With assistance from a number of articles on this forum, I recently completed the installation of front and rear aftermarket cameras for my
987.2
2010
Boxster
. A quick recap follows. Disclaimer: I am not an automotive or electronics professional, nor have I completed any advanced training in these areas, so while the following installation approach has been successful in my case, I cannot provide any assurance that this approach is optimal nor that the outcome will necessarily be a positive one should others choose to follow the approach I used. Any aftermarket installation completed by an amateur can result in a negative outcome and each installer is responsible for the outcome of their efforts.
My main objective was to end the frustration I experienced every time I tried to judge the distance behind the car when parking. So I bought a license plate frame mounted rear camera with a monitor for around $40. I know that's cheap, but I wasn't 100% sure I could complete the install. I ran the camera wires through the hole behind the license plate, up to the bottom of the spoiler housing and then across to the passenger side rear light where it's easy to feed the wires into the trunk. I routed the wires into the convertible top housing near the rear strut mount and ran them along the side of the engine cover to behind the passenger seat. I brought the wires into the cabin near the upper shoulder harness mount and then down to the rear of the door sill. I ran the wires under the door sill into the passenger foot well and then behind the center stack where I also added a new fused power line for the cameras and monitor.
I only decided to add the front camera after succeeding with the rear camera install and thinking "why didn't I do this sooner?" I purchased a universal mount camera for around $40 and mounted it in the center of the recessed area at the bottom of the front bumper. I had to drill a fairly large hole in the bumper so the cable plugs could fit through but it's hard to see the hole unless you are on your hands and knees just in front of the car. I found a spare hole with a rubber plug leading into the front trunk on the driver's side of the car and ran the wires behind the trunk liner and through another rubber plug for a wiring harness to just behind the front firewall. I then routed the wires to the passenger side of the firewall by going behind the battery. I found another large rubber plug with a wiring harness leading to the interior of the passenger side of the car to pass the wires into the interior and then all I had to do was connect all the wires. I did cut the plugs off the wires to pass them through the various rubber plugs and then I spliced the plugs back on in the passenger compartment.
I'm quite satisfied with the functionality of the cameras and use them almost every time I park. I'm not fully satisfied with the monitor mount so that is something I plan to improve. If I knew how much I appreciate the camera views and how challenging it was to find a decent monitor location, I might have opted for one of the much more costly installs that use the monitor in the OEM navigation / stereo unit. But for only around $100 in parts I've got a very functional front and rear camera system.
Great job. I can’t tell, but are you using the same monitor for both cameras?
Yes, the monitor has two video inputs with one of them taking priority over the other. So with a switch for each camera I can choose which camera to view.
Dave - thanks. The pics came in handy. Added a license-plate mount backup camera to my '09 base. I wrote it up over in general chat, but I'll copy what I said here:
Installed backup camera. Ugh. Started at 2PM, finished a 12:30AM - about 20 minute break for lunch, hour for dinner. Used a license plate mount one with the intent of drilling no holes, but decided to drill one hole under the license plate recess lip to pass the wiring through. The hole behind the plate was considered - but I couldn't find a good path for it, and it is intended for the tow-eye if needed.
Found a path up to the right side rear light cavity. Ran the camera wiring there and found the backup light positive (black with blue tracer wire) and ground (brown). The wiring that came with the camera was kind of neat. Instead of just a video cable - the cable had an additional red wire coming out of each end. They'd included a wire for the backup-trigger signal in the wiring, so it was only necessary to run the one wire. Made for an easier install.
Someone else posted here about following a path up over the wheel-arch area - over the top of the rear strut mount. This worked fine. As they said - it brings the wire out into the folding top compartment. From there it was possible to thread it behind a bunch of rubber trim (keep it neat and out of the top mechanism) and then under the rear lip of a partly opened top and under the storage box that's above the engine cover - and into the passenger compartment. It's very easy to fish it under that compartment IF you simply reach and unlock the fasteners for the box, you can then lift it up and fish the wire through. From there - it went behind various carpeted trim pieces in the cabin, then to the rear edge of the center console - and along the passenger's side edge of the console, tucked up under the edge. That got it to the center stack - and into the headunit.
I have a Rosen headunit from around 2010 in the
Boxster
. It's good for having a LOT of outputs and inputs. I can't say I'm real happy with the interface, but connecting up the trigger signal to their "rear-signal" wire, and the camera to the camera input - it all worked fine.
On a scale of 1-10 for difficulty - probably a good 6. On a scale of 1-10 for the number of tools used - a solid 8. On a scale of 1-10 for the mechanical skill required - maybe a 3-4. On a scale of 1-10 for curse words uttered during the installation - a solid 9.
BTW - one trick - I have one of those squeezy claw sort of picker-upper things, a fairly long one (something like
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B073RD64PM/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_0HkQDbZGJT86J
) - wonderful tool for this job. It can be snaked through places, then simply grab the RCA plug on the end of the cable and pull it back through. The lighting is a great bonus... allows you to see where the snake is going.
¡¡¡Hola!!! Saludos a todos, quiero instalar una cámara de marcha atrás en mi Caimán
987.2
año 2011 y quiero estar seguro de los cables: los cables para conectar la cámara a la luz de reversa son (+) número 2 (***** con línea azul) y ( -) número 3 en marrón, ¿cómo indican las flechas?
Curious where you found a good wiring path from the front trunk into the cockpit ... I want to install a VHF/UHF Amateur Radio in my car, and need to run a 2-conductor #10 AWG (siamese) cable from the
battery
to a location behind the passenger seat for the radio.
I was lucky with the antenna installation on the rear hatch ...
Mark,
Dunno who you're asking.. but if you remove the
battery
cover, and the side covers in the Frunk, and then take a bright flashlight and look between the
battery
and the firewall - you'll see several large rubber grommets that are in the firewall. Some of them may have cables going through, others may not. ANY of those should provide a direct path into the cabin of the car. They'll come out behind the dashboard, you'll probably have to put your head on the floor to see them. I used one for the
GPS
antenna on my new(er) head-unit/radio/nav. My car is white so they really stand out, if you have a black car, get a bright flashlight and use it to find them.
Thanks, Don. The question was posed to anybody who had previously installed wiring through the front bulkhead.
You provided the answer I was hoping for
Please delete this post - resolved
