W211 Reversing Rear Camera Options ? (Handle / Number Plate Light / Number Plate Surround)

[pmcgsmurf]

You're right, something is off - here's the brand new OEM handle, which was replaced by my camera:

It's hard to make it out, but the part number is 221 870 24 10

It's a 2-pin socket.

Thanks, certainly not the same as the W211 one.

I wonder was the facelift W211 with NTG2.5 (If it had this) available with a factory camera?

I'm guessing this must have never been an option until the W212 model came out.

 

[GLK]

I think, you can take Kenny on his kind and generous offer, and adapt the cam holder to fit next the the handle, using the same screw, that is holding the handle itself (restrict the movement by either the size of the pad, or a secondary small screw, or a positioning pin).

The advantage of his cam is, there's already a mount fitted to the cam, with angle adjustment, and it would be very easy to cut the side bits, meant to go over the (US size) numberplate, and leave a flat square pad for fixing. Win-win

 

[pmcgsmurf]

In the end I decided to go for a little camera to the left of the right side number plate lamp.

I thought this looked quite discreet and closer to an OEM install.



The camera itself seems to be quite good quality, has a little switch that can be connected to it and this can be used to toggle the parking lines between various options as well as shift the image left/right in case the camera is mounted far off centre.

Turned out to be a real pain to mount it where I wanted it but we got there in the end, cable has been run to the front of the car.

Still to wire the camera to the reversing lamp (have used live 12V to test) then put all the trim back together.

 

[MrRight]

Hi guys, rather than start a new thread, i hope you dont mind if I use this thread for my questions.

So i am about to pick up my 2007 E63 in a few days (possibly saturday). It looks like based on how tight the carpark i commute is and my dwindling driving skills, I have decided to look at fitting a reversing camera.

I have been in contact with COMAND, they have quoted me £2.5k to change the head unit and fit a reversing camera as a reversing camera is not an option on the version of COMAND the vehicle has. And due to the car having the HK upgrade, the cost of changing the head unit to a pioneer/alpine etc one is double what it would have been if the car didnt have the hK system. Essentially they wont fit a reversing camera and link it to the current head unit.

I then spoke to the guys who installed the head unit and reversing camera on my M3, they quoted me gbp600 all in to fit the camera and order a module that will then allow it to communicate to the COMAND head unit. I mentioned the HK system being a potential stumbling block and they were adamant it is not going to be an issue.

The GBP600 option sounds like the far better choice for me personally!

 

[pmcgsmurf]

What system does the car have now?

 

[MrRight]

What system does the car have now?

it has the mercedes comand system with navigation that came with the car. the car also has the HK upgrade

the other company I spoke to think a camera can be connected to the w211 comand head unit

 

[KennyN]

a camera can be connected to the w211 comand head unit

IIRC it is only the later W211`s that came with the NTG2.5 that have the video input that is switchable for the reversing camera. My CLS (2010) had the NTG2.5 with the HK sound system but as the CLS did not have the camera option from factory i had to get the software updated to allow the unit to look for the video input (camera) when reverse was selected.

K

 

[Alfie]

it has the mercedes comand system with navigation that came with the car. the car also has the HK upgrade

the other company I spoke to think a camera can be connected to the w211 comand head unit

I'll be interested to see this as the W211 from your year does not have a video input for camera nor will it automatically switch to a video input mode when reverse is selected. I suppose someone could strip a head unit down and solder onto the back of the screen somehow.

The upgrade to NTG 2.5 offers a lot more than just camera connectivity. It has built in bluetooth phone and full seven digit postcode support which your NTG1 wont have.

 

[pmcgsmurf]

I see now so the car has something like NTG1 so as pointed out can't do the video input.

On this W211 I had already got Comand Ltd. to do the upgrade from Audio 20 to NTG2.5 back in 2009 or thereabouts.
Pricey yes but offers a lot more functionality and then the reversing camera is a simple option to add.

I'd go with the guys that know what they are talking about.

 

[KennyN]

£2.5k is a bit pricey for just a HU upgrade , I would imagine you could get a bespoke (stand alone) install done for that kind of ££ .

Decent branded headunits with nav / camera / BT streaming etc can be bought for around £700 , amps , component speakers , facia kits and subs are no where as expensive as they used to be plus there is always their resale value if you want to remove the kit when you are getting rid of the car.

The NTG2.5 was a dated unit even 10 years ago.

K

 

[MrRight]

Thanks all, car is in the drive now so I will be looking to progress this soon. will let you know what I end up doing, thanks for your help !

 

[AMGeed]

Thanks all, car is in the drive now so I will be looking to progress this soon. will let you know what I end up doing, thanks for your help !

