Anytime Camera Front/back/and side to side... whatever you like

After cruising the forums for a bit and seeing some anytime camera mods come and go, I thought I'd take a stab at things and do it all a little differently. First I had some simple criteria... Didn't want to have to mod any stock wiring, want it all easily reversible and removable so if I wanted to move the setup to another vehicle I could, have the ability to see multiple video sources at the same time, under $100, and most of all I wanted it clean looking with all wires hidden for the most part. Off to Amazon I went.

Parts used:

1 Greenyi Dual LCD review mirror

800x480 HD Dual Screen Mirror Monitor, 4.3“ Rearview Backup TFT LCD Display 4-Channel Video Input for Car Rear Front Side View Cameras

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075T5TTZG/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

2 Rear Master Cameras

REARMASTER Metal License Plate Camera,Metal Body&Hidden&Waterproof Design,Support Guideline On/Off,Rear View/Front View Switch,Universal Backup Camera for Car SUV Truck Van

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01H1V2XX2/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

1 bussman fuse tap

https://www.autozone.com/electrical...ooper-bussmann-fuse-and-accessories/32416_0_0

I started with the mirror first. Installation was very straight-forward. The mirror clips over the stock Tacoma mirror with it covering the stock mirror by about 1/8in all the way around.



First, need to remove the A-pillar cover. To remove the A-pillar cover, pop the bolt covers off the handle and then use a 10mm socket to remove the 2 bolts.





Once the bolts are removed, the OSH (Oh Sh*t Handle) with come off and the pillar cover slides off.



Route the wires from the mirror into the headliner and then down the A-pillar to the side of the airbag next to the factory harness making sure to restrain the wires where needed to keep the airbag clear of obstructions. Furthermore, use caution during this part since you are working near an airbag. Highly recommend disconnecting the battery for additional safety.







Once the wires are run down the pillar, feed the end of the wires down into the hole of the dash. This will put you next to the fuse box.



I will say wiring isn't exactly my forte. That being said, I know there are better ways and I will go back to clean things up when money is more plentiful. Anywho, you want a switched power. The best bet for this is to utilize the ACC circuit for this task. Since the ACC circuit is a switched source, this will allow for some functions later that will come into play. To tap into the circuit I used a Bussman fuse tap. From here you have a couple of options. You can wire directly to the mirror wires (I did this... will change later) or you can run into a 12v terminal block or some other form of distribution method.



I crimped the positive wire into the fuse tap, placed the fuse tap into the socket, shuffled the fuses around where need be and presto, the positive lead for the mirror is done.

For the ground, I used a volt meter and tested continuity of some of the bolt behind the kick panel to see if there was a good ground... and here it is! I crimped on a ring connector and put it on the bolt.



Put the key in, turned to accessory only and... NOTHING! LOL it was because there was no video source yet. However, the power light on the mirror was on and that was good enough for me.

The following day the cameras arrived and I was ready and rearing to go. Now how to go about this... The cameras I chose was for good reasons. The brackets are hidden behind the license plate, cameras are easily positionable, the parking lines can be kept or removed, the image can easily be mirrored if need be, and the ratings were solid. Started with the front camera. Started by removing the front plate and mounting the bracket behind the said plate. The wires are hidden behind the grill and zip tied up.



I ran the cables to the passenger side firewall and pushed the wiring through the grommet located there.



On the inside of the truck, the cables were pulled from behind the carpet and routed through the dash and over to the fuse panel.







You'll notice a lonely red wire attached to the end of the video cable. The manual says this cable isn't used for anything... wrong. It's another place to attach your 12v source. I tied it into the acc circuit as well. Using scotch locks I tapped everything in.



Now the ground for the front camera will be in the engine bay which I simply tied into a bolt in there that had good grounding.



After that, pulled the wiring tight, zip tied it all up, tested the setup, and... NOTHING! LOL helps to plug the video source in. The mirror has 4 inputs. inputs 1 and 3 are by manual selection only. Inputs 2 and 4 can be tripped to auto turn on by a signal wire. you guessed it, I did the signal wire thing by scotch locking the green and yellow wire into the switched source. Tested again and boom. Input 2 is alive and awake showing on the left screen. I adjusted the camera a bit and got it all squared away. I can see 6in infront of the bumper and as far as 6ft away from it! Sweet, cresting/front parking cam install done.

