Dashcams Users: is a rear unit worthwhile?

[The Critic]

I am considering a dashcam for our vehicles but am undecided if a rear unit is worthwhile.

Due to battery limitations, none of these cameras can continuously record when the vehicle is parked. I can see a dashcam being useful for front impacts where "fault" can be disputed, but most rear impacts are fairly black/white.

I am considering a Viofo A119 mini 2 or A229 Plus.

Thanks.

 

[johnmyster]

Picked up two Wolfbox i05 dual cam units (for our two cars) for $55 each a few weeks ago on the -zon. I figure the rear camera will come in handy with an aggressive driver situation where they come from behind, cause accident ahead. At $55, why not dual camera?

They are currently cigarette lighter, only active when driving. I ordered the "hardwire" kits for $15 each to add parked surveillance. Those will get added when I have a chance.

I did not see value in an interior camera to monitor cabin activities because I am not monitoring a teenage driver or company vehicle.

I've been considering one of the nicer Wolfbox rearview mirror style units for our rv-toting truck.

 

[Inked]

Look at the Thinkware U3000. I installed both front and rear and it does record motion when parked. No power management issues for over a year since it was installed.

 

[Cujet]

My Rexing V3 has an integral aft facing camera. Twice now it has saved our bacon.

Changed lanes in a traffic jam on I-95. The aft camera picked up the guy that hit us stuffing his face with a Subway Sandwich, our turn signal, our seatbelts, our speed 4MPH and completely refuted the other drivers claim that it happened at 65MPH and that he was injured.

More recently we tangled with an illegally driven dump truck and my F150 was totaled. The aft facing camera picked up our seatbelts, speed, and traffic passing us. The two cameras in total really did show the entire situation with HD accuracy.

 

[KrisZ]

I think the rear cam can be useful. Sometimes a hit can come from the rear side, like merging or lane change, where the fault may not be easily established.
I have Viofo A119, but I do not use the park sentry mode so I don't know what kind of drain it has on the battery.

 

[fsdork]

... I figure the rear camera will come in handy with an aggressive driver situation where they come from behind, cause accident ahead. ...

This is the primary reason I would consider a rear cam. If you start a lane change and get clipped, it would clearly show whether you encroached on a lane where the other vehicle was already established, or they pulled a last-second lane change to fly around you. The front camera won't tell that story.

 

[Bud_One]

I say they're well worth it for rear end collisions / hit and run scenarios.

We had two of our company vans rear ended a few months ago , one of the accidents ended up with the driver that hit them driving off.

The rear camera caught enough of the front license plate the guy had on his dash for the authorities to track him down.

 

[KrisZ]

I say they're well worth it for rear end collisions / hit and run scenarios.

We had two of our company vans rear ended a few months ago , one of the accidents ended up with the driver that hit them driving off.

The rear camera caught enough of the front license plate the guy had on his dash for the authorities to track him down.

Yes, good point about hit and run. The rear camera will be more likely to capture the license plate than the front one, when the offender decides to bail.

 

[Cujet]

Don't forget that even if you are 100% at fault for an accident and the dash cam shows that, it can be incredibly helpful to refute inaccurate or fictitious claims made by others.

 

[fantastic]

I don't have a rear but my front will cut out & stop recording when the battery is at 12.2v. Actually offers 11.8, 12v. & 12.2v options.

Not sure if this fits other brands but thought I'd share.
Rove
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B7235VLX/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Jim_Truett]

Not the first incident I have supplied evidence for. I was not involved in any aspect of the collision.

 

[bobdoo]

I have the Viofo 139, with front and rear cam. I mounted the rear cam on the front roof 'console', so it sees out all the windows. If I get hit, or broken in to, I'll have a record.

I have a Viofo wiring kit, that allows recording down to a selectable battery voltage. I also set the unit up to use less power.

 

[michaelluscher]

I've had bad long term luck with the Viofo parking mode hardwire kit
It would flip flop between locking up the camera or draining my battery
I've since switched to Thinkware and have no such issues

A rear facing camera is a nice thing to have, but I'd rather have a front facing than nothing
Knowing your post history, weaving 1 small cable behind airbags and plastic trim shouldn't be too difficult
2 and 3 angle POV cameras are now available for ride-share drivers
I've been rear ended 3 times, with the pain to prove it
After the first time, I sprang for the dual channel setup, more info to help your side of the story never hurt anyone
Quality's probably a bit better now

I'm putting an off brand Amazon Prime day special in the Scion soon, I'm eager to compare and contrast

 

[Pew]

I would (I have the A229 f+r.) I would say it's worth the investment for the peace of mind it can provide in a he-said-she-said situation that the front cam doesn't cover.

