I have a 2011 mazda 3 with 80k miles I recently bought a dashcam and it had a hardwire kit with a shock sensor mounted on the windshield that connects the camera to the obd 2 port to turn on and record also when the car is off and it gets an impact will it affect my car?
Hey guys thanks for the advice i threw the obd2 hardwire kit away and got a hardwire kit that pulls power from the fusebox and i used it in fuses that arent a primary component of the vehicle
I wouldn't go wiring anything up to your OBDII port. That usually isn't a good idea. There are usually adapters for the cigarette lighter that you can use to get power for the cam. Mine are all done that way.
I really don't recommend that, use an "add a fuse" circuit to power accessories.
I can tell you FIRST HAND - DO NOT EVEN CONSIDER ONE OF THOSE DASH CAM POWER CONNECTORS THAT UTILIZE YOUR OBD2 PORT!
I bought one and have come to regret it within 10 days of installing! Something that I should have researched ahead of installation, the piece of crap (probably from China) actually shorted out and partially melted the of my OBD2 port! It also caused my service engine soon light to come on & I now have a charging system malfunction warning on my dash! As result of the damage to the port - I also can not connect an scan tool to it to reset the codes and determine what DTC it is throwing. I have a 2016 Mazda 6 GT and the apparently - getting a replacement OBD 2 port is a problem. I have been in touch with 3 Mazda dealers who didn't have a clue what to do for me as none of them has ever had to order an OBD2 port before, they couldn't even find the part in the system!
I'm asking Scotty for help on this one as to what I might be able to do here.
you are double-posting. Please only submit once. Thanks.
I wouldn't risk potentially damaging the OBDII port by using it strictly as a power source. Yes, it has a dedicated pin to provide voltage to a scantool, but I wouldn't use it for anything else. As others suggested, power the camera using a cigarette lighter adapter or by hard-wiring it to "accessory power" (receives power when ignition is on).
why does it connect to the diagnostic port? Does it store engine data or something?
Isn't the cig lighter socket usually closer to the rearview mirror anyway?
