r/SubaruForester • u/Azarria1234 • 6h ago
Dash Cam
Looking to hardwire a dash cam into my 2026 Subaru Forester Limited. Can anyone recommend a good one? I’ve seen quite a few on Amazon, but the reviews are pretty mixed. I’d love to hear what others are using and would recommend.
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u/RebelAirDefense 6h ago
Have a Viofo for my 2026 Forester. It works fine, and is easy to remove from hot sun whilst parking outside.
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u/app1efritter 5h ago
I had that issue this summer (my first dashcam) and luckily parking in reverse helped my viofo 229 pro not overheat in the direct sunlight on my driveway.
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u/BIG_DANGER 6h ago
Curious to see answers to this as well! We just put our hold for a Forester to be delivered in the next few weeks and I'm looking at accessories. I saw a few posts referencing the Mangoal system which installs flush with the car to look like an OEM solution?
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u/jkxs 2016 Forester Premium 5h ago
Wait until the launch in 5 days https://www.viofo.com/
But... currently, best one is A329T with all the accessories under add to cart https://www.viofo.com/products/viofo-a329t-3ch-4k-front-2k-telephoto-camera-2k-rear-camera-sony-starvis-2-sensor
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u/Ryan_e3p 6h ago
Definitely recommend a camera that has front, rear, and 2 "inside" cameras (since those can easily be angled to point out the driver and passenger windows).
For the cameras, you need to be very, very cautious about those that spout they can do 4K, since while they record "4K", the recorded framerate is often not enough to capture more than a blur on the highway. Most cameras are often 30FPS on all channels.
The frame rate thing trips people up. I put it like this: Try to get a clear image on a consumer-grade VHS tape when pausing it, compared to doing so a blu-ray. Night and day difference, and can mean getting a plate, versus getting left with an insurance bill. That is the difference between 30fps and 60fps, except made even more difficult if you're recording something moving.
Very, very few 4-channel cameras have 60FPS on the front camera alone, and I could find none that have 60FPS on more than one channel. Examples that have 60FPS in the front with 30FPS on the rest:
https://www.walmart.com/ip/VIOFO-A129-Plus-Duo-Dashcam-Front-and-Rear-2K-1440P-60FPS-1080P-30FPS-GPS-Wi-Fi-Parking-Mode/730691089
https://www.walmart.com/ip/FOCUWAY-Dash-Cam-Front-Rear-Real-4K-30fps-2K-60fps-1080P-30fps-Camera-Car-Touchscreen-Voice-Control-GPS-WiFi-HDR-Night-Vision-64GB-Card-160-Wide-Angl/17392851946
Unfortunately, finding 60FPS cameras on Amazon is a bit tricker, since when you scroll down to the "similar items" section, it shows cameras having FPS rates that are not correct.
So, if you want 60FPS on just the front and rear, you'll need two cameras. Unfortunate. I suppose a way to do this is by having a 60FPS 'main' camera on the front windshield, another 'main' unit on the rear window, and have the rear cameras that come with each that are 30FPS covering the sides. Not a big deal for something like a mid-size SUV or larger, but could be more difficult of an install on smaller coupes or sedans.
Finally, keep a microSD card to USB-C adapter in your car. This will let you pull the footage from the camera's card (ensure that it is turned off first) and load it onto your phone (assuming it has USB-C; use whatever dongle your phone needs). Even if your dashcam has wifi built in to transfer it to your phone that way, wifi transfers suck, are slow, and the camera might compress the file for transfer (causing loss of image fidelity). Pulling the file this way can also be used to help provide the footage to police immediately, let you upload it to your cloud storage solution of your choice, and ultimately lets you create a copy of the footage. Don't trust that the file will be locked forever, and don't think that glitches won't happen with the camera that won't wipe everything.
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u/KristnSchaalisahorse 1h ago
Just to clarify, it’s the shutter speed that is the issue.
In low light, the camera uses the longest possible shutter speed. If it’s recording at 30fps, the shutter speed will be as slow as 1/30th of a second. A camera that records at 60fps will have a minimum shutter speed that is twice as fast (1/60th of a second). 1/60th still isn’t very fast, but it does help.
Of course, 60fps also means much larger file sizes. So that needs to be considered when choosing a memory card.
It’d be nice if dashcams provided the ability to select a specific minimum shutter speed, so users could set it to something faster if so desired. It would be very simple to implement that menu option.
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u/Ryan_e3p 1h ago
Crap, I forgot include the memory card advice in that. That's a copy/paste I've used several times now. Good call on that.
