TubeSum ← Transcribe a video

How to Safely Install a Dash Camera in a Car with Airbags (Hardwire and Rear Cam)

0h 35m video Published Aug 17, 2024 Transcribed Aug 5, 2026 ChrisFix ChrisFix
Intermediate 18 min read For: Car owners and DIY enthusiasts with basic knowledge of vehicle electrical systems who want to install a dash camera safely.
AI Trust Score 75/100
⚠️ Average / Some Fluff

"Delivers a thorough, safety-focused installation guide exactly as promised, with minor fluff from subscriber stories."

AI Summary

This video provides a comprehensive guide to installing dash cameras in vehicles, covering both hardwiring and using a cigarette lighter adapter, with special attention to safety around airbags. The presenter demonstrates installations in two vehicles, a truck and a car, and explains how to route wires, connect to the fuse box, and mount cameras for optimal performance.

[00:01]
Introduction to Dash Cam Installation

The video will show how to wire two different dash cameras, one inexpensive and one with front, cabin, and rear cameras, and how to use the adapter that comes with most dash cameras.

[00:42]
Benefits of Dash Cameras

Dash cameras can save you from false fault claims, as shown by subscriber examples where footage proved innocence in accidents. They also provide parking mode surveillance and capture interesting events.

[02:28]
Not a Review Video

The presenter clarifies this is not a review video but a how-to guide. He recommends other channels like Linus Tech Tips and The Hookup for comparisons.

[02:55]
Required Extras

Extras include a hardwire kit for clean installation, clips for side curtain airbags, a polarized lens to reduce glare, and a high endurance memory card for dash cam use.

[04:01]
Locating the Fuse Box

The fuse box location varies by vehicle; common spots are driver's side under the dash or passenger side under the glove box. Check the owner's manual.

[05:09]
Understanding Hardwire Kit Wires

The hardwire kit has three wires: red (battery positive, always hot), yellow (accessory, only hot when car is running), and black (ground to bare metal).

[05:35]
Using a Multimeter to Find Always-On Fuse

Use a multimeter set to DC volts to test fuses. With the key off, find a fuse that still has 12 volts, indicating it's always hot.

[06:31]
Avoid Tapping Critical Fuses

Do not tap fuses for critical systems like ABS, SRS airbags, PCM/ECM, or body control modules. Instead, use non-essential circuits like radio, auxiliary power, or cigarette lighter.

[07:10]
Using a Fuse Tap

Pull the chosen fuse and insert it into the fuse tap, then plug the tap into the fuse slot. Ensure the outside prong of the tap contacts the metal prong in the fuse box for correct directionality.

[08:04]
Wiring the Accessory Wire

Find a fuse that is only hot when the key is in the Run or Accessory position. Use a fuse tap in an empty slot if available, ensuring it's directional.

[09:22]
Connecting the Ground Wire

Find a bare metal bolt that is actually grounded. Test with a multimeter; avoid bolts that screw into plastic, as they are not grounded.

[10:14]
Testing the Installation

Before routing wires, test the camera by plugging it in. If it cycles on and off, the ground is likely bad; redo the ground connection.

[11:06]
Mounting the Camera

Mount the camera as centered as possible behind the rearview mirror, out of the driver's field of view. Clean the windshield with alcohol before applying the mount.

[12:00]
Adding Polarizer and Memory Card

Screw on the polarizer lens to reduce glare, and insert a high endurance memory card (e.g., 256GB) for reliable recording.

[13:10]
Tucking Wires

Tuck wires along the headliner, being careful not to damage it. Use wire clips to secure wires if the headliner is loose.

[14:28]
Running Wires Down the A-Pillar

If no side airbag, tuck wires behind the A-pillar trim. If there is an airbag, remove the trim and route wires behind the airbag, zip-tying to the factory harness.

[15:50]
Setting Shut-off Voltage

Set the hardwire kit's voltage switch to 12V to prevent battery drain in parking mode; the camera will shut off when voltage drops to that level.

[16:29]
Finalizing the Hardwire Install

Tuck excess wire, reinstall fuse box cover, and test the camera. The camera should enter parking mode when the car is off.

[17:38]
Installing with Cigarette Lighter Adapter

For cars without hardwiring, use the cigarette lighter adapter. Hide wires by routing them under trim and behind panels.

[18:35]
Dealing with Airbags

When running wires near airbags, remove the A-pillar trim and route wires behind the airbag, zip-tying to the factory harness to avoid interference.

[19:18]
Running Rear Camera Cable

The rear camera cable is 20ft long, but some vehicles need a 30ft extension. Route it along the headliner and down the A-pillar, then along the door sills.

[22:44]
Hiding Wires Under Dash

Remove the glove box to access under the dash, fish the cigarette lighter adapter wire through, and bundle excess wire with zip ties.

