2007 XLS with Navigation
Backup Camera install done and fully operational!!!

Here is the first post for my backup camera install, details, pictures, hints and tips.

I first need to give kudos to rdenis and his thread here: https://mitsubishiforum.com/m_124086/tm.htm as without that I would not have even thought to undertake this task, and without his help I would not have been successful.

So then let me give some warnings and disclaimers.

To do this modification yourself you are going to need a fairly large set of testies… as you are going to have to drill a large hole in your hatch, take a large portion of your interior apart, cut into a few key wires on your rather expensive navigation system and void a large part of your warranty to make this happen. Plus I would suggest that you don’t let your wife see you doing any of this, as I did, or it will also be a cold few days in the bedroom

Also neither I, Mitsubishi, this forum, God or my mother take any responsibility if you blow up, mangle, destroy or just screw up your vehicle in doing this modification, you are on your own, and you can, if not careful, screw up all kinds of different systems.

Also please, do yourself a favor and get a *real* backup camera, do not attempt this with any old camera, or any eBay camera. 90% of this modification is the install, and I can GUARANTEE that you will NOT be happy with a camera that is not designed as a backup camera. For one backup cameras are reverse image cameras, they also have a *very* wide field of vision, wider that any other camera on the market. So please, just get a camera designed for the job, I would hate to see you waste hours on the install and not be happy in the end.

Alright, enough of that… on with the install.



I picked up a Pioneer ND-BC2 Backup Camera from eBay, it was $181 including shipping, and I received it in 2 days. This camera is VERY small and very well built. It has a single long cable from the camera that attaches to a small box where a second cable will provide the connections for power and output of video to the Nav unit.

Here is a final picture of the camera mostly adjusted (sorry about the dirt, but it just rained) I still need to do some final adjustments in a parking lot setting.
I mounted it where the stock camera would have gone, I just didn’t cut out the panel, although after looking at the final adjustment it probably would have looked much better if I did, but I was concerned about ‘adjustability’ so I opted for this mounting spot. I lined up the camera with the stock ‘cut’ lines on the panel. I am sure once my plates arrive and if you step back more than 5' (or meters for those non-us freaks [8D]) you wouldn't even notice it. I also think that if you mounted it where the third brake light is the view would be to high to be effective.






Here is a picture of the screen in backup mode (you can see my bumper in the bottom right and left corners)


The same shot from outside, showing the actual distance to my truck. You can also see here the 'overlay' needs more adjusting.





Overall I am ecstatic with the install, once I adjusted the overlay the camera works great. I did adjust the camera so it pointed down quite a bit, as you can see my bumper in the bottom of the screen. This appears to work the best, and aligned with the overlay, I still need to get to a parking lot and do some final adjustments.

I really love this camera. I have used it both day and night, and in the rain, the only issues I have seen is rain drops on the lens, but they get out of the way pretty quickly. Also the wide angle of the camera is truly amazing, as you can see all around you when backing, making it very safe to watch when backing, much safer then looking over your shoulder or looking in the mirrors. Also the camera switches on instantly when in reverse, even if the nav unit is not fully operational, the only issue is that the 'overlay' may not be on yet. I find this a great feature.

Some tricks I learned during the install, and some I wish I knew *before* this install:
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Coat hangers are your friends, they will help pull wires and prevent you from pulling too many body panels[/align][*]
Try putting a small 12 point socket on the inside of those pesky white push connectors holding on the rear panel, it will push in the sides all at the same time and reduce the force you need to excerpt on the panel to pull it off.[/align][*]
The camera wire is EXACTLY the correct length, so do not take any long detours or leave any slack.[/align][*]
The woofer is sharp, heavy, and an EXACT fit, gloves are your friend.[/align][*]
The interior is fragile, and no matter how you try you are going to ‘mung’ it up with your screwdriver trying to pry off a panel, so try an old credit card or something soft first.[/align][/ul]

I will post full details of my install, including pictures in the next few posts. I am just out of time for tonight and I figured you guys might want to see the results. So please try and keep the intermediate posts to a minimum, and preferably related.

(Plus this forum limitsthe pictures in a post to 5, even though I am hosting them on my own server, odd)

 

Looks good so far, thanks for posting. Hopefully you took some photos of your wiring mods to the head unit.

My caveman brain can't figure out if your image is flipped the right way or the wrong way.

 

Sweet install - very nice job Scott! That camera is FREAKIN awesome - I love the view and clarity. Now go freak your dealer out with it.

And go figure - our Outies are the same colour. Congratulations!

 

Just wondrin, is there a way to make the image not appear as amirror?

Great install!

 

Nope, it is reversed in the camera itself, and this is because we are all used to the standard mirror being reversed. I can assure you that if it were not it would be much worse for backing up, as we have grown accustomed to backing up using the mirror. Trust me, it works well reversed, and this is the same as all the cars that come stock with this feature. Unless you want this to spy on the guy behind you, then that is a completly different issue, and I am not going into that...

 

gotcha. i just haven't ever had a car with a backup camera and i thought it looked different. but i guess it makes sense.

 

WOW, verry nice indeed, this makes me regret opting out navi for 4wd, I barelly use the damn thing anyways.

 

There are backup cams available which allow you change the configuration of the camera from mirror to non-mirror, right side up to upside down, etc. However, imagine looking at the screen as if you were looking out the back window, ie. a non-mirrored image- in this case when you look at the screen and are backing up, left is right and right is left so...ouch!

 

post removed by soundcolor...

 

Maybe you should actually read his post, including the part toward the end...you know, the part that says he'll be posting more stuff later.

I mean, don't you think he KNOWS that stuff would be helpful? Of course he does! So RTFA.
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