need help to connect dashcam

[yober]

I have purchased hidden dashcam from DMP Car Design.
Now trying to connect the power to this gadget.
The power cable is short which means I have only one option to connect the power to - fuse box under the glove compartment.
The power cable has fuse-type plugs for connecting to free slots in the fuse box.
There are few free slots and I am planning to utilize 2 of the slots:
one for ACC power source and second to Constant power source.
I found the detailed diagram of the fuse box:
https://fusesdiagram.com/bmw/fuses-a...mw-x5-e70.html

Need advice from someone here who installed similar gadget on which slots are best to be utilized for my dashcam?
Would F20 and F35 work ?

[argento]

https://www.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...php?p=24282047

[yober]

Thank you very much, argento
In my fuse box there are few free slots.
I'm planning to use F8 (for Constant) and F18 (for ACC).

[yober]

I have plugged a spare mini fuse 20 A into free slot F8 (7.5 А, Speaker(s)) in order to check with the testlight if this slot has Constant or ACC power. The car ignition was Off.
Then I removed this spare fuse.
Later on when I drove my car I realized that speakers are not working, i.e. radio is On but silent and parking sensors are silent as well.
I ran test with BimmerLink and found one error for Headunit/radio E1CD. Not sure if this has any relations to speakers issue.

Any idea how to restore speakers ?

Also, all the mini fuse slots from F1 to F20 are with Constant power with exception for F9 (15A Horns). This is strange because horn actually works with car totally Off.

[argento]

Originally Posted by yober

I have plugged a spare mini fuse 20 A into free slot F8 (7.5 А, Speaker(s)) in order to check with the testlight if this slot has Constant or ACC power. The car ignition was Off.
Then I removed this spare fuse.
Later on when I drove my car I realized that speakers are not working, i.e. radio is On but silent and parking sensors are silent as well.
I ran test with BimmerLink and found one error for Headunit/radio E1CD. Not sure if this has any relations to speakers issue.

Any idea how to restore speakers ?

Also, all the mini fuse slots from F1 to F20 are with Constant power with exception for F9 (15A Horns). This is strange because horn actually works with car totally Off.

Longshot...maybe it's the same problem below, Fuse F142, start with post #99.

https://www.xbimmers.com/forums/show...e#post26390089

Also, in my car F18 is HUD, in your pic did you remove the F18 fuse or don't have HUD or is it something else? (the blank between the two 5A, and under the 15A)

[yober]

Originally Posted by argento

Also, in my car F18 is HUD, in your pic did you remove the F18 fuse or don't have HUD or is it something else? (the blank between the two 5A, and under the 15A)

It appears that the sound disappearance issue was due to me unplugging 2 fibre optic cables from the junction block attached to the cover plate under the glove compartment.
So this mystery is resolved.

Regarding the original question on fuses:
In my car slots F4,F7, F8 and F11,F14,F18,F20 are free.
My car didn't come with HUD.
Out of all mini slots from F1 to F20 only F9 (horn s) is with ACC power. But again it is puzzling since horn is working when I press the pad on steering wheel while ignition is off.
Can anyone confirm if on their E70 the F9 fuse is also with ACC power?

[argento]

Glad that's resolved. I started with the horn and couldn't immediately figure out it's duty on/off, so I moved on. It will be good to know if someone fills in the blank. I recall another more recent DIY, will search for it later…

Here…https://www.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...php?p=21062555

[yober]

Originally Posted by argento

Here…https://www.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...php?p=21062555

I just read this thread and it doesn't help to find a fuse slot with ACC power in the front fusebox

[yober]

My car doesn't have HUD , hence I am hoping that this fuse slot can be used for my new dashcam's ACC connection.
The logic tells me that HUD should not be initiated without ignition turned On.
When I was testing F18 fuse slot with the testlight it showed as hot. Maybe it is ACC power source just with delayed power off option?

Can anyone please confirm if F18 (HUD) fuse slot is actually ACC power type?

[argento]

Originally Posted by yober

I just read this thread and it doesn't help to find a fuse slot with ACC power in the front fusebox

Hey, I've started responding to you three times since last week and have gotten distracted each time. The link above only goes to the single post, but in the thread it showed the constant and acc wires used in the mirror area.

If you don't want to read this long response, go to the bold/underlined sentence below.