[24:19]
Running Wire Along Door Sills

Remove door sill trim and run the rear camera cable along the factory harness, using clips to secure it. Avoid running over side curtain airbags.

[27:06]
Using a Wire Snake

A wire snake (long metal wire) helps pull cables through tight spaces like the trunk grommet. Use silicone spray to lubricate the grommet for easier passage.

[29:52]
Mounting Rear Camera

Mount the rear camera on the rear glass, avoiding heating elements. Use a cutout in the trim if needed to route the wire cleanly.

[34:44]
Alternative Power: OBD2 Adapter

For vehicles 1996 or newer, an OBD2 adapter can power the dash camera by plugging into the OBD2 port under the dash.

Properly installing a dash camera involves careful fuse selection, safe wire routing around airbags, and secure mounting. Whether using a hardwire kit or a cigarette lighter adapter, the key is to hide wires and ensure safety, resulting in a clean and functional installation.

Mentioned in this Video

Tutorial Checklist

1 04:01 Locate the fuse box using the owner's manual; common spots are driver's side under dash or passenger side under glove box.
2 05:35 Use a multimeter to find an always-hot fuse (12V with key off) for the red wire.
3 07:10 Pull the chosen fuse and insert it into the fuse tap, then plug the tap into the fuse slot, ensuring correct directionality.
4 08:04 Find an accessory fuse (hot only when key is in Run) for the yellow wire, using a fuse tap in an empty slot if available.
5 09:22 Connect the black ground wire to a bare metal bolt that is actually grounded (test with multimeter).
6 10:14 Test the camera by plugging it in; if it cycles, fix the ground connection.
7 11:06 Mount the camera behind the rearview mirror, centered and out of the driver's field of view, after cleaning the windshield.
8 13:10 Tuck wires along the headliner and down the A-pillar, using clips if needed.
9 15:50 Set the hardwire kit's voltage switch to 12V to prevent battery drain.
10 17:38 For cigarette lighter adapter install, hide wires under trim and panels, removing glove box if necessary.
11 18:35 If airbags are present, remove A-pillar trim and route wires behind the airbag, zip-tying to factory harness.
12 24:19 Run rear camera cable along door sills, removing trim and using clips to secure.
13 27:06 Use a wire snake to pull cable through tight spots like the trunk grommet; apply silicone spray for lubrication.
14 29:52 Mount rear camera on rear glass, avoiding heating elements, and create a cutout in trim if needed.

Study Flashcards (10)

What are the three wires in a hardwire kit and their functions?

easy Click to reveal answer

Red: battery positive (always hot), Yellow: accessory (hot when car is running), Black: ground to bare metal.

05:09

Why should you avoid tapping fuses for critical systems like ABS or airbags?

medium Click to reveal answer

Because blowing those fuses could disable safety systems, e.g., brake pedal position switch could prevent shifting out of park.

06:31

What is the correct way to use a fuse tap?

medium Click to reveal answer

Insert the original fuse into the tap, then plug the tap into the fuse slot, ensuring the outside prong contacts the metal prong in the fuse box for correct directionality.

07:10

How do you find a good ground for the black wire?

medium Click to reveal answer

Find a bare metal bolt that is actually grounded; test with a multimeter to ensure continuity to ground.

09:22

What should you do if the camera cycles on and off after wiring?

easy Click to reveal answer

Likely a bad ground; redo the ground connection or find another ground point.

10:52

Where should you mount the front dash camera?

easy Click to reveal answer

As centered as possible behind the rearview mirror, out of the driver's field of view.

11:20

Why use a high endurance memory card?

medium Click to reveal answer

Because dash cameras have many write cycles and can get hot; high endurance cards are designed for that.

03:21

What is the purpose of the polarized lens?

easy Click to reveal answer

To reduce glare and reflections in the dash cam footage.

12:00

How do you safely run wires near side curtain airbags?

hard Click to reveal answer

Remove the A-pillar trim and route wires behind the airbag, zip-tying to the factory harness to avoid interference.

18:35

What is an alternative to hardwiring for power?

easy Click to reveal answer

Using an OBD2 adapter that plugs into the OBD2 port under the dash.

34:58

💡 Key Takeaways

📊

Dash cams prove innocence

Real-world examples show how dash cam footage can protect drivers from false fault claims.

00:42
🔧

Hardwire kit wire functions

Clear explanation of the three wires (red, yellow, black) and their roles in power delivery.

05:09
⚖️

Avoid critical fuses

Important safety tip to avoid tapping fuses for essential systems like ABS or airbags.

06:31
🔧

Airbag-safe wire routing

Demonstrates proper technique to route wires behind airbags to avoid interference.

18:35
🔧

Wire snake trick

Using a wire snake and silicone spray simplifies running cables through tight grommets.

