Power for Dashcam

[Charles Ferrigno]

I found a few posts about hardwiring dashcams or radar detectors. Anyone have success with pulling power from the overhead console and installing a 12 to 5 volt converter?

I was looking at something on Amazon that looks promising.

 

[Lostneye]

I have a dashcam. My audio installer hard wired but we ran the cord down the a pillar close to the fuse box.

 

[BKiller]

I just wired one up with a micro usb to 12v converter. I grabbed power off the sunroof switch.

 

[Charles Ferrigno]

Bkiller, any pics? That would be perfect since it is switched power. Did the overhead just pull down or were there screws? I haven’t looked at how it comes down yet.

 

[twbyard]

BlendMount has a harness that get power from the connector on the back of the mirror.

 

[Totaled TL]

I just wired one up with a micro usb to 12v converter. I grabbed power off the sunroof switch.

I tried that but for some reason it interfered with the sunroof operation. Wound up wiring it to the under hood fuse box.

 

[SHOrod]

I wired up my dashcam to the sunroof switch as well with no issues. There are less expensive solutions to the 12V to 5V USB adapter if you don't mind doing some soldering, but otherwise that linked adapter should work fine. I've not had any issues with sunroof operation in either the 2011 SHO or the 2013 EcoBoost MKS.

And yes, the overhead console just pulls down, starting at the rear. I installed a flat trim removal tool under the back lip, twisted it to unsnap the clips, then if I remember correctly there are tabs at the front edge that unhook.

-Rod

 

[Shadow351]

I used one of these Fuse Taps, and grabbed a switched 12V from an less critical circuit in the central junction box under the steering column
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01DYQM6EO/ref=oh_aui_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Coronach]

For those who used the wiring for the sunroof, which wires did you use?

Edit: disregard, I figured it out. For those who want to do this in the future, you can get Ground and Battery power off of the smaller plug for the overhead lights. In the 16, it was the outside two wires. Ground is black, and battery power is yellow/green. Accessory power comes from the bigger plug, and I think it was blue/gray, the furthest right wire on the top row of 3.

What I did was first open the sunroof, then pull the overhead console and disconnect both plugs. Then, taking the wiring adapter for the dashcam, push the plug for the dashcam out through the front of headliner, working from inside of the void created by removing the overhead console. The feed EVERYTHING back through the headliner, pushing it towards the rear of the car from the location of the overhead console. Pull it out from above, through the open sunroof, and sit it on the roof of the car. There is a HUGE void between the headliner and the roof right in front of the sunroof, and you can access it from above really easily with the sunroof open. Then feed the wiring end back down through, giving you just enough wiring to mate up with wires for the two harnesses. Splice them in. Replace the overhead console. Tuck all of the spare wiring and any sensor modules/converters that you have into the void between the headliner and the roof, working from above with the sunroof open. Once everything is tucked in, make sure that everything works and that the sunroof and air deflector move unimpeded.

Easy Peasy.