The rear camera was much the same as the front for the install process especially the wiring portion. The only major differences are that I came up through the floor grommet under the drivers seat...



and along the door sill inside the cab...



Under the truck, I ran the wires down the frame and zip tied them up real clean like, and the ground utilized was the same one as my tow package (direct to the frame of the truck). Wired this one up to input 4 along with the signal wire, tested it and PRESTO, it works perfectly. Made some camera adjustments and I can see straight back all the time now.



The last thing to do is just button everything up with putting panels back and such. Once done with that, you are done.

Everything works perfectly and I can easily turn off either input at any time by just a touch of the button. Lastly, my factory Backup Camera is still connected and I can still see all sorts of crap with it too lol.



Think that about wraps it up. Hopefully, this helps someone and later on you can add additional video sources.


-PyroTaco

 

As a side note, my total came out to about $85. There was a special running and I got better pricing than what’s available now. Still you get quite the bang for your buck.

 

Nicely done

 

Bump ! Nice thread my friend

 

Nice post with great photos, your time and effort will be appreciated and will help others for sure.

 

Subd

 

Kudos on the write up.
I take it that you'r Taco is a 2013?
I have a 2013 acces cab (same radio).
How did you manage to get the cam view thru the radio

 

Ran a redirect harness to the radio. I don’t recall the part number off the top of my head, but it’s from beat sonic. Pretty easy install and the camera works great. Yes 2013

 

Ummmmm ok. Sorry I couldn’t provide better info. Stuck at work for 15 hours today

 

That was an excellent write up (spoken as a professional trainer)

Might I ask you to review the beat sonic site and let me know what the harness was that you ordered for the OE backup cam( to radio)?

I can really appreciate the text photos and guidance you prepared in this how to....I KNOW IT IS QUITE INVOLVED!

Others like myself with a Gen2 Taco would definitely prefer having the OE cam view on the radio vs. the MickeyMouse view on the rear view mirror
For those more intimidated by radio removals, I`ll take plenty of pics...and harness routing.......

It would be my pleasure on writing a HOW TO with just the cam to radio (all credit going to your original post (of course!)

Once again kudos on a great write up.

 

Thanks for the kudos. As for what I used, it looks like I ordered Rostra 250-8401 Backup Camera kit to start off since I didn’t have a cam from the factory, but had the wiring at least. As far as the redirect harness in the driver side A-pillar it looks like I used a harness from a different manufacturer lol sorry. It’s been a few years since I’ve done the install. Anywho, here is what I used https://camera-source.com/2013-tacoma-mirror-to-radio-camera-conversion.html. It’s plug and play for the most part except for a pin install from what I can recall. There’s also tons of room for running wires in the dash.

Now, speaking of the other manufacturer I mentioned, beat-sonic has an add-on harness I have my eye on for iPhone mirroring. However, with the fire 10 tablet I have modded for gps and am using in there I don’t really have the need anymore. Take a look at my posts in the what have you done to your 2nd gen today to see what all I’ve done as of late. Been very busy with installing new toys and upgrading pre-existing ones with upgraded tech (gps upgrade to the ham radio).

During this same time was when I did the cruise control install using the rostra kit. Also, very simple, but time consuming.

Hope this all helps. If you need eyes on the install write up before posting, I’d be glad to take a gander. I help write training docs for global use at work.

-PyroTaco

 

Thanks Pyro for the info, that was very kind of you to share...
I have ordered a harness and will do the write up once I get it....
Cheers,

 

Thanks for the write up, works great! Didn’t take very long to do either.

 

Welcome! Glad it went well for you as well

 

I really like the way your dash cover (carpet) fits..
The color match is very good, and I like the piped trim,..gives it an OEM look.

Where did you buy it?

Cheers,
Perry

 

Amazon. It’s a dashmat brand. Heated it up before installing and used a ruler to tuck it into all the nooks and crannies.