Wireless backup camera to 2013 SV $30 (installation instructions done)

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stjohnh

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 18, 2013
Messages
363
Location
Palo Alto, CA
Hi Guys,

I added a wireless backup camera to my wife's 2013 SV, easy and cheap, I checked the wireless and compared it to wired before I installed it and could tell no difference. There is a little wiring, no soldering needed, and no wires run from the front to the back of the car.

As you can see, camera is nearly invisible.
eQ8495.jpg


Here is the image that appears on the radio when you put the shifter into reverse:
C1x7fR.jpg


Here is a closeup of the camera after installed, taken from about 10 inches off the ground:
jRmq3V.jpg


Total cost, a little over $30
Time involved estimated 2-3 hours, depending on your experience with car electronics

Purchased items:
Camera, $20 http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GSFIJS6?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00
Wireless video transmitter/receiver $11 http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008Z9E4DW?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00

mIsc supplies:
solderless connectors
electrical tape
super glue
Duct tape
cable ties
Female RCA plug (I cut one off one of the many video cables with yellow jacks, leave a few inches of wire attached)
a little wire to make ground lead, etc.

Tools needed
Brain
Hands
electric drill and bit about 1/2" for sheet metal (one hole in trunk)
Pliers
Phillips screwdriver
Plastic trim removal tool
wire cutters

AT NAV UNIT (STEREO/CLIMATE CONTROL PANEL)
1. disconnect neg (-) cable at battery- prevents blown fuses if you screw up
2. at lower edge of panel pull with hands back, lower edge will come loose.
3, at top of panel pull with hands back until it comes away about 1 inch from dash
4. lift panel vertically about 1" to free hooks holding panel
5. remove small harness at top of panel going to the emergency blinker switch between the vents.
6. remove 4 phillips screws holding radio in place. Pull radio out just enough to get access to the harness at the back of the radio. You should see this:
GBeXmV.jpg

In the next steps you will be cutting one wire, and installing 4 solderless clips to the harness:
7. use wire cutters cut the protective taping around the wires so that you have about 2" of wire exposed. Do not cut any wires.
8. use solderless connector to attach center wire from your new female RCA jack (that you cut off an old video cable) to the red wire at the left corner.
9. similarly the shield wire of the RCA Jack goes to black wire next to the red one at the left.
10. Identify the 3rd black wire from the left, this is the trigger wire that tells the radio to display the back up view. Cut this wire about 2" from the plug. Use a solderless connector to attach a 10 inch wire to the 2 inch stub coming out of the plug, this extension will be attached to ground later. Tape the end that is still in the harness.
11. On the wireless receiver (it says receiver on a label), attach the red wire to the purple wire coming out of the plug.
When done the connector should look like this (there are 4 solderless connectors, but they don't show well in this photo):
MXpaUf.jpg

12. Plug the yellow video RCA male plug from the wireless receiver into the female RCA plug you attached in steps 8, 9. Use duct tape to tape them together so they don't wiggle loose.
13. Now identify the black wire going to the wireless receiver, and the wire you attached in step 10. Twist the ends together and attach to a crimp connector or just get them ready to attach under a screw when you put the radio back in.
14. Put the wireless receiver in the space at the upper right, in space above the glove box, you don't want a lot a metal near the receiver to interfere with the signal. On the vertical plastic part of the dash, above the glove box, you will find some sound insulation with tape-like goo attaching it to the vertical wall. Pull it away from the plastic and put the receiver there, and restick the insulation, holding the receiver to the vertical wall above the glove box. Location of the receiver is important to avoid static and flashing of the camera signal. Now reinstall the radio with the 4 screws (be careful, if you drop one they are difficult to recover, easier to just put in a new screw). Attach the 2 ground leads under the screw at the upper left:
4Gf7UL.jpg

15. Pick up the panel, position it so that it is 1-2 inches away from the dash, reinstall the emergency blinker connector, be sure the 2 hooks on either side of the panel are in their slots, and snap the upper edge of the panel in place, then the lower edge.

DONE WITH THE NAV RADIO PANEL WIRING ;-). Take a break. You are about 1/2 done.

