Running wires to rear of 2013 Tahoe for dashcam

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BooBoo

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I'm afraid that this may be a stupid question, but I have a new-to-me 2013 Tahoe LT and am afraid of causing damage to by not knowing what I'm doing...

I'd like to run wires to the back window for a rear dashcam and assume that the headliner is the best way to get it there hidden. I have tentatively pried at the edges of the headliner, but it seems to be rock-solid and (again) I don't want to damage it by fumbling around.

I've googled this and found videos that assume you already know how to run the wiring, so I wonder if anybody might know the steps to get this done or a specific video that shows the process?

Thanks for any help!
 

Sparksalot

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You have to remove the trim at the roof pillars to do it, then the headliner will drop readily.

id be tempted to route the wiring below the door sills on the driver side. Getting below the rear wheelwell trim is easy enough, plus you have the access point for the jack. You still end up pulling the D pillar trim, but it’s pretty simple.
 
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I have a dual camera dashcam that uses a thick usb cable for the rear camera. I ran mine on the passenger side because I've heard that it may interfere with the key fob/tpms receiver which is on drivers side in the rear wheel/hatch area.

I ran it from the front cam which is located behind the rear view mirror, up to the headliner behind the windshield which was easy to tuck into, down the A-pillar (make sure you run it BEHIND the airbag), down under the door sills and under the side panels where the carpet runs under them, into the back cargo area then back up the D-pillar and across the top trim piece.

The way my rear camera is, I would've needed a spacer to hang it down low enough to see out of the rear glass from that trim piece, so I ran the cable through the rubber boot that has the wires going to the hatch. From there I just filed a small half circle in the plastic trim for the cable to come out of and run to the camera which is mounted to the plastic window trim.

This way, there's no extra cord looped hanging down to take up slack when liftgate is opened and doesn't get in the way when the liftgate is up, it goes up with the lifgate. It only hangs down a bit into the opening when the glass is opened, but I hardly ever open it. Been installed like this for a bit over 2 years and never in the way and actually forget that it's there most of the time.

Pick with liftgate open.....

20190610_212042.jpg

Pic with just hatch glass open...

20190610_212149.jpg
 
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BooBoo

BooBoo

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You have to remove the trim at the roof pillars to do it, then the headliner will drop readily.

id be tempted to route the wiring below the door sills on the driver side. Getting below the rear wheelwell trim is easy enough, plus you have the access point for the jack. You still end up pulling the D pillar trim, but it’s pretty simple.
Thank you!
 
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BooBoo

BooBoo

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I have a dual camera dashcam that uses a thick usb cable for the rear camera. I ran mine on the passenger side because I've heard that it may interfere with the key fob/tpms receiver which is on drivers side in the rear wheel/hatch area.

I ran it from the front cam which is located behind the rear view mirror, up to the headliner behind the windshield which was easy to tuck into, down the A-pillar (make sure you run it BEHIND the airbag), down under the door sills and under the side panels where the carpet runs under them, into the back cargo area then back up the D-pillar and across the top trim piece.

The way my rear camera is, I would've needed a spacer to hang it down low enough to see out of the rear glass from that trim piece, so I ran the cable through the rubber boot that has the wires going to the hatch. From there I just filed a small half circle in the plastic trim for the cable to come out of and run to the camera which is mounted to the plastic window trim.

This way, there's no extra cord looped hanging down to take up slack when liftgate is opened and doesn't get in the way when the liftgate is up, it goes up with the lifgate. It only hangs down a bit into the opening when the glass is opened, but I hardly ever open it. Been installed like this for a bit over 2 years and never in the way and actually forget that it's there most of the time.

Pick with liftgate open.....

View attachment 346950

Pic with just hatch glass open...

View attachment 346951
Thank you, that's perfect. I'm still working on which Brand & Model to get - may I ask what you bought?
 
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Thank you, that's perfect. I'm still working on which Brand & Model to get - may I ask what you bought?
I have a Viofo A129 Duo. I've had it a couple of years and there's newer models out, like 4k ones now.

To run the cable the way I did, it was easier, but took more cable. My camera came with a 6m cable and I ended up buying the 8m cable they sell for the rear camera and I had a couple feet left over that I coiled up in the passenger side of the dash where the panel pops off by the door. I think if my Yukon wasn't the XL the standard cable would've worked
 
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BooBoo

BooBoo

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I have a Viofo A129 Duo. I've had it a couple of years and there's newer models out, like 4k ones now.

To run the cable the way I did, it was easier, but took more cable. My camera came with a 6m cable and I ended up buying the 8m cable they sell for the rear camera and I had a couple feet left over that I coiled up in the passenger side of the dash where the panel pops off by the door. I think if my Yukon wasn't the XL the standard cable would've worked
Thank you AGAIN! I was thinking about a few, but apparently with many you need an app and the app ratings are abysmal.
 

Shackman7878

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I am running the Blackvue DR900X-2CH, Ran the power wire to a fuse in the side dash fuse block the, Acc I had to run a wire from the engine bay fuse block to inside the dash make sure on the A pillar to run the wire behind the airbag. Ran the rear camera wire through the headliner easy to do when when you remove the dome lights I used romex ground wire with electrical tape. Only Hard part was running through the rubber boot on the deck lid.
 

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Speaking of constant power, accessory power, retained accessory power (Rap), and ground, all that can be found in the upfitter box under the dash to the left of the brake pedal. It's about a 4"x4" box with a black plastic cover over it held on with a Christmas tree style panel fastener in the middle.

There's a Pic floating around here somewhere that shows what connectors/pins do what.

EDIT: here's a link to a thread on this forum with some pics of the upfitter box

 
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BooBoo

BooBoo

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I am running the Blackvue DR900X-2CH, Ran the power wire to a fuse in the side dash fuse block the, Acc I had to run a wire from the engine bay fuse block to inside the dash make sure on the A pillar to run the wire behind the airbag. Ran the rear camera wire through the headliner easy to do when when you remove the dome lights I used romex ground wire with electrical tape. Only Hard part was running through the rubber boot on the deck lid.
Thank you for the information! We just got home from a week seaside, celebrating our anniversary. (Towing our camper with the Tahoe for the first time.) I saw your post, but didn't have my password to log in and reply to it.
 

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