Yes, the D's turning radius is impressive. That's one of the first things my wife commented on that she really liked.

 

We as a society have become too dependant on technology. The pieces that make up a system are prone to failure. For example outside of a take or landing most airliners are flown on autopilot. A backup camera being the norm just caters to the dependancy and from what i understand doesnt give a 180 view behind you. I have a deal in the works again for a charger that has the nav/cam in it but i doubt ill be using it a whole lot.

 

If my backup camera broke, would it be the end of the world? No. Things would just go back to the way they were before. So I'm not dependent on it, but I can appreciate it as a tool and will make use of it as such.

 

I would never be dependent on the back up camera, others might but thats their problem. I still always use my mirrors and look behind me but for things that i can't see its a great tool.

 

Have a 2012 Ram 1500 , the dealer installed a rear view Dodge camera.
.

 

My wife and I used to drive those large box on chassis ambulances so received training and had years of experience driving with no cameras or even rearview mirrors, just side mirrors. We never even use the camera in day-to-day parking activities. It just seems natural to use the mirrors or to turn and look through the back window.

You should learn/practice to do things correctly without a crutch because what are you going to do when the technology fails or a fuse blows? It's great that we have it and when necessary it has its purpose (like backing in as far as possible into spaces that have walls or signs or landscaping); the D is not exactly a short vehicle.

I can't remember how many times, I have seen men and women try to parallel park (which a camera doesn't really help with) that ended up climbing out of the car, walking around, checking space, moving another 6 inches, repeating until they got in or gave up and left.

 

I have the factory camera on my '12 Citadel and it works fantastic. The picture is extremely clear, so I'm not sure why some people say it "sucks". My only complaint is when it rains, it's difficult to see as rain drops tend to accumulate on the lense. My 07 Cherokee srt8 had one as well and never was an issue in the rain.

On another note about the lockpick. I installed the lockpick which works great with the factory cam. I also installed a front camera that the lockpick turns on automatically ( if enabled) when the vehicle is traveling forwards under 7 mph. It's nice for parking in tight spaces near the front.

For what it's worth, my Lockpick camera image (camera purchased from
Lockpick) isn't nearly as good as the factory camera. Is it good enough for reference? Yes, but not as clear as the factory cam. I soldered the connections too so I know its not the connection issue.

HTH

 

dealers can add pretty much anything if you are persistent...I had them add the remote start module on my 2012 sxt which is not an option for the sxt only for the crew/ rt/citadel models. I told them if they wouldnt do it i am sure the next dodge dealer down the road would...they said let me check with a manager. three people later it was included in my deal.