INSTALLING CAMERA AND TRANSMITTER AT REAR OF CAR.
1. Lift hatch and remove the rear carpet and carpet pad. Remove the center trim panel at the rear lip of the trunk, it is the piece that has an opening for the hatch ring. It has 2 plastic buttons that pry out. Be careful to lift the trim piece UP after removing the button pins to release the hooks.
2. Use your drill to drill 1/2" hole from inside the trunk through 3 layers of sheet metal, this hole is for the camera wires which go from the camera above the licence plate to the car interior. The hole location I used is 3" to the right of the hatch ring and 1" down from the bend in the interior sheet metal, see photos below:
Taped and finished hole location:
pfTBQo.jpg

Location with ruler, close up:
jDWlD1.jpg

sVGSYH.jpg

3. Take the camera and a 10" strip of duct tape and wrap the tape around the camera leads to protect them from the sharp edges of the hole you drilled, then, from outside the car, insert the camera leads into the space above the licence plate and through the holes so that the connectors are inside the car.
4. On the right corner trim panel, remove the EVSE ring that holds the EVSE cord bag in place, then use your trim removal tool to pry the panel away from the rear of the car. You don't need to remove the whole panel just enough so that you can see the harness and connector shown:
p0MXwK.jpg

5. Use trim tool to separate the plugged section from the body (don't need to separate connectors). Identify the red wire with purple stripe and the black wire:
Kh2mNZ.jpg

6. Now take the transmitter power leads and connect the red wire to the red/purple wire on the connector. Attach the black to black. The Red/purple is the wire that carries +12 volts only when the shifter is in reverse.
7. Push the connector back into the metal of the car. Replace the rear quarter panel trim and EVSE bag ring, threading the transmitter wires under the quarter panel.
8. Plug the transmitter into the power connector you just attached to the harness and plug the camera connector into the transmitter. Connect the yellow video connections. Tape the connectors so they don't wiggle loose as you drive.
9. You need to bend the camera mounting clip so that when the clip face is glued to the inside wall of the licence plate support that the camera faces down at about a 45 degree angle. The camera will probably need to be reoriented so that up is up on the display. Reconnect the battery negative lead, put the parking brake on firmly, and put the car in run. Shift into reverse. The radio should show the camera view. Now hold the camera so that the metal clip is oriented in the position it will be when glued in place and check the view on the display. Unscrew the black plastic ring around the lens slightly so that the camera body can be rotated, and rotate it so that up is up on the display when the camera mounting clip is properly positioned. Tighten the ring when correct.
10. Turn off car and check desired location of camera. I superglued the metal clip to the inside wall of the licence plate plastic, seems easy and perfect. Be sure you measure so that camera is at the exact center of the car.
11. duct tape the hole on the inside of the car, so that the camera wires are not touching the sharp metal of the hole.
12. Tape the transmitter to the plastic just inside the space between the rear of the quarter panel and the rear lip of the trunk, with the antenna horizontal (to match the horizontal antenna orientation of the receiver above the glove box). Dress the wires so that they are not dangling all over and replace the rear middle trim.
13. Wait about an hour for the superglue to harden, and if necessary, bend the bracket so that the camera is pointing down at about a 45 degree angle.
14. Restart the car, put in reverse and check that all is working and that up is up on the camera view.

DONE !!!

I wrote this from memory, so let me know if I skipped any steps or where my instructions aren't clear.
 
Great write up! Like you my wife and I both have 2013 SV Leafs gotten 1 week apart. I have a couple questions. First, I found another backup camera mod https://youtu.be/_MPUkloBr2A and they spliced into the wiring at the harness near the panel near the driver's feet. Is there a reason or advantage splicing into the system at the back of the radio/nav unit as opposed to there? Also, they used a camera that didn't have superimposed guidelines. Did you use the one with or with the guides?

Thanks.
 
Great write up! Like you my wife and I both have 2013 SV Leafs gotten 1 week apart. I have a couple questions. First, I found another backup camera mod https://youtu.be/_MPUkloBr2A and they spliced into the wiring at the harness near the panel near the driver's feet. Is there a reason or advantage splicing into the system at the back of the radio/nav unit as opposed to there? Also, they used a camera that didn't have superimposed guidelines. Did you use the one with or with the guides?

I'm cheap and lazy. I used an aftermarket camera bc it is much cheaper and simpler to install, don't have to deal with all the hatch trim and wiring. I used a transmitter so that I wouldn't have to run wires from the back of the car to the front. The camera I got does have the superimposed guidelines, which I find complement the Leaf lines that show up. I spiced into the space behind the radio bc I didn't know there was another way. However, If you use a transmitter, I don't think it would get a good signal at the area behind the drivers kick plate.
 
This is a great write-up. Can you draw a wiring diagram as well. Trying to follow the words and I am a bit confused. Thanks.
 
Awesome write-up. I'm very likely going to do this as well. With a little time under your belt, how happy are you with the operation? Any downsides? Things you'd do differently? Issues with it working right or anything else?
 