27:06

[00:01] going to show you how to quickly and properly wire a dash cam in your car or going to be wiring two different Dash camers we have an inexpensive one that we have a more expensive one that has a front dash cam it has a cabin camera and

[00:17] a rear cam allinone a lot more wires but still not too difficult to install I'll why I want to install two dash cameras is because I'm going to show you how to adapter that comes with basically every dash camera on the market

[00:30] that you would have to buy separately and I'm going to show you how to install that as well now the whole point of doing all of this is to make sure whichever dash camera you buy whichever vehicle you have whichever wiring kit

[00:42] you have you'll be able to install it in your vehicle because dash cameras are very helpful these things could save you big time for example here's subscriber Tad cruising along in his Hummer H1 when a driver did not yield and pulled out

[00:54] insurance company tried to get Tad partially at fault but because he had dash camera foot AG he quickly proved otherwise and the other driver was found Kevin was driving when somebody pulled into his Lane the guy in the silver car

[01:08] tried to say Kevin was speeding and swerved into his Lane but the dash camera footage again showed Kevin was not speeding he had the green light and he maintained his Lane so he was not at fault now besides helping yourself a

[01:20] someone else for example subscriber George captured this accident and he pickup driver which helped clear him of any fault and I could only imagine how appreciative that pickup driver was just imagine if it was you now besides while

[01:34] driving when you go and park the car if you're using a hardwire kit it could go into parking mode subscriber Caesar had his camera set to g sensor in parking somebody hits it it starts recording and from that he was able to easily get this

[01:48] that hit him while he was parked and he wasn't even around to see this another subscriber Oscar sets his parking mode to motion detection and then he backs his car in so it acts almost like a security camera at his house so he was

[02:01] to see if they're open and report it to the police and finally not only do dash but they also capture some pretty got this cool shot of a meteor shooting across the sky and subscriber Ethan got

[02:15] this crazy near Miss of a cyclist and two cars with this Red Light Runner so I think you get the idea dash cameras could save you big time and I'd hate for have one installed so that's exactly why I'm making this video let's go and

[02:28] clear even though I've used and installed tons of different dash cameras this is not a review video you could buy whatever dash camera you want I'm going want some good review videos both Linus Tech tips and the hookup does an amazing

[02:43] job at comparing dash cameras and I'll link those videos in the description for your research and based off of those videos and my own past experiences we're dash cameras and they do come with everything you need to completely

[02:55] install them but I do have some extras such as this hardwire kit which gives you a a nice clean install also if you have side curtain airbags these little clips that hold the wires in are very important I'll show you that and then

[03:07] polarized lens which helps reduce glare so here's what the dash cam looks like it looks like after the lens you can see how it removes the reflection and glare sunglasses for your dash camera and finally you're going to need a memory

[03:21] card but here's a tip a lot of people don't cover you want to get a high specifically for dash cameras since dash cameras have a lot of right cycles and overriding the old ones that way the memory is Never full they're also

[03:35] inside of a car could get surprisingly hot and for those reasons I recommend a high endurance memory card they don't cost any more than a regular memory card include all these products down in the description so you could easily find

[03:49] sending me out these dash cameras and supporting the video that way I could show you guys how to install dash camera in your driveway at home with common hand tools so now let's get started we are we're going to install the budget

[04:01] grab the hardwire kit cuz we're going to hardwire into my truck now a hardwire and that's in a different location for every vehicle so the easiest way to find it is to look in your owner's manual so you'll flip to the back where the fuses

[04:15] showing us it's on the driver's side right next to the dash so if we open the door on the driver's side and take a look over here on the side of the dash you could see that's exactly where this fuse box is located now depending on

[04:28] fuse box could be different so here's two different locations that are pretty common so first we have the driver's side underneath the dash if we take a look here you could see there is the fuse box and the other common spot you

[04:42] passenger side if we take a look underneath the dash under the glove box sometimes it's located right up over here but in this car it's off to the side a little bit right here just remove this access panel then we can pop The

[04:56] Fuse cover off and there's our fuse box so once you locate the fuse box now you need your hardwire kit and this has two sides the USBC side which connects to worry about that right now and the other side which has three wires that connects

[05:09] to your fuse box so our red battery positive wire is always going to get 12 VTS that has to be hot all the time then we have our yellow accessory wire which is only getting 12 volts when the car is running or in the Run position and then

[05:23] finally we have our black ground which is going to be connected to a bare metal surface like a bolt so let's start off with this red wire which is going to be hot all the time and let's find the right fuse that's always supplying power

[05:35] and we're going to use a Multimeter to check the voltage at the fuse box so volts and you want to look for the V with the straight line above it and if you look at the screen it says DC so we're ready to go now you can grab your

[05:48] touch to a bare metal ground and if you take a look right down here it looks thing I'm going to do is I'm going to add an alligator clip to the end of my prong here for the ground that way I could just connect it and now

