Great write up! Thanks for the install information.


A dash cam has been on my short list of items to buy for too long. Which one do you have and how do you like it? What is the quality of the video? Can you read license plate numbers and is it a front camera only or does it have a rear facing camera too?

 

Thanks. I have an Aukey DR01 which is 1080p quality, front facing only. There is an Aukey DR02 that has a version with a rear camera. The quality is good but not mind blowing. I haven’t examined a lot of the footage but if the car is directly ahead and close then you can make out the license plate. It does have a night mode so the image is pretty good but obviously it’s not going to be as clear. It has a super capacitor instead of a regular rechargeable battery which is more susceptible to heat and cold, but I’m not sure what it’s good for. The camera is supposed to be able to wake up and start recording if the car gets bumped while parked, but I think you have to wire it to an always on power source.

I originally wanted to get a rear view dashcam, but decided the wiring would be a pain.

The funny thing was, I added this dashcam to my amazon wish list when I was doing research and forgot about it. I had started looking at 2k and 4K camera’s for the extra detail but didn’t add it to my wishlist. Then for Christmas, my wife went through my list and bought the Aukey. This particular model is good because it’s a small black square and has a screen on the back. It’s pretty inconspicuous when mounted. The DR02 model is wedge shaped so it doesn’t stand out but doesn’t have a detachable mounting system so it has to be stuck directly on the windshield (which I didn’t want to do).

Overall, the dashcam will serve to capture the movement of cars and traffic lights in case another driver runs a red or cuts me off.

My wife witnessed a guy pull up to a girl walking on the sidewalk and tried to pull her in the car. It seemed like they were having a fight and she walked off. The camera wasn’t able to capture enough detail to get a good image of the guy or the car because it was off on the extreme side of the cameras view.

 

I really like how that mounts. I have an Ausdom with suction mount, and it falls off all the time. Sometimes it stays up for weeks, and sometimes it falls of 6 times a day.

AUSDOM Dash Cam A261

It makes .mov files, and you can just watch them as they are, but if you use the files with the program DashCam Viewer you get all the GPS data and g-force info. Comes in super handy when watching videos and you remember "where" something happened, not when.

So far in the 1 1/2 year of installation, I have seen exactly 1 accident and 1 almost accident.

 

I didn’t want to rely on the suction cup mount that came with the dashcam or attach it “permanently” with the 3M tape. With the dashcam mounted to the rearview mirror’s arm, it’s guaranteed not to fall but I can remove it with no damage to anything in the interior when I want.

 

All great info for when I buy my dashcam shortly, thanks.

 

Here’s some footage from the camera. You can only really make out the license plates when you’re directly behind and close to the other car. There’s a lot of glare on the nighttime footage but you can make out what your headlights are illuminating.

I’ll probably upgrade to a higher resolution camera in a few months when i’m Past the gift “grace period”

And just a reminder, this is the first time owning and installing a dashcam. I got a lot of help from others who offered their expertise on another thread. That being said, I will be happy to help out if I can.

 

Reason why you need a dashcam on your Niro. Footage from a VIOFO A119 dashcam.

 

Reason why you need a dashcam on your Niro.

Dashcam are a peace of mind.! 0 Not only in your Niro, in all cars.! waiting for mine (papago gosage228). but i like the idea of the fuse plug from @Nouseformonkey.

 

First post is awesome! I purchased one that draws power from your OBDII port but it does not work as it should. It has a rocker switch so you can toggle between constant power and 5 Min shutdown on ACC but the toggle seems to do absolutely nothing. I am returning that and getting the same setup that you have. Does your camera have a "Parking Mode" where you can have it turn on if there is any jolt of the vehicle?

 

It does but I have no idea how it’s supposed to work. Lol. The dashcam has a super capacitor instead of a rechargeable lithium battery which is more susceptible to swelling in the heat, but there’s no documentation on how to set the cam up to use the shock sensor.