FWIW, I used F10 and F18 to hardwire my dashcam. Once the dashcam has been powered and synchs* with the car, the dashcam nominally turns on when the key/comfort access unlocks the vehicle and I open the doors. The dashcam turns off after 35 minutes. Same when I lock the vehicle, turns off after 35m. Note park mode off. [Been testing this week; need to retest with park mode on]

*Since I haven't been driving I've been disconnecting the dashcam power cord. I notice when I first reconnect the dashcam, the times above go out the window. One instance I did this and locked the vehicle it took almost 2 hours to power off. Then when I unlocked and turned ACC on the dashcam didn't start, I had to manually power on. Once that was done it worked normally, as long as I didn't disconnect the power cord.

I guess I can only recommend you find ACC for your car the hard way. As you read, I noted in my DIY how I determined ACC...it was time consuming. I'll repost that section below for others to understand this convo. With battery connected I unlocked the doors and opened them, turned ACC ON (but did not start engine) then turn ACC off, and waited...the shifter light goes out after 1min, then the interior lights go out after 8 mins, then I believe there is a vehicle systems check at 22min (electrical noises for less than 2s). You have systems powering off and on so you have to plan it out, esp. for constant power.

What I didn't post were all the fuses I tested: F37, F115, F2, F16, F111, F115, F113, [F96, F34, F33, F23, avoid b/c footwell module], F9, F21, F44, F26, F17, F29, and F31. I recorded in my notes why I didn't use them. FWIW, I noted that F17 would be my secondary ACC tap option to F18. It's the Active Video Switch and appears to be ACC, but I wasn't sure what the system does and then F18 worked out so I didn't need it.


NOTE: I updated my DIY that park mode does indeed work, been a couple years and I don't normally use park mode, so I'll retest it and update my DIY appropriately.
WHICH FUSES TO USE, GROUND, AND FUSE HOT LEG [DIY EXCERPT]
-In searching everywhere I could, I couldn't find the exact fuses to use and I didn't want to guess or assume those I did find were correct, so I did this the hard way. I poured through the electrical schematics on BMW TIS to find which fuses in the front fusebox (A4010) were as best-possible isolated circuits (not tree branched to many systems, especially systems that can be quirky, like those connected to the Footwell module, etc.). My OEM fuse selections happened to be ATC/ATO size fuses, as such I used corresponding sized fuse adapters.
-DISCLAIMER 2: My vehicle is a May 2013 build, E70 X5M, this procedure may not work for your specific vehicle. Also, I'm posting these instructions so that you can just use the fuses I selected with all work being performed with the BATTERY DISCONNECTED. DO NOT randomly pull fuses with vehicle ON, ACC, or SLEEP modes without performing your own research.
-For CONSTANT POWER I used the Parking Brake fuse (F10, 5A), which is HOT (12V) when the vehicle is completely powered down. [EDIT: this is true for only about an hour after shutdown. This procedure still works for my dashcam, but not if you need PARK MODE. If so, tap into rear distribution fuse box F111, F113, or F115). There are several timed sleep modes where different features shutdown. Once I unlocked the vehicle, the instrument cluster and associated electronics shut down under 5 minutes. At 8 minutes, the interior lights shut off. Note that opening/closing doors, pressing seat buttons, or compressing the suspension my activate/awaken systems. FINDING THE FUSE: working with battery connected (!), vehicle unlocked, Ignition/ACC OFF, I waited at least 15 minutes for the vehicle to shut down. I removed the candidate fuse and using a multimeter selected (trial and error) the hot leg of the fuse (in the fusebox) to identify which leg was outputting 12V. In other words, one multimeter sensor on ground and the other sensor in the fusebox candidate fuse location selecting the proper fuse leg showing 12 V. In the first two cases, neither F9 (horn) or F16 (outside mirrors) showed voltage in either fuse leg. Interestingly, the horn fuse was my first choice. In sleep mode the horn works, but sadly for me it only draws when the horn button is pressed. The side mirrors were a no-go b/c they do not fold in sleep mode (using interior button). My next and final selection was the parking brake F10 (5A), which showed 12V on the multimeter with systems shut down. The fuse leg showing 12V (HOT) is important because the fuse adapter to be used for this job needs to be oriented to align with the hot side of the fuse location. In this case, as if sitting in the passenger seat, the fuse location is parallel to you and the left side is the hot leg of the fuse (see image).
-For SWITCH POWER, I decided on fuse F18 (7.5A) HUD because it was a very isolated system IMO, IE: only the HUD electronics, light, and vehicle equipment level modules (IE: like ///M or not-//M, NAV, etc.) were connected to this fuse. I used the same approach as above to find the HOT leg of the fuse, except, because ACC was needed ON in this case, I left the candidate fuse plugged in with a tiny sliver of fuse blade showing to allow the multimeter sensor to touch. The fuse location is perpendicular to you if seated in the passenger seat, and with ACC ON, the HOT fuse leg is located on the leg nearest you (see image).