Great write up, I thought the 2012 would be similar but the wires are completely different. :oops: I have the camera in the back hooked up identically and will try the head unit or drivers kick plate in the future when I know what I am doing.
 
UPDATE:
The system works exactly as it did when I installed it. About the same time I installed a similar system in my S, but changed out the stereo to get a bigger display (the S radio has a much smaller display than the SV). I also seemed to have more static on my S installation than my wife's SV, so I took out the transmitter on my S and hardwired the camera to the radio. I've also done more work on my S (added backup ultrasonic distance system and ultrasonic blind spot monitoring) so am more comfortable with running wires from the back to the front of the car. I have found that in rainy weather that the camera lens sometimes gets a water drop on it, distorting the image a lot. I still wouldn't do it differently than the writeup, but if you live where it rains a lot, and you don't mind all the hatch trim work, you might install the camera higher up, perhaps under the hatch handle. The image is a little cleaner with the hard wiring on my S than the transmitter images on my wife's SV. I might run wires rather than use the transmitter solution if I had it to do over again.
 
Would it be possible to get the "official" trim bit that the stock camera uses and install this one up higher? It would look cleaner for one thing, but also would protect from the rain. Is it an issue of finding power higher up? Not having a backup camera is really bothering me and I'm just trying to make a plan.
 
Hi,
I install same radio camera on my 2013 SV according your post, but video on the monitor is blinking.
Were can be a problem?
How you connect (-) on the back camera?
6. Now take the transmitter power leads and connect the red wire to the red/purple wire on the connector. Attach the black to black. The Red/purple is the wire that carries +12 Volts only when the shifter is in reverse.
or (-) must be connected to the ground (like on your pic. with yellow wire)? is it correct?
 
stjohnh said:
UPDATE:
The system works exactly as it did when I installed it. About the same time I installed a similar system in my S, but changed out the stereo to get a bigger display (the S radio has a much smaller display than the SV). I also seemed to have more static on my S installation than my wife's SV, so I took out the transmitter on my S and hardwired the camera to the radio. I've also done more work on my S (added backup ultrasonic distance system and ultrasonic blind spot monitoring) so am more comfortable with running wires from the back to the front of the car. I have found that in rainy weather that the camera lens sometimes gets a water drop on it, distorting the image a lot. I still wouldn't do it differently than the writeup, but if you live where it rains a lot, and you don't mind all the hatch trim work, you might install the camera higher up, perhaps under the hatch handle. The image is a little cleaner with the hard wiring on my S than the transmitter images on my wife's SV. I might run wires rather than use the transmitter solution if I had it to do over again.

stjohnh,

Could you please confirm the pin positions on the back of the radio? As mine is missing some, I'll need to get some new pins and install new wires into the connector. I've attached the connector diagram (Large top right connector).

http://imgur.com/a/BgRhF

From what I understand from your photos:
Pin 21 (shield) (Top left of connector)
Pin 41 (video) (Bottom left of connector)
Pin 45 (reverse sense that should be grounded) (5th pin from the left on the bottom row).

Much appreciated!

Chiv.
 
Nevermind, digging through other forum topics for other installs the end result for a Non-Bose 2013 SV is

Pin#
40-Video
60-Video Shield
58- Camera Sense (connect it to chassis ground)

Chiv.
 
Hi guys, I'm hoping someone viewing this thread could help me out before I damage my Leaf :). I have a 2012 SV and am adding a Rear View Camera by using the clip-on Rear Mirror I bought from Amazon:

http://a.co/fizzqYg

I know these are instructions for a 2013, but I can't find much of anything on 2012s.

Luckily, I shouldn't need to drill as there is an area above the license plate that's open (weird, but works) that I'll run through. My Main concern is that I'm a wiring newbie. Please look at the 2 pictures below:

IMG_20171013_191045.jpg

IMG_20171013_184708.jpg


Could someone provide me IDIOT LEVEL instructions on how to tap into those 2 wires? Do I cut them where I've exposed them in the picture and then strip it and then connect BOTH the wire heading to the Brake Light as well as the Red wire for the new electronics TOGETHER in one end of the Butt Connector and connect the other end of the Red/Purple in the other?

Is that correct? You just twist them together and crimp them into the connector?

I was planning on use these 18 gauge ones:

http://a.co/iDoqqeX

Does this make sense?
 
I recently bought a 2013 Leaf SL trim and was bummed that it doesn't have the around view monitor that I was looking for. It doesn't even have a simple backup cam but I bought it anyway. I found this forum and decided to try to add an aftermarket camera (non-wireless version). I tried to install it after reading everything I could in this thread and others and when in reverse, get the black screen to appear on the monitor, and the guide lines but didn't get the video to ever appear.

