Technical Globecar Fiat Ducato 2019 X290 - I think! Help please with reversing camera

[streetsy67]

Hoping someone can help me...
I have a Globecar Globescout LHD from 2019, Fiat Ducato base.
I replaced the Pioneer radio with an aftermarket Chinese thingy because I wanted to have a screen and to be able to use Carplay.
It works just fine but it came with a reversing camera, which I would just love to use as well.
BUT, I have no idea how/where to best fit the camera, and how to get the wires from it, from the back, all the way to the front.
I think I have read that FIAT puts in prewiring for reversing cameras...if so, how could I find out where the prewires are? Should there be something at the rear, connected to reverse light, and maybe to the top brake light so I can site the cam there? If so, where would these wires be?
Would there also be something near the front, so I could then connect to the new head unit?
What about the "reverse trigger wire"?
Has anyone done this and, if so, could you give me some pointers of where to look?
Please excuse the newbieness - you can probably tell I have zero experience with van electrics, but I have tried to find a garage to do this for me and they're all saying that they would need to take the whole interior apart to be able to run the wire and they'd need to charge around 8 to 10 hours work - I can't affor that but am willing to put in whatever it takes, timewise, to try to do it myself.

Thanks in advance!

 

[vangerwin]

Hello!
If your Android radio is able to communicate with the CAN bus, there is no need for a trigger wire (I also bought a cheap Chinese one). I did not use the the camera that came with the radio but bought one that is also the brake light. I needed to pull the camera wire from back to front.

 

[Communicator]

Hi,
I have recently added a wired reversing camera to my RHD x244 PVC. It is an IH Tio R without rear doors. I think that your cable route may be decided more by the Globecar conversion, than by the Fiat base vehicle. Avoid trying to route the cable past the sliding door, unless ypu have an obvious route.
If new cable needed then I needed nearly 10 metres in my 5.6m vehicle. To facilitate pulling the cable into place using fish wires, I cut a short length off the cable, so that I did not have to drag the RCA connector through the vehicle. I jointed the cable post installation, but I could have used a new connector.

As regards the possibility of pre installed camera cable the obvious places to look are behind the high level brake light and behind the radio.

You mention using a reverse trigger signal. Is such a signal necessary? Member @Reg 65 has advised against using this trigger and installed a separate switch. Apparently a head unit takes time to display the camera picture, when a reverse,. In multipoint turns, he found the delay embarrassing. He has installed a separate switch.

For power to my camera, I chose to use the unused rear door demister supply, for a camera only this should not cause canbus issues if applicable.. The demisting supply times out after a few minutes. An alternative sourse of supply could be the wiring for the rear power socket which on my RHD vehicle was tucked unused behind the RHS rear light. (3 pole socket that will accept 6,3mm male blade connectors. Third wire is for night time illumination of socket. This supply is controlled by ignition on, so camera would remain on when driving. Power taken by camera on its own is negligible. Switching 12V to head unit reverse trigger should display the picture.

I hope that the above provides some food for thought.

 

[streetsy67]

Hi,
I have recently added a wired reversing camera to my RHD x244 PVC. It is an IH Tio R without rear doors. I think that your cable route may be decided more by the Globecar conversion, than by the Fiat base vehicle. Avoid trying to route the cable past the sliding door, unless ypu have an obvious route.
If new cable needed then I needed nearly 10 metres in my 5.6m vehicle. To facilitate pulling the cable into place using fish wires, I cut a short length off the cable, so that I did not have to drag the RCA connector through the vehicle. I jointed the cable post installation, but I could have used a new connector.

As regards the possibility of pre installed camera cable the obvious places to look are behind the high level brake light and behind the radio.

You mention using a reverse trigger signal. Is such a signal necessary? Member @Reg 65 has advised against using this trigger and installed a separate switch. Apparently a head unit takes time to display the camera picture, when a reverse,. In multipoint turns, he found the delay embarrassing. He has installed a separate switch.

