Question about dash cam / battery usage

[kowcza]

Hello all

I recently had a new dashcam (VIOFO A129 pro duo) professionally installed. It is hardwired to the fuse box.
More recently, approximately a month after installation, I have been getting screen notifications as shown in attachment about the battery life. The startup chime also changes when this screen appears (video also attached).
Looking this up in the manual I see this means the battery is at a low state of charge.

Can anyone give my advice on how to prevent low charge but still be able to operate my dash cam, assuming the issue is the dash cam draining the battery? Whether it be dash cam operating setting recommendations or any other suggestions?

My current settings on the dash cam are motion detection park mode at low sensitivity, and up to 12 hours of park mode.
I would prefer to be able to use this park mode, as I am in a shared parking lot at home, work, etc.
The frequency of this happening changes. It can happen maybe once a week to as frequent as every other startup. So I don't believe this is because of the car sitting off for long periods.

Could an issue also be my shorter commutes not being able to properly charge the battery? My daily commutes are approximately 15-20 minutes to work and back.

Any advice or information would be greatly appreciated. I am not very experienced in car mechanics or electrical work, so anything helps!

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[Blue oval fan]

Does your dashcam have an optional backup battery available? You could have them wire it switched power in the fusebox, then the backup battery can take over from there.

I just have a simple dashcam by Garmin with a built-in battery. I have it wired up to the 12v outlet in the console, with all the wires tucked out of sight. That outlet times out not long after the car is turned off. Then the built-in battery takes over for the parking monitor mode.

 

[kowcza]

Does your dashcam have an optional backup battery available? You could have them wire it switched power in the fusebox, then the backup battery can take over from there.

I just have a simple dashcam by Garmin with a built-in battery. I have it wired up to the 12v outlet in the console, with all the wires tucked out of sight. That outlet times out not long after the car is turned off. Then the built-in battery takes over for the parking monitor mode.

That’s not a bad idea. I will have to see if viofo offers anything like that. How does the battery in yours charge? Does it automatically charge via car battery or do you have to remove and charge in a wall outlet? How long does a charge typically last in park mode?

 

[coopny]

If it's hardwired, it would depend on how its hardwired. If you don't want parking mode and it was wired to a module that turns off with accessory power (the fuse isn't active when the ignition is off), that shouldn't cause issues. If you're non-stop recording without voltage protection, that could be a wear on the battery, and the battery management system may disable features (Sync 3 not in standby, FordPass connected features from phone app/voice assistant not available) if the voltage or battery health is too low.

Viofo's default hardwire kit for the A129 Pro Duo is the VIOFO HK3. It doesn't have a battery of its own, but it does have a switch for the cutoff voltage (when the voltage dips past the amount the switch is set to, the hardwire kit cuts power to the camera, preventing further battery drain). If you used this kit, you may just need to change the switch to a more aggressive setting (higher battery voltage that the hardwire kit stops supplying power to the dashcam at.)

 

[67L48]

Sounds like you paid someone to install it, but that it was not, in fact, professionally installed. Or to be less sarcastic, you shouldn't be seeing this on your info screen and the fact that you do suggests something has not been done properly.

I installed the Viofo system in my truck and it went very smoothly. I am running a dual camera setup with the parking features on ... and I've never had a battery issue, even with my truck parked for days on end.

To properly install the Viofo A129 Pro Duo, you should have used the Viofo HK3 Hardwire Kit. Part of this item includes some built-in battery protection in the module itself. So, you should be able to locate this and it will look like this:

From there, you can adjust the selector to better protect your car's battery. Just move the selector to the right to be more and more forgiving to the battery. It should never reach a point where your car's circuitry comes into play.

The wiring kit has three wires that need to be connected to ground, acc (12 VDC switched), and battery (12 VDC always hot). Sometimes people get lazy and connect both to always hot ... or simply make a mistake and accidentally wire the ACC to an always hot circuit. That may be why the battery is being run down. Either way, properly setting the module should allow the dashcam to shut down before your battery is run down too far.

I hope this helps.

 

[Bronco Blue]

Does your dashcam have an optional backup battery available? You could have them wire it switched power in the fusebox, then the backup battery can take over from there.

I just have a simple dashcam by Garmin with a built-in battery. I have it wired up to the 12v outlet in the console, with all the wires tucked out of sight. That outlet times out not long after the car is turned off. Then the built-in battery takes over for the parking monitor mode.

I just bought one today and I turned the car off and it’s been over 30 minutes and it shows it’s still charging and recording in the 12v outlet in the front. I’m worried about it draining the battery.

 

[Mark S.]

I just bought one today and I turned the car off and it’s been over 30 minutes and it shows it’s still charging and recording in the 12v outlet in the front. I’m worried about it draining the battery.

Page 141 of my Owner's Manual:

To prevent the battery from running out of charge:

• Do not use the power point longer than necessary when the vehicle is off.
• Do not leave devices plugged in overnight or when you park your vehicle for extended periods.

That said, I believe the power management system in the car will power down the outlet if the battery voltage is too low. I don't have any data to back that up, but given all the other systems that are shut down (mostly comm systems) when the battery is weak, it seems logical.

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