I've had my '17 F350 truck for over 3 years now with about 60k miles on the odometer. A few months ago I started to notice a fog displaying on the backup camera, which seems to have worsened over the intervening time. At first I thought it was dirt, given that it's hard to wash the truck in the winter time. But I've found that the fog is there regardless if the lens is clean or not, after giving the truck a detailed wash and moving into a heated garage. At this point, the camera is almost unusable, which is a pity because my bed cap makes it difficult to see out the back. Hitching up to a trailer is an exercise in patience when doing it solo.

I only have the base warranty, and the camera, per Ford, is covered under the 3 year/36K mile limits. So no dice on that. Out of curiosity I asked the local dealership parts guy what the camera costs just for the part. The response was north of $300 and my eyes nearly popped out of my skull. These cameras look so cheap, and I know they have quality issues given what I've seen via limited googling. $300 for a replacement seems excessively high.

I was curious if anyone else has a similar issue. It definitely appears to be a moisture issue with the inside of the lens. Has anyone had any luck with home remedies to clear this problem? Is there any good aftermarket replacements that are recommended? I can't justify $300 for a replacement, nor the $750 they quoted me to install said camera with labor (definitely doing the work myself). This was one of my greatest fears with buying a truck like this with all these electronic bells and whistles. I just hope the camera isn't the first of many electrical gremlins.

 

This is not an uncommon issue unfortunately. I dont know of anyway around the replacement cost or any other options besides OEM. I have one camera going out now at less than 2 years, it shows as a grayed area on the sync 360 view and fogged from the camera view.

I am still under warranty but not looking forward to having to replace these things after warranty.

 

I've always been a firm believer in the "extended warranty is not worth it" camp. But I think that is a relic of a simpler time when there were far fewer electrical components to worry about on any given vehicle. It's probably worth looking into nowadays, provided all the right stuff is covered. Spending $300 for an OEM replacement, which is also likely a flawed part and could fail within a year or so, is not something I can justify. I guess I'll probably end up living with this.

 

take a look at the camera connector you have down by the spare tire, if you have the brown plug version i have a spare camera i am willing to sell.

 

You could always try removing it and placing it in a sealed jar with some desiccant or baking it. Probably a temporary fix and will have to be repeated next time it fogs, but it's not $300.

 

My 2017 with just 39,000 miles has the same issue. My dealer quoted me just about $450 installed but it looks like a super easy swap from videos I’ve found and I’ve seen the part for around $250. The dealer made a big deal of some calibration being necessary. I assume that’s because I have the 360 degree cameras. Does anyone know if that really is a big deal? I would would rather not pay them for that if it’s not important. Thanks

 

My 2017 KR has had all cameras replaced except the high mount. The last 3 were the tailgate and both sides mirrors at 77K. They were covered under ESP. They showed the same fog you’re describing and it drove me absolutely crazy.

 

I think I'm just going to live with the fog for now. I can still see just well enough to verify I'm not backing over anyone or anything, and I can make out enough of the trailer tongue to point the hitch at it correctly with some back and forth needed to do the final hookup. Sucks it's the one camera I use regularly out of the 360 system, but what can you do.

If it does get worse, I guess I'll end up biting the bullet and getting an OEM replacement, since I hear that going aftermarket carries some risk of the camera not syncing up correctly with the truck. I think this has convinced me to give ESP a shot on my next vehicle.

 

I had some fog as well a while back and they ended up replacing the processor for the cameras. The dealer indicated it was not an uncommon issue.