[city2491]

I hope this lockdown is not treating you too bad. With so much free time at hand, I decided to install a front parking camera in my Honda City.

While experts may say, that a driver should have judgement and know where his bonnet ends, sometimes in tight spots a front camera may be useful in judging the distance between your car and the car in front of you, or help spot obstacles like large stones or stray animals.

This is to be used to judge the surroundings but one should always be aware of the environment around them while parking their car.

There is an option of using parking sensors as well, but for that many holes need to be drilled in the car, which did not feel right to me.

I have an Android head unit and among other things, a front camera can be easily integrated into the system.

Points to be noted:

• A front camera can be fitted into a standard double din head unit by using a microcontroller that switches the input.
• It can also be fitted by using an external TFT monitor on the dashboard or rear view mirror.
• A mirrored camera cannot be used at the front. (More on this later)
• Guidelines are optional. They can be easily switched on or off.

I will be sharing some pictures of the installation below:

Selected the location as under the front grill, below the Honda logo. Looks discreet and good.




Routing the wiring from behind the grill, into the engine bay and connecting the power and ground wiring.



Passing the wiring into the passenger compartment through the existing rubber grommet.



Pulling up the wire behind the head unit and connecting the video output to the AV input in the head unit (Single RCA). CVBS IN 1 is marked on the head unit wire. Video feed will now come up when opening the AV application in the head unit.



Added a widget on the home screen which is programmed to open up the AV application. Changed the icon to camera and renamed it as front camera. Now pressing this button displays the front camera's video feed.



Front camera feed. Its important to not that there will be two exposed wires, green and white near the camera.
Not doing anything will give a non mirrored image and will not display guidelines.
Cutting the white wire turns on the guidelines, and cutting the green will mirror the image.
While using it at the rear, we want the feed to be mirrored so that we don't get confused with left and right, but when using at the front, we want the feed to be non mirrored. As in, the same as we see with our eyes.
(These are generic cameras, so different one may have the green and white wires switched. Its recommended to read the user manual if provided)

Guidelines at the front are also optional and based on personal preference. I don't see a part of my front bumper in the feed so I have turned them on.



In the feed, the car at front can be seen and the guidelines show that there is enough space. The ground in front can also be seen which wouldn't show up in the field of view of the driver.



This is my field of view from the driver's seat. I cannot see below the tail lights of the Honda City in front of me. The extra view provided by the camera can be seen by comparing the two previous images.



Parting shot.

OT: Also put an air purifier in the car made by Blaupunkt. Don't know if it makes any difference to the virus that has uprooted our lives but with the city's pollution it is good to have.



Thanks for reading!

[scorpian]

@city2491
Excellent work. I am contemplating putting the same in mine as well.
Could you please post link to the camera from where you purchased as I also need one with mounting screws as I don't want to make a hole in the bumper like the rear camera.
Thanks in advance.

[city2491]

Originally Posted by scorpian

Could you please post link to the camera from where you purchased as I also need one with mounting screws as I don't want to make a hole in the bumper like the rear camera.

I got this camera from a car accessories store and installed it at home due to the current situation. You could do the same. Most cameras come with separate adaptors and mounting screws. You could get it online as well after seeing the reviews.

[Altocumulus]

Excellent work and could not have come at a better time. Bhpian JKDS and myself have both been discussing adding this in our Duster AWDs, not for parking specifically but for using in offroad situations. The only thing I am not comfortable with is adding a new screen for this. Looking at possibilities to integrate this with OEM headunit however not sure if that if possible without voiding the warranty.

[nikhn]

Interesting mod.

There is also a camera which sits flush into the Honda logo at the front. I think this would make it look even more inconspicuous. Link.

[city2491]

Originally Posted by nikhn

There is also a camera which sits flush into the Honda logo at the front. I think this would make it look even more inconspicuous.

Yes, I've seen this camera before but you'd have to drill a hole through the grill to fix this one. If by any chance you need to remove it, then there would be a hole left there.

But the main problem is availability and warranty. This is not available in local stores, and therefore there is no warranty for it. Even if there is, sending it back to China would be another hassle.

I got a one year replacement warranty with this camera. That way, if it does go back, it would mean a simple trip to the shop.

