BC30 REVERSING CAMERA

Just thought I would post this article for some advise to fellow owners of this type of Garmin reversing camera ,
 our van is just coming up to a year old a few weeks ago when reversing it the camera picture was all blurred , on inspection I noticed a tiny drop of water inside the camera , I contacted our supplier ,Simpsons of Great Yarmouth ( who have given us excellent service) and they promptly arranged a replacement camera head and posted it to me ,its a very easy 15 minute replacement , however what I have done to the replacement is to put a thin layer of silicon around the joints of the camera as it was the only obvious place that the water had got into the original ,( just be poor seals used ) as they are supposed to be water tight , hopefully this should stop the replacement following the same problem, hopefully this might be helpful to other owners of this type of camera:

I had the exact same problem on mine too. Common fault maybe?

Bought a replacement BC30 on eBay, cost about £70 quid :/

My BC30 was replaced under warranty in the first year.

Slight hijack here.....
Does anyone know if a rear view camera can be used in conjunction with the downward looking reversing camera? I'd like one that could display the rear view on the same screen as the reversing view. 
Any idea who makes the BC30?
Thanks
John

Garmin make the BC30

Dbvwt wrote:Garmin make the BC30

Ah so. Thanks

i would be interested to know how your BC30 reversing camera replacement went, as my camera has failed, and looking at the set up it seems i would have to dismantle most of the rear interior to run the new cameras cable. The camera is mounted above the high brake light and i assume the cable runs to the rear right hand reversing light.
I am happy with the set up and the wireless signal to the Garmin satnav, but the picture has gone really fuzzy, i assume due to moisture in the camera. I have tried removing the lens cover to clean and seal the camera but no joy.
my van is a 2017 kingham fiat ducato

I don’t know what reversing camera system you have in the Kingham but I’m not sure why you think you’d need to run a new cable to a replacement camera. Once you’ve identified the individual cores of the cable (ie power feed to the camera, switched on when reversing lights lit, and the video output from it) you should find it reasonably straightforward to install a replacement wired camera that’s compatible with your existing display.

The factory-installed wired Veba camera on our Kemerton failed at around the 4 year point. AS fit low quality cameras on their PVCs and many seem to fail after just a few years. I wasn’t keen to go wireless as this would have required a new display and satnav, neither of which I needed. Instead I fitted a replacement wired camera having a better sensor and improved ingress protection. 

Once I’d figured out how the old camera was connected and had taken account of the different input voltages for the old and new units, I didn’t need to replace any other part of the system. Access was via the aperture in the bodywork for the high level brake light, with no need to disturb any interior fittings. Getting the old camera off was a challenge but not impossible.

The new camera gives a significantly better image than the original, especially in dark light, and without any distracting red flare from the high level brake light.

I wrote up the process I followed at the link below. Hope this might be relevant to your Kingham. 

Tim

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smithy26 wrote:i would be interested to know how your BC30 reversing camera replacement went, as my camera has failed, and looking at the set up it seems i would have to dismantle most of the rear interior to run the new cameras cable. The camera is mounted above the high brake light and i assume the cable runs to the rear right hand reversing light.

No issues with the replacement camera, all ok.

Mine is attached the same way as yours, above the rear brake light.

You'll be pleased to know the camera is on a short lead, six inches or so, with a connecter situated behind the high level brake light so it's a very easy job to swap them 

I'll see if I have any photos.

Does this help?

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Have a rummage behind the high level brake light, you'll find the connector for the camera just there.

hi Roger that

thanks so much for the info and the pictures, that is exactly what i needed to know. I did have a suspicion that the cable ran behind the brake light. I will buy a new camera as it now seems like an easy fit and i can use the existing cable to the reversing light and the existing transmitter to the sat nav
cheers buddy

Yup, that's exactly what I did.

You're more than welcome, glad it helped.

Oh, by the way, you'll need some sealant of some sorts.  If you look at my first picture, the camera bracket is screwed to the van but the cable-entry point which runs through the centre of the bracket will need re-sealing.

I forget which type I used now, but I do remember attaching the new camera, getting the angle set correctly (check it on your sat nav screen  in the cab), then when I was happy with the angle and the camera was screwed tightly to the bracket, only then did I use a mastic gun to squirt copious amounts of sealant in through the hole.

If you're feeling adventurous, another mod I made at a different point in time, I removed the rear light cluster and connected the camera power feed to the rear tail lamp, instead of the reversing lamp.

This way, I can switch the camera on while driving by simply turning on the van headlights.

Ideal if you're towing and want to make sure it's still attached while doing 56mph on the M6 motorway 

Thanks for the extra info,I particularly like the idea of rewiring into the rear light, I may well do that. As it is I will purchase an add on camera kit on the internet and just not use the extra bits. I may well see if I can open the lens cover without destroying it and get a small amount of silica gel in there to trap any moisture in the future.
Happy motoring

Not sure if you've bought it yet, but Amazon have the cameras at £70 with free next day delivery (if you're on Prime):

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