[argento]

Ok, updated my DIY. Park Mode does indeed work b/c the hardwire kit provides the dashcam with access to constant power, AS NEEDED (IE Park Mode enabled). So when Park Mode is enabled, the dashcam can pull constant power, but obviously uses a lot of vehicle battery. Most good dashcams have a battery protection mode that allows you to set the voltage at which the dashcam stops draining power. I have mine set to 12.3V, but as mentioned rarely enable Park Mode. Also the dashcam I use has an Park Mode energy savings feature that only turns on when the vehicle is hit, as opposed to the setting where it turns on when motion is detected. With Park Mode disabled, the unit turns off after 35min as stated above. I've never had a battery drainage issue with this thinkware f800.

GL

[yober]

Thank you. You are just on time. I was busy whole week and today have some time to work on dashcam.
Questions:
1) For ACC (switched power) - in my car F18 (HUD) slot is empty. Can I just plug directly the connector (with red wire and 15 Amp fuse attached) that came with dashcam harness? See the photo in my first message up on top of this thread.
2) For CONSTANT power - I have free fuse slots F8, F7, F4, F 11, F14, F20. When I tested all these slots they were hot. But since the fuses have delayed power off mode, just want to make sure that I am plugging in to true Constant power source.
Can you please confirm if any of those slots are true Constant power sources?

[argento]

Originally Posted by yober

Thank you. You are just on time. I was busy whole week and today have some time to work on dashcam.
Questions:
1) For ACC (switched power) - in my car F18 (HUD) slot is empty. Can I just plug directly the connector (with red wire and 15 Amp fuse attached) that came with dashcam harness? See the photo in my first message up on top of this thread.
2) For CONSTANT power - I have free fuse slots F8, F7, F4, F 11, F14, F20. When I tested all these slots they were hot. But since the fuses have delayed power off mode, just want to make sure that I am plugging in to true Constant power source.
Can you please confirm if any of those slots are true Constant power sources?

1) You're asking if F18 is wired, but just unused since you have no HUD? You can try, but I can't tell from the pix. I would be surprised b/c as I said the HUD system was pretty isolated in the wiring schematics...IE Not needed for much else. And I don't see a return in some of those missing fuses. Did you try F17 (5A)?

2) I did not test any of those for constant power. Try F16, outside mirror. Fuse F111 may be constant b/c it's for the front cig lighter and F115 for rear cig lighter. F113 for charging socket in luggage compartment, likely constant. Others I tested had relays inline and were not ideal unless you knew what the relay was doing.

Sorry ^ not much help. Hopefully you've been testing yourself. As soon as I found one that worked, I stopped..too tedious.

[yober]

I have followed your method and left the car with the front passenger door open for an hour.
Then came back and started testing the fuses.
Here were my findings from the free slots :
- F8 ACC
- F7 ACC
- F4 CONSTANT
- F11 ACC
- F14 ACC
- F18 ACC
- F20 ACC

Here were my findings from the occupied slots :
- F3 CONSTANT
- F5 CONSTANT
- F6 ACC
- F9 ACC
- F10 CONSTANT
- From F11 to F20 cluster all are ACC.

So for my dashcam I have used the following free slots :
- F8 (speakers) for ACC connection. with the left leg hot when ignition is On.
- F4 (Engine control module) for CONSTANT connection. with the right led hot.
Tested the dashcam and car and all seems to be working fine.
Since F4 was unused I wonder if it is OK to use it for dashcam?

[argento]

I know that's a lot of work, thanks for posting your findings. Glad you got it going.

Time will tell. Let us know if you run into issues.