Finally got around to getting to the pics.
Not a real walk through as I am too busy for such things, but a quick overview of the process.

I tried multiple cameras from Panasonic, generic, Ebay, etc. and settled on the $80.00 camera sold on ebay. All metal construction and so far pretty good quality. I highly recommend staying away from the cameras sold or $20.00-$50.00 on Ebay as they are plastic, cheaply made, not sealed, with a horrible image.

Interface is a Navtool which also allows input for the DVD. The nice thing about the Navtool is it automatically switches to the rear camera once the gear selector is placed in reverse. No need to flip a switch.

Anyhow, some pics.





I highly recommend you wrap the wiring (not shown) to protect it)




The actual image is better, but these were the best I could take without getting any interlace lines from the screen.






A nice tool for removing PITA clips.


More pics on the link below.

 

looks good. Got any links specs on that camera?

Also that grid it puts up, is it actually acurate? What is it inches or cm's?

 

Good question, I checked, it is in inches and is accurate provided you know how to use it. The upper most line for 40 in measured in the air, not on the ground. Similar to backing up to a bumper.

Not sure if I'm allowed to post a link here to Ebay=so many rules which prevents trouble makers like me from visiting more often.
Do a search on ,"Car Rear View Water Proof Color CMD Camera Guard Line" and a few will come up. I see one now for $69.99 which appears to be the same. I paid $79.99 a while back. it is a very solid and heavy piece, much beefier than even the factory camera on my GX. All metal construction, sealed, and comes with a nice double sided taped gasket. So far no issues, if it does go south I will be the first to post. The Panasonic unit I had cost twice that and the resulting image was poor though the Panasonic does come with a switching box so no need for a Navtool. The only hole I had to drill was in the plastic trim piece, everything else is in place.

Here are some pics from the guys auction

 

you got pm

 

Can you give me meausurements of the camera itself?


Do you find that the camera seems to point down at the floor to much in the angle it is positioned?


I searched ebay and came up with the seller but could you PM me the link please?

 

you didnt had to move the trunkreleaseover correct??

 

No, everything is still in place. License plate still lights up from both sides.

On the link, there is only one seller with the description I mentioned above.

As far as the angle is concerned, it's in the pictures I posted. A rear view is a safety item to ensure one does not back up over anything such as a child. Pointing it in the air would make little sense. If you look at the bottom of the screen you will see the top of the rear bumper. This is what you want in case there is a toddler behind you very low. If you want a surveillance camera and not a rear view camera this may not be for you.

As far as dimensions, it fits in between the plate light and trunk release and a tad shorter front and rear on the plastic trim. It obviously fits.

 

that looks nice. so how much did this cost you for EVERYTHING you needed to complete the installation?

I've got an 06 that I want to put a rear view camera on - and so far the only option I've seen are some advertised through the dealers and they want about $400 for the whole deal..

so I get the camera for $60 or $70 bcus....what is the "navtool" and how much is that?

is this an easy DIY?

side question - WHAT kind of ehxaust / tips do you have? any other pics of your car...looks like you have some nice mods...

 

Cool

I didnt notice that the very bottom was your bumper. So the angle is good then.

I think im going to try one of these as well to see how it turns out. Thanks for the help.



23109vc

Navtool is the brand of a video interface that lets you add the option to display video on the nav screen. Another nice feature it has it that it also allows the video of a backup camera that auto switches when the car is put in reverse.

Its pretty much plug and play. It goeas between the nav unit in the trunk and the wiring harness going to it. If you have installed car speakers or anything like that you should have no problems with this. I think prices are around 250. dont quote me on that.

 

Yes, good answer. Navtool was around $180 or so through the group buy on ClubLexus which is where I believe is where I got it way back when.
The only wire taps would be for power and reverse signal which are NOT on the instructions which is for the TL only. The wire color is different and I do not recall which color wire but if someone needs it I can pull back the cover and look. You can also just check each wire for the signal and power with a meter.

23109vc, pics of my car are below on the signature line.
So total cost to me was $80 for camera, under $200 for the navtool, and $3.00 for wire cover where I fed it through the hinge assembly. Ensure you have a coat hanger as feeding that wire was the toughest thing to do.

 

I purchased one and build quality is good like stated. Metal body and the one screw attachment makes everything simple. I have yet to install but tested it and it does work pretty well.

We'll see how it does after install though.


I got a slightly different model than the OP. Its a little more square around the edges and cost 69.99 shipped I think.

 

looking forward to pics and your impression.

 

Nice mod, can I add this on a 06 RL. I wanted to get the camera but the factory camera does not show lines (correct me if I am wrong). Can yo please give me some more details on the installation.
Is it plug and play or do you have to tap any wires.

Can you please give me a detailed info on DIY if possible.
Thanks in advance.

 

The OEM camera does not show lines, 470hp's is aftermarket.

BTW, this thread is now in the Garage, thanks for pointing it out.

 

Yes, you will have to tap a couple of wires. One is the power feed for the camera which taps into the reverse light wiring along with ground-easy.

The navtool will need to be tapped into the reverse signal wire at the back of the navigation unit-not as easy as the instructions are for the TL and the wiring color is not the same.

Impressions so far. There is more glare than I would like if the sun is behind you and you are backing up. Otherwise it does what it suppose to.

 

On my camera (not the same as yours...yet), when I back up and the sun is in view, i get that black spot and glare. But like you said, it does what it is supposed to.

