Dash Cams, the pros and cons

[Deleted member]

I have been considering for some time now, the idea of front and rear mounted dash cams.
the other Day i drove Mrs GPH to the Hardware store to buy a few items.
we were following a Garbage truck , and behind us were 6-8 other cars, single lane carriage way.
the truck began to slow to about 30 KPH and indicated to turn right into a side road.
as we were slowing down, I gave him The truck) 2 - 3 car lengths , checked my mirrors, and to my horror, as the truck began his turn, a car (UTE) about 5-6 cars back, pulled out, and began to drive at high speed (on the wrong side of the road of course) to overtake everyone.
I said something like "Oh cough, there's going to be a nasty crash", it all seemed to happen in slow motion, yet it was over in seconds, by the time the Ute was level with me (I had stopped altogether by then) the truck was 2/3 - 3/4 into his right hand turn.
I have absolutely no idea how the driver of Ute managed to swerve around the truck, or kept control of their vehicle as he / she kept on speeding past the truck.
I suspect the Truck driver needed a change of trousers it was that close !
Anyway, it brought home to me, that not only is likely a good idea for my protection / benefit, but footage of the event just described would be useful to local law enforcement regardless of the outcome.
so my question is : Do any of you have a dash cam front only or front rear? and if so what type of cam did you get ? I am leaning toward one of the higher spec units, but im sure there are many variables.
I usually spend a fair bit of time on the road in my occupation.

 

[Pushka]

I have been thinking about it too. If I was a cyclist I'd definitely get one. I'd keep it running when parked to catch those who think it's ok to slam their door into my car.

 

[moa999]

Haven't got one but have previously considered.

A few things to consider.
Capacitive batteries via LiIon - consider the hot Australian sun
Display screen or WiFi only - personally don't think the screen is necessary and it adds bulk and cost
GPS - for speed recording
Parking mode - some models can jump to life if there is an impact when parked
Removability - do you want a permanent model

 

[blackcat20]

I'd like one; the amount of crazy/stupid I see on the road each day is astounding. There are far too many near misses.

 

[blackcat20]

Parking mode - some models can jump to life if there is an impact when parked

This would have been handy when someone drove head on into my parked car last year then drove off.

 

[Denali]

Ive been using one for about 6mths now, hubby bought me a $35 off ebay and the footage is high quality and Ive downloaded near accidents and its clear and crisp, the unit seems well made and has a metal feel about it, not plastic. The one he has also records the rear and was another ebay find.

Had to add a memory card to it (we have plenty) but otherwise, plugged into the lighter and it also has battery and I can set the sensitivity so it films while parked. Settings were easy, I have a big memory card and its programmed to record over so it lasts about a week before footage is recorded over and I use a MS movie product to download/edit.

Australian DashCam has a good Facebook page and youtube channel.

 

[Orca]

Considering one as we just bought 2 new cars - fairly pricey models too. Could be particularly helpful in case of an incident.

 

[VPS]

subscribed because it's been on my to do list as well

 

[clazman]

Brother was involved in a incident where his car was written off. The other driver blamed him for causing the crash, luckily his dash cam footage resolved the matter very quickly.

I think motion sensing is a good idea.

Note: most record conversations, not sure if you can use against the wife to win a argument about directions

 

[Denali]

.....
Note: most record conversations, not sure if you can use against the wife to win a argument about directions

Reminds me that a couple of months ago my husband called me to his office to watch some dashcam footage. It was about 3mins long and I dont think I stopped to take a breath as all you could hear was me talking and the occasional "uh hum" from the husband.

For insurance footage DashCam Australia has some where a truck rolled down into the driver and then said it was the driver that drove into him. The dashcam proved otherwise.

 

[blackcat20]

Note: most record conversations, not sure if you can use against the wife to win a argument about directions

The only thing that puts me off them...hours of me swearing and mumbling at the coughpy drivers on the road :shock:

 

[JohnK]

Sounds like having a dash cam is a good idea.

I have been thinking about getting one for a while but does the monitoring create more work? How often do you go through the recordings?

 

[Skyring]

When I started driving for Uber, I used some of the first profits to buy a good dashcam. A Blackvue 650 with front and rear cams. They are discreet little tubes, and I tuck them away behind the rearview mirror. I can't see the front-facing one, but the rearview peeps over the top and keeps track of the interior - just in case there's some interaction with a passenger.

The footage is viewable via an app on my phone. I can download it, mark clips for saving on memory, but the general run gets overwritten every few days.

I never review it, not unless there's an incident, or I know that I've driven past something that later turns out to be significant. For instance, I drove past the front of Parliament House today, and I'm quite sure I captured one of the protesters just before they went into action.

There's any number of settings, including a parking mode.

It has come in handy. Last time we went overseas, my son texted to say that the car had developed an oil leak. A punctured sump, more like, and on reviewing the dashcam footage I was able to work out what had happened. Took a corner poorly and run into the kerb. Just a couple of hundred metres from home, so it hadn't been driven far without oil - in fact most of it was visible on the driveway - but it prompted me to get a new sump and trade it in. As the repairman said, if you were thinking of selling the car, now's the time.

 

[moa999]

Looks like a nice cam. Did you get it professionally installed? Can I ask how much?

 

[Skyring]

Looks like a nice cam. Did you get it professionally installed? Can I ask how much?

$508, and a bit to get a long cable (intended to go to the rear view on the back window, but only needed in my setup to go a few cm) shortened. I installed it myself in my Golf, and then in the replacement I bought. Not difficult, but the cables can be a bit untidy. I'm told there are kits to get it powered directly from the fusebox, but I'm too lazy to look into that.

 

[Deleted member]

Thanks skyring, that's the kind of info I'm looking for. My main concern is that aside from showing what happens in an accident where I have interaction with the other party, is the ability to clearly record details like number plates, for those crazy drivers who don't stop.

 

[blackcat20]

After all that talk about dash cams, I got rear ended on my way home from work this arvo, metres from home. Luckily minor and the guy was apologetic and cooperative but far out. Fourth not at fault accident in this car

 

[Pushka]

After all that talk about dash cams, I got rear ended on my way home from work this arvo, metres from home. Luckily minor and the guy was apologetic and cooperative but far out. Fourth not at fault accident in this car

Is your car red? My son had the same issue. Get it fixed then another crash. Had a major one while he was parked - should have written it off.

Very very annoying for you BC. I am cough about not getting any scratch in my car - and park well away from everyone else.

Have also noticed that come Dec 1 people put their brains on holiday when driving.

 

[blackcat20]

Is your car red? My son had the same issue. Get it fixed then another crash. Had a major one while he was parked - should have written it off.

Very very annoying for you BC. I am cough about not getting any scratch in my car - and park well away from everyone else.

Have also noticed that come Dec 1 people put their brains on holiday when driving.

Yep its red. I thought a bright red car would be really obvious but I'm starting to wonder (and at least four of the people who've hit me are male so I do wonder about colour blindness).

I'm the same, I try to be so careful. The hospital carpark has been terrible for door dings. It was a bit of a coughpy situation, car in front of me indicated at an intersection, then kept driving before finally stopping to turn right. I stopped behind and the car behind me didnt.

 

[Pushka]

Yep its red. I thought a bright red car would be really obvious but I'm starting to wonder (and at least four of the people who've hit me are male so I do wonder about colour blindness).

That's exactly what we thought too but think the opposite applies.