For power to my camera, I chose to use the unused rear door demister supply, for a camera only this should not cause canbus issues if applicable.. The demisting supply times out after a few minutes. An alternative sourse of supply could be the wiring for the rear power socket which on my RHD vehicle was tucked unused behind the RHS rear light. (3 pole socket that will accept 6,3mm male blade connectors. Third wire is for night time illumination of socket. This supply is controlled by ignition on, so camera would remain on when driving. Power taken by camera on its own is negligible. Switching 12V to head unit reverse trigger should display the picture.

I hope that the above provides some food for thought.

Thank you very much for taking the time to write this, it definitely does give me food for thought
I have seen a short video, can't remember where I found it, though , where the chap took his wire down to the driver's door footwell and out through there to the underside of his van, and then back up through the numberplate late, to fit his camera there...Will need to look into the third brake light, above the rear doors, and see what's in there before making a final decision.
It has been very helpful to hear that you were able to cut and rejoin the 10m RCA cable, as I did worry about getting the large RCA connector through small holes (have also purchased a 10m cable).
Will also take on board @Reg 65 's advice regarding just having a switch to view, rather than triggering when in reverse, to avoid the issues you/he mentioned.
Thank you again for your help!

 

[Communicator]

Thank you very much for taking the time to write this, it definitely does give me food for thought
I have seen a short video, can't remember where I found it, though , where the chap took his wire down to the driver's door footwell and out through there to the underside of his van, and then back up through the numberplate late, to fit his camera there...Will need to look into the third brake light, above the rear doors, and see what's in there before making a final decision.
It has been very helpful to hear that you were able to cut and rejoin the 10m RCA cable, as I did worry about getting the large RCA connector through small holes (have also purchased a 10m cable).
Will also take on board @Reg 65 's advice regarding just having a switch to view, rather than triggering when in reverse, to avoid the issues you/he mentioned.
Thank you again for your help!

Yes while I started from the rear, my video cable follows a similar route at the front. Across from the rear of the radio, and down near the pedals to pass under the original Fiat floor covering to the drivers footwell. From there with footwell cover removed I can get under a section of converters raised floor, and emerge behind the fridge. From behind the fridge, it was possible to route under/alongside the toilet/shower to just forward of the rear wheel arch, where there is restricted access with EHU fitting dangling on its cable. (I have been in there before.) Continuing rearward I took advantage of a feature of the conversion by temporarily removing the rear bench top and about 5 off No4 trim retaining screws at a horizontal join. With the joint prised open, the cable was pushed down so as to run round and over the rear wheel arch. This got me to a position just inside the RHS rear light. At that point a carefully located hole was made to take a cable grommet, and pass the cable to the rear light cavity. Actually as previously stated, II started at the rear and worked forwards.

I do not know whether the x250 is similar to the x244 immediately below the rear lights, but when I was prospecting a cable route for reversing sensors, I eventually discovered a soft fill in the rear corner. With a piece of plastic hose used as a conduit, I was able to pass the sensor cables into the rear light cavity. If the x250/290 is similar, this could provide an entry route into the vehicle, if using the external along the chassis option. Worth investigating?

 

[HughJampton]

I fitted a camera to a 2015 Globecar.

Detail will be different as it was a combined high level brake light and camera, but some of the principles will be the same, even if manufacturing detail has changed.

I doubt you'll find cabling already fitted, though it is possible. I routed my cable (from the brake light) across the top of the doors (inside the void) and down the rear corner (inside) where I managed to find an exit point at the bottom to underneath the van. Then forward, underneath the van to the driver's footwell. Removal of the footwell insert revealed a blank grommet/hole that could be used for re-entry, then up the trim to the dash.

I've always fitted a switch to trigger the camera, rather than using a reverse feed. It avoids on/off whilst shuffling, and can be used to check behind without actually engaging reverse. (Useful for checking you still have bikes on any bike rack ;-) )

 

[lycopersicum]

Re: finding a point of entry; in the absence of a pre-existing hole I just drilled and routed the cable through a PG7 cable gland.

