What did you do to your Clarity Today

jdonalds

jdonalds

Well-Known Member
Following a thread often found on other forums (boats, motorcycles, etc.) What Did You Do to Your Clarity Today...

Today I installed the dashcam which had been in the Prius. I was delaying the job because there were no "how to" videos on youtube with the car being so new. But the weather is nice (78 degrees at 1pm) so I pulled the car out of the garage and started on it. It turned out to be very easy. Sorry I didn't video the process.

1) There is a short plastic cover over the cable that runs from the ceiling to the rear view mirror. It can be collapsed a bit by sliding one half over the other half. Then it can be popped off. It was a tight squeeze but I was able to fit the dashcam power cable inside the plastic cover along with the mirror cable, and put the cover back on. This mostly hides the power cable.

2) I ran the dashcam power cable across the top of the windshield under the headliner, just pushing it in with a plastic tipped tool. The cable stays in place due to the design of the headliner.

3) I ran the cable down the doorpost on the driver's side, pulling the door gasket out of the way. The cable runs easily down the door post then around to the footwell area. I just tapped the door gasket back in place with my hand.

4) There is a fuse box right where the power cable ran. I found a screw for the ground wire and attached it. I then used a fuse Tap Adapter (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00SUTYYS2/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1) to install a fuse and supply 12v to the converter which puts out 5V for the dashcam. I used the 7.5A accessory fuse position. There is a nice fuse information label on the left side of the driver's foot well.

5) I stuck the GPS module for the VIOFO dashcam (https://www.amazon.com/VIOFO-2-Inch...D=51O1iumNEJL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=detail) to the windshield, plugged the power cable in, and slid the dashcam on. Everything worked fine. The dashcam is hardly noticeable due to the large Honda camera module which is used for the LKAS.

It took me less than 1/2 hour, most of the time trying to loosen the ground screw since I didn't have the right tool!!! Other than the little mirror cable run cover and the door gasket no panels had to be removed.

I feel a dashcam is essential today. There are idiots on the road who will "break check" to cause accidents and try to sue (check it out on youtube). The dashcam eliminates the law suit (but not the damage).
 
Another thing we did, but not today, was put a small lock box safe in the center arm rest. I drilled a hole in the bottom of the arm rest box (which I hate to do) so I could run the security cable of the lock box down and around the passenger seat slider bolt. The box is small but it is now cabled to the car, and has a lock. Things that can be kept in the box include a wallet, keys, or a small firearm (the Sig P238 fits). In California you can't keep a pistol in the center arm rest nor the glove box. But a lock box that is attached to the car is acceptable.
 
I didn't mention it in another post, but this was one reason I was more than a little concerned about the ease with which anyone can see into the trunk area. If you're headed for the range, and you decide to stop to pick up some ammo - well, beware!
 
jdonalds said:
Another thing we did, but not today, was put a small lock box safe in the center arm rest. I drilled a hole in the bottom of the arm rest box (which I hate to do) so I could run the security cable of the lock box down and around the passenger seat slider bolt. The box is small but it is now cabled to the car, and has a lock. Things that can be kept in the box include a wallet, keys, or a small firearm (the Sig P238 fits). In California you can't keep a pistol in the center arm rest nor the glove box. But a lock box that is attached to the car is acceptable.
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I didn't think you were allowed to own guns in California.
 
dstrauss said:
I didn't think you were allowed to own guns in California.
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We can. There is a roster of approved guns. Nothing new is on the list.

We can carry too, but it very much depends on in which county you live.

There is a movement to split California into two states, the new one is being called New California. If passed many restrictions would no doubt be lifted.
 
jdonalds said:
We can. There is a roster of approved guns. Nothing new is on the list.

We can carry too, but it very much depends on in which county you live.

There is a movement to split California into two states, the new one is being called New California. If passed many restrictions would no doubt be lifted.
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GOOD LUCK!
 
https://newcaliforniastate.com

The chance of this actually happening? Zero.Point.Zero.

But whatever keeps them busy… This is a new group. I don't think they wanted to party down with the Jeffersons.

However, I totally get their concerns. I just don't know what to do about them - seems like our former mayor, Pete Wilson, might've been the last, best governor for the whole state. But that was years and years ago. It's been whack-a-doodle ever since.
 
I sympathize with some of their underlying concerns. IMO, the only state nuttier than the one I live in, NY, is California.

However I agree with bfd, the odds of success are about zero. But wow, would it be nice to wake up some of these loony tune politicians. The overwhelming majority of them could care less about the people that elected them.

