I repeatedly damaged the front valence, so I installed cameras to see the curb. The valence profile is hook shaped which catches on the curb when pulling away and rips off of the car.
The SolidWorks CAD model of the frame for the LCD monitor. I bought 3 on eBay for $14.96 ea. They are 800×480 dual input and have a pretty good display. I printed the part on my home-made FDM printer.
The frame has a slot and opening for a tie wrap to hold the power/video cable in place. The first print did not work because the screw holes were too large and interfered with the installation.
The Cubby box with +12VDC outlet is removed for the LCD monitor. There is another +12VDC outlet under the arm rest that I can use if needed. I’ll loose the storage area though.
The housing that comes with the monitor is removed and the LCD is installed in the 3D printed bracket using 3M VHB tape.
The controls set the image parameters to FLASH memory. I’ll set these and will never need to change the settings (hopefully).
Yellow and white RCA jacks for front/rear camera inputs. The red is for +12VDC
If you have a center console panel with buttons, this installation may not work.
The distance from the center of the screw holes nearest the buttons to the back edge of the bracket is 0.91″. The buttons may interfere with the bracket if there is less than 0.91″. You can modify the bracket and gain an additional ≈0.1″ of clearance so this may work. You might also shift the entire LCD forward to gain clearance. Best bet is to buy a monitor and check it out.
When I pulled the center console away, the springs popped out of the GPS carrier. So I never really knew how this is supposed to work.
With the console lifted away, there’s access to the parking sensor disable and reverse switches.
Now with access to the rear of the connectors, I can add the wiring. Obeying my “Never Make Permanent Mods” philosophy, I Install the wires into the rear of the contact housings so that there is compression between the wire and existing contact. If this fails, it will fail in a safe manner so that existing functionality is not impacted.
Wire routing for the front camera.
The wire is taped alongside the existing harness where possible using 3M 33+ electrical tape which will stay in place for many years.
The 170 degree camera costs $4.81 from eBay.
Front Camera is held in place with Black VHB 5908 0.008″ thick double sided tape.
Front camera is wired and ready to go. Rear wiring to the reverse switch is ready for the rear camera install to be done at a later time.
Rear Camera Install
The power/video cable is routed through the tail light and behind the bumper cover to the license plate holder.
I formed a piece of scrap aluminum sheet and added a thru hole for the threaded stud which is part of the camera. 3M VHB tape is used to hold the bracket bumper cover. A second piece with the release liner intact is used for safety.
The rear camera from eBay was $11.99.
The camera is not noticeable from most angles.
I routed the cable for the rear camera thru the trunk and to the center console along the driver side.
The rear camera requires two relays to select front or rear. These are available on ebay for $9.98 for qty. 2.
The wiring diagram which is part of the modification/maintenance binder I keep for the car. Below is the color code (resistor color code) for the diagram.
| 0 | Black | 5 | Green |
| 1 | Brown | 6 | Blue |
| 2 | Red | 7 | Violet |
| 3 | Orange | 8 | White |
| 4 | Yellow | 9 | Gray |
Power to the monitor/cameras is normally switched off. To activate the front camera, press the “Parking sensor disable” button. To activate the rear camera, put the car in reverse. Reverse will override the front camera. The front camera is reversed since it’s intended as a backup camera. After using it a few times, it’s not a problem.
I’ve incurred no additional front valence damage after the camera and nose lift installation-finally! It’s in miserable shape and I have a new one but you hardly notice it so I’ll just leave it alone since the minute I install the new one, it’ll be wrecked.
Download the LCD Bracket Zip with SLDPRT and STL – LINK
Image of the front camera.
Image of the rear camera.
Minus my time and the printed parts, my costs for this project were under $50. I could have gone for a higher cost solution all of which seem to use the Nav screen which I don’t like and like to keep it closed. I did later buy some spare parts (2 extra monitors).
My poor valence. The “fish hook” profile is perfect for catching on a curb and ripping itself off when leaving. I think they could have designed it with a slight lift on the trailing edge and still get it out of the mold with maybe a little longer mold cycle time.
Wind Deflector protector / warning (curb feeler). I was wearing these down when entering the driveway so I made some aluminum protectors that also make some noise I can hear when I’m scraping. The Wind Deflectors can be replaced separately from the Wheel Arch (I later found). They cost about $25 ea.
Side view of the protectors. I bent each corner inward to dig into the plastic to hold in place. The aluminum is about 0.040″ since that’s what I had in my stock drawer. 1/16″ would be nice but somehow that’s the size I don’t have. I used the sheet metal shear and took about 10 minutes to cut and install.
So, now I should be ok with the front valence. Maybe I’ll get around to putting my new one on before I step on it or get it caught in the door or something.
Installed February 2019