[nusslejj]

Thanks the first one looks like what I need for 12v Escort radar. Can you confirm that the it's ODB2 port that is "switched"... goes on and off with the engine or is it the adapter that accomplishes this? The description says "Perfect for installing Dash Cams, Radar detectors or any other permanent 12v Accessory" that is throwing me off. Thanks again.

Yes - the power to the ODB2 port is available only when the engine is running.

 

[naranja]

I ended up buying a Valentine One with the OBD2 power adapter. Thanks for the tip! It was time for me to upgrade anyway, and since Valentine just came out with their Gen2 detector I was able to get a deal on a used but up to date first generation model.

From what I've gathered, primarily looking at the descriptions of the two Amazon adapters, I think the OBD2 port actually is always powered on. The first 12v adapter says so in the description, and the second dashcam adapter has a physical switch you can toggle from "always on" to "acc mode".

 

[nusslejj]

I ended up buying a Valentine One with the OBD2 power adapter. Thanks for the tip! It was time for me to upgrade anyway, and since Valentine just came out with their Gen2 detector I was able to get a deal on a used but up to date first generation model.

From what I've gathered, primarily looking at the descriptions of the two Amazon adapters, I think the OBD2 port actually is always powered on. The first 12v adapter says so in the description, and the second dashcam adapter has a physical switch you can toggle from "always on" to "acc mode".

hmm... I have used the V1's ODB2 port adapter in 5-6 cars. Only when I start the car does the ODB2 port power up the V1. When I shut the engine off, the V1 looses power. If I turn on ACC mode, the ODB2 port has no power, so the V1 does not turn on.

 

[naranja]

...when I start the car does the ODB2 port power up the V1. When I shut the engine off, the V1 looses power...

I got my V1 installed and that is exactly how mine is working, so I am set. Thanks again for posting.

What I'm guessing (without a shred of evidence!) is that it's the Valentine adapter that is recognizing if the car is running or not and powering the detector on and off. After all, it can read the car's speed from the OBD2 port.

Again, I'm good, but someone who wants their cam or detector to turn off with the vehicle might want to make sure the adapter they buy works that way also. Here's where the port is for anyone who is going give it a try:

 

[imnamak]

Checked today with multi-meter - different pins on ODB have different voltages when ON (not AAC though), and they come on when turn the engine ON, later some loose power when you lock the car and come back on not on unlock but when you start the engine again.
Also checked all fuses and figured out that they all are always on even after you lock the car and 2 minutes have passed, so unfortunately no fuses turn off even after 2 minutes.
I can confirm though that USB ports go off after 2 minutes when you lock the car but 12v socket stays hot forever.

 

[nusslejj]

Checked today with multi-meter - different pins on ODB have different voltages when ON (not AAC though), and they come on when turn the engine ON, later some loose power when you lock the car and come back on not on unlock but when you start the engine again.
Also checked all fuses and figured out that they all are always on even after you lock the car and 2 minutes have passed, so unfortunately no fuses turn off even after 2 minutes.
I can confirm though that USB ports go off after 2 minutes when you lock the car but 12v socket stays hot forever.

The ODB2 port is the best/easiest power option (with an adapter) unless you have a dashcam that you want to use when the engine is off - then you have to use a fuse. I use the ODB2 port for my radar detector.

 

[imnamak]

Agree, I would be satisfied if it turns on and off with engine, so ordered this OBD2 adapter (UPDATE: do not buy this, it damaged my GPS and did not power up camera) in Canada and will try it tomorrow, not sure which pins it will use though. As I said earlier, I tested my OBD2 and different pins are powered on differently and with different voltages, I hope the adapter will match my port. For now I just plug it into USB temporarily.

 

[imnamak]

Agree, I would be satisfied if it turns on and off with engine, so ordered this OBD2 adapter (UPDATE: do not buy this, it damaged my GPS and did not power up camera) in Canada and will try it tomorrow, not sure which pins it will use though. As I said earlier, I tested my OBD2 and different pins are powered on differently and with different voltages, I hope the adapter will match my port. For now I just plug it into USB temporarily.

Addition to my previous post guys. Be careful with those OBD2 things, the one I bought says its output is 5v 2A which seems ok for usb, but it did not power up my dashcam and what is worse after plugging it in to GPS module of Viofo a129 it looks like I have no mode working GPS

I am afraid to try mode OBD-ish things not to damage the car by accident, so will pass the usb power cable below driver's seat and inside the middle glovebox and power from native usb port which will turn off after ~2min when I lock the car for sure and not drain my battery. What is more if i want it to stay ON for some reason i can plug it to cigarette port next to it.