 

The newer dashcams like the ViofoA129 have parking mode. if you purchase the correct power adaptor for the unit that have 3 wires rather than just two, so you hook up the black to power constant and red to power ignition and the green to ground, then the power supply sends the signal via the usb power port to tell the unit if its in park or not. Then the unit can offer 3 different parking recording modes.

 

The HEV has a small battery . So I was wondering how parking mode would affect it ? Some of the reviews are mentioning an expensive backup battery to prevent overdrawing the lithium Niro battery .

 

I have the bundled ThinkWare F70 in my Kia Niro. It doesn’t have the hardwire for parking mode though. Anyone know where I can go to get this installed?

 

The fuse box picture shows the switch turned off. Any changes resulting from that? Is there a fuse puller in there?

 

Well, it took a while but I finally installed the kit to connect my dashcam to the fuse box so there are no more dangling wires and no need to plug into the cigarette lighter.

I ordered this fuse tap kit which includes:

• Long cable with a mini-usb connector on one end and a connection to the fuse tap on the other end with the 12v to 5v converter in between
• 4 types of fuse taps and fuses
• Plastic pry bar to pop the dash panels and to hide the cable in between panels

It took areound 2 hours to install, but most of the time went into trying to figure out the best way to route the cable and finding a bolt on the car to attach the ground cable to. If I were to do another Niro, I could probably do it in less than half an hour. After a lot of trial and error, I figure the best way to start is to start at the fuse panel and then route the cable up to the dashcam.

* Proceed at your own risk! I am not a professional and I am only relating my own experiences. *


First, position your dashcam on the windshield. If you are going to use the 3M adhesive to permanently attach it to the windshield, use some duct tape or painter’s tape to position it temporarily while to do the cabling. If you’re using the suction cup or other adjustable mounting system then you can attach the dashcam to the windshield. It’s probably best to power up the dashcam using the cigarette lighter power plug to ensure that you’re happy with its placement.

Carefully pull the weatherstripping around the door from the A-pillar down to the floor. Then pop open the fuse panel door located on panel underneath the steering wheel on the lower left side. Insert the mini-usb end of the cable into the fuse box and route it to left side of the panel. Pop the left side of the lower panel where the hood release latch is located. I couldn’t totally remove this panel because i probably needed to take off the latch, but just popping the left side gave me enough room to route the cable out of the fuse area and into the channel where the weatherstripping normally sits.

Next, pop out the A-pillar cover. Grip it at the top and pull gently straight out. It won’t come off entirely. I think there’s a clip for the side airbag that keeps it attached and I didn’t want to force. But there is enough space between the metal and the cover to keep routing the cable up towards the roof. I duct taped the usb connector to a short length of string trimmer line to route the cable from the door side to the front windshield side. I made sure to do this well below the rolled up airbag. Once the cable is on the windshield side, pull enough cable to go up the A-pillar and along the headliner and to the dashcam. Again, make sure the cable is not interfering with the airbag. There is enough room at the front of the A-pillar for the cable. Once the cable is at the corner of the A-pillar and the headliner, tuck the cable into the headliner and work your way towards the dashcam. You can use the plastic pry bar to tuck the cable between the windshield and the front edge of the headliner.

The white object at the top of this picture is the airbag rolled up like roll of wrapping paper.

Once you get to the sensor cover, the space gets tighter. When the cable is directly above the dashcam, route the cable downwards towards the cam. Ensure that the mini-usb connector will reach the cam and plug it in. The mount that I used attaches to the arm of the rear view mirror, so I routed the cable down the middle of the sensor cover and then ziptied the cable to the mirror arm.

Pop the A-pillar cover back into place. Again, make sure that the cable is not interfering with the airbag and that the airbag and the cable are not being crimped when you pop the cover back on.