My wife then convinced me to take it in to the local aftermarket car audio/accessory store and ask them to install it for me.
They willingly did, did all the dirty work for me, removed all the trim, drilled the hole, got the wires installed and wired it up directly to the back of the nav unit.

It still doesn't show a video and he tested the camera and it works correctly and displays a video on any other monitor , it gets 12V when in reverse so he said the only step remaining would be for me to take my car to a Nissan dealer to "flash" the headunit to tell the software to accept the video input.

Has anyone heard of this? I called the dealership and they didn't specifically know if it would work but offered to reset the electronics for $140.
 
jayemel said:
It still doesn't show a video and he tested the camera and it works correctly and displays a video on any other monitor , it gets 12V when in reverse so he said the only step remaining would be for me to take my car to a Nissan dealer to "flash" the headunit to tell the software to accept the video input.

Has anyone heard of this? I called the dealership and they didn't specifically know if it would work but offered to reset the electronics for $140.

I'm sorry, I really don't know about this. I didn't have to do that on my wife's SV. I thought the head unit on the SL was the same, but maybe not. I doubt the installer followed the instructions I wrote, so possibly it is not connected properly.

If you are willing to do a little DIY work you could buy a super cheap $10 camera from amazon, remove the trim around the head unit and the screws, and plug the cheap camera directly into the radio. You can power the test camera with a 9V alkaline battery for testing.
 
chivalryx said:
Nevermind, digging through other forum topics for other installs the end result for a Non-Bose 2013 SV is

Pin#
40-Video
60-Video Shield
58- Camera Sense (connect it to chassis ground)

Chiv.



Chivalryx,

Do you still use the purple wire for a "trigger"?

my camera also has a Red wire at the end with the RCA, do I attach that to the purple wire?

Thanks so much!!!
 
I'm sorry, I really don't know about this. I didn't have to do that on my wife's SV. I thought the head unit on the SL was the same, but maybe not. I doubt the installer followed the instructions I wrote, so possibly it is not connected properly.

If you are willing to do a little DIY work you could buy a super cheap $10 camera from Amazon, remove the trim around the head unit and the screws, and plug the cheap camera directly into the radio. You can power the test camera with a 9V alkaline battery for testing.

Thanks for this, It is now connected directly to the back of the radio and is powered when the car is in reverse, but doesn't show up on the OEM nav screen, but does work on other monitors (but I don't want another monitor)

Just wanted to make sure there isn't a flash step I'm missing where Nissan has to reprogram the car to display the video signal
 
jayemel said:
I'm sorry, I really don't know about this. I didn't have to do that on my wife's SV. I thought the head unit on the SL was the same, but maybe not. I doubt the installer followed the instructions I wrote, so possibly it is not connected properly.

If you are willing to do a little DIY work you could buy a super cheap $10 camera from Amazon, remove the trim around the head unit and the screws, and plug the cheap camera directly into the radio. You can power the test camera with a 9V alkaline battery for testing.

Thanks for this, It is now connected directly to the back of the radio and is powered when the car is in reverse, but doesn't show up on the OEM nav screen, but does work on other monitors (but I don't want another monitor)

Just wanted to make sure there isn't a flash step I'm missing where Nissan has to reprogram the car to display the video signal


I just did this on Saturday on my 2013 Nissan Leaf SV (Non-Bose)

Make sure you have pin 58 grounded, that tells the radio that a camera is present.

You could check if it is grounded by going to the "System Diagnostic Menu" and checking to see if you have a "camera" option. (mine didn't before the work I did)

1: With the screen showing the maps AND the radio off..
2: Press the MAP button 3 times, POWER 2 times, MAP 1 time. (in a quick succession)

Hope this helps!

Here is something I put together that might help too...
35m13jd.jpg
 
Pin 58 is grounded. That is what causes the screen to go black and the yellow backup lines to appear when the car is put in reverse. But there is no active video.
 
I just did this and am having some problems. I decided to use the supplied cable to forgo the wireless transmitter. I have everything hooked up and I get no camera view. I tried the diagnostics menu and I don't see the option for a camera. I moved my ground wire, I tried putting it somewhere else. No go. Any suggestions other than to take it to a (shudder) dealer? Wire 58 is supposed to be cut completely and then add a 10" section of wire to it to be grounded, right?

I have a 2013 SV. I bought the newer version of the camera, and the newer wireless transmitter (that wasn't used)

P.S.

Oh yea, almost forgot. The buttons my my door handles no longer lock/unlock the car.
 
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