458 Anyone Using Aftermarket Backup Cameras on their 458 or other Ferrari?

Thanks so much for the information. I’m eager to see your report on the install and your follow up on using it. Also, how clear the image is on the main unit. Cheers!


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Looks like the camera is facing up...shouldn't it be facing level with the ground or even a little down?

 

Image on the main unit is very clear and the parking lines are adjustable. I finally installed the wiring to the glovebox USB, so I will take the car out today for some real world experience (I will report back). Only thing I don't like about the Garmin head unit is that it always asks to accept terms and conditions when I turn the unit on, it just gets annoying and a useless step. BTW, you can easily add a secondary wireless camera (for front view).

Yes, I took the picture before turning on the head unit. I have since adjusted the camera downward. Adjustment is easy, 2 screws.

 

The GPS monitor suction cup plate is held to the carpet using 3M outdoor double back tape.
Stays put and works great.

Dan

 

It's a personal preference.

You can aim your camera straight or facing the ground.
Adjust it to your liking once you have live view on.

 

For GPS USB power I installed a cigarette lighter jack direct from the battery.
Then installed a USB adapter to the after market cigarette lighter jack.
Then plugged in a USB cable from the power adapter to the GPS.

I just always remember to turn on the GPS once I start the car, then turn the GPS off once Im done driving.

Dan

 

Just took the car out and tested the camera. Here is the good and bad

Good

• Can turn on camera with button or voice command
• Image quality is good
• Setting up parking lines and adjusting camera is very easy
• When the car starts moving forward the camera turns off
• You can configure the camera so that it turns on automatically when the head unit is powered on

Bad

• It takes about 3 seconds to turn on camera when prompted
• About 1 in 4 attempts, I would get a spinning icon without the video coming on. I don’t know why it is not recognizing the camera
• The camera is simply snapped into the bracket. It can be easily stolen, so make sure it is removed when away from the car

A few other things I noticed. When the power cord is plugged into the USB port in the glove box, it does power the unit but does not charge the battery. Also, it prompts you to cancel from going into data transfer mode (which you don’t want unless connected to a computer). If you plug into the cigarette charger, no issue and it charges.

All in all, no regrets at $299 for camera and navigation unit. For the price point it is fine, but if I spent $500 I would be annoyed about the bads. Also, navigation itself is not bad and when integrated with my iPhone it has some cool features. Hope this all helps and here are some pictures below.


Screen image
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Calibrating parking lines. I set the red line at where the screwdriver is
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Calibrated parking lines
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Thanks!


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Thanks so much for the detailed report. It’s certainly a shed load less than what the dealer quoted me to replace the back bumper with the camera integrated one, paint it and add all of the electronic gizmos to make it work through the right side TFT screen... I’m going to look into this option. Cheers!


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Thanks to Dan, he pointed me to this solution. If you go to Amazon, it's $299 versus $349 on the Garmin site.

Hey Dan, will this be going into a 458 soon??

 

Great job!

You can try extending or re-route the GPS power cord to see if it will improve back up camera video start up / improve wireless connection.

Dan


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Just wondering what you think of the camera now you used it for a while?

My 458 will arrive soon and it doesn't have a camera

Thank you!

 

I am satisfied with it, especially at the price point. It does have a delay when activating the backup camera, on average it's 3 seconds but sometimes it goes much longer. I just activate the camera well in advance, but sometimes it won't recognize so I have to back out of the mode and go back in. Also, when paired with the phone it gives some annoying alerts, but I just turned off all the features and it's fine. No regrets on the purchase and I feel it's better to have than not. I also have parking sensors so it's a good accompaniment, plus the install is super easy.

 

Just want to provide an update that there are newer wireless cameras now being released. I'm trying some of them.

Will share my findings here once I'm done trying them.

Dan


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Greta info thanks....did it effect your autodimming feature ? How does it get integrated with your stock rear view camera and reverse gear mode ?

 

The auto dimming can be preserved but have to install a new circuit board for this. The lcd screen is tied to reverse light power so it automatically turns on/off when you select or deselect reverse. You can also add a front camera. This is toggled manually by a button added to the rear of the mirror.

 

Here you go, please see my post here:

Dan

https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/threads/diy-california-t-parking-camera-mod.623584/

 

Any developments with this regard in the last few month?

 

Hello,

I just ordered the FenSens V2 100% wireless license plate camera on a Black Friday sale. Should arrive late this week. I will be happy to report my findings and any installation niggles ASAP. It works with your cell phones display.

It can also be mounted on the front bumper if preferred. I’m not sure how it would go if you had one on the front bumper and one on the back. I’m planning on contacting the company about this after the holiday hubbub eases.

P.S. I’ll take some install photos as well if it would enhance the discussion.

Cheers!

 

Well, I finally got my FenSens backup camera in and I got it installed on the rear license plate holder on my 458.

It’s wider at the bottom than I expected. The area on the 458 where the license mounts is angled further back at the top than the bottom. This causes the the bottom of the FenSens to stick out a bit more than I expected.

After looking at the mounting, I think I can custom mill a spacer/holder out of aluminium or stainless steel to take up the area at the top, so that the license plate is straight up and down and not tilted towards the body at the top.

A couple of other things:

1.) My FenSens unit does NOT turn off once you start driving, it stays on the entire time you are driving down the road showing a live stream of the rear view image. This causes the phone to get quite warm, so I need to find out why it does not turn off once you start moving forward???

2.) I have not been able to alter the coloured backup lines in the image. You are supposed to be able to alter the width of the lines and the alert area to suit your car. My unit is still reporting that there is no device present, (even though I have a live image), so I cannot finish the install and get the warning lines setup correctly.

So, while I have an image now when I backup, it does not turn off and I cannot setup the warning lines in the image. Hopefully, I can get it sorted as I love having a better view whilst I’m backing up. The unit seems well made and I’m looking forward to using it. I just need to find what’s amiss with the setup, or if there is a problem with the unit itself to get everything sorted.

Cheers!

 

Are you experiencing any lag when switching on the camera. The annoying thing with my Garmin is that it sometimes takes about 5-10 seconds.

 

Hello,

I do not recall any lag, just the two niggles mentioned above thus far... I will double check in the morning and report back.

Cheers!

 

Tried it again on an F-Joy run on Christmas and it pops right up, but it will not turn off once you start driving forward. Also, I cannot adjust the rear view coloured tracking lines to complete the install, because it reports that there is no device present. (Even though you can see a live image!) Arghhh...

Cheers!

 

How does an aftermarket camera system know what direction the car is going, in order to correctly depict the lines on screen? I would assume that Ferrari's PAC1 rearview camera uses wheel sensors to know how they're angled. Am I missing something?

 

The lines are stationary