How to Retrofit a Backup Camera
Estimated Time: 90 minutes
Tools:
10mm deep 3/8" socket
3/8" ratchet
#2 phillips screwdriver
Nylon trim spoon
Metal trim spoon
Scissors
Wire crimper and cutter
Shrink wrap
Heat gun
Parts:
M6 x 1.0 x 35mm bolt
LeeKooLuu 2020 HD Backup Camera and Monitor Kit
Step 1:
Remove the license plate and route camera wiring through hole in bumper.
Step 2:
Remove rear tray cover and storage bin. Remove phillips screw insert for nylon rivet, pry up firmly at the corners of the lower trim piece at the rear of the tailgate, and remove trim piece to gain access to harness grommet.
Step 3:
Cut harness grommet most of the way from the periphery to the center of the grommet. Reach in and pull camera harness pigtail through port in frame and secure it by sandwiching it in the newly cut groove in the harness grommet. Press grommet firmly back into place and connect male camera plug into female harness plug.
(Pro Tip: seal the plugs by covering them with shrink wrap and shrinking them with a heat gun.)
Step 4:
Remove tailgate weather seal by firmly pulling up at the surround. Remove phillips screw for lower hatch trim, pry up gently at the corner, and slide the harness through and up along trim edge and underneath where the weatherstrip seal will lay, until you can pull the harness through the access panel in the trim panel.
Step 5:
Remove taillight assembly by removing four phillips screws on the inside panel. Wedge a nylon trim spoon in between the top of the light and the body until the lamp pops out. (Do this carefully, so as not to damage the paint.) Disconnect the body harness from the lamp, set the lamp aside, and pull the harness grommet out from its bore, so that you may cut a slice most of the way through the radius of the grommet.
Step 6:
Pull red wire from the camera harness through the body and secure into cut grommet. (Optional: crimp male and female spade connectors to power wire to make future servicing of the lamp bulbs much easier.) Use the provided harness splice to cut into the (blue) reverse light wire and section of the red harness power wire for the camera. (This will provide power for the camera when the vehicle is placed into reverse.) Crimp a 5/16 bore ring terminal onto the (black) ground wire and push ground wire back into the body, behind the trim piece. Join and tuck (red) power wires securely, reinstall grommet into body, and fasten lamp assembly to vehicle body.
Step 7:
Find or buy an m6x1.0 bolt and washer, then thread through ring terminal and secure ground to the frame. Pull the remainder of the harness up to the roof liner and tuck underneath the D-pillar trim until you arrive at the door seal trim for the driver's side, rear door. Reinstall all removed panels once the remainder of the harness is secured along the tailgate weather seal and up, above the edge of the headliner.
(Pro Tip: some panels may have a bolt that will need removal, so that you may pry the panel far enough back to drop in the wire without damaging it.)
Step 8:
Peel front and rear door seals back to run wire along the edge of the headliner. Route wiring under any trim panels and remove hardware securing said trim panels, as necessary.
Step 9:
Bundle the remaining wires and secure them with a zip tie. Remove grab handle, nylon rivet, and sunshade to gain enough clearance to tuck the bundle up into the headliner, just beyond the curtain airbag.
Step 10:
Run the remaining wire across the headliner, along the edge of the windshield, and drop the wire down to the dashboard. Leave enough slack, so that you can connect the harness plug to the camera plug. Choose your desired camera mounting method and affix camera to the dashboard.
Step 11:
Place the vehicle in reverse and check that the angle of the camera lens is pointed at an angle to your liking. Congratulations, your days of running over curbs are now behind you.