An important note: when you put your wires, keep in mind that in CX-30 the airbags are all along the A pillar and roof, so you need to be careful not to cross the airbag over with the cable!!! Pass the cable along the A pillar between the windshield, so you are sure its behind the airbag to the bottom of A pillar where airbag ends (it ends by the vents on pillar), then make it though the floor.

 

[imnamak]

What I'm guessing (without a shred of evidence!) is that it's the Valentine adapter that is recognizing if the car is running or not and powering the detector on and off.

Based on description of those OBD adapters I would guess that they have timer and voltage meters (both can fail and i've read cases), though there are pins on OBD that are deactivated on power off, they are 8v on cx-30 and the one that is 12v is always on. So its hard to say, but I personally am off this unknown-producer devices for the reasons you've read in my previous posts, just afraid to experiment

 

[naranja]

It looks like the adapter you bought was designed for diagnostic tools maybe it sent a crazy message to your cam. The other Amazon adapters linked earlier in the thread seem specific to power radar/dashcam devices... hopefully their makers know what they are doing and connecting to the right obd pins to provide safe power but I too would be wary.

I am comfortable with the Valentine adapter based on their reputation. Not sure if it is tapping into the right pins or has some internal logic but it's working as advertised.

Sorry about your bad luck. Thanks for the warning... and good advice re: A pillar/ Airbags.

 

[Smash1984]

Hi guys, first time posting but I found a solution for my CX-30. We just picked our brand new CX-30 up last Friday and I wanted to install a dashcam but encountered the same issues with no switched fuses. After some research I was going to just use one of the USB ports (and hide wires behind trims etc) as these turn off after 6mins of the ignition being off/doors closing (re-opening or unlocking the doors re-activates them). I also read that there is permanent power to the 12v socket. This isn't the case on our model (GT Sport Tech). The 12v cable for our camera was plenty long enough top hide behind trims, round the back of the glove box and up the pillar and above the ceiling trim to the camera which now powers on/off with the ignition. I wouldn't have used the 12v socket for anything else and the fact it's out of site in the centre box is perfect and ended in a nice clean install. I hope that helps but as mentioned, this may be unique to either UK models or just the GT Sport Tech, couldn't get to the bottom of that one.

 

[marksman]

GT Plus model sold in Romania also switches off power to the 12V socket when you switch off the ignition.
I checked a few days back with a generic phone charger.

 

[Morel]

Hi,
To connect my VIOFO A119V3 I used a slightly different approach. I connected into the wiring of the auto diming rearview mirror, green wire= (Acc) and black wire=(-). Personally I don't need the parking option. To make the installation simple I removed a PCB from a USB plug and soldered power supply wires instead of the springs. Everything covered in heat shrink tubing and installed in the overhead console. Routed the camera supply cable directly below where I installed the camera. See attached pictures.

 

[marksman]

Very nicely done! However, most dealers here would void the warranty of the electrical system for tapping into those wires.

 

[Morel]

Very nicely done! However, most dealers here would void the warranty of the electrical system for tapping into those wires.

Much safer than getting into the ODB2 stuff but is you do decide.

 

[marksman]

Can you post a step by step tutorial on how to remove the mirror and open the plastic case behind it?

 

[Morel]

Regarding the plastic case, it's constructed of two longitudinal halves with integral plastic clips connecting them together. Just use a plastic pry tool to separate between the two halves and remove them, each to it's side, right half toward the right, left toward the left. Regarding the mirror, once the plastic case is removed, rotate the mirror leg 90 degrees and the mirror assembly will disconnect from its post.

 

[ArcticHound]

Okay, so I ran a wire through the main wiring grommet up under the driver's footwell using an old wire coat hangar to push through (there is plenty of room around the main harness to do so safely). The purpose is to connect to my Cellink B battery, which requires a switched circuit to tap into and, as everyone knows, there aren't any available inside the passenger compartment fuse panel. That battery will sit under the driver's seat and then feed power back to my BlackVue DR750S dual channel cameras. It runs the cameras all of the time, including parking mode, and charges by drawing around 7 to 9 amps when it needs to (which is why it connects to a switched circuit or it would just completely drain the main battery fairly quickly). I've had this setup in my last car (2019 Veloster) and it worked beautifully (though that car had switched circuits inside so tapping a fuse was easy).

