Does anyone have an experience with the license plate bracket mounted backup sensors like ? I really don't want to drill holes in the bumper cover to install the OEM style sensors.

 

I would be interested in this as well. I wouldn't even mind drilling holes for the sensors (Wondering if we could put them in that black piece of trim below the 13's actual bumper that has the bumper reflectors on either end of it to avoid putting hole in the bumper). My fear is the quality of the kits at that price point... Hopefully someone on here has added these in some form to their car and will provide us with some insight...

 

At that price point, even if they only last a year or two, it's still cheaper than having the OEM ones installed. I really just want to know if they actually work.

 

Interesting

 

I might just have to be the guinea pig. I usually back into parking spots in the parking garage at work and I'm always afraid I'm going to back into the concrete (the compact car slots aren't very deep and I have to park close to the wall).

 

If you do please let us know

 

Will do.

 

It's on order and should be here by Friday. I'll spend some time this weekend installing and will take pics while doing it.

 

I installed the sensors today. It was a relatively easy install. The kit includes the license plate frame with sensors, longer mounting screws, wiring harness, beeper, two wire taps, rubber grommet (didn’t use) and double sided adhesive patch for the beeper.

I removed the rear inner panel of the trunk to get to the wiring harness for the rear lights.

The instructions say to drill hole for the bracket wire behind the plate but I couldn't bring myself to drill a hole in my baby so I came up with an alternate solution. I routed the wire up through the opening for the license plate light:



Close-up of the wire:



I popped the light out from the inside and made a small notch on the back edge to allow the wire to pass through. I mounted the bracket and plate so I could determine how much slack for the wire and then snapped the light back in. I routed the wire through the existing rubber grommet used for the plate light wiring. The rest was pretty easy. Tap the red wire into the backup light positive and the black wire into the common ground. I routed the beeper wire around the right side of the trunk under the lining and mounted the beeper on the underside the rear deck with the adhesive patch.



After buttoning up everything in the trunk, I checked the aiming of the sensors per the instructions. Based on the height, they were properly aligned from the factory. They are aligned by loosening the screws and aligning them per the number gauge on the side (not very clear in the pic) per the height chart in the instructions:



I tested it by placing a garbage can behind my car at various distances. The beeper (which is plenty loud in the cabin) beeps faster as you get closer. I didn't get a chance to test peripheral detection due to rain but it definitely detects objects directly behind you.

For $45 and a little sweat, I'm happy.

 

Looks good

 

hmmm. adjustable sensors. that would have saved me some trouble on my install. nice job. you can always drill a small hole behind the license plate. it's just plastic back there and no one would see it.

 

What is the farthest distance from the car that you got an alert of an obstruction?

 

I haven't actually measured but I'd guess around 6 feet.

 

Yeah, I know but I wasn't going to do it without knowing if this thing worked.

 

so what color wire is the positive on the back up light? did you tap into the harness on the taillight assembly or another place ? thanks for the info

 

Wow, you're testing my memory! I need to do a little better job of routing the sensor wire through the rubber grommet so I'll check the color of the wire. Stay tuned...

 

OK, I checked some distances when I backed into a parking spot at work yesterday. First beep is at 6 feet and solid tone is at just over 1 foot. It beeps progressively faster as you get closer.

 

So basically from just over a foot and back you have to still guess it then? That blows, I would want it to be a solid beep a 6 inches or so. Is there an adjustment for the distance?

 

No, there is no adjustment. I really can't imagine why you'd want to be within 6 inches before getting a solid tone. I believe the factory system emits a solid tone at around 10 inches.

 

It's green/purple (see photo) and on the wiring harness. It changes to a blue wire on the taillight side of the connector.