Back at the fuse box, locate the spare 10A fuse in position 3 across and 2 down and unplug it. Take note of its orientation. Find the fuse tap from the kit that matches the fuse’s size. The fuse tap has two places for fuses. Orient the fuse tap so the wire is on the right side and the pins pout down. Plug the fuse into the the bottom position. Plug in the compatible fuse from the kit. I think it is a 5A fuse and it will short out if there is a problem so that the actual fuse and your electronics will not be damaged. Find the other connector from your cable and plug the fuse tap into that. I wasn’t sure if I had to crimp them together but the connection felt pretty tight so I didn’t bother. Plug the fuse tap back into the empty slot. The cable should point towards the right.

The final step is to ground the cable. There is a black ground wire that must be attached to the metal of the car. There is a bolt in the fuse box that is in the perfect position but I did not have a compatible wrench or socket to loosen it since it was in a tight spot. I could not figure out how to remove the panel and the knee airbag is there as well. I ended up routing the black wire below the fuse box, past the foot brake and attaching it to a bolt on the floor. I loosened the nut so that I had enough room to put the ground connector underneath and then tightened the nut. I then ziptied the wire to the nearest spot so it wouldn’t hang loose.

Once everything is connected, turn on the car to check that the dashcam works. If not, check your connections and that the fuses and the tap are installed in the correct way. I’m not sure what would happen if they weren’t. I suspect one of the fuses would short out. If everything works, you can now mount and position the dashcam in its final spot, tuck the extra cable and the converter into the fuse box and replace the cover. I only drove my car briefly, so I can’t tell if there are any rattles.

I hope someone finds this info useful. Since the Niro is a relatively new car, there are no specific tutorials on how to do this. It’s a relatively simple procedure but it helps to have an idea what things look like before starting.

If anyone knows how to remove the lower panel so I can get to the bolt inside of the fuse box, I’d rather connect the ground wire to that one.

Again, do this at your own risk!

Hello, really great, i have a ddpai front and rear, had that on my previous car, but now trying to install to my niro, have done exactly same procedures as on the focus, but doesn't work, I have tried my friend camera single ddpai it works but mine doesn't, have any idea what could be?

Thank you again

 

I’m hardly an expert at dashcam installs, but I’ll ask some questions that might get more people involved.

• What do you mean when you say it doesn’t work? Are you saying that it doesn’t turn on? Does one camera activate but the other one doesn’t?
• Have you tried plugging in just the front camera?
• Does the camera come with a cigarette lighter power plug? Does it work if you use that?
• When you say that your friend’s single cam work, do you mean that it works in his car or did you plug it into your wiring and it works? Have you tried to plug your camera into his car’s wiring?

 

I'm really sorry to not be specific, so follow:

• 
  What do you mean when you say it doesn’t work? Are you saying that it doesn’t turn on? Does one camera activate but the other one doesn’t?

Doest turns on, no signal of energy.

• Have you tried plugging in just the front camera?

Yes that's just the front camera.

• Does the camera come with a cigarette lighter power plug? Does it work if you use that?

Yes it came, on the lighter power plug works fine both of then.

• When you say that your friend’s single cam work, do you mean that it works in his car or did you plug it into your wiring and it works? Have you tried to plug your camera into his car’s wiring?

No, he got one camera same brand ddpai, but it is just front, I have plugged his came on my wiring and it work normal, thats why is really weird.

 

Strange indeed.

Did you plug your camera into your friend’s car’s wiring? Is he just using the lighter plug or did he wore it to the fuse box like you?

 

No i didn't as he do not use in the fuse box, my previous car i was using the lighter power plug tho

 

Is your forward dashcam the same model as your friend’s except that you have the extra back camera? Or is it a different model? If they are different, maybe yours needs more power? I’m not sure how you can check that. Maybe the fuse that you connected to is not enough for your cam? Again I’m not an expert so I’m just guessing.

 

Yes is it same brand, just a newer version because have the back camera, we have checked the fuse output all of them more.than 12

 

I have bought a new wiring to test as the one i have is just 2 wires, now i get one with 3

 

I hope that works for you. Let us know.