[06:02] going to take your red lead and touch it against the fuse you want to check and metal spots and you need to make contact with either one and it doesn't matter test the voltage we have no volts going through this fuse with the key off now

[06:17] if we test fuse number 13 right beside it there we go you can see we have 12 volts with the key in the off position which is exactly what we need now let's take a look in your owner's manual fuse number 13 that's that 20 amp fuse it is

[06:31] brings me to my next point you don't want to just tap any fuse important fuses for stuff like your brake pedal position switch which if that gets blown you might not be able to shift out a park so while you're looking for fuses

[06:45] just make sure you're not tapping fuses like the ABS or the SRS airbag or the PCM or ECM or body control module anything that's very important headlights tail lights turn signals I think you get the idea instead try to

[06:58] find circuits that that are not important like fuse 22 the auxiliary PowerPoint or fuse 29 the radio or the cigarette lighter power seats power mirrors stuff like that so in this case let's go check out the radio fuse so we

[07:10] saw the radio fuse is number 29 so let's check that out real quick and with the key off we have 12 volts so that makes this a good always hot fuse to tap so grab appliers and let's pull this fuse out good now the hard wire kit comes

[07:22] because different Vehicles use different fuses so match up your fuse with the correct tap now take your radio fuse fuse and push it into the open slot on the fuse tap and just in case both slots are open for yours the one that's closer

[07:35] fuse that you're tapping now let's put this back into slot 29 so let's line this up and push it in all the way good now let's verify we have 12 volts with the key off perfect and finally let's connect the red wire by pushing the pin

[07:50] like that then you want to give it a nice tug that way you know it's not going to come loose good next let's wire in the yellow accessory wire so this it when the key is off and then when we turn the key on there will be power so

[08:04] with the key off let's start here with fuse 21 which is the flashers and so fuse 22 which is the auxiliary and it looks like that one is hot all the time as well and the rest of these

[08:16] want to tap into them but if you notice the fuse diagram some fuse spots like spot number 15 says not used and if you look here slot 15 doesn't have a fuse in open spot for auxiliary power now you want to be careful cuz sometimes these

[08:31] going to them you can see right there there is no metal on that side but that side has a metal prong so let's probe that so with the truck off there's no power which is good but then if we turn the key to the Run position or accessory

[08:44] the key to the Run position or accessory position boom 12 volts perfect now since there's no fuse in number 15 it's an open slot we don't need to add a fuse to our fuse tap leave it just like that but one thing I do want to mention fuse Taps

[08:56] are actually directional so the outside of of the fuse tap is where the power comes in that means the outside metal prong on the fuse tap has to be the one that touches the metal prong in the fuse block so the outside prong on the fuse

[09:09] tap goes to the metal prong in the fuse box like so and let's test this real voltage now let's turn the truck to the Run position good 12 volts so we're good to go here now we can connect that yellow wire to the fuse tap and be sure

[09:22] it a good tug to make sure it's tight good and finally the last thing we need to do is wire in this ground now we need to find a good ground and you might be tempted to use one of these bolts here and while this does look good because

[09:35] the bolt is bare metal if we unscrew this bolt all the way and then remove it look and you can see this screws right into plastic not metal so this isn't grounded so even though it's a bare metal screw it's not grounded so

[09:48] although it looks like a good ground at first sight it really isn't it bolts use the ground we've been using to test all the circuits right here so remove the alligator clip unscrew the bolt all the way and then we want to slide the

[10:01] right next to the Head now let's carefully get this bolt back in making and then tighten it down all the way like that good so with the power accessory and ground wires connected now

[10:14] before we go and run our wires up the a pillar over to where the dash Cam's going to be let's go test this out to make sure we don't have any problems now plug it into the side port right there that's an accessory Port not a power in

[10:27] port instead we want to plug in this piece at the top here that it mounts to then now we have our power input right there so let's plug this there so let's plug this in now we can peel off this protective

[10:40] plastic and check it out beautiful the camera turned right on now in this case we wired everything up properly the camera is staying on but let's just say immediately shuts off and then turns on and shuts off and it keeps cycling like

[10:52] that odds are you have a bad ground so what you'd want to do is either find another ground or maybe just reee so pull your bolt out put that wire back in sometimes that's all it takes to fix that problem in this case we're good to

[11:06] properly Mount the camera in the best location possible now when mounting your things that you need to keep in mind the first and most important thing you never want your dash camera to be in your field of view so you're never going to

[11:20] have your dash camera anywhere on the driver's side even up in this corner out of your way it's still in your field of view you want this over on the passenger side you don't want it anywhere over here where you want it is as Center as

[11:32] possible behind the rearview mirror so it disappears out of your view yet it's still high up and centered that way the dash camera has a good view so right perfect and let's verify the camera is in a good spot by plugging it in that

