2012 Prius V , no reverse camera

Hi all,
Thanks for adding me to this forum , I expect to use it often and help out whenever I can.
I have recently taken ownership of a 2012 Prius V base model ( probably a 2 ) imported from Japan to Ireland. I am enjoying the car very much as it's a big step up from my previous car 1998 Pajero Junior .
My question is , that it was my understanding that all models of the V had a rear parking camera but mine does not , is there a possibility that the wiring loom is in place and I only have to connect up a camera myself or will i have to fit a camera as if it's a completely new installation ? BTW the car AV unit is a Mitsubishi NR MZ50 .

Eric

 

Thanks for the reply Air Boss
Not sure about the head unit , It's an older unit but I have searched the net for features or pics of the rear connectors but no joy. There is however a blank panel to the left of the rear number plate light ,I'm guessing that's where the cam is mounted and there's 2 knock out panels on the inside of the hatch door , if I can get them out I can check what wiring is there and maybe I can plug and play a rear cam , of course if the camera part of the loom is already connected at the HU end ( unlikely ) that would be excellent.
I'll dig into it over the weekend

 

Yeah that what I figured but on mine there's a blank plastic cover where the camera should be. I'm still hoping that the loom included the can wiring and it'll be behind the plastic cover or in the hatch door .

 

So I had a look on Saturday and I have found what appears to be the camera settings within the Head Units menu and there is also what looks like a video-in connection cable ( yellow ) just below the HU coming out where the usb connection is and aux should be . I think / hope this cable is already connected to the back of the HU and is there for convenience .

Because I noticed a small crack in the panel on the inside of the rear hatch door , possibly from a previous owner trying to gain access ,I want to get a price from a local installer to fit a camera for me because , if its not too expensive, I would rather the camera was in the center of the licence plate instead of to the left and I would also get a warranty on the work.

 

I also figured out how to connect my phone via bluetooth to the Japanese Head Unit with the help of google translate , so now I have hands free as well .

 

Ok so I got a wireless reversing camera of ebay for 30 euro .Basically you hook up the camera at the rear, getting power from the reverse lights and it sends a signal to a receiver in the front which is powered through the 12v lighter you connect to your head unit or it comes with a small display that you can mount to the dash.
I got the rear hatch panel off easy enough with my trim removal tool and realized that there was no wiring associated with the factory camera . There was a small connector block that I thought I could use but no power going to it , I think it might be for the auto wiper option ( which I don't have ) . Anyway I installed the camera in the center above the number plate and ran the wiring down to the reverse lights , this involved removing the entire rear hatch panel around the glass. Tip, start in the top center and work you way down and then the reverse for putting it back . Got it all connected and moved to the front.

The 12 volt lighter panel can be removed , its fairly well stuck in there but using a trim tool just ease it firmly but carefully out. I spliced into the wiring for the receiver and tested it off the head unit but no joy,I think it might have to do with the video in connection possibly not connected properly but I didn't want to pull the dash apart and the camera came with a screen so I connected that up instead.
Tested it out and it works a treat , no more bumping into car park walls . I then buttoned everything back up including hiding some of the wiring behind the glovebox . The upper part comes out with a firm pull ( make sure they're both open ) and there's a small access panel in the lower box so I fished the wires down from the screen which I have mounted on the dash.

All in all I'm very happy with the install and it was a lot cheaper than getting an installer to do it for me and I get to learn a bit more about the car.

Eric

 

In Ireland we drive on the left so steering wheel is on the right, just like the UK and I think Japan which would explain all the Jap imports at the moment.
Regarding the reversing camera, I believe in Japan they have the option of speccing the car with or without any of the options so the previous Japanese owner may have opted out of the rear camera.

Eric