Dash cam

[Chris Dance]

My dash cam has a suction pad to secure it to the windscreen. You moisten the suction pad and press it firmly onto the windscreen and it should stay secure!!!. Problem is in a short time it falls off. I have secured it with Gorilla Tape and it stays secure for a week or so but then falls off. It is very. annoying. I would appreciate any ideas on how to get this dash cam secure. I am very reluctant to use super glue to fix it to the windscreen; if the windscreen had to be changed that could be problem.

I have taken it back to the garage that originally installed it. They moisten the suction pad  and secure it but within a day or so it falls off. 

[Chippy01]

Try cleaning the glass with isopropanol, same with the suction cup before reapplying. Isoprop will take any polish/cleaner that may have been on the glass and has subsequently transferred to the suction cup.

I have had suction cups fail before.
When the locking lever is depressed, it appears that it's holding but a short while later it drops off. Close inspection of the inner workings might show a crack or break that is preventing a decent seal.
If this is the case, it's either a case of a new suction cup, or trying to stick it to the screen (after removing the suctioning bit from the mount) with 3M pads or something similar.

[FROSTYBALLS]

Plastics and upholstery in vehicles produce a greasy film that deposits on the windscreen and windows - known as outgassing. Has the inside of the windscreen been thoroughly cleaned before application of the suction pad.

[PeteB]

I think if hot enough sun falls on it for long enough, almost every suction cup will fail eventually.

The only time I found a suction cup didn't come off, was when I'd just passed my test and we put a suction cup rear view mirror on the passenger side to make by dad a little less nervous when I drove his car!  After it fell off several times, I smeared engine oil over it and stuck it firmly on.  When my father sold the car I had to chisel it off and use a razor blade to removed the remnants of rubber from the cup!

That said, my dealer used the 3M bonding to attach my Dashcam and when Autoglass (my insurer's preferred company) fitted a new screen the fitter initially said he couldn't reattach it, but when the car was ready he'd found a piece of bonding tape and fitted it for me.  Otherwise my dealer said they'd sort it for me (luckily they were near the AutoGlass depot, and if they're true to form they wouldn't have charged me (although I give them a drink in such circumstances)).

My bigger concern had been about the recalibration of the on-screen Safety Sense camera and sensors, which is why i had to visit the depot rather than have them come to me, but their service was very impressive.

[Catlover]

I HAD the same problem, but no longer. I used clear silicon. Smeared just a little on the rubber sucker, offered it to the inside of windscreen, up top but on the nobbly bits ner the top centre. Been there good 12 months or more and only removed it when I exchanged the gen3 for gen4.

[Duffryn]

In the almost 2 years that I've had my Dashcam it's only dropped off twice - both times last summer when the car was parked the hot sun for some while. Mine is only secured by me rubbing spittle on the pad. As someone suggested, perhaps your pad is damaged in some way.

[PeteB]

Personally, I've only chosen DashCams that have a bonding mount.

However infrequently they may fall off, if a suction mount is starting to weaken, it's more likely to give up when a strong G force or impact occur, the very time I really want it to stay put.

[altocumulus]

43 minutes ago, Duffryn said:

In the almost 2 years that I've had my dashcam it's only dropped off twice - both times last summer when the car was parked the hot sun for some while. Mine is only secured by me rubbing spittle on the pad. As someone suggested, perhaps your pad is damaged in some way.

Ditto - that's when mine usually falls off, in the Sun. It's a nuisance Toyota putting that bobble stuff behind the mirror - my Dashcam could be a bit further up. It's also removed as part of the MOT!

[Chris Dance]

I used methylated spirits to clean the windscreen glass. The "goo" from the gorilla tape I had used previously took some getting off. Then I used windscreen cleaner and finally a clean chamois;. The suction cup looks as new. I got the wife to use her spit on it this time. It stuck for a few minutes then came off. I have resorted back to the gorilla tape. It is now secure but in a month or so it will come off. Silicone sounds a good idea or maybe double sided tape. Thanks for all the replies. You would think dash cam designers could come up with a better fixing method. I think it is a safety risk especially if it comes off while driving on a busy motorway etc. 

[Catlover]

2 hours ago, altocumulus said:

Ditto - that's when mine usually falls off, in the Sun. It's a nuisance Toyota putting that bobble stuff behind the mirror - my dashcam could be a bit further up. It's also removed as part of the MOT!

I understand the Dashcam should not intrude into the windscreen wiper arc.  Thats ridiculous because unless the camera is looking through a clear piece of screen then camera is  basically ineffective.

Its about time dashcams become compulsory on new cars, hidden in the internal rear view mirror, and reduction on motor insurance.

[PeteB]

It's ok if hidden behind the rear view mirror, and I understand up to 40 mm visible is allowed as long as it's not in a position to obscure a significant part of the view.

Mine shows a small amount to the left of the mirror and has not caused a problem with the MoT in the past (on previous cars - mine gets it's first MoT soon.

[altocumulus]

Some cams come with a double-sided tape option - or at least my first cam did - transcend(?) though that was a long time ago....

[FROSTYBALLS]

8 minutes ago, Catlover said:

It's a nuisance Toyota putting that bobble stuff behind the mirror

Bonded windscreens have a band of black paint (called the frit band) around them to provide a good adhesive bond between the screen and the vehicle body. Without the frit band the bond between the adhesive and glass wouldn't be strong enough.

Screen manufacturers often shade the frit band - graduating the solid coat using dots (the 'bobbles' mentioned). Often the frit band is extended down behind and to the sides the rear view mirror, to reduce glare from outside and to fill any gaps left by the sunvisors.

On some cars the frit band along the lower edge of the screen is used to hide the view of external components from inside (eg wipers when parked) or to disguise dashboard panel gaps from outside.

[Catlover]

Sorry, FB, but if you look back it was not me who made that statement that you quoted in the above post of yours.

[RWaggers]

I read somewhere that coating the suction cup with Vaseline does the trick, so last summer I took the plunge and gave it a go.  So far, so good, my Dashcam hasn't fallen off.

[Harters]

I have a screen bonded one and its tucked away behind the mirror, not visible from my driving position and gives a perfect view out.

 

[Catlover]

Hid behind the mirror looks good. What make is that cam?

[Harters]

1 hour ago, Catlover said:

Hid behind the mirror looks good. What make is that cam?

Its a DDPai Mini2, I got mine for Amazon for around £70, great little dash cam  

[Duffryn]

On 5/14/2019 at 8:50 AM, Duffryn said:

In the almost 2 years that I've had my dashcam it's only dropped off twice - both times last summer when the car was parked the hot sun for some while. Mine is only secured by me rubbing spittle on the pad. As someone suggested, perhaps your pad is damaged in some way.

Me and my big mouth - my Dashcam fell off in the sun today....

[Sidrat]

On 5/15/2019 at 6:00 PM, Catlover said:

Hid behind the mirror looks good. What make is that cam?

Roadhawk have the vision reduced - https://www.roadhawk.co.uk/roadhawk-vision-superhd-wi-fi-dash-cam I got one to use as a rear one.  They do a suction cup if wanted.

[Chris Dance]

I got some Gorilla extra strong clear double sided tape and so far the dash cam has stayed secure. Time will tell if it withstands temperature changes. According to the "blurb" it is the best thing for securing items and has many uses.

[Duffryn]

Now that sounds like a good idea Chris, will give it a go if I have any further problems. In my (allbeit limited) experience Gorilla products are extremely effective.