I'll be interested to read your thoughts on the car

 

[Alfie]

£2.5k is a bit pricey for just a HU upgrade , I would imagine you could get a bespoke (stand alone) install done for that kind of ££ .

Decent branded headunits with nav / camera / BT streaming etc can be bought for around £700 , amps , component speakers , facia kits and subs are no where as expensive as they used to be plus there is always their resale value if you want to remove the kit when you are getting rid of the car.

The NTG2.5 was a dated unit even 10 years ago.

K

Its not just a HU upgrade though. Because the car has HK a new HU will also need a decent amp to drive the 8 - 10 speakers in the car. There will be a lot of cabling and working out which cables from the existing amp, drive which speakers. The £2.5k is for sticking with Mercedes branded products. Also there is a couple of days full labour and coding (the instrument cluster) to consider too.

 

[KennyN]

Its not just a HU upgrade though. Because the car has HK a new HU will also need a decent amp to drive the 8 - 10 speakers in the car. There will be a lot of cabling and working out which cables from the existing amp, drive which speakers. The £2.5k is for sticking with Mercedes branded products. Also there is a couple of days full labour and coding (the instrument cluster) to consider too.

Agreed , but i was talking about an aftermarket stand alone system - HU -> amp -> speakers / amp - and not interfering with any of the factory install so it would be easier to revert back to stock at a later date should it be required for resale of the car.

K

 

[MrRight]

I'll be interested to read your thoughts on the car

It definitely feels like a solid old school merc. Luckily the parking sensors seem to be working well. I had my first attempt at parking the car in my right commuter parking spot :



True to form the first thing I had to do was take it to a filling station and it accepted around 63 litres of V power.

I really couldn't find my post code on the navigation system and then couldn't cancel the street I chose on the map. Luckily it gave up trying to guide me there when I used the car this morning ! I'll have to figure out all the controls of the car soon.

Throttle response is perfectly correlated to how far down i push the gas pedal though it can seem the car is a bit lazy but this isnt actually the case, the car makes very smooth progress and picks up speed very fast. The transmission is slightly lazy but I would say is probably a lot better than what I would get on an M5 E60.it is definitely geared towards effortless blisteringly fast progress. I did give it a few tests on a couple of corners and roundabouts and it was impressive enough in terms of handling with the dampers on stiff mode (or at least in think that's how I set it ) I think the NA engine really suits the chassis as the torque curve is very linear and it is therefore very easy to pick up speed and not upset the chassis.

I did do 80 miles in the c63s after I brought the E home and the C felt like a sports car in comparison , being very much louder , more aggressive, agile and providing constant feedback. The E class was more gentle and comfortable. I cant wait to put it through its paces properly.

The exhaust really seems very muted inside the car. it needs an open window for me to hear its magnificent tune

 

[AMGeed]

^ Glad to hear you are bonding with the car
The W211 is a great car, whether a 63 or 55 lump under the bonnet.

 

[MrRight]

thanks for all the helpful suggestions re camera options. I've decided to go cheap and cheerful and will have a rear view mirror reversing camera fitted instead of changing the head unit, though I'm not a fan of it. It has a CD player which is brilliant so I'll keep it for now and use my phone for navigation.

The cash is better spent on constantly filling up the leaky fuel tank ... But on a serious note, I'll have to check the tyre set up as it has MPS4 in the front and Conti SC3 at the rear and I'm no fan of the front and rear balance especially in the wet . It is probably okay for now but I think I'm going to have to "burn " through this set of rear tyres asap and have michellins on all 4 corners

 

[MrRight]

Thanks again everyone for your input, I got a mirror reversing camera fitted today. Gbp 350. Angle not perfect as the camera had to be fitted off centre, but I'm happy and it is much cheaper than the gbp 2.5k for a head unit upgrade.

 

[pmcgsmurf]

Well, reverse camera in the old W211 has been working great.

But, bit of a problem with condensation in the boot.

So, decided to take everything to bits to see if I could see where the water was getting in and seal this.

And, looked like it may have been getting in through the hole for the wire, sealed all this up a bit.

Then, camera stopped working.

I'm checking the boot now for moisture but think I'll remove the camera completely for now (not working anyway) just to make sure the boot is water tight.
If moisture is getting in the camera hole I might seal this and swap the camera for a number plate light one.

I recall having to replace a couple of the clips on the plastic panel that goes onto the bootlid so want to make sure it's not these clips that are letting water in.

 

[pmcgsmurf]

Leak not fixed, water still getting into bootlid.

About to go remove camera and seal up to see how this does.