 

Thanks so much for taking the time to post this @Nouseformonkeys.
I'm wondering if anyone out there know how I would wire in a dashcam so I can benefit from the "Parking Mode" which I assume needs an always on supply. I have a hardwire kit that says it can support the parking mode and has a set of leads I can use to piggy back on an existing fuse.
Any ideas how I could safely figure out if any of the fuses are always on?
Thanks

Dan

 

Voltmeter. It is just 12 volts so it will be safe. The fuses may all be powered when the car is off. If not, try the one for door switches. Those have to powered.

 

Ok folks, for anyone interested, with help from above I installed my Apeman Cam using a piggyback fuse hardwire kit onto the fuse for the door locks so it is always on (thanks @yticolev).

My cam has movement sensor and parking monotoring, that's why I wanted it always on.
I parked it pointing at a busy road and left it for two days. It recorded many 3 minute video clips of things moving around in front of the car as expected and the car showed 74% charge before and after and the expected miles actually went up (but I'm assuming that has to do with outside temp being warmer). So whatever power drain there is, it seems pretty negligible at least over a 2 day period.

Car is a 2020 e-Niro

I checked with the dealer before I did it and asked if this would affect my warranty in any way and they confirmed that it wouldn't.

Hope that's of use to someone.

 

Well, it took a while but I finally installed the kit to connect my dashcam to the fuse box so there are no more dangling wires and no need to plug into the cigarette lighter.

I ordered this fuse tap kit which includes:

• Long cable with a mini-usb connector on one end and a connection to the fuse tap on the other end with the 12v to 5v converter in between
• 4 types of fuse taps and fuses
• Plastic pry bar to pop the dash panels and to hide the cable in between panels

It took areound 2 hours to install, but most of the time went into trying to figure out the best way to route the cable and finding a bolt on the car to attach the ground cable to. If I were to do another Niro, I could probably do it in less than half an hour. After a lot of trial and error, I figure the best way to start is to start at the fuse panel and then route the cable up to the dashcam.

* Proceed at your own risk! I am not a professional and I am only relating my own experiences. *


First, position your dashcam on the windshield. If you are going to use the 3M adhesive to permanently attach it to the windshield, use some duct tape or painter’s tape to position it temporarily while to do the cabling. If you’re using the suction cup or other adjustable mounting system then you can attach the dashcam to the windshield. It’s probably best to power up the dashcam using the cigarette lighter power plug to ensure that you’re happy with its placement.

Carefully pull the weatherstripping around the door from the A-pillar down to the floor. Then pop open the fuse panel door located on panel underneath the steering wheel on the lower left side. Insert the mini-usb end of the cable into the fuse box and route it to left side of the panel. Pop the left side of the lower panel where the hood release latch is located. I couldn’t totally remove this panel because i probably needed to take off the latch, but just popping the left side gave me enough room to route the cable out of the fuse area and into the channel where the weatherstripping normally sits.

Next, pop out the A-pillar cover. Grip it at the top and pull gently straight out. It won’t come off entirely. I think there’s a clip for the side airbag that keeps it attached and I didn’t want to force. But there is enough space between the metal and the cover to keep routing the cable up towards the roof. I duct taped the usb connector to a short length of string trimmer line to route the cable from the door side to the front windshield side. I made sure to do this well below the rolled up airbag. Once the cable is on the windshield side, pull enough cable to go up the A-pillar and along the headliner and to the dashcam. Again, make sure the cable is not interfering with the airbag. There is enough room at the front of the A-pillar for the cable. Once the cable is at the corner of the A-pillar and the headliner, tuck the cable into the headliner and work your way towards the dashcam. You can use the plastic pry bar to tuck the cable between the windshield and the front edge of the headliner.

The white object at the top of this picture is the airbag rolled up like roll of wrapping paper.

Once you get to the sensor cover, the space gets tighter. When the cable is directly above the dashcam, route the cable downwards towards the cam. Ensure that the mini-usb connector will reach the cam and plug it in. The mount that I used attaches to the arm of the rear view mirror, so I routed the cable down the middle of the sensor cover and then ziptied the cable to the mirror arm.

