Thread: Rear View Camera

Depends if you want to see a hawk on a disappearing mountain or just what's behind you on the road. If just behind you on the road, the reversing cameras work great. There are different quality of course but get a good one and you will have clear picture and good wide angle from my experience.

Hi Mr. Whippy, rear cameras are a great idea. Most of them assume you will use the reversing light wiring as a power supply . so you will need to wire up a separate power supply with a switch and a fuse. I suggest a bright illuminated switch so you don't forget it is on, or wire it through the ignition.
Some systems are wireless but I don't know if they would reliably transmit from the back of the van to your dash area. You may find the specifications will tell you what the range is. Either way, you will need to wire up for power so you may as well run a video cable. I use my set up to monitor my trailers as well as for reversing but the lens gets dirty fairly quickly on dirt roads or in the rain, so positioning it out of the weather is a good idea if you can. Cheers, 130man.

They say the wide angle cams are best for reversing and the narrow angle for rear view use. I have a 170 degree wide on the back of the Disco and use it for hooking up the tow hitch. When the trailer is not on I use it as a rear view as I have a 10.2" rear view monitor over the existing mirror as the existing mirror is no use due to a full height storage system blocking the back window. I find the wide angle cam is ok to look behind when driving but cars can seem further away than what they are so I still rely on the door mirrors to overtake (very rare anyway in a 300TDI).
I got mine from eonon on ebay and was around $100 inc shipping for the rear view monitor and camera, ony 3 days from Hong Kong via DHL. The monitor has 2 inputs so i'll buy another cam for the back of the trailer as well I think.
Cheers
Mark

just make sure it is water proof with an IP rating of at least 68 bought one off flea bay lasted a couple of months was only splash proof but when you are driving this does force water in.

I've tried many and those 'eonon waterproof' cameras on ebay are great, there are cheap copies (same price even) but if you buy from the seller whose name is also eonon you will actually get a waterproof one.

I have one lined to a switch. camera cost $20. Bought the screen seperatly. I use it to watch the trailer load, reversing and as a rear view. Handy if you don't have a good view out of the rear view mirror.

I have a 2 camera kit from this mob (Jetview Electronics on ebay as Underwater Video Camera System, MegaPixel IP Network Cameras items in Jetview CCTV Security Equipment store on eBay!)
Jetview Electronics On-Line Store

but for a single camera, you could go for either of these good cheap solutions

Jetview Electronics On-Line Store
Jetview Electronics On-Line Store

No problems after 1 year. I haven't done a lot of comparisons to products at the upper end of the market, but I'm happy with the quality, more than adequate for what I needed. I find it particularly useful for lane changing on freeways, and reversing out of angle parks.

I power my reverse camera on the van with the power wire on the number plate light, just flick the park lights on when I want to use it
cheers
blaze