[Kanye]

I did this a while back and remember not finding any guides back then so I thought I'd show you how I did it.

Parts needed:
reverse camera and license plate. You can find these for cheap on aliexpress by searching for "rear view camera license Plate f20"



I recommend getting a 4 pin one. You will also need a 4 pin extension cable.

Steps:

Remove license plate light and replace it with the one that includes the camera.
Open the boot and remove the lower part of the rubber seal.
Either use a thin plastic trim tool to route the wire as far as you could to the right or do what I did and pull the wire through the gap and then pull all of it through(took a bit of time). You then reinsert it at the rightmost part of the gap.


After you drop the wire in, feed the rest of it in, it should hit the ground or at least get close to it.
Now get under the car and feel for the black part in the picture below. If you reach it from below you should feel the ventilation? flaps.


Feed the wire through one of the flaps.
Now that the wire is inside the vehicle the rest is easy.

[Algon]

Did you connect the camera to the original iDrive system, or an aftermarket Android or Android Auto/CarPlay system?
Good tutorial btw, but would prefer a camera between the license plate lights myself.

[Kanye]

Originally Posted by Algon

Did you connect the camera to the original iDrive system, or an aftermarket Android or Android Auto/CarPlay system?
Good tutorial btw, but would prefer a camera between the license plate lights myself.

Thank you.

The camera is only 8cm away from the midpoint between the two lights, may sound like a lot but because the camera has a fish eye lens, you can't see the difference.

I actually have it connected to my dashcam. That way it can record the rear view even at night.

[Algon]

On my previous car I had a license plate light camera which was indeed perfect.
I would just do a seperate camera for a more OEM look.

[papadelta]

Hi, is it possible to do the same installation but through the left side?

I've seen doing that in F20 non LCI version:

Thanks!

[Kanye]

Originally Posted by papadelta

Hi, is it possible to do the same installation but through the left side?

Yes it is. The vents/ flaps are also found on the left side. Do keep in mind though that it will be more difficult to route the wire on the left side as there's less space there under the car. I don't know exactly but I think that the flaps are above the rear muffler.

I personally don't see a reason for using the left side especially when considering how dirty the exhaust and the area around it can be.

You can always check by trying to reach the flaps with your hand when the car is cold.

If you absolutely have to route it through the left side, I suggest trying to feeding a wire through the flap and seeing if reaches the ground.Then you can feed the camera cable through the gap above the bumper. Finally tie them together and pull the cable through the flap making sure it is not touching any exhaust parts. That however is a lot of work and it's much simpler to use the right side.

[papadelta]

Originally Posted by Kanye

Yes it is. The vents/ flaps are also found on the left side. Do keep in mind though that it will be more difficult to route the wire on the left side as there's less space there under the car. I don't know exactly but I think that the flaps are above the rear muffler.

I personally don't see a reason for using the left side especially when considering how dirty the exhaust and the area around it can be.

You can always check by trying to reach the flaps with your hand when the car is cold.

If you absolutely have to route it through the left side, I suggest trying to feeding a wire through the flap and seeing if reaches the ground.Then you can feed the camera cable through the gap above the bumper. Finally tie them together and pull the cable through the flap making sure it is not touching any exhaust parts. That however is a lot of work and it's much simpler to use the right side.

Ok thanks for the explanation, so i will do it through the right side (the passenger side).

About reaching the bottom ventilation flap, do you have to remove any plastic part or similar to reach it? because I have not seen this black flap from the bottom easily, so dont know if it's hidden or have to be removed anything first.

Thank you!

[Kanye]

Nothing needs to be removed.

You just have to find the thick cable and reach to the right.




and here you can see one of the flaps:

[papadelta]

Originally Posted by Kanye

Nothing needs to be removed.

You just have to find the thick cable and reach to the right.




and here you can see one of the flaps:

Thank you! that's really clear. I will try that way

[MNJF20]

Hi, I got that exact same number plate light reverse camera and I'm about to install it in the next couple of days. I'm using it with one of those NBT Decoder Modules but I'm not entirely sure where I should tap into the wires.

There's a Positive & Negative wire on the camera end which I'm thinking to tap into Ground and Reverse Light wire behind the cluster, am I correct or is there a better place to tap into?

If I tap into the wires on the camera end, does that mean I don't have tap into any other wires?

Thanks for the vent location, didn't think of that but it's very handy.

[Pincetinbrat]

Nice tutorial Kanye. How did you route the cable through the interior. Did you have to mess with the weather stripping rubber just those trim pieces at the bottom?

[hirot]

Hi, would like to do this retrofit but wondered if you need the forward and read sensors. I have an F20 LCI which I believe has NBT EVO 5 or 6.
And I guess which is the best kit ?

[OrnakNL]

My worries is that the light emitted from it will be different from the other OEM one which will be in. Which may look silly at night.

Does anyone have experience/solutions with/for this?

Cheers

[Kanye]

Originally Posted by OrnakNL

My worries is that the light emitted from it will be different from the other OEM one which will be in. Which may look silly at night.

Does anyone have experience/solutions with/for this?

Cheers

If the ones you have are halogens, then they will be very different. I bought aftermarket LED license plate lights from aliexpress for cheap and they've been fine so far.

[blackb1ade]

I just fitted an aftermarket reverse camera to my 2018 F20 LCI(2) that might help others in undertaking this task.

Just to say, I have previously fitted an aftermarket android (double DIN) unit to my last car (mk5 R32 Golf) and in that case, it took significantly longer and did involve removing the entire back bumper and took several hours to do. Whilst it worked perfectly, I discovered that fitting this one - to my 2018 M140i - it was a: much quicker and b: far simpler.

I did not need to remove the back lights
I did not need to remove the back bumper or attempt to locate vents etc into the rear cabin area.

I did take several pictures (sorry no video) and can annotate them in case it is helpful.

I had fitted the new screen (8.8inch aftermarket android unit from Bavarian Automotive) already and in doing so I had already plugged in the RCA reverse cam cable and fed it down through the left side (mine is a UK RHD model) and into the shelf that is located below the glove box.

This shelf can be easily removed (dropped down) by removing 2 10mm bolts that are located on the underside of the glove box area - easly to locate - and once removed you can pull down the shelf itself (see pic)

I went for the passenger (left) side as I thought it may prove easier, and I believe that it is.

In short, ultimately I fed the RCA cable from the reverse cam, which is a rear number plate light unit type, into the channel behind the bumper area - along that channel, up into the rear left quarter where the first aid kit etc are located behind a panel and from there up and over the rear seat left (n/s) section, down the back of this seat section and into the door trim area - tucking the wire under the door sill trims all the way to the front, and into the previously mentioned shelf area. Hopefully the pics represent a reasonable guide as to how I routed this.

First pic: pulled down the existing rear plate light. You need to cut the wires, pare them back and then connect them to your new light unit (I used WAGO connectos, as I find them excellent for many electrical connections) - bin/store youre OEM light.

[blackb1ade]

Just an image as I was about to start showing the camera itself

[blackb1ade]

My first step was to remove the plastic trim panel at the inside of the boot area, thast covers the rear boot lock etc. In order to do so it requires you remove 4 expanding clips as displayed. It's not absolutely necessary to reomve this panel, but it did seem easier to do so and it is very quick and easy to do.

[blackb1ade]

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