So here's the problem in my under-the-hood fuse panel. Using my multimeter I found just 8 switched fuses, all 15A. There's also several unused slots one could add a fuse to, but of course they're all constantly powered (like practically everything else in this car - WTF Mazda). My plan was to use an add-a-fuse with an equivalent 15A fuse on the tap side.

In ascending order they are:

F8 - Engine Control System
F10 - Engine Control System
F12 - Engine Control System
F18 - Protection of Various Circuits (tap won't fit)
F47 - Protection of Various Circuits (tap won't fit)
F49 - Instrument Cluster (tap won't fit)
F53 - Engine Control System
F54 - i-Activsense

Several of them don't work well due to physical restrictions: F18 is too close to the edge of the case and the fuses would stick out and it has a large fuse block beside it, so the tap cannot be rotated (the wire would not fit). F47 and F49 are out for the same reasons. I don't think tapping into the i-Activsense system would be a good idea, so that basically leaves me a Ford Model-T choice of "any colour I want as long as it's Engine Control System black". I guess the other (albeit more work) option is to set up a relay off the main battery and link it to one of the switched circuits, but I've not done one before and don't know how you go about weatherproofing them or finding a good place to mount it.

So...thoughts?

P.S. - here's photos of where I fed the wire through.

 

[ArcticHound]

Well, the installation is all done and it turned out well.

One thing of note - since I had to pull one of the engine control system fuses to test which side was the load side (to properly install the fuse tap) by turning on ACC mode, so when I did finally start the car up, there was a check engine light and the central panel had an engine malfunction warning. Plugged in my Veepeak OBDII bluetooth module and pulled the codes and it was basically that the computer was failing to see a couple of the items it checks, so I just reset the codes through the OBDII and the issue went away and has not come back. Managed to fit the Cellink B battery under the driver's seat, just snugged in to the right of the under seat vent and there's space there to tuck all the cabling under where the carpet splits. It actually sits right under the seat rail and I ran the seat through its full range of motion to ensure there's no interference.

Front Camera: The power cable runs across the headliner, down the driver's side A-pillar and down the front of the door frame beneath the weather stripping and then connects up to the feed from the Cellink B battery. All the wires and connections tuck into some space just behind the interior fuse panel (there's some space between it and the dead-pedal foam block hidden behind the carpeting).

I ran the rear camera cable down the passenger A pillar and the down across the floor - if you remove the front and rear sill plates you can easily feed it through the B-pillar trim at the bottom without removing it. I prefer this to going over the top along the headliner due to the airbags being up there and not wanting a cable to interfere with their deployment. From there it was up the C-pillar, where you can tuck it along where the plastic meets the headliner, and then there's the work you need to do on the hatch itself.

You have to remove the center trim piece from the top of the inner hatch itself and disconnect the rubber cable tubing on the right side. I checked this rubber conduit on both sides (there's two of them back there) before I ran the camera feed and the right hand tube has more room in it. The rubber grommets don't pull up as easily as other cars I've had because they're permanently attached to plastic clips that actually connect them to the sheetmetal holes, so take your time lifting the rubber edge and you can see the two retention tabs in the white plastic clip. Just push them in and the grommet/rubber tube releases from the bodywork. You'll have to carefully feed the cable through this conduit - I used a hangar wire and then taped the camera cable to it to help pull it through. You can also use a little bit of soapy water on the cable to help it along if needed.

Once you have the cable into that rear cavity, it can be connected up to the camera and you can then mount the camera to the glass. Once the plastic trim piece is back on, only a tiny bit of the feed cable shows.

The camera set is a BlackVue DR750S-2CH, with 1080p Full HD resolutions front and rear, Sony STARVIS CMOS sensors, approximately 139 degrees diagonal view (116 degrees horizontal and 61 degrees vertical). I like BlackVue cameras as they don't have built-in screens (so they have a nice, small profile), you just connect to them via WiFi using your phone to get a live feed so you can adjust them or look at recorded video on the road if needed. I use a 256GB SD card and that allows for quite a lot of recording - even from 2 channels - before it has to overwrite. Manual recordings and impacts are protected and won't be overwritten.

Sorry I failed to take photos when I had stuff taken apart - when I get to working on a project I just go at it hard and don't even stop to eat. If anyone has any questions, please let me know.

 

[Tireman9]

So how do door windows work? They do not work if key is not on so their circuit must be switched. Where are the fuses for door windows?