Is your car being scratched or suffering from vandalism to your car? A dashcam with parking mode or parking mode is the ideal security camera for your car against vandalism. The motion sensor in the dashcam detects movement around the car and the dashcam then starts a short recording. A dashcam as a security camera can also take one picture every second so that almost everything during parking is recorded. Such a surveillance camera is also very suitable as evidence in case of parking damage or other unknown scratches on your car.

Scratches and other vandalism of cars is a costly and time-consuming business that seems to be becoming more and more common. A security camera for your car against vandalism or if someone scratches your car can save a lot of frustration and uncertainty. The footage can be used by police and insurance companies to track down offenders and pay out damages faster. Such a car surveillance camera does not even have to be expensive, as a dashcam is available from around €100.

Before using a dashcam with motion sensor as a car security camera against vandalism or scratching, there are a few things to consider first;

1. Connection with hardwire kit or battery pack

A dashcam never has a (large) built-in battery or battery and should therefore always be connected to the power supply with it to be able to film. As most cars do not supply power via the cigarette power supply when the ignition is switched off, the dashcam should be connected to the car battery with a Hardwire kit. This hardwire kit supplies the car security camera with power when the ignition is switched off and also has a built-in monitor that interrupts the power when the battery is running low, something that is not possible with the cigarette power supply. This eliminates the risk of ending up with a dead battery. Check out this article for more information on installing the Continuous Power Supply.

With some dashcams - those with a visual parking mode with motion sensor (see next section) - it is also possible to use a battery pack or power bank as a power supply. Check out this article for more information on the different options for connecting the dashcam to the power supply.

2. Installation any second camera

The greatest chance of capturing a vandal with a security camera for your car is with a 2CH dashcam with rear camera that also records behind or to the side of the car. This second security camera for car is connected with a long supplied cable. As a result, installing it is obviously a bit more work and requires some technical knowledge. You can of course choose to install a dashcam at the front only, however, you will then only capture the area in front of the car.

3. Risk of burglary

Installing a car surveillance camera can increase the risk of car break-ins. If the dashcam is stolen, all the footage will be lost and so will the evidence. It is therefore preferable to choose a dashcam that is as inconspicuous as possible from the outside and barely visible. You could argue that using a dashcam that stands out as much as possible would act as a deterrent to vandals, but in our opinion, this risk is outweighed by the risk of theft of the dashcam and the associated damage to the car.

Manual or automatic parking mode

There are two different ways the Parking mode on a car security camera is activated after you park the car: Manual and Automatic.

Manual parking mode

On a dashcam with manual parking mode, the parking mode must be manually turned on after parking and turned off again when driving away. When the parking mode is switched on manually, the dashcam goes into Motion Detection mode and starts recording every time a movement is detected. As these recordings are of shorter duration and irregular, the mode should be switched off while driving as this can cause problems for Loop recording in long-term use. A Time lapse parking mode is not (yet) possible with manual activation.

The advantage of a car security camera with manual parking mode is that these dashcams can also be used without a hardwire kit but with, for example, a battery pack.

Automatic parking mode

The most convenient way to use a dashcam for car security is with a dashcam with Auto parking mode. With an Auto Parking Mode dashcam, parking mode is activated automatically when you park your car, leaving you completely unattended. We distinguish three different ways of activation here: on contact, visual or impact.

Contact: A dashcam with Auto parking mode on contact goes into parking mode immediately when you turn off the car's ignition. These dashcam with parking mode need to be connected with a 3-wire Continuous kit, one wire of which is connected to a switched power point. Through that wire, the signal is given to the dashcam when you turn the car ignition on or off. The advantage of this way is that there is no delay in switching on and off and hardly any chance of interference.

Visual: a dashcam with visual parking mode notices itself when the car is parked for an extended period of time using the vibration sensor and any GPS. This dashcam then - usually after 5 minutes - automatically switches to parking mode. The advantage of this method is that these dashcams can also be used without a hardwire kit but with a battery pack, for example.

Impact: dashcams with parking mode on impact switch off completely after the car has been parked for a few minutes. Only when a vibration is detected - i.e. when someone scratches or runs into the car - does the camera switch on and start recording. Kenwood's dashcams, among others, use this parking mode.

Type of recording in parking mode

Besides the different forms of activation, there are also two different ways in which parking mode records: Motion Detection or Time Lapse.

Motion detection parking mode

A dashcam with motion detection parking mode is on ‘standby’ during parking. It is on but not filming and only starts recording - often 30 seconds long - when a movement or vibration is detected via the motion sensor. This way, only the most important events are captured. This mode is useful when the car is parked in a quiet environment, such as a car park or remote spot.

Time lapse parking mode

Time lapse is a special recording mode where the dashcam takes a picture at short intervals - often 1 or 2 seconds. These pictures are later played back as accelerated video. In this mode, the dashcam is therefore recording continuously. Time lapse parking mode is therefore more convenient when the car is parked in a busy environment where there is a lot of movement.

Some dashcams only have Motion Detection parking mode or Time lapse parking mode, others have both. The type of parking mode is listed on our site in the specifications of the relevant dashcam.

Best parking mode dashcams

Almost all dashcams have the option to film in parking mode but the dashcams with automatic parking mode are the most user-friendly and are therefore preferred.

The currently best-selling AZDome M63 Pro is very suitable for use in parking mode. It is quite compact and also has an automatic parking mode on contact where you can choose between Motion Detection or Time Lapse.

For 360-degree views around your car, the Vantrue N4 Pro or Vantrue N5 are popular choices. These film with three and four cameras respectively. The N4 Pro incorporates an interior camera in the front dashcam and the N5 Pro also incorporates the rear camera. In addition to the interior, these also film a large area on the sides of the car.

Finally, mirror dashcams are perfect for use in parking mode. Because you place these over your interior mirror, you cannot see from outside that they are in the car. The mirror dashcams from AZDome and ThiEye all have automatic Time lapse parking mode.