seannh

Found a bunch of different posts that refer to tapping into the reverse lamp signal, but none that specifically answer my question, so here we go:
I just installed a Pioneer AVHX4600BT head unit and i want to hook my backup cam to it. In order for it to trigger when the truck is in reverse, it needs a lead from the reverse lights. In a few of the posts, it looked like there was a specific fuse just for the reverse lamps. In the 2005 F150 Manual it lists:

Fuse/Relay Location 14: Back-up lamp and Daytime Running Lamps (DRL) relay coil, A/C pressure switch, Redundant speed control switch, Heated PCV (5.4L), Trailer tow back-up lamps relay coil, etc, etc...

Is this the correct fuse to tap into to get a signal? Certainly many of those items would be on all the time. Also, would I not be better finding a signal from the lead running to the back of the truck? I think the harness runs down the drivers side door jam. If I remember correctly, the color is blue/white stripe.

Any help would be great! Truck details are in the signature below.

For reference, here is the connection details in the Pioneer manual:


Thanks,
Seann

seannh

Bump.

byte

not sure what year your working on, reverse lights are in the 7-way trailer connector if you have that...

ak_cowboy

That should work. Or you can hardwire a toggle switch that lets you use the camera at anytime. Useful when parked or towing down the road and checking your load behind you

awgiedawgie

Yes, I know this is an old thread, but since I also have a 2005 F150, and just did a TON of searching to find the correct wire to use when I installed my Pioneer AVHX2700BS, I thought I'd share it here.

First, the wire Seann mentioned running down the driver's side of the truck is the wire from the trailer relay running to the trailer light plug at the back of the vehicle, so that would work... as long as you actually have a towing package installed. If you don't, then even though that wire may be there, it probably won't do anything without the relay.

The primary wire for the backup lamps is just above the fuse panel inside the passenger side kick panel. Look for a connector plugged into a purple (or pink, depending on how your eyes see it) socket. The wire you want is Green with a Yellow tracer, at the bottom of the plug.

Just use a wire tap and connect the Reverse Sensing wire on the stereo (I needed to also attach a longer wire between the two, since the wire coming off my Pioneer head unit was only about 6" long - not anywhere near long enough to reach) to this Green/Yellow wire. If you're installing a new camera at the same time, you'll also need to provide power to the camera. The same wire can facilitate both jobs. The camera I installed had a power wire piggy-backed onto the video signal cable, so I didn't need to run a separate power wire all the way to the back of the truck, and didn't need to tap into the backup lamp harness in the back, either. Unfortunately, they only provided a positive wire, so I still needed to find a suitable grounding point in the back, so I just tapped into the ground wire of my trailer harness.

Hopefully this will help someone else who happens upon this thread looking for this information. (I happened on it just today whilst looking for something entirely different).

Incidentally, yes, the toggle switch idea would also work, but if you install it that way, bear in mind that in most states it is illegal to have a video image playing within view of the driver. So if you happen to get pulled over for any reason, make sure your camera is OFF.