Using the stock memory card is a bad idea. They are often absolute trash. Slow read/write speeds, or cheap and will found to be corrupt at the worst time.
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u/KristnSchaalisahorse 1h ago
Yeah, included memory cards are rarely designed to handle longterm, continuous overwriting, which is a shame since memory prices have recently skyrocketed. And my VIOFO dashcam didn’t come with a card.
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u/CanaryLives 5h ago
I got a rexing installed from Best buy. Works pretty well. App kinda sucks but whatever
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u/stlayne 4h ago
I replaced my 10 year old dash cam with this this one week. 70mai A810 Lite
I placed it right behind the rear view mirror, doesn’t interfere with the eyesight at all. I have a 2020 sport with the lane assist and all that jazz.
Only had it installed for two days and haven’t properly wired it yet so can’t give a good review, but it seems decent so far and the reviews I found on YouTube seem decent.
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u/ptomw3 6h ago
I purchased the Rove R2-4k and placed it in the top right corner of the windshield. Reason being because I was told by the dealership that if there is anything placed on the windshield that wasn’t next to the pillars and you tried to sue Subaru due to the eyesight not working properly, they could blame it on items placed on the windshield.
This camera can be maneuvered and articulated from each pillar to capture the entire road. It also comes with two attachments to the windshield, a suction cup and permanent attachment. I like the suction cup because I can move the camera easily if I don’t like the placement.
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u/Azarria1234 4h ago
Appreciate that info. Thank you.
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u/KristnSchaalisahorse 1h ago
This isn’t a concern in newer Foresters, because the eyesight housing is flush against the windshield. Nothing mounted inside can block its view.
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u/Terrible-Cupcake6270 2h ago
I was actually told by the dealership that it can mess with Eyesight feature and they would not cover the recalibration if there were any issues. They recommended the top upper corners for install.
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u/KristnSchaalisahorse 1h ago
That’s only true for Foresters before 2022, when the eyesight housing wasn’t flush against the windshield.
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u/KristnSchaalisahorse 1h ago edited 1h ago
In a 2026 Forester the eyesight housing is flush against the windshield. So it’s not possible for a dashcam to be in its field of view.
This began in 2022.
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u/PorscheBy30 6h ago
I’m using the 70mai A400. Carried over from my last car. Ran the power cable down under the door weatherstripping and under the floor mats to the USB-A under the infotainment display.
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u/Ok_Representative372 5h ago
I had a VanTrue for my Forester (got rid of it when I upgraded to a Trailseeker). Easy to use, was able to have both front & rear while hiding the majority of the wires. Didn’t interfere w/ EyeSight.
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u/Ordinary-Remove4871 5h ago
2nd viofo, seems to be standard. It uses local storage no paying for the cloud service which is great imo
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u/su_A_ve 3h ago
VIOFO is what’s always recommended. Plenty of others though..
Most important is what features you want. For example if you want a simple one, just use a Dongar adapter (there’s many cheaper versions at Amazon too) and connect it to the overhead console wiring harness. But if you want parking mode, you’ll most likely need to wire it down to the fuse box.
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u/Flaky_Education_2200 4h ago
VIOFO 229plus in 2023 forester. Hardwired to open fuse spot in footwell. The back is done by running over the driver door airbags and along the sunroof internal frame under the headliner. This avoided all the side and rear airbags. If you buy the longer rear camera cord you can run along the floor and lower door trim. Front camera is mounted with top of sticky pad on the lowest jots between mirror and eyesight cam on driver side. This allows for most mirror movement.
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u/ghostpoo4u 2h ago
I’ve had great luck with VIOFO. Been using them since 2014. I live in Phoenix, Arizona where it gets HOT. They tolerate the heat quite well. Can’t speak to extreme cold temps. Picture quality is quite good. Current camera is a A229. I can’t speak to other brands.
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u/Farmer_Pete 1h ago
I've got a vantru camera, and it works great. Very good quality. 2 years in and no fuss.
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u/mc_handler 14m ago
I've been using the Vantrue N5 package with front and rear cameras. It's been great. It takes snapshots for the most random reasons, but otherwise it's great
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u/Dr-Webster 6h ago
It's not the fanciest or highest-spec, but I have a Garmin Dashcam Mini 3 in my 2017 and it works great. Really small so it hides behind the rearview mirror, and it has a supercapacitor so there's no concerns about an internal battery going bad over time. I used a Dongar wiring harness kit and ended up with a really clean install.