Originally Posted by Altocumulus

Excellent work and could not have come at a better time. Bhpian JKDS and myself have both been discussing adding this in our Duster AWDs, not for parking specifically but for using in offroad situations. The only thing I am not comfortable with is adding a new screen for this. Looking at possibilities to integrate this with OEM headunit however not sure if that if possible without voiding the warranty.

No, it wouldn't be possible to integrate this easily. In OEM head units, the camera input is not RCA but a proprietary connector, so adding a camera control box wouldn't be possible I think.

[jothishX]

Nice DIY. Does your head unit have two camera inputs, for reverse as well an additional one? Also, Is there anyway we can record the feed as a dashcam as the headunit runs android. Or is it hardwired to just switch display and just show the feed

[city2491]

Originally Posted by jothishX

Nice DIY. Does your head unit have two camera inputs, for reverse as well an additional one? Also, Is there anyway we can record the feed as a dashcam as the headunit runs android. Or is it hardwired to just show the switch display and just show the feed

My head unit has an AUX Video input (RCA, 3PIN), for video, audio left and right. The audio input has been left blank, while the video is connected to the front camera.

There is only one input for camera while the other can be used for anything like 360 camera module, console, mirroring, TV stick, etc.

I have created a widget for the application that shows the AV feed and just renamed it as Front Camera with the logo. This can be done with many launchers.

An android system does have a lot of flexibility in this regard.

While technically it can be recorder with a DVR app, I do have a separate Dashcam, so I don't need it for that purpose. Check out XDA forums to see if anything can be done with regards to software.

[rakirank]

Originally Posted by city2491

or help spot obstacles like large stones or stray animals.

This is pretty useful. I drive an SX4 and have no way of knowing what's in front of the bonnet, outside my field of view, especially stones or other obstacles.
More so when travelling and having to park off the road.

I too have an Android HU and had asked my accessories guy to install it. However, he did not recommend it as he stated that the image would be switched (mirrored).

As you have already explained this can be changed in the settings. Would be worth a try

[momsonlydriver]

Originally Posted by rakirank

This is pretty useful. I drive an SX4 and have no way of knowing what's in front of the bonnet, outside my field of view, especially stones or other obstacles.
More so when travelling and having to park off the road

Very relatable with the weird shape of the Sx4. The A pillars are already hampering the visibility. The absence of rear camera and sensors make the matters even worse as the bumper is protruding. I have to keep getting down to check during a tight parallel parking if I'm scrapping off paint.

[city2491]

Originally Posted by rakirank

This is pretty useful. I drive an SX4 and have no way of knowing what's in front of the bonnet, outside my field of view, especially stones or other obstacles.
More so when travelling and having to park off the road.

I too have an Android HU and had asked my accessories guy to install it. However, he did not recommend it as he stated that the image would be switched (mirrored).

As you have already explained this can be changed in the settings. Would be worth a try

No need to doubt it. It is very much possible. From what I know, many installers are not aware of the green and white wires, and their respective functions.

[GTO]

Great + functional install! Thanks for sharing. Will be going to our homepage today .

With cameras being so cheap & touchscreens being de rigueur in today's cars, there is no reason to not have a front camera. I expect them to be standard on mainstream cars in a couple of years (just like rear cameras are today). While I don't miss the front camera in short-bonnet cars, they can certainly be helpful (e.g. in avoiding damage while parking due to an unexpected stone).

[BoneCollector]

A very worthy addition to your car and even better that you can see it on your head unit display. I've always felt that there should be a factory fitted wide angle front camera. It's a very important feature to have.

I did it in my Brezza (Operation Khoj: Maruti Vitara Brezza ZDi+) about 3 years back. I did not use the head unit display as I didn't know how to do it! It has helped me in parking in tight spaces.

[ramnaresh_2000]

Fantastic and Great job done. I recently had an incident with my TUV. I was waiting at traffic signal, and noticed there was a bike in front of me, there was ample space between my car and the bike. So I decided to move forward a bit, then I noticed something hit my car and braked instantly. The person sitting on back of the bike was carrying a gas cylinder on his left side and it was not visible from seating position and high stance of my vehicle.

Got a bad scratch on the front bumper because of this. If I had a front camera installed, then this would never had been the case.

Quick question, I already have a android HU which is hooked to reverse camera, can I also get it hooked to front camera? Will I be able to access both front and back feed at the same time? I have Pioneer HU.

[ashishy]

Can the camera be auto activated in first gear just like it happens for reverse?