Pop the A-pillar cover back into place. Again, make sure that the cable is not interfering with the airbag and that the airbag and the cable are not being crimped when you pop the cover back on.

Back at the fuse box, locate the spare 10A fuse in position 3 across and 2 down and unplug it. Take note of its orientation. Find the fuse tap from the kit that matches the fuse’s size. The fuse tap has two places for fuses. Orient the fuse tap so the wire is on the right side and the pins pout down. Plug the fuse into the the bottom position. Plug in the compatible fuse from the kit. I think it is a 5A fuse and it will short out if there is a problem so that the actual fuse and your electronics will not be damaged. Find the other connector from your cable and plug the fuse tap into that. I wasn’t sure if I had to crimp them together but the connection felt pretty tight so I didn’t bother. Plug the fuse tap back into the empty slot. The cable should point towards the right.

The final step is to ground the cable. There is a black ground wire that must be attached to the metal of the car. There is a bolt in the fuse box that is in the perfect position but I did not have a compatible wrench or socket to loosen it since it was in a tight spot. I could not figure out how to remove the panel and the knee airbag is there as well. I ended up routing the black wire below the fuse box, past the foot brake and attaching it to a bolt on the floor. I loosened the nut so that I had enough room to put the ground connector underneath and then tightened the nut. I then ziptied the wire to the nearest spot so it wouldn’t hang loose.

Once everything is connected, turn on the car to check that the dashcam works. If not, check your connections and that the fuses and the tap are installed in the correct way. I’m not sure what would happen if they weren’t. I suspect one of the fuses would short out. If everything works, you can now mount and position the dashcam in its final spot, tuck the extra cable and the converter into the fuse box and replace the cover. I only drove my car briefly, so I can’t tell if there are any rattles.

I hope someone finds this info useful. Since the Niro is a relatively new car, there are no specific tutorials on how to do this. It’s a relatively simple procedure but it helps to have an idea what things look like before starting.

If anyone knows how to remove the lower panel so I can get to the bolt inside of the fuse box, I’d rather connect the ground wire to that one.

Again, do this at your own risk!

Great write up. Like you I spent hours trying to find an earth point. Then I found some diagrams on line about panel removal so I used my plastic tools and a flat edged screwdriver and removed the end panel careful not to break any of the plastic snap on lugs of which there are 5. Hey presto lots of lovely earthing bolts. The panel cover ref number is : DE 84786-G5000 Cover-C/Pad Main Side RH >PP-TD20-057<
Hope this helps someone.

 

Great! Can you post the link to the site with the panel info? Might help others who are looking to install a dash cam. Maybe I’ll move my ground connection to a better spot.

 

Got the panel off but I'm now not sure which bolt ot use as earth. Is it the big 12mm ones on the right?

 

Great post, thank you for sharing this!

I followed the steps and I was able to do a very neat job except for one thing. Somehow the cover of the A pillar won't pop back into its place. The middle part is fine but at the top it won't go back to where it was. I was very careful popping it out when disassembling and I didn't force it as far as I can tell. Also there's nothing in the way, eg the cable has been aligned to the other cable that was there already. But somehow it's still not the same as it was before, please see below,

I was wondering if anybody else had the same issue? It feels like some parts of it have clicked back to their place but others didn't.

Is there any guidance that somebody could provide, please?

Thank you!

 

Ah, actually it's my bad. There was a wire in the way... All good now. Thanks again for this great posting! I'm super happy with the outcome.

 

Great. Glad you found the issue. That would have bothered me every time I got in the car.

 

New camera arrives in a few days. It has automated recording while parked, and circuitry to turn itself off if the 12v battery goes below certain thresholds, to protect the battery.

Problem is, the Niro HEV no longer has a conventional lead 12v battery, and so I am wondering what voltage thresholds to set.

Cheers,