[11:45] real quick now's a good time to get some alcohol on a microfiber towel and clean camera to so it sticks properly now we can remove the protective plastic off the plastic protecting the lens next we want to add our po polarizer lens and

[12:00] this just screws on like so good and finally we need to add our high endurance memory card I'm using a 256 GB card which is a good size because it's of footage before it overwrites the old files okay so now we could get this in

[12:14] careful not to stick it to the windshield by accident and I connected have a big screen to aim the camera better and I'm glad we did that because is on the left side of the video so let's move the camera over a little to

[12:28] the right and and perfect and that looks like a good spot right here so now let's press the mount to the glass with a firm pressure to make sure it adheres and now mounted the last thing to do is adjust the polarizer filter by spinning this

[12:42] take a look at your dash cam footage and you can see all that glare at the bottom ring on the polarizer filter until it disappears like that much better and check out this before and after you can see how the image used to be hazy but

[12:57] that's how you adjust the polarizer filter beautiful and what you guys are seeing right now is the exact same view I see when I drive this truck you can see out the rear viiew mirror the dash camera is hidden so it's not in my line

[13:10] of sight the only thing left is we have these wires that are just hanging here that need to be tucked in nicely so it looks like a professional install so let me go show you how to do that now when tucking in this excess wire to hide it

[13:23] and make your way towards where you hardwired it that way you don't get any extra wire wire up here all the extra wire will tuck in over by the fuse box and you want to be very careful when dealing with the headliner never do this

[13:36] what I'm about to do I'm just trying to show you the headliner could fall down that that would not be good so when you're tucking the wire in make sure you tuck it on top of the headliner there's a piece of cardboard that this material

[13:49] is glued on you want this wire on top of the cardboard and then just push it back just like so and work your way down the headliner towards the a pillar and real because the headliner is not tight against the roof since the truck's an

[14:03] older truck so a solution to keep this wire from falling grab one of these wire Clips peel off the plastic to reveal the adhesive then push the wire into the high as you could go where the headliner

[14:15] place so that adhesive sticks to the glass now the wire won't S and this looks really good now work your way across and carefully push the wire into the headliner that way it won't fall out when you hit the brakes all right so now

[14:28] the wire has has been run up from our dash camera across the headliner to our a pillar now this a pillar does not have any airbags the only airbags in this truck are this and the passenger airbag so we don't have to worry about taking

[14:41] this off and running our wire around the airbag I'll show you how to do that in in this case we do not have to remove this a pillar trim we could just tuck this right in and run it all the way down to our fuse box and we're almost

[14:54] I'm going to grab the end of the a pillar trim and pull it back away from wire in behind it like that then you can use the plastic trim tool that comes wire into the trim and as you can see this trim tool makes it a lot easier to

[15:09] push the wire in such a tight spot now just work your way down the a pillar tucking that wire behind the trim until it gets to the bottom then at the bottom just tuck it in between the dash and the trim and finally just grab this we're

[15:21] going to pull it down in here beautiful now that it's in here it's tucked away all we need to do is get this all organized tuck it in put our cover back on and we're good to go so just gather up the excess wire into one bunch then

[15:35] grab a zip tie and tighten it down so it keeps the wire together then to cut the Flush Cutters now let's cut the tag end off good and this tool leaves behind no sharp ends to cut your hands or damage wires now with the wire all tidied up

[15:50] our dash camera shuts off which is all controlled by this box you can see on the side here there's a switch that has 11.6 volt and 12 vol we want to switch this to 12 volts that way when the car is shut off in parking mode if it sits

[16:03] camera will shut off automatically when the voltage drops to 12 volts that way it won't drain your battery and you can still start your car at below 11.6 volts you might not have enough juice to start the car so I rather be safe than sorry

[16:16] so with our shut off voltage set let's tuck the extra wire behind the fuse box and finally there's some more excess wire that needs to get tucked in there now we could reinstall the fuse box cover perfect and there you go that's

[16:29] how you properly hardwire a dash camera into your car or truck let's go start her up and try her out so now let's connect the camera that we turn the car off the camera goes into parking mode so just tap the gear icon

[16:43] in the top right then near the bottom you have the parking mode Tab and now we use very little battery power when the truck is off and I'm going to use the sensitivity to high that way even a little bump will turn the camera on so

[16:56] all right so we're on the highway and sight behind the rear viiew mirror and here's the dash camera video Even This image and if we pause to zoom in you could actually read the plate on some

[17:10] and shut it off the camera will go into parking mode and it'll let you know on the screen before it shuts down so right now it's barely using any power but if I seconds later the camera turns on and starts recording so our install is

