How is the Toyota dash cam? Or any other good dash cam recommendations?

I have a 2020, and I see this is a fit for my 4Runner: https://toyotaparts.mcgeorgetoyota....0cnVubmVyJnk9MjAyMCZ0PXNyNSZlPTQtMGwtdjYtZ2Fz

What does everyone think? Or should I get something else?

I had an eventful weekend of near misses. One was on the Garden State Parkway where cars were wrecking in front of me, and one was in town this morning where some dingus who was walking consistently forward on the sidewalk decided to start walking in the street without looking when I was already almost side by side with him. I damn near killed the guy. I barely had any time to react, and thank goodness nobody was driving in the oncoming lane because I would have probably killed them, too. I need a dash cam.

 

I have no experience with dash cams. When we got snow here recently I pulled out my and started recording just in case something happened. I want to get one as well but kinda debating on which one because I have 2x 2020 Toyota vehicles my dash cam will need to go into.

 

I have GRDIAN dashcam, front and back. Works great. Any dash cam should work fine.


https://www.grdian.com/shop/p/dash-cams/front-and-rear/nova-4k

 

I think it's time for me to get one. Although I love Houston to death, they hands-down have the worst drivers here in Texas. I had two close calls on the same day, it's just too much lol

 

I have no experience with their dash cam but I have a Blackvue DR900S 2 channel system.

 

I can’t advise either. Pretty damn sad we need to record everyone driving these days. Cameras are everywhere for everything.

A neighbor last year had a drone flying above his yard scoping out everyone else’s yard. Another neighbor told him if he saw that peering into his yard it would be shot down lol. Never saw it again.

 

I have the OEM front dash camera on my 2021. The resolution isn't the greatest, but it does the job. The memory card that comes with it only records for about 2 hours before starting to overwrite itself.

 

Here is an interesting product. Now you can drop the neighbors' drone without getting sued for property destruction. It uses a standard 12-gauge shotgun shell.

 

I also have the blackvue 2 channel dash cams (front and rear). We love having the 'witness' with us at all times. It's incredibly high quality in build and camera quality. we are very happy with them.

 

My buddy just wrecked his Runner of the weekend. It was late at night so there were no witnesses and the other driver is claiming my buddy ran the light. Neither vehicle had a dash cam.

 

I'm a big fan of the Viofo A129 (front/rear, for just front A119V3). The wedge shape is low profile and can tuck up nicely. The screen provides you a way to verify what it's pointing at and view warnings/messages without having to fiddle with a phone app. The voltage cut-off that comes with the installation kit for parking mode hasn't failed me with a dead car battery.... yet!

 

Some interesting responses. Thanks, guys. How about the rear cams? I like to roll down the rear window in good weather. Where do you guys mount your rears?

I don't know if I neeeeeeeed a rear, but if there's a good case for getting it then maybe I'll give it a shot.

 

Take a look at Thinkware. They are some of the highest rated. I have had my X500 for 8 or 9 years without a single issue.

 

Time to get a gun license!! I can dig this!!!

 

3D printed mount. I drilled out the existing tab and used a nutsert to add threads.

 

That's actually pretty cool, but I just realized that I have plenty to mount to in the rear. I have a Rago shelf Thanks for giving me a good idea.

 

nice!

is you back window tinted other than factory tint? would like to do as well but I have pretty dark tint..

 

I only have the factory tint. I believe a good camera could compensate for a darker tint but I'm not sure.

 

i have the toyota dashcam. it records every time it detects shaking to where it would beep when i shut the trunk or doors a bit harder than usual. it even comes on when im washing the car. better safe than sorry i guess. for some reason they only allow a certain line of sd cards that have very little storage capacity. i figure its not a big deal since the cam only records at 1080p. i havent had a chance to look at the footage but should be usable for the time being.

is it worth the cost? i would not pay for it myself but it is nice to have an option for those who dont want to be bothered with researching the various ones out there. it does the job though. for the money, you'll be better off going with the garmin mini 2 with the dongar technologies that allows you to hook up the dashcam to the auto dimming mirror harness. cheaper too.


toyota seems to have a new dashcam that is offered with their newer vehicles that seems more integrated with the vehicle.

 

I think it's a sound idea to run dash-cam(s) - I have used them front & rear for many years. You do NOT need to spend $300+ for a stellar dash cam. Typically cams in the $100 range gives you outstanding resolution and often feature gps tracking. if you're into that. You can also use Sports Cams that are Chinese knock-offs of the Go-Pro cams - one's in the $60 range give beautiful video.

 

Ive had a Vantrue N2s for a while. Its been fine. Wired so its hot all the time,.. Front and rear facing cams, motion, and bump modes, parking 24/7 recording, low volt shut down, gps/speed, a dick ton of storage. Theres a ton of great models out, and in all price ranges. Pretty hard to go wrong really.

 

Anyone using the Dongar adapter to hook up dash cam to the dimming mirror power? If so, how long and any issues so far?

 

I've had mine about a year and a half. no issues so far... easy to install

using it with a Garmin Mini

 

Agree with Dabigono, the install was super easy. I've had mine in a few months with no problems. Something to keep in mind is that the camera is only powered if the vehicle is on when using the dongle wired into the mirror.

 

Thanks guys, just needed some assurance when installing anything that involves touching electrical! Looking to install either Garmin Mini 2 or Viofo A119. Too many crazy drivers in Houston!

 

I will be installing the Kenwood DRV-A301W with their hardwire kit later today. For the price I like the size and features it offers. I'll let you know how the install goes

 

If you don't need parking record feature and just need to record while driving, plugging in the dashcam to regular 12v cigarette lighter is easy and trouble free. You could even look at ViofoA129 with 4K recording.

Here's a link and it has $48 coupon as of now. (I'm not the seller so have no idea how long it would be available)-
https://amzn.to/3a9Yl5A


https://youtu.be/lntEmRQXAnM

 

Hey,
Would you be willing to sell another 3D mount and is your setup hot wired for 24 hr. recording? If so, are you concerned about battery drain? AND last but not least, how did you wire it all up? Perhaps your Black view came with wiring instructions?
Yeah, it's a big ask.
Thanks

 

Someone else printed it for me. Unfortunately he doesn’t seem the frequent the forum anymore.

I did wire for constant power at the back of my headunit. Like headunit wiring, it’s yellow for battery power, red for an ignition source and black for ground. It will go into parking mode when you turn the ignition off and only work motion or movement. I haven’t noticed any significant power drain but at some point I will add a backup battery.

 

I'm at the point of trying to figure out the rear mount for my Blackvue 900S. That printed mount you have looks perfect. Hope I can find something like that, but I have some other ideas if I can't. Also, I have a switch which allows you to turn on parking mode only when you need it, or have it available all the time. I did not install it this time since I hardly ever used parking mode. But I might later.