 

[LDM]

I have a Rexing V1P in my Sierra, it has both front and rear facing cameras and I put the wiring kit on it to limit the camera to only being able to drop the battery down to around 12 volts as it will turn on when any physical motion of the vehicle is detected. Fortunately I've not had any issues come up where it has come into play but I ended up getting it after getting rear ended by someone following way too close. Haven't had anything like that happen since I put in the cameras.

I do on occasion get the Battery low message on my truck sometimes when it has sat for a few days and not been started but I've never had it not start due to the camera. Its been a few years but I don't remember paying anything ridiculous for it and the installation was fairly easy. It came with one of those stupid fuse adapters but as I got the wiring kit I just tapped into the always on 12V power in my center console. Seemed like cheap insurance for any accidents that might happen in the future as it seems like everyone wants to drive right on top of you everywhere these days.

 

[Owen Lucas]

Rear cam is definitely helpful, I have front and rear cams on 3 vehicles with high endurance SD cards (designed for continuous operation).

I've heard of scenarios where people rear ending you claim that you backed up into them.

 

[samven]

I have both but mine has both cameras in the same box. The rear facing camera is mounted on the side of the front facing and swivels so you can point it. It gives a rear view mirror type view. It came in very handy when a lady pulled through a parking space and hit me in the rear quarter panel. You could see it was going to happen in the front facing view but the rear facing cam caught the impact and then her face as she pulled up to get out of the traffic lane. Crazy thing was I forgot about the cameras until the next day.

 

[nthach]

I installed a A229 Plus in my parent’s RX. So far, I have proof of a non-fault collision(a parking lot bump but still) but we haven’t had the opportunity to test it out for a rear-end collision.

My old dash cam footage caught the moments a drunk driver was speeding and driving recklessly before he crashed into a Subaru on I-580 in Oakland, CA. CHP gladly took the footage for their case.

Viofo cams are great - but their software, meh. I don’t have power packs in any of the cars - the Dongar adapters to feed off a HomeLink mirror makes life easier for power.

 

[dogememe]

I've always been fine with just a front one. My dashcam was provided entertaining and/or useful several times. Never worried about a rear one. But I do have a front+rear floating around somewhere in the garage that I might install in the Prologue just because I want to protect my shiny, expensive vehicle.

 

[02zx9r rev2]

I have the VIOFO A129 Duo front/rear cameras in mine and her car. I had. VIOFO a119 for years and just wanted a rear camera just to have it, the 119 doesn’t support a rear camera so had to get a different model.

119 in her car and she wanted a rear camera because I got one so upgraded her as well. My old 119 is a backup if something were to go wrong with my 129, her 119 went in her daughters jeep

I have mine hardwired to fuse box, hers I had an OBD power cable powering her old one so I used that. They are recording continuously but go into parking mode when ignition is shut off. I’ve never had my battery run down. Most hardwire kits have a setting where you can set it if the battery reaches a Certain voltage it will turn off the camera to preserve your battery. I had my car parked at my buddies house that lives 5 minutes from the airport for 10 days and my car started fine when I got back.

Dash cams are basically to avoid he said/she said situations and for peace of mind. Instead of your word against theirs, you have undeniable proof of what happened.

There are so many brands out there. VIOFO, , Rexing, Blackvue ( really wanted to try one of those but more expensive and VIOFO does the same thing), Thinkware ($$$), Rove,Garmin, etc….and they all basically do the same thing. Some better than others.

Is a rear camera needed? As you said, black/white. If you are at a stop sign or stop light and all of a sudden your car gets rear ended, your front facing camera will clearly show the bump from behind and the damage on your rear end will make it obvious what happened. I went probably 10 years with just a front facing camera and was fine with that. I just wanted a rear camera just to have one. So I don’t think it is absolutely necessary. It can pick up an accident or whatever behind you and you could give that to the parties involved if you wanted too.

Thankfully I have never had an accident while I have had my camera (s) but I would rather have it than not have it. Just for the peace of mind