[17:24] working perfect all right and now you know how to hardwire a dash camera but the cigarette lighter adapter that comes with almost every dash camera on the this up that way you can't see any of the wires it looks almost like a hard

[17:38] how to run this rear camera all the way to the back glass and finally this next going to show you how to deal with that so you can safely and properly wire up your dash camera with the airbags so let's go get started so out with the

[17:52] truck and in with the car okay so let's open up the door and for this car the here below the radio now we want to verify there's no power going to the turned on so let's turn the car on and you can see the light on the adapter

[18:07] and when we shut the car the light goes out so now there's no power perfect so thing to do is Mount the dash camera now this cigarette lighter adapter has a spaghetti right now don't worry all that wire is going to be hidden I'm going to

[18:22] show you a really good way to make this look like a hardwire setup without actually having to hardwire it so we're going to run it up here across up to the a pillar up here and this is very very

[18:35] airbags you do not want to just run the wire across and bring it to the dash cam going to take this off I'm going to show you how to properly run the wire so that you don't make it a dangerous situation if your airbag goes off so once we do

[18:49] that I'm going to run it across and plug it right into the dash cam now just like want to keep it as high as possible and hide it behind the rearview mirror that only difference here is we have a cabin facing camera and we don't want to block

[19:03] the car now once you find a good spot remove the protective plastic on the double-side tape and firmly press the mount against the clean glass so next we the rear camera now this cable that comes with it is 20 ft long which is

[19:18] surprising enough for the Prius we need the 30t long one so I went out and I length to run it all the way down the rear hatch you'll see what I'm talking rear camera cable gets connected right at the top right here so let's plug this

[19:34] in good now we can angle the camera back up and run the wires so just like in the the headliner to the a pillar the only difference now we have two wires so because it's further away and we'll just tuck that under the headliner like so

[19:48] goes to the cigarette lighter and I don't know if you could tell but because this car is so much newer the headliner is a lot tighter so these wires aren't tucking that and once you get close to the a pillar we could leave those wires

[20:01] there's an airbag behind here so this plastic is actually not too difficult to remove because it's designed to open up when the airbag goes off now every car you could do a Google search YouTube check the forms for your vehicle but for

[20:15] this car what we're going to do is we're going to come out here and remove the to do is get your fingers behind it and pull it off and now we have easy access to our a pillar trim and this should just pop right out good now most a

[20:30] pillar trim with an airbag behind it will have a strap holding it in that way this plastic doesn't go flying into you when the airbag deploys so in this case our strap is located right down here and you can see how this strap holds the

[20:42] trim in place so to remove the trim you just get a needle those pliers and twist the strap 90° like that now it has the clearance to slide out and you can see which locks the panel in which is why you need to turn it 90° to remove it

[20:56] good and now we can set aside the a pillar trim like so so this right here just leave it alone don't touch it cuz you don't want to damage it by accident people run their wires without taking the plastic off and just run it right

[21:09] over the airbag like that now if this airbag deploys it might not deploy all because you ran some dash camera wires the wrong way so definitely take running it over the airbag and you can see right up here we have the stock

[21:23] wiring harness from the factory that's exactly how we're going to run our wires let's tuck these wires into the corner of the headliner and now we want to zip tie them to the factory harness that way they won't get in the way of the airbag

[21:36] and we'll put another zip tie over here that way the wires don't s down and one more where the airbag ends and now the wires are safe and secure now if you running above the airbag that you could zip tie your wires to another option is

[21:50] to use those clips that we used before just peel off that double-sided tape put one here put one down a little bit further and so on so forth and then run your wires through that instead that way this holds your wire in place you don't

[22:03] the airbag and causing a safety issue but in this case we have a wiring we're good to go so with the wires secured now let's run them down the a behind the plastic Dash like that now let's make sure the trim piece still

[22:18] fits in at the bottom with the way we ran these wires good and next we can run tuck them back here which will be covered by the weather stripping and then now we can reinstall the a pillar trim so we want to align that plastic

[22:30] strap then push it through and now we just need to turn it 90° to lock it in just press the top of the trim to snap it back in place so with our panel secure the last thing to do is to run the weather stripping to close this Gap

[22:44] our skinny wire which goes to the cigarette lighter adapter and we want to run it underneath this plastic trim here across to the cigarette lighter in a way that hides the wire so let's slide this wire between the dash and kick panel

[22:56] plastic good next we need a remove the glove box so get everything out of it glove box and now you want to grab the sides of the glove box and push inwards why we need to press the sides of the glove box inwards if you take a look

[23:11] right back here most glove boxes in most cars have a little stopper you can see box from going down but if you push that in you could work that stopper out and then now you can drop the glove box so bend the sides inwards and carefully

[23:25] drop the glove box down like so now we can take the cigarette light adapter out and we want to fish it up under the dash behind the glove box and then pull all through next we want to bundle up any

