If things are as you describe then, you did not connect relay and camera according to my little schematic way above...
So did you confirm with a multimeter that your situation is indeed that the reverse light-bulb is switched via the earth signal, i.e. battery minus?
So one of the 2 wires going to the reverse bulb has constantly battery plus (if ignition is on), and only when you break, the other wire has battery minus, yes?

If that is so, connect the camera according to my schematic: If the camera has a plus and a minus input cable and you disconnect the battery plus cable, you cannot have a powered camera anymore - because, if you do, you just invented a perpetuum mobile, which does not exist....

 

Thanks for your kind response, I followed the below diagram because I couldnt understand the above one sorry , what do you think ?

 

I just woke up (different time zone here). I tried to make sense of your picture above....

Maybe this helps:
https://www.arc-components.com/blog/...ay-switch.html

Those numbers of your relay drawing are defined. The link above tells you what those numbers are and allows you to re-draw your drawing so that it makes sense. I just like to see visually that 85/86 are the coil connections, 30 is common, and 87 is NO (normally open).

But I think I see already, where you problem is... - as I tried to make clear above (with tin Lizzy, etc.): You have a SWITCHED GROUND on you brake light!
I asked, if you can confirm this with a multimeter.
If you connect things as per your drawing, you connect the coil (85/86) to reverse light plus and permanent ground (battery minus). Is that what you did? If so, the coil is permanently powered, and the relay is permanently closed! The think is, as I explained that (if I am not wrong, which I asked you to confirm) the reverse light does not have a switched PLUS, but a switched MINUS. Thus, permanent ground 86 and permanent plus 85 means relay permanently on.

Try to connect as per my little schematic.

 

I dont understand what you mean with You have a SWITCHED GROUND on you brake light!
and how can I check it out to answer you , Sorry and thanks

 

Normally, if you connect a light-bulb with a battery, one would place the on-off-switch in the line, which feeds from the battery plus.
In a car these days the whole body (everything metal) is connected to battery minus.
If you want to switch bulb on and off in a car, normally the switch would be somewhere in the cable coming from battery plus (via a fuse, obviously).
The specific switch I am talking about when it comes to the reverse gear is a switch, which closes, when you put your transmission into R.
This closed switch then (either directly or via a relay somewhere) closes the open circuit, which brings 12VDC to the bulbs in the rear of the car, the reversing lights.
Normally (as mentioned above) such a switch would close the power-supply on the cable to battery plus.
But this is where some designer must have thought on the S-Type that there is some reason to design it differently:
Thus, if I am not mistaken, the bulb of the reverse lights is always and constantly (at least as long as ignition is on) connected to battery plus (via a fuse). That is what you could confirm with a multimeter. And you could also confirm with a multimeter that the reason as to why the reverse light is NOT lighting up, even though it is connected to battery plus (when is any gear OTHER than R) is that the reverse bulbs are NOT connected to battery minus (because battery minus is switched, i.e. the switch connection the bulbs to battery minus is OPEN, And this switch closes only, if you are in R. These are all things, which you can measure with a multimeter on the 2 contacts for the reverse bulb. If you confirm all that with a multimeter, and you understand where and where not you have a pos. and neg, connection to power, it shouldn't be any problem to connect the rear cam correctly...

PS:
> I dont understand what you mean with You have a SWITCHED GROUND on you brake light!
So again: Choose the left or right side of your trunk and remove the carpet on the side and press those 2 latches to remove the plastic-"board" with the bulbs from one tail-light. Confirm that the reverse bulbs lights up (only) when you are in reverse. Then remove the bulb, and confirm that you find in the 2 tracks going to the bulb always +12VDC with ignition on on one of the tracks and on the other only then -12VDC, if R is selected at ignition on (make sure you block your wheels with bricks so that the car does not roll away. If that is confirmed, find the 2 wires going to those 2 tracks, note, which is which and connect the relay accordingly.

 

Hi Peter and all

I purchased the relay listed above and am looking at the diagram. (Thank you by the way)

Can I ask a dumb question....how did you connect your wiring to the relay? Did you simply solder your leads to the relay directly or did you use a breadboard?

 

Yes, I am soldering electrical wires to those kinds of relays. Obviously, do not heat it up any more than necessary to avoid melting the plastic around the pins of the relay.
Next I wrap the soldered relay in insulation tape to make sure it will not create any kinds of shorts. I can't see the advantage of using a PCB or similar here. It makes it only bigger to no advantage. But as possible alternative: Maybe there are some kinds of sockets for relays - that I do not know... - but I just googled: Yes there are! I did not know that and I might just order some myself...

 

Ok so, this has been about a month long project…easily tied for number 1 on the mod difficulty scale so far in my book.

Using the relay noted above, following Peter’s diagram, some haphazard soldering/heat shrink, I anxiously wired up my little blue relay.

BOOM. Worked FIRST try.

A more comprehensive overview and high level walkthrough to follow.

——

Peter, following your diagram and the relay you note made this work perfectly. Thank you very much for your expertise. I tip my hat to you.

 

Gr8! And good that the "BOOM" wasn't meant literally....
And yes, heat shrink is good, when your relay pins are big enough to apply them.

 

Soooo here’s one for you.

This solution was working with no issue. Now the camera will turn on in reverse, but will not shut itself off when shifting out of reverse. However, if I simply physically move the relay, it clicks and shuts the camera off.

Perhaps just a bad relay?

 

Yep, sounds like a bad relay. As long as the coil is powered, physically moving the relay would not open the relay. That means, the signal from the reverse light to hold the relay closed is not present anymore (which you can confirm by measuring this when the camera is still on, while it should not be). A\nd without that signal, the relay should open. If it does not, the relay is buggered. Did you use a 12V/10A rated relay?

 

Winner winner chicken dinner.

Bad relay. Replaced it and works as intended now.

Thank you for all the help. Perhaps this should be a sticky?