I installed a BlackVue DR650GW-2CH dashcam in my 2013 Outback 3.6R Limited with EyeSight. I learned a lot from this forum and from DashcamTalk.com, and I want to contribute what I learned installing the dashcam.
First, why did I pick the BlackVue? I wanted 2 channels (front and rear), full HD (1920x1080p) on the front, good video quality (including at night), GPS, buffered parking mode, small camera units, no LCD screen, and WiFi. I looked at the BlackVue and the Blacksys CH-100B, and chose the BlackVue because it’s more popular with much more information available on the ‘net, has proven to be reliable, saves video in MP4 format (the Blacksys saves in AVI), and I can turn off buffered parking mode with a simple flick of the switch on the Power Magic Pro (a battery drain unit that comes with the dashcam and is wired into the fuse box, with the dashcam then plugged into the PMP).
I wanted to make sure the dashcam wouldn’t interfere with the EyeSight cameras, so the first thing I did was consult Subaru’s technical bulletin regarding placement of transponders and other devices on the windshield (see EyeSight_transponder_template). The template indicates that the dashcam should sit right below the mirror mount, slightly to the right of centre (towards the passenger side). I stuck the dashcam to the windshield, fired up the BlackVue C app on my iPhone to view the live feed from the camera and adjust the rotation of the dashcam. Then I took the car for a spin, and confirmed that the EyeSight worked properly.
The next step was to run the two wires from the dashcam (power wire and rear camera wire) up the windshield inside the mirror wiring cover. I removed the cover by sliding the top part down and popping off the two prongs at the bottom, which was a bit of a struggle (See Rearview_mirror_wiring_cover). There’s just enough room under the cover to fit the two dashcam wires along with the mirror wiring. I snapped the cover back in place and the result looks like this: Front_camera.jpg.
I ran the power wire across the top of the windshield to the driver’s side, pushing the wire into the gap between the windshield and the headliner (the foam-backed upholstery attached to the ceiling of the car). The next step was to go down the A-pillar. In every installation video I saw on the ‘net the installer ran the wire across the top of the A-pillar trim and then down the weatherstripping on the edge of the door. I didn’t do this because there’s an airbag behind the A-pillar that extends across the top of the door, and I didn’t want the wire to interfere with the airbag. Instead, I lifted up the A-pillar trim (I didn’t pull it off as it wasn’t necessary and there are some fiddly clamps in there) and ran the power wire down the front of the A-pillar (the windshield edge), zip-tying it to the wires that are in there. I then ran the power wire across the bottom of the A-pillar below the airbag and then down the weatherstripping on the edge of the door.
I popped the triangular side cover off the dashboard (see Dashboard_side_cover) and removed the fuse box cover. I connected the Power Magic Pro (PMP) to the fuse box using two add-a-fuses (also known as fuse taps). I bought one that were compatible with the low-profile mini fuses in the 2013 Outback. I used a circuit tester to find one fuse that was always on (I chose the BACK circuit #14) and one circuit that was switched (I chose the obvious ACC circuit #31). I grounded the PMP by clamping the ground wire between the metal frame and plastic dashboard moulding using the screw at the bottom of the side of the dashboard. I tidied up the wires and plugged the dashcam male power connector into the PMP female connector. It ended up looking like this: Wiring_behind_dashboard_side_cover.jpg.
I mounted the PMP to the underside of the dashboard, to the right of the lever that pops the hood. This photo shows the fuse box with the two add-a-fuses and the PMP. I set the dip switches on the PMP to 12V and “Infinity,” which means the dashcam will run in parking mode for as long as the battery voltage remains above 12V. The result looks like this: PMP_below_fuse_box.jpg. A word of caution: Don’t plug the wiring connector into the back of the PMP until you’re sure you’ve run the wires where you want, as I found that I couldn’t unplug the connector from the PMP once I’d stuck it in.
Now all the was left was to wire up the rear camera. I ran the coaxial wire from the front dashcam across the windshield to the A-pillar, across the top of the A-pillar and then across the passenger door by pushing the wire several inches back into the headliner so that it wouldn’t interfere with the airbag. I continued across the top of the B-pillar and above the right rear door, then across the right rear window to the back corner of the ceiling. I pulled the trim off the top inside of the hatch (see Rear_gate_trim) and pulled down the back edge of the headliner (I grabbed the plastic trim across the top of the rear door opening and pulled it down enough to see the three clips that hold the headliner in place, and pulled down carefully on each one to pop it out).
This is where it got tricky. I had to run the coaxial wire through one of the two rubber connectors from the top of the door opening to the top of the hatch. First I fished a long zip tie through the right (passenger side) rubber connector from the car to the door (I started with the left rubber connector but found that the wires in were bulky and left little room, so I switched to the right connector which had more room to fish a wire through). I put the pointy end of the zip tie in first, and I had to massage the rubber connector as I fed the zip tie through it as it kept getting stuck in the accordion folds. Once I had the zip tie through, I used gaffer tape to attached the end of the coaxial cable to the chunky end of the zip tie, and carefully pulled it through. Then I connected the coaxial wire to the rear camera and used the BlackVue app to view the live feed from the camera to make sure I had it right side up before I stuck it to the window. I had a half a metre of excess coaxial cable which I looped and secured with a couple of twist ties and left inside the headliner. With the trim in place the rear camera looks like this: Rear_camera.jpg.
I am pleased with the end result. It took me a while to install because I wasn’t confident pulling the trim apart, the mirror wiring conduit put up a fight, and I fiddled with several mounting locations for the Power Magic Pro. Nothing required any special skills, however, just patience (and a plastic interior trim pry tool). If you’re thinking of a dashcam, don’t be scared to install it yourself.
