2012 Fit Upgrade Options (Cameras, etc.) Question
 

I've got a 2012 Honda Fit Sport with Honda Navigation that I'd like to upgrade to get it closer to the newer Fits, but I'm a newb at this and feeling a bit out of my depth on the best way to do this. What I'm looking for:

• Rear backup camera that connects to my navigation system screen (rather than going through a small, rearview mirror)

Bonus would be side cameras for lane changing that do the same thing.

I can find rear backup cameras that display to the rearview mirror, but I'm not sure what's out there that works with the navi. Example--this one is a universal rear camera that hooks up via RCA video connectors. Does the 2012 navi have those? I have no idea.
I've also seen a few that say they connect to I-MID. Is that what I have with my navi?

I've seen side mirror cameras for lane changing in the new Honda Fits, but of course Honda wants me to buy a new car rather than update what I have. I've found nothing that wouldn't require a pop-up display for the side ones.

Thoughts? Advice? Help?
Thanks.

Its really inexpensive to add a camera. just takes a bit of labor. hardest ...or most time consuming part is running the wires from the receiver to the camera. I ran my rca cables when I ran my amp wires, down the driver side. It was a bit more struggle for me as i was running the cameras RCAs as well as 4gauge wire, amp RCA, signal and remote wire. the panels come off pretty easy going down the bottom side of the car. I think I wrestled the most with routing the wire on the top back corner. use a coat hanger with tape for hard to reach places, and a bit of lube in the boot that goes from the trunk door to the car to slide the wires through. you will never get it through the boot without damaging either the boot or the existing wires without lube..also stagger the RCA plugs when pulling through the boot. I tapped into the reverse light bulb wire to act as a trigger wire. If you are willing to drill into your trunk garnish for a camera like i did it will look cleaner than the license plate mount in my opinion. the style I bought has the smoothest profile of the cheap cameras.

on install...Get the wire routed to the trunk and be sure to leave enough slack at the receiver to pull out the receiver without unplugging the camera on accident, and leave all the extra beyond that in the trunk door so you have options on cameras location. The cheap cameras are good enough for me...I love having my camera and dont need super high resolution for the 5 seconds it takes me to back up and not run over the curb. Once you figure out how to gauge the distance on the camera to the actual distance to the curb you will love it too. Definitely worth the effort!

as for styles... i spent a lot of time comparing sub $20 cameras...

i tried like 4 different styles on my last car, and bought the same style for my Fit that I settled for on my Scion. You do have to drill a ~3/4'' hole into your garnish. If it needs to be removed for whatever reason there will be a large hole...but it faces down, so if left open or covered with a block off plug it wont be noticable. Check out my build thread here. I like this one because the profile is decent...and it has a nut to secure it. Came with a mini hole saw for the drill too.
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fit...9dbd0c3ef3.jpg

Heres one similar to mine, a bit rounder profile. I like the profile better than mine but it relies on the little tabs to lock in which is why I didnt get it.
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fit...d7fe5ea43a.jpg

there is a license plate bulb lens mounted camera which is another option...it just a floating cube which doesnt look that clean...but personally would probably choose this style over the plate frame style.
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fit...8456d866d3.jpg

They have some cameras similar to the one I posted above that have LEDs built in, in a few different configurations, but from what I can tell they dont have independent wiring for the LEDs and the camera. Meaning when the camera is not on (ie car driving forward) the license plate wont have light on that side...so I would NOT recommend that type if you like even lighting on your license plate.
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fit...5c2200be4d.jpg

If you want extra LEDs on the camera get a camera that has them but doesnt use the OE license plates light covers..something like this...

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fit...ace1182eb1.jpg

theres also this style which would require a non reversible, back facing hole...or you could do a wiper delete and mount it there. aside from the hole required the other downside is it faces straight back vs downward...which plays a role in being able to see both the edge of the rear bumper and the curb. They all have a pretty wide viewing angle, but im not sure if it will pick up the bumper edge.
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fit...5367791b3e.jpg


Didnt plan on giving so much info...but there it is hope it helps! As for if the OE navigation has rca inputs, I have no clue..maybe someone else could chime in?
I only use my camera for a few seconds a day...but I do use it every day, and really enjoy it!

So it looks like it's totally doable, but dependent upon what sort of video plug access my navigation system has (RCA vs. I-MID vs. AUX). Thanks for the examples and links. Quite helpful!

Unless you want to cough up 900 bucks to have your factory navigation radio modified to have a video input, you will need to replace the existing navigation radio with a double din unit that accomplishes what you want. I just added a camera to our daughter Fit that has the video on a clip on rearview mirror. For the family minivan, I replace the factory radio with a double din android radio. It has the backup camera as well as a dash cam that record onto a jump drive. Here's a link to the company that can add a video input to your existing Fit navigation radio.

https://navtv.com/products/NTV-MOD01...n-service.html