[23:37] to the stock wiring harness back here that way you don't have a big mess of finally you can take the cigarett lighter adapter and drop it back down glove box back by reattaching the shock on the side then simply push the glove

[23:51] box closed like that now you can see the end of our wire down there so grab this lighter hole and and finally we want to hide this extra wire that's still exposed so let's tuck it behind where the upper and lower dash meet like that

[24:05] clean install of a cigarette lighter adapter the only exposed wire runs from there to there and that looks very clean plus with the cigarette lighter adapter charge your phone now with that done we are going to install our rear camera the

[24:19] last thing to do we have this excess wire right here and we are going to be running it down along the door sill because we don't want to run it up over by the side curtain airbag and get in the way you can see right here we have

[24:31] mess with that so in this case we're running down here along the door sill along the dill in the back up right to our rear glass and don't worry I'm going very easy so let's finish up this install since we're going to be running

[24:46] our wire under the Dills the first thing we want to do is remove the Dills so get your fingers underneath and lift up and the dorsal should pop right off now we panel so just tuck it in and it's a little tight over here so I'm going to

[24:58] it through perfect now we could run our want to just lay it on top like this because it could get damaged you could and all the vibrations everything could

[25:13] short out the factory harness is in this nice clip here also the rear windshield wiper fluid hose is in this nice clip as well so we could run our line through either one of those and I like the idea of running our cable with the washer

[25:26] as well so we're going to run our rear camera cable just like this it is nice and secure then when we get to the B pillar here just pop this out like that and you can see there's another clip here to hold our wire in good next we

[25:41] it through the B pillar trim but before we do that let's come over here and let's remove this door trim and then let's pop this out as well good and now we could run the wire through from the

[25:54] through like this until it reaches the other side wire is right there just waiting to be pulled through so pull the wire all the way through and make sure none of the wire gets knotted or hung up once the

[26:08] the wire along the door sill pushing it into the clips holding the rear washer fluid hose now we want to run the wire up the side to the back like that so set it out of the way for now and then tuck the wire in behind where the

[26:21] weather stripping goes okay so with the cable all tucked in on the side of the seat here now we're at the C pillar and if we take a look inside the car you can see it says side curtain airbag so we don't want to run this up and then cross

[26:34] going to run it right here through the plastic back there and then run it up and over to our rear hatch so let's pop this off and run it through so get your good pull so with this popped open now we want to run our wire in that little

[26:50] to be a little bit difficult and we need it to run all the way in the back so come around here and and we're going to pop this trunk open and we need to get the wire right back here that way we could run it up

[27:06] back here that way we could run it up around the airbag to here up this into have a little trick that makes running this wire nice and easy and that trick a long metal wire that has a little bit of a backbone to it that way we could

[27:20] just push this right down here just like that and once you snake this through you can see we have exited the other side so we're good to go here you come around we're right through where we needed to be and now we can connect the wire to

[27:35] wrap the wire and snake together a couple times making sure to tape all the way past the end of The Wire that way it doesn't have any edges to get hung up on snake out with the wire attached and look at how easy this is so a snake

[27:50] works great to get the wires through quickly and easily so let's pull the rest of the wire through good now let's run it up the headliner like so and to I'm going to zip Tire it to the factory harness that runs right along here and

[28:02] this will keep the wire away from the airbag which is located all the way back here like this so remove the weather stripping and now we can tuck it into the headliner up to the factory rubber grommet next we want to pop both ends of

[28:15] here at the roof this one's a bit of a pain but just work that plastic pry tool it from the plastic clip like that and then we want to get the other end off at going to get our wire and run it under the headliner we'll pop it up through

[28:30] get it through this hole right here so it's in the hatch so first let's get the wire under here being sure not to damage the headliner then we'll work it up into the clip like that and now we can pull a wire through making sure you get all the

[28:43] going to want to run the wire up through the grommet but these are usually so your snake again and even with the snake due to the angles inside The Grommet so a trick a good friend of mine taught me is to use some silic silicone spray

[28:58] Grommet and the silicone won't damage any of the wires or the rubber grommet through the grommet again and look at that much easier so get the end of the snake in front of the factory wires okay now let's tape the end of the camera

[29:12] wire to the snake and then carefully pull this through and the snake just makes this so easy to do then pull the rest of the wire through that way there's no slack left just like that

[29:25] good and finally let's pop off the trim on the trunk then we could fish the wire through the trunk pulling it all the way through and then let's zip tie the wire wire doesn't move around so it won't make any noise and it won't chave

[29:38] beautiful so our cable is run away from the airbag under the headliner up through the factory grommet into the hatch and then ends up right here now for most people you'll be able to run your rear dash camera right here and

[29:52] need the 20ft cable I need the extended cable cuz I need to run it all the way down to the rear glass which is right here the reason being is this glass is such a shallow angle for aerodynamics you can't get a good view out of it let

