battery topped up.

 

Not a 2022+, but I purchased a parking mode cable for my Garmin dash cam. Unfortunately, it didn't work well for me. I found the voltage sensor didn't do a good job of turning the system off when the battery went too low and I came back to a dead battery a few times.

I think it's because of what @raylo mentioned above - I often go >4 days between driving the truck. If you are driving it every day and want the extra protection overnight it works, but for extended stays it didn't work for me.

 

Which Garmin cam? I wonder about other brands and if some might be better at turning themselves off. I haven't tried my Viofo yet.

 

I used the Dongar adapter that plugs into the OEM cam connector but my camera goes off even when the truck goes through the auto start/stop nonsense. Odd that I don't have constant power.

 

It's the Mini 1 with this: https://www.garmin.com/en-US/p/587564/pn/010-12530-03

 

Maybe dongar doesnt use the constant power. Someone here makes/made them and sold the plugs as either constant, switched or both. This was for the plug up in the headliner, not the mirror...not sure what dongar uses.

 

I have a similar problem in our Honda Pilot. I think the voltage drops just enough so that the camera reboots even with the auto start stop. But not all the time, just for the first 30 min or so after the vehicle runs.

 

I tried the Dongar with my Viofo and had the same issue. As MP said, when the starter engages the voltage on that lead drops enough to cause a reboot. Hence, I switched to a hard wire kit. Problem solved. It was really easy to wire up. Even easier than fitting that Dongar plug.

 

Scratch what I said, I used the Dongar to connect to the factory harness for the rear view mirror power. My truck doesn't have the powered review mirror but I do have the harness. I guess I assumed that this was also the point where Toyota also powers the cam if it were a factory option. My mistake. But still the same issue...I want power to the cams when parked.

 

That mirror harness is likely switched power then...you need a hardwire kit with a low voltage cutoff set at like 11v so it doesnt fully kill your battery if it sits for days

 

I can't say for sure but the Dongar may well provide power when parked. The issue we are talking about is not that it shuts off, it is just that the voltage on the wire they tap drops when the starter engages. Not to zero, but to some level that the cam can't handle. If you notice the cam works fine with the Dongar when you are stopped at a light with the engine off. It is the restart that kills it and makes it reboot. Some folks with other cam brands claim theirs don't do this.

 

Yeah I know the cam I have has the ability to operate until the voltage hits some predetermined voltage but it's not something I can set...to let's say 12.0 volts. So you are right, I'm going to need to get a harness with a voltage cut off. Thanks

 

I believe my Viofo has a few optional settings depending how low you are willing to go. Not sure it will actually work, however, since some folks report that their cams (not sure of brands) ignore the voltage cutoff and drain you battery anyway.

The low voltage reboot during the auto restart is a whole different thing. The cam circuit board just won't operate below some voltage. I have a ScanGauge 2 set to read voltage and when I had the Dongar and the auto start happened voltage dipped to 11.xx V IIRC and that was enough to reboot my Viofo. PITA.