[philipat]

Hello,

Has anyone tried one of Master Tailgater's cameras for the Dakota?

Dodge Dakota 1997-2011 Black Tailgate Replacement Bezel with Camera

Shop for Premium Aftermarket Tailgate Camera Handles for Your Ford F150 (2005-2014), F250 (2008-2016), F350 (2008-2016), F450 (2008-2016), F550 (2008-2016) . Clearly see your Trailer Hitch and Full Surroundings. Backed by a 2 year no question asked warranty.

www.mastertailgaters.com

If so, what was your experience?

Is it a direct replacement for the OEM part? no trimming, etc?

Does the camera interfere with the handle and opening the tailgate?

Did you wire it to an aftermarket radio or screen? Or, to an OEM MyGIG radio?

TIA.

BTW: Master Tailgaters also has an eBay and an Amazon presence.

For Dodge Dakota (1997-2011) Black Tailgate Handle Backup Camera 819952025425 | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for For Dodge Dakota (1997-2011) Black Tailgate Handle Backup Camera at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

Master Tailgaters

Master Tailgaters provides OEM replacement backup camera, rear view mirror monitor replacement, after market reverse cameras.

www.amazon.com

 

[radioactive]

That bezel certainly doesn't look like it would fit the stock opening.

 

[halfpast3]

Joined just to post this also on mobile, so pardon formatting.

I bit the bullet and purchased one. It works fine. On the package it actually identifies 05-11 Dakota.

Installed today with an Alpine iLX-W650 head unit.

A couple items to note:
1) the tolerance on the lower clips is not enough. It was very difficult to get it clipped in. The tailgate panel would flex when I pushed it in not allowing it to clip in properly. I was finally able to get it but it took a while.

2) wiring is not as ideal as I’d like. The camera has about a 2.5ft lead with a connector. the connector is not waterproof, so I’ll need to figure out a way to keep it dry. I don’t plan on doing anything that would submerge it, but worried about road spray.
I was able to drop that lead straight down through a hole in the bottom of the tailgate and feed it in the gap between the bottom of the bed and the bumper. I figured that would be the best place to keep it should I ever need to remove the tailgate. I might move it into the tailgate at another time, that might solve the water proofing issu

3) One long video cable (about 4ft extra) and one slightly shorter cable for power/ground. It has a fuse but it’s at the end of the wires, not close to the connector, so I looped all the excess near where i tied into the 7way reverse wire.

4) I had to run a reverse trigger wire since the video cable didn’t have one built into it. Other cameras I’ve see have the video wire in one shield and a second wire attached to it in a separate shield. If I left the camera hot all the time, I don’t think I would have had to do this.

5) Video quality during the day looks good. I’m waiting in a bulk head usb connector to arrive to finish the install, so no night video tests yet.

Carl
2006 4.7L Quad

 

[philipat]

Thanks for the review and the feedback. Any photos of it installed? Or, of the installation?

Do you need a reverse trigger wire if you wired from the 7-way reverse wire? I would think that it would only get power when you put the truck in reverse, effectively becoming your trigger wire.

 

[halfpast3]

Here are some pictures installed.

Non waterproof connector. I put the split loom on the wires coming out of the tailgate to help keep the wires safe.

Fuse all the way at the end of the wire. If it were my design, that would have been closer to the right most tag in the picture above.

Extra video wire bundled up out of the way.

*edit for typos

 

[halfpast3]

If I wanted the camera on any time the truck is running then I would not have wired it up the way I did. I would have tapped a 12v constant and found the reverse wire somewhere near the front of the truck. The way I have it wired is where the camera turns on only when I go into reverse. The Alpine radio needs the reverse trigger wire to change to the camera view. Since I don't like cutting into OEM wires, I ran a second wire from the radio to the back of the truck, along side the video wire.

The power wire from the camera wasn't long enough to tap in anywhere near the cab and the wire from the radio was only about 12".

 

[philipat]

Makes sense. Thanks for the photos.

The handle looks good. Even looks OEM. Too bad about the plugs and wiring. Seems that could have been done a lot better.

How is the look angle? Can you see the hitch? Can you see any of the bumper?

 

[halfpast3]

Here is a picture of what you see in the screen. You can see the hitch and most of the bumper. The perimeter edges are not visible.

The camera is only good to 0.5lux, which honestly is disappointing given the price of the camera. The picture makes it look worse than it actually is, but again, 0.1 lux is generally what all other cameras are capable of. That being said, you are paying for the convenience of the clean look of the installation. I wish it was better, but I'll deal. Some under chassis reverse lights should help out overall.

 

[philipat]

Cool! Thanks for all of the photos and the information.

 

[RalphP]

On the weather proofing - I'd consider some heat shrink (the marine style) around the connector, being prepared to cut it apart if I ever needed to service it.

On the reverse lights - I'd consider mounting pods in the rear bumper; takes some time, a good jig or reciprocating saw, and some drilled holes. There's some YouTubes on doing that. I found this one

but it's not the ONLY one.

RwP