I have a camera with a thin 4-pin connector so much easier to route through the structure of the van. I went from the upper brake light and stayed up on the RHS then across the top of the B pillar (bit of a situation there, need magic fingers), over the door and along the top of the windshield to a dedicated screen on the rear view mirror mount (somehow my windshield has one, must be for the bus version). It's always on.

 

[MarcoWuerttemberger]

Why not use a reversing camera from Amazon with a wireless connection? Just a small extra screen in the cockpit and you save yourself the cable pulling. Camera to the back of the cable from the reversing light connect and then it works very easily. costs about 40 euros. Greetings Marco

 

[theoneandonly]

I dont have PVC ,but a big white box on the back. It allready has a highlevel camera feeding the pioneer screen. I added a mirror mounted screen and sent all wires down the A pillar to the footwell. From the footwell there is a grommet to the outside world and then via conduit to the rear. One camera is fitted above numberplate, one centre on ffridge vent and a 3rd on the rh rear corner as an overtaking check. 3 cameras controled by on/ off switches . CAMERA has 2 av feeds one my main and other together on Av2 selected by which camera is powered up.

 

[SBQ]

Why not use a reversing camera from Amazon with a wireless connection? Just a small extra screen in the cockpit and you save yourself the cable pulling. Camera to the back of the cable from the reversing light connect and then it works very easily. costs about 40 euros. Greetings Marco

Because the camera itself will still require DC power to function it's wifi so it is of no benefit having the data signal in wireless. Might as well add extra wiring for data that goes with the electrical wiring.

 

[MarcoWuerttemberger]

Because the camera itself will still require DC power to function it's wifi so it is of no benefit having the data signal in wireless. Might as well add extra wiring for data that goes with the electrical wiring.

sure...but you only need to connect the camera with a little clamp (in Germany called "Stomdieb" sry, don't know the correct english word) to the wire for the reverse light behind the left backlight. Aprox 10 Minutes work.

 

[HughJampton]

I'm trying to remember how I wired mine - it was 10 years ago ;-)

I'm pretty sure I took power from jumping the switched feed to the radio to a standard small automotive rocker switch, mounted nearby on the dash*, then split the output from that switch to both the radio trigger feed and the camera positive. I'm pretty sure my RCA cable had an extra 'live' wire (they do exist like that) but a single low amp live feed could be run alongside. The camera can patently be grounded locally.

*I actually mounted the switch in the small removable panel in the centre lower dash where a USB socket is if there's a factory radio. It also had a twin, since I wired the radio to the leisure battery, and put a switch in for isolation. The panel is cheap and easy to replace if you screw up making the mounting hole, and it's easy to drill if removed. The wiring behind means you then have to be careful when removing the lower dash when changing the pollen filter.

 

[SBQ]

*I actually mounted the switch in the small removable panel in the centre lower dash where a USB socket is if there's a factory radio. It also had a twin, since I wired the radio to the leisure battery, and put a switch in for isolation. The panel is cheap and easy to replace if you screw up making the mounting hole, and it's easy to drill if removed. The wiring behind means you then have to be careful when removing the lower dash when changing the pollen filter.

Personally a separate power switch seems tacky and a hassle to power the camera on. It should be installed so it turns on when stick shift into reverse. The better camera setups are hard wired to keep on off power latency as quick as possible.

 

[HughJampton]

Personally a separate power switch seems tacky and a hassle to power the camera on..

Always worked as I wanted. YMMV.

 

[JG99]

sure...but you only need to connect the camera with a little clamp (in Germany called "Stomdieb" sry, don't know the correct english word) to the wire for the reverse light behind the left backlight. Aprox 10 Minutes work.

That's what I did as well using an older wireless Garmin BC30 camera I had.
Mounted the camera itself above the 3rd brake light, drilled a small hole for the round 4-pin connector which goes to the small Wifi module mounted on the inside in a cupboard above the bed, and from there a thin cable thru the cupboard and a cable duct in the corner down to the cars reverse light.
When in reverse, the Wifi module gets power and my Gamin RV770 switches itself from navigation to camera display (which takes 2-3 seconds to switch).