[30:07] me show you so the view actually isn't as bad as I thought it would be but the view is cut off by the spoiler in the back so instead of mounting the camera right here we'll run our wire up along the trunk and mount it to the back

[30:20] glass right there and to do that we need to remove the plastic trim piece and the other side as well then we need to get the trim off the deck lid starting with this piece right here and finally this last piece could come off now we could

[30:32] run our wire up the factory harness like that and let's zip tie it so it's secure and it doesn't bang around so with that wire secure now we camera which will Mount right there the

[30:44] problem is we have a lot of extra wire so what I'm going to do is I'm going to run this wire this way along the wiring harness and I'll zip tight all the way up to here and then I'll run it back and zip tie then bring it right here so

[30:57] that'll use up all this extra wire and keep it nice and organized under the trunk here so let's take the extra wire and run it along the factory harness let's make sure we have a good length of wire at the end this looks perfect now

[31:10] I'm going to use a couple of zip ties to secure the wire to the factory harness want these wires to be banging around as you're going over bumps beautiful and if the end of our wire is at the perfect length and we don't have all that excess

[31:23] wire just dangling around over here so now let's go and install our rear camera alcohol then let's pull the plastic off the double-sided tape and now line up the camera making sure you don't put it on the heating element and finally plug

[31:36] problem you might run into when reinstalling your trim you can see the wire is in the way here so an easy fix is to Mark the spot where the wire is then we can remove the plastic trim and let's make a little cut out for the wire

[31:49] drill bit just get the bit spinning fast and since the trim is only plastic the piece so I'm just working the bit sideway into the plastic cutting out a you're done cutting grab some sandpaper and wrap it around a small screwdriver

[32:04] this is 180 grit and then you could use this to sand away any plastic shards that not only don't look good but they could cut into the wire over time good cutout and make sure there's no sharp edges and this feels nice and smooth so

[32:16] and see how it fits perfect and that little cutout gives relief to our cable so it's not at a steep angle and it won't chafe also it allows the plastic to go flush against the glass so it looks good and won't

[32:30] next thing to do would be to put all these plastic pieces back but before we do that you always want to test out your work that way you know everything is working properly so let's go start up the car so just hit the start button and

[32:43] let's check the camera great and as you can see the rear camera is on and now that we know our rear camera is working let's go and reinstall all the plastic this car back together so we could finish up this job and all these Pieces

[32:57] finish up this job and all these Pieces Just snap in so give him a good leaking into the headliner so just push that in there and then give it a little

[33:13] pull out to seat it in place now the other side is a bit more tricky so pop carefully use appliers it's going to help me grab the Rubber and stretch it around the plastic like that now we can push this plastic clip into the roof so

[33:26] it clicks and then reinstall the weather stripping by pushing it all the way down followed by the rest of the weather stripping and again make sure you push it all the way down so there's no leaks and just like that the entire trunk has

[33:40] been put back together you can't tell any wires have been run it looks Factory fresh it looks so good I love it okay so we're done back here now let's go over to the passenger side and right over here we do have our trim that needs to

[33:53] be popped in good and then we could come down here let's pop that door seal trim back back in and then reinstall the weather stripping around the door beautiful everything back here has been reinstalled so now let's finish up the

[34:06] weather stripping over the pinch Weld and work your way around the door and finally let's get our last piece of trim in and with that done now your dash Cam's completely installed all right so we're out for a test drive let's check

[34:19] the front cam good and this is a top of the line model so for a dash camera this check the cabin camera and as you can see Cooper came from for a ride but if you're an Uber driver or do deliveries or anything like that this is a great

[34:32] feature to have and finally let's check out our rear camera and look at that now we have a much better view with no obstructions in the rear all right so now you know how to safely install a dash camera in a car or truck that has

[34:44] all the way to the back but there's one more thing I want to show you so you adapter to get power you know how to use a hard wire kit to get power there's one more way that I just wanted to include real fast and that is using a OBD2

[34:58] adapter to get power so if you have a vehicle that's 1996 or newer you could power your dash camera by coming to the driver's side underneath the dash and look for your OBD2 port and in this case it's located right here and then all you

[35:10] do is grab your adapter and it plugs right in just like that and then you'd that's one additional way you could get power to your camera all right and now that's everything you need to know on how to install a dash camera in your

[35:24] to all the tools and the products I used in this video down in the description so cameras to the hardwire kit to the special memory cards everything will be same exact install if you have any questions at all feel free to comment

[35:39] comments as I can as always if the video is helpful remember to give it a thumbs consider subscribing cuz we have a lot of really great videos coming up soon

More from ChrisFix

View all

⚡ Saved you 0h 35m reading this? Transcribe any YouTube video for free — no signup needed.