Overland Gear Obstructing Your View? Fix That!
The more gear we add to the Jeep, the more we loose a precious commodity - visibility. Organizing and taking up all the available space in our overland Jeep usually comes at the cost of reduced visibility, specifically out of the rear view mirror.
At Overland Expo East we met some folks who had a clever (and obvious) solution to this problem. They installed a rear view mirror that had a video feed direct from a camera mounted on the rear of the vehicle. Seizing on this idea, we went about adding a rear view mirror that streams video from a camera mounted on the back of the Jeep while also featuring a front mounted dash camera.
There are lots of options for rear view mirror cameras on the market, but I managed to snag a killer deal on a discontinued model of the BrandMotion FullVUE camera for the Jeep JL. The model I purchased has been replaced with this one, but as far as I could tell comparing the features, they are the exact same product? Either way, I grabbed the $400 camera for $100 on closeout and was off to the races.
The camera is designed to mount in the spokes of a spare tire, which is not that dissimilar to the mounting location for the factory backup camera. The problem there is that I often have a Blue Ridge Overland Gear XL Spare Tire Trash Bag mounted on my tire, and that obscures the backup camera. It would be useless to mount another camera in the same spot, only for it to also be obstructed.
Enter a drill, some metal screws, and a little creativity. I modified the included camera mount and attached it to the back of my Rhino Rack Pioneer Platform, directly below our rooftop tent. In this location, the camera is well protected against rain and brush that we might encounter on a trail. It’s also mounted in a place where it’s highly unlikely it would be covered or otherwise obscured by equipment we might be hauling, making it an ideal location.
I already have a dozen holes drilled into the hard top of our Jeep, so adding another at this point is hardly nerve wracking. I drilled a hole to route the wires from the camera into the Jeep interior, then ran them down through the trim panels until they arrived at the front passenger side wheel well, where I tapped into the battery power for the camera and mirror.
All told, this install was more involved than what BrandMotion recommends or instructs, but we’re quite happy with the resulting output. The camera has a very broad field of view — far wider than a normal rear view mirror, and I love having the extra safety and security of a forward and rear camera that I can use to record any activity for insurance purposes.