First, why did I pick the BlackVue? I wanted 2 channels (front and rear), full HD (1920x1080p) on the front, good video quality (including at night), GPS, buffered parking mode, small camera units, no LCD screen, and WiFi. I looked at the BlackVue and the Blacksys CH-100B, and chose the BlackVue because it’s more popular with much more information available on the ‘net, has proven to be reliable, saves video in MP4 format (the Blacksys saves in AVI), and I can turn off buffered parking mode with a simple flick of the switch on the Power Magic Pro (a battery drain unit that comes with the dashcam and is wired into the fuse box, with the dashcam then plugged into the PMP).
I wanted to make sure the dashcam wouldn’t interfere with the EyeSight cameras, so the first thing I did was consult Subaru’s technical bulletin regarding placement of transponders and other devices on the windshield (see EyeSight_transponder_template). The template indicates that the dashcam should sit right below the mirror mount, slightly to the right of centre (towards the passenger side). I stuck the dashcam to the windshield, fired up the BlackVue C app on my iPhone to view the live feed from the camera and adjust the rotation of the dashcam. Then I took the car for a spin, and confirmed that the EyeSight worked properly.
The next step was to run the two wires from the dashcam (power wire and rear camera wire) up the windshield inside the mirror wiring cover. I removed the cover by sliding the top part down and popping off the two prongs at the bottom, which was a bit of a struggle (See Rearview_mirror_wiring_cover). There’s just enough room under the cover to fit the two dashcam wires along with the mirror wiring. I snapped the cover back in place and the result looks like this: Front_camera.jpg.
I ran the power wire across the top of the windshield to the driver’s side, pushing the wire into the gap between the windshield and the headliner (the foam-backed upholstery attached to the ceiling of the car). The next step was to go down the A-pillar. In every installation video I saw on the ‘net the installer ran the wire across the top of the A-pillar trim and then down the weatherstripping on the edge of the door. I didn’t do this because there’s an airbag behind the A-pillar that extends across the top of the door, and I didn’t want the wire to interfere with the airbag. Instead, I lifted up the A-pillar trim (I didn’t pull it off as it wasn’t necessary and there are some fiddly clamps in there) and ran the power wire down the front of the A-pillar (the windshield edge), zip-tying it to the wires that are in there. I then ran the power wire across the bottom of the A-pillar below the airbag and then down the weatherstripping on the edge of the door.
I popped the triangular side cover off the dashboard (see Dashboard_side_cover) and removed the fuse box cover. I connected the Power Magic Pro (PMP) to the fuse box using two add-a-fuses (also known as fuse taps). I bought one that were compatible with the low-profile mini fuses in the 2013 Outback. I used a circuit tester to find one fuse that was always on (I chose the BACK circuit #14) and one circuit that was switched (I chose the obvious ACC circuit #31). I grounded the PMP by clamping the ground wire between the metal frame and plastic dashboard moulding using the screw at the bottom of the side of the dashboard. I tidied up the wires and plugged the dashcam male power connector into the PMP female connector. It ended up looking like this: Wiring_behind_dashboard_side_cover.jpg.
I mounted the PMP to the underside of the dashboard, to the right of the lever that pops the hood. This photo shows the fuse box with the two add-a-fuses and the PMP. I set the dip switches on the PMP to 12V and “Infinity,” which means the dashcam will run in parking mode for as long as the battery voltage remains above 12V. The result looks like this: PMP_below_fuse_box.jpg. A word of caution: Don’t plug the wiring connector into the back of the PMP until you’re sure you’ve run the wires where you want, as I found that I couldn’t unplug the connector from the PMP once I’d stuck it in.
Now all the was left was to wire up the rear camera. I ran the coaxial wire from the front dashcam across the windshield to the A-pillar, across the top of the A-pillar and then across the passenger door by pushing the wire several inches back into the headliner so that it wouldn’t interfere with the airbag. I continued across the top of the B-pillar and above the right rear door, then across the right rear window to the back corner of the ceiling. I pulled the trim off the top inside of the hatch (see Rear_gate_trim) and pulled down the back edge of the headliner (I grabbed the plastic trim across the top of the rear door opening and pulled it down enough to see the three clips that hold the headliner in place, and pulled down carefully on each one to pop it out).
This is where it got tricky. I had to run the coaxial wire through one of the two rubber connectors from the top of the door opening to the top of the hatch. First I fished a long zip tie through the right (passenger side) rubber connector from the car to the door (I started with the left rubber connector but found that the wires in were bulky and left little room, so I switched to the right connector which had more room to fish a wire through). I put the pointy end of the zip tie in first, and I had to massage the rubber connector as I fed the zip tie through it as it kept getting stuck in the accordion folds. Once I had the zip tie through, I used gaffer tape to attached the end of the coaxial cable to the chunky end of the zip tie, and carefully pulled it through. Then I connected the coaxial wire to the rear camera and used the BlackVue app to view the live feed from the camera to make sure I had it right side up before I stuck it to the window. I had a half a metre of excess coaxial cable which I looped and secured with a couple of twist ties and left inside the headliner. With the trim in place the rear camera looks like this: Rear_camera.jpg.
I am pleased with the end result. It took me a while to install because I wasn’t confident pulling the trim apart, the mirror wiring conduit put up a fight, and I fiddled with several mounting locations for the Power Magic Pro. Nothing required any special skills, however, just patience (and a plastic interior trim pry tool). If you’re thinking of a dashcam, don’t be scared to install it yourself.