 

Hi there,
I am about to buy a camera but I found other types (from the same seller) which has night vission, how is this one working at night?

 

It works fine at night. The image does have a little noise in it but certainly usable. It would be interesting to see how the cameras with the LEDs work out. Let us know. The ones I saw were a bit larger vs the one I used-at the time.

 

Thank you for the information. I ended up buying the same kind of camera as the one you used since it will have the best fit and easiest to install, also after comparing the specifications of all the other cameras with LEDs I found that your camera is the best the best low illumination reading which means it will work best under low light.

By the way I bought my ACU/NAV-EYE2 from Discount Car Stereo for $236, they have sale on them now so if anyone is interested get it now.

Are there any tips that you can share with us to make the installation easier. I appreciate your input.

 

Ensure you have a coat hanger as feeding that wire was the toughest thing to do.

I actually had the correct size socket (torx t-30), and found it was really easy to unscrew the deck from the left side and feed it through by hand. A friend to hold the unsupported trunk up from the fender, and away from the hinge is key as well. Hope this helps someone, as I tried fishtape for quite a few minutes to no avail.

 

Can some one help me with the wire colors. I got the instructions with the navtool but those are for Tl and I have no idea what goes for what. I want to make sure before I start splicing the wires.

1. where did you guys connect the wire labeled hand brake.
2. Where does the blue wire on navtool labeled camera goes to
3. Where did you tap into for powering the navtool and also camera.
any help is appreciated.

 

1. hand brake = ground

2. blue wire = navi unit pin input for reverse signal. ( on my 1st gen RL its a GRN/Black wire)

3. navtool should get power from the nav unit all by itself.
camera power just connect to reverse light positive with a fuse.

 

I have just finished rear view camera on my 06 RL. It was an easy install but had some troubles in the process with the tools. I wold like to thank every one for their insight and help especially nyctl and OLD_HATCH for their help in pointing me in the right direction.

I used the same camera as the other person. Do let me know if any body needs any help with the installation I will be glad to help.
I used the factory rear camera installation instructions for tearing apart the interior trim. Used a navtool as interface. The quality is really good.

 

I never updated here but bought the same camera as the OP and its pretty good. The actual camera case is made out of sturdy metal with a plastic trim piece that fits over it.

When it gets dark out the cam switches on its own from color to a night view mode. pretty good so far.

I installed it with navtool and all is well.

 

Looks good!

 

My camera stopped working yesterday. All I see are the guard lines on the screen and no picture. When I first start the car in the morning it works for few seconds and stops working. Seller is sending me a new one. I am not sure what the problem is. Did any one experience this.

 

Mine has been flawless, never skipped a single beat since the install. Signal wire or other wiring may also be an issue. Keep us posted.

 

I just received a replacement. The seller is really good and prompt in service, he sent me one immediately. I am not sure what the problem is. I switched out the camera and the new one is working really good. there is no problem with the cable, looks like the problem is with the camera itself. Thanks for pointing that out in case if it gives me a trouble I will check that too in the future. I will post some pics in the week end.

 

I am thinking about buying a TVandNav2Go unit and using this camera over getting the OEM camera from the dealer for my 2006 RL, anyone else have any negative experience with this camera?

I like the one hole installation with the nut design as well as the camera guard. And with the TVandNav2Go and this camera it would still be a lot cheaper than buying the camera with my discount ($350) and I would avoid relocation the trunk release.

Is the fact that the camera is not aligned a big issues?

 

What do you mean by this?


Ive been using this camera for a couple of months now and other than early morning fog on the lens it has performed flawlessly as of today.

Nice color during the day and at night it changes to a night mode which clearly sees things in close proximity. ie 5-6 feet from it. after that it gets a little dark.

 

hey, can someone pm the price and details for the navtool?

 

There was a group buy here a long time ago. I emailed navtool about the group buy and told them that the price in the group buy was $200 plus $15 shipping, they honored it.
Your best bet would be to email navtool at sales@navtool.com or customerservice@navtool.com and tell them about the group buy, they may honor the price.
Good luck with that. as far as the camera search eBAY with the terms as stated by OP and you will be able to find it.

 

Agree, its works great. No issues with angle, alignment, etc.
Simply an awesome and useful mod I use every day.

 

I'm also interested in getting the NavTool unit. I've contacted their sales but they said they no longer doing group buys. Good luck.

 

my bro ordered the exact same setup, for his RL.. but then we tried to do it, but nothing worked... no power to the navtool... just a blank black screen on the navi...

Can you direct me to all the proper wiring/tapping... and where do i tap it from... i need to know for all the wires.

 

I wonder if I can order the OEM camera, can I install with the Navtool? have anyone gone that route. I'd like to get the Navtool just to use the dvd feature.

 

i actually connected the OEM camera from our GX into Navtool for testing and it worked great. I would imagine the OEM Acura camera would also work fine.

 

I recently added a BU camera to my 2005. The camera isn't the same one in this thread, but I'm curious about a problem. I leave the headlights in "auto" mode. When backing out of the garage, the headlights come on...this causes the NAV display to change to "night mode". This causes the backup camera display to become too dark to get a good view. Any suggestions? Does the camera listed in this thread work better than the one I currently have?

 

What interface are you using, mine never dimmed when it was dark, headlights on,etc.

 

humm, i'll have to check and see. the NAV changes brightness when the headlights turn on regardless of the BU camera, so i assumed it wasn't the interface.