[Euro] Reverse sensors - DIY installation help

[EuroDude]

I bought a reverse sensor kit on eBay for ~$60 with an LCD and 4 sensors, rather than getting ripped ~$500(?) by the dealer :angel:


Question 1: Those with reverse sensors on their Euro, could you please take a close up pic of their locations?


Question 2: How do I remove the rear bumper?
(If I actually need to remove it)


Question 3: Where can I route the wires from the bumper, into the rear trunk? Is there an existing hole there already (for the factory tow bar maybe)?



Cheers.

[yfin]

Question 2 is definately on the workshop CD

[panda[cRx]]

lmfao, save yourself the hassle and get someone that knows what they are doin to install it.
i've seen wrecked DIY jobs before :(

[yfin]

Remembered this pick of Peekay34's beauty recently posted. Eurodude - can you post up how you find this kit once installed. $60 is very cheap indeed and I wouldn't mind doing similar if the quality is good.

http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g68/peekay34/DCP_0944.jpg

[tanalasta]

I have the 4 OEM reverse sensors and they're positioned exactly as above. The first two in the middle and the lateral two on the curvaceous bit.

I also recommend a professional install. Maybe not at the dealer where you'd pay a heck of a lot for it though. Bumpers are expensive to fix if you stuff up.

http://www.ozhonda.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=1816&d=1149070330

[EuroDude]

Nice pic! thats perfect, thanks.

Yeah the workshop manual should have the bumper removal instructions, and come to think of it, may also have the hole location for the towbar wires.

Panda, installing sensors dont scare me - im quite experienced with this kind of stuff, including two complete car audio systems :thumbsup:

[edit] found a good guide to follow , so its all good.
http://reverse-parking-sensors.co.uk/photo-diary-vauxhall-zafira.asp

[kleung]

Yfin: Be really careful about the shape and profile of the sensor heads - the wrong type will stick out like four sore thumbs on the back of your car. If I were you, I wouldn't buy them sight unseen.

Fortunately, the 'OEM' sensors blend in quite well IMO with arctic blue Euros. :)

For anyone who's interested, the ones in the pictures posted in this thread so far look to be Parksafe systems marketed by Burg Designs (http://www.burgdesign.com.au/catalogue/default.php?cPath=126_223). Looks like they've had a huge price drop. The same kits are supplied as OEM to Honda (as well as other manufacturers).

[EuroDude]

Eurodude - can you post up how you find this kit once installed. $60 is very cheap indeed and I wouldn't mind doing similar if the quality is good.



Will do. Yeah $60 is not bad at all brand new, ive seen them around for like $300+ (for the LCD style ones).

I hooked it up to a 12v power supply and tested the sensors, and they work quite well. The beeper is a bit loud though, I may cover the speaker hole with a sticker or blue-tac to muffle the volume, or just switch off the speaker.

In the pic, the LCD image looks lame (too bright and blurry), but in reality it looks fine.

http://img226.imageshack.us/img226/8343/dscf1319new8ea.jpg

[destrukshn]

er.. what is the LCD telling you?
lol.

[EuroDude]

Its telling me "cockroach detected 1.3m away" :p

na the left bit shows a car and an obstacle on the passenger side, and the meters on the right

[yfin]

that is prety cool how it shows distance.

I presume these sensors need to be painted - i guess factoring in paint and a pro install it will still cost me many hundreds.

[EuroDude]

They come in "common" colours in which you hope will match your cars paint, otherwise yes you can paint them.

My Euro is black so the black sensors I got will do just fine :thumbsup:
(I knew there was an advantage getting a black car! lol...)

[aDe]

I'm pretty keen to buy one of these too for my accord, i wonder where in Melbourne can we go to have them installed? bcoz i got quoted from a local workshop for $400 fit&Supplied which kinda too expensive because the kit it self only $60-$100 on ebay :P

[EuroDude]

You should be able to go to any auto-electrical workshop and get them to install it for 1 or 2 hours labour ($80-$160).

[aDe]

Cheers, What about color coding them, is that expensive?

[EuroDude]

If you have a black or white euro then get black or white sensors, but for the other euro colours you may need to get them painted. Not sure how much they would cost but it shouldnt be too much since they only need to paint four small 20mm sensors.

I would just use a tube/can of that colour matched touch-up paint you get from auto shops.

[EuroDude]

Well ive done the hard part and installed the four sensors. There was no paint damage or anything. All I gotta do now is mount the control unit in the boot, connect Positive to the Reverse Light, connect Negative to the car frame, route the display cable to the front and mount the LCD, which is easy enuf.

http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/4395/dscf13449hk.th.jpg (http://img158.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dscf13449hk.jpg)http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/7883/dscf13459on.th.jpg (http://img135.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dscf13459on.jpg)

[EuroDude]

I got it up and running now, and tested a reverse park at a car park. It works very well and is quite accurate.

I attached the units power wire to the reverse light wire, which is the green and grey-dot wire located in the white connector just behind the drivers side rear speaker. I bought those little plastic tap-in things you can get from bunnings. But I soldered the cable as well for peace of mind.

The units negative wire can go anywhere on the cars frame. I soldered it onto the existing grounding cables next to the drivers side rear lights.

The unit itself was stuck to the inside of the boot frame wall behind the carpet above the rear wheel area. I used extra-strong double sided tape to fasten it on the metal frame, then used two cable ties to ensure it wont come loose.

Its also important to use heat-shrink on the wires where they pass next to the metal frame edges to avoid shorting in the long run. And use cable ties to keep things neat and to avoid rattles.


So yeah, $60 + around $15 of installation materials is not bad. Saved myself ~$400 :)

[TypeG]

good man
nice