bogleric

I have a dash camera in my other non-Mercedes vehicle and like the benefits of it. With a new driver in the family, that will be almost never driving the Mercedes, I want to put a dash camera in the 2020 Mercedes GLE 350. I don't want any dash camera as I don't want it to look bad.

Has anyone found any good options and connect and look good or even decent? I wish they would just build in the ability to record off the existing cameras like the augmented navigation camera at the rear view mirror.

Ron.s

I had mine hardwired at the same time as my Radar Detector. RD on the left of the mirror and DC on the right, both with suction cup mounts. I used a Tech recommended by the dealer and two came out since it was a new Gen and they wanted to learn together. After a lot of effort they were unable to access the cigarette lighter without the risk of damage so mine are both wired live all the time. They agreed to come back when diagrams of the center console become available but I think I’ll leave it as installed. With the EQ system on the 450 running down the battery is not an issue. The DC needs to be on anyway since it will activate if there is movement. I bought an inexpensive DC by Auky mainly to record in case of vandalism or accident. I may buy a better one later but so far it appears to be doing its job and resolution is decent.
I agree about using the vehicle camera. Hope someone aftermarket figures it out.

bad habit

In my current car I had DC hardwired to where the overhead map lights are, I have a single led there which lights up when car is started.
This way dashcam gets juice as soon as I start the vehicle however it also doesn't get to use parking mode which I want to use now.
Where did they hardwire your DC and RD, would you happen to know? As I have both, it will be a todo for me as well to work on.
Wondering also how long will the EQ system power a dashcam if left parked for extended periods of time...

GregW / Oregon

The Blackvue DR900S-1CH or 2CH are cloud-based and pretty state-of-the-art with the highest video quality, but spendy. They also have some WiFi models. The Garmin Dash Cam 55 is WiFI and has got some good reviews and is small and less expensive. Caveat: I have no experience with any of these.

https://www.popularmechanics.com/car...h-cams-tested/
https://www.blackvue.com/products/
https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/p/56...n/010-01750-10

Ron.s

They had the housing off of the Camera to cross over with the Dash Cam wire but I don’t think they used that as a power source. There are a bunch of wires and that might be a good source of switched power except for the unknown of maybe messing up the camera system. I hard wired my truck a few years ago to the fuse box and the dealer disconnected it saying it was causing a conflict. That’s why most installers try to use the cigarette lighter.
It looked like they were going under the dash but I left before they found a source. One source mentioned was the OBD power source. They were still on the phone with a Mercedes Tech. when I left.

The Lithium EQ Boost battery has a lot more juice than a regular car battery so I doubt it would ever be a problem unless the car sat for months, maybe years.

DaveD9

We have a great car audio shop in town. They have wired my Porsche, Jag and several Mercedes for add on's like a radar detector. I am paranoid on letting anyone into the system on my 450. Using a cord for my long trips still.

bad habit

Blackvue has pretty poor night quality, and overheats a lot - keep that in mind. Other than that its a fantastic product.
Thinkware Q800Pro is also nearly on the same level.

bad habit

Thanks for the info. The EQB battery is 48V though isn't it? Guessing a step down voltage regulator would be needed to hardwire that that source, BlackVue input for example is 12-24V?

Ron.s

As far as I know there is only one battery with most of the vehicle systems already reduced to 12 volts. The EQ Boost, probably E ABC and the coming electric Turbo at 48 volts, most of the rest at 12. Then the USB further reduced. It would be very expensive to build a car all 48 volt and more expensive to have two batteries than a Reducer. There hasn’t been much info on the electrical system so that’s my assumption.

GregW / Oregon

I think he means you could run down the 12V battery, but the starter is 48V so starting would not be an issue. However, you do need some juice in the 12V for all the electronics.

GregW / Oregon

Your assumption is incorrect. There is a 12V AGM battery under the drivers seat floor, and a 0.9kwh Li-ion battery under the right 2nd row floor. Also, note the well-protected location of the fuel tank in this diagram.

Ron.s

Thanks....I looked under the hood and under the cargo area but didn’t think to look under the seat.