Rant over. I think we’ve deviated from the thread’s title. :)
 
bfd said:
https://newcaliforniastate.com

The chance of this actually happening? Zero.Point.Zero.
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Yeah. About as likely to actually happen as any of the various "secession' movements in several States. I guess they didn't notice that little fracas we had circa 1861-65, which settled the question of whether States can secede. ;)

Interesting as an intellectual exercise, though. The Wikipedia article on "Six Californias" says, in part:

Had the measure passed, it would not have legally split California immediately; consent would eventually need to be given by both the California State Legislature and the U.S. Congress to admit the new states to the union per Article IV, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution.
​
That's what I thought; that the other States would have to agree on the split, or at least a majority would have to agree. The chances of that happening are, essentially, zero. Few if any other States would be willing to give the State of California as many as 10 more senators! Or even two more.
-
 
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I Added My First Side View Camera
I have already added my Ham radio to the Clarity.

But, as you can see from my comments on the Rear Cross Traffic Alert part of this blog, I decided to add rear side view cameras. The pictures attached Clarity in Kroger Lot.webp show my car in a supermarket parking lot. (This lot has very wide aisles and is on the good end of a spectrum where the local Walmart parking lot is on the bad end.) The camera is the small black dot on the top left rear bumper just to the left of the crack of the trunk lid.
Clarity in Kroger Lot.webp

The next picture shows the view of cross traffic from the driver's seat. In these situations, cars driving rapidly down the aisle worry me.
20180204_102716.webp


The next picture shows the view of cross traffic from both the Clarity rear-view monitor and my new 5" side view monitor. (The blur is caused by raindrops.) Note the people clearly visible on the side view monitor, walking down the aisle toward me. People are scary but walk slowly. Cars, traveling at 15 MPH, move 22 feet every second.

20180204_102820.webp


This was just a quick test on the driver's side, with the monitor tacked in. I have ordered the gear (about $50 from Amazon per side) to do the right side as well. I will also clean up the installation and make it more permanent. I decided to not use the backup lights as a trigger, but have a switch up front instead. Cheers,
 
I should add that you can also see the people in the Clarity monitor, and they would have been more visible if not for the raindrops.
 
jdonalds said:
We can. There is a roster of approved guns. Nothing new is on the list.

We can carry too, but it very much depends on in which county you live.

There is a movement to split California into two states, the new one is being called New California. If passed many restrictions would no doubt be lifted.
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Like hunting season on EVs and Hybrids. JK Just kidding
 
Ken7 said:
Nicely done! Do you find the location of the auxiliary monitor blocks the vent to some degree?
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The distance from the rear of the 5" monitor to the vents is 3 -3.5 inches. That should be enough to provide diffusion of the air from the vents. I also continue to explore alternate placement options for the cameras and monitors.
One thing is that I often find myself heavily using the large rear view monitor to avoid hitting lawns and sprinklers when I back down a long narrow driveway. When I do this I'm concerned that I focus so much on the rear monitor that I may miss some car coming from either side on the street. Placing the side monitors very close to the rear monitor lets me take it all in without shifting my focus.
 
Once I get this thing closer to completion, I will take some better pictures. Meanwhile, here are pictures taken while parked at my dreaded local Walmart.

The first picture shows the rear and side camera views. I feel that the side camera sees further up the aisle and will give me better early warning of a car coming from that direction.

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This second picture shows what I see from the driver's seat.
20180131_135230.webp
 
Johngalt6146 said:
Once I get this thing closer to completion, I will take some better pictures. Meanwhile, here are pictures taken while parked at my dreaded local Walmart.

The first picture shows the rear and side camera views. I feel that the side camera sees further up the aisle and will give me better early warning of a car coming from that direction.

View attachment 458

This second picture shows what I see from the driver's seat. View attachment 457
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That's quite an ambitious project.
 
This is how we handle our Level 2 power cord in the garage. I made a change today to remove a cheap plastic balancer that had a nylon cable. I replaced it with the one shown in the photos that is much more substantial, and has a stainless cable.

The power cord runs from the JuiceBox on the wall to the right of the car. We strung the power cord across the garage ceiling. We have a Speedaire Tool Balancer G0355957 purchased at Zoro.com. This one is the 2 to 4 pound balancer. It is adjustable.

The tool balancer holds the cable above the car and out of the way for those passing between the two cars in the garage.
20180205_155139-L.jpg
20180205_155147-L.jpg


When we are ready to plug the power cord into the car we just grab the handle and pull down. The balancer cable has a five foot reach. The tool balancer keeps tension on the handle which I hope doesn't cause any problems with the connector over time. When the car is charged we just release the handle and let it be pulled back up toward the ceiling. Both plugging and unplugging are 3 second operations.
20180205_155115-L.jpg
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