OverDrive for BYD: Free Dashcam & Sentry Mode App – Plain-English Install Guide

Quick answer: OverDrive is a free, open-source app that turns your BYD's built-in 360° cameras into a full dashcam and Sentry Mode (it watches and records around the car while it's parked). It runs on the car's own screen, keeps every recording in the car, and needs no account or subscription. It works on BYD cars with DiLink 3, 4 or 5 software. Installing it takes about 30–45 minutes and needs an Android phone (or a laptop). This guide shows what it does and walks you through the install, one step at a time.

Demo video by the OverDrive developer.

OverDrive at a glance

What it is	Dashcam, Sentry Mode, trip and charging logger, and car-control app for BYD
Price	Free (open source under the MIT licence). An optional internet-bypass feature may become paid later.
Works on	BYD cars with DiLink 3, 4 or 5 and the 360° (panoramic) camera system. Developed on the BYD Seal; the developer names support for the Sealion 7, Shark 6, Seal U / Sealion 6 DM-i, Atto 3, Dolphin and others.
Where your videos go	Stored in the car (internal storage, SD card or USB stick). Nothing is uploaded to a cloud.
Status	"Alpha" (early test version). It updates often, and you should expect the odd bug.
Official links	Website · GitHub project page · Discord help group

A few terms you'll see: DiLink is the name of BYD's infotainment (centre screen) software. APK (Android Package) is an app install file for Android, which is what the BYD screen runs on. ADB (Android Debug Bridge) is a tool that lets your phone install apps onto the car's screen.

What can OverDrive do?

1. Sentry Mode that actually tells you what happened

When the car is parked and locked, OverDrive keeps an eye on all four cameras. Its AI (artificial intelligence) object detection spots people, vehicles, bikes and animals, and rates each event as Notice, Alert or Critical. Every clip is tagged with what was seen, how close it got and where it happened, so you can find the one that matters fast. You can set it to arm when you lock the car, and limit it to certain hours or skip it at home.

2. Proximity recording with the parking sensors

OverDrive can use the car's 8 parking radar sensors as a trigger: it only records when something gets close to the car, and keeps a few seconds from before the trigger. That saves storage and power compared with recording all the time.

3. A proper dashcam while you drive

Choose continuous recording, recording only while in gear, or proximity recording. Video is up to 2560 × 1920 resolution in H.264 or H.265 (two common video formats; H.265 makes smaller files). You can add a speed, gear, GPS and time stamp to the video, record cabin audio (off by default), and save to a USB stick.

4. Watch your car live from your phone

Open the cameras from your phone's browser. At home on the same Wi-Fi it's instant. Away from home you can use a free "tunnel" service (a secure link from the car to your phone): Zrok (recommended by the developer for video), Tailscale or Cloudflare. There are Horn and Flash buttons on the live view to scare off anyone too close to the car.

5. Alerts on your phone

Get a notification when motion is detected, a recording starts or the 12V battery is low. Use free phone push notifications (add the OverDrive web page to your home screen) or a free Telegram bot.

6. Trip, charging and battery history

Every drive is logged with a route map, energy use (kWh per 100 km) and a "Driving DNA" score for smoothness and efficiency. Every charge is logged with energy, cost and power. It also tracks battery voltage and gives an estimate of battery health (SOH, State of Health). Plug-in hybrids (DM-i models) are supported.

7. Blind-spot camera and pothole warnings

Switch on an indicator and a side-camera view pops up on screen. "RoadSense" learns where the potholes and speed bumps are on your usual roads and warns you before you reach them. There's also built-in turn-by-turn navigation that can show on the driver display.

8. Automations and button remapping

Build "when this happens, do that" rules without coding. For example: show the rear camera when you reverse, close the windows when the car locks, or turn on seat heating below 10 °C. You can also give the steering-wheel buttons new jobs (single, double or long press), and browse ready-made automations shared by other BYD drivers.

9. Smart home and AI extras

Advanced users can send live car data to Home Assistant (a popular smart-home system) and control climate, windows or the charge limit from it. All commands go straight to the car, not through BYD's cloud. Newer versions also add an optional AI assistant that can explain trips and battery use, using your own AI account key.

What it doesn't do

• It doesn't upload your videos anywhere. If you want a backup, copy clips off the car yourself.
• It isn't made or supported by BYD. Help comes from the developer and the user community on Discord and GitHub.
• It can't add cameras your car doesn't have. Camera features need the 360° camera system.

Before you start: read this

• It's unofficial software. Installing it means switching on developer settings in the car's hidden engineering menu. Ask your BYD dealer how this could affect your warranty before you go ahead, and do it at your own risk.
• It's an early (alpha) version. Features change often, and some may not work on your exact car.
• Software updates from BYD can change things. After a BYD update you may need to switch the developer settings back on or reinstall.
• Battery use. Recording while parked uses power. If you leave the car for a long time, use the "On Only" setting so OverDrive shuts down fully when you park.
• Never set it up while driving. Park somewhere safe with the car switched on.

What you need

• Your BYD, parked, with the car switched on.
• A phone paired to the car by Bluetooth, with its personal hotspot available.
• An Android phone with the free Termux app (a simple command app). No Android phone? Use a Windows or Mac laptop with Google's free "Android SDK Platform-Tools" instead; the commands are the same.
• The OverDrive APK file, downloaded from the official GitHub release page (under "Assets"). Only download it from there.

How to install OverDrive on your BYD, step by step

These steps follow the developer's own setup guide. If anything on your screen looks different, check the official website or ask in the Discord group.

Part 1: Switch on ADB in the car

1. Pair your phone. Connect your phone to the car by Bluetooth. The next step only works when a phone is paired.
2. Open the engineering menu. Open the car's Phone app and dial *#91532547#* (include the star at the end).
3. Get the unlock code. The screen shows your car's IMEI (a unique ID number for the car's built-in mobile modem) and a prompt in Chinese. On your phone, open ahmada3mar.github.io/BYD (a community code tool linked by the developer, not by BYD), paste the IMEI and it gives you a code. Type that code into the car and tap 进入 (Chinese for "Enter").
4. Turn on the two debug switches. In the engineering menu open TestTools, scroll down and switch on both Debug mode when USB connected and Wireless adb debug switch.
5. Find the car's IP address. Connect the car to your phone's hotspot. On the car go to Settings → WLAN, tap your hotspot, tap the info (i) icon and write down the IP address (it looks like 192.168.x.x). An IP address is the car's address on the network.

Part 2: Install the app from your phone

Keep the car connected to your phone's hotspot. Open Termux and type each line below, pressing Enter after each one.

1. Update Termux:
   pkg update && pkg upgrade -y
2. Install the ADB tools:
   pkg install android-tools -y
3. Let Termux see your Downloads folder:
   termux-setup-storage
   Tap Allow when your phone asks.
4. Connect to the car (use the IP address from Part 1):
   adb connect 192.168.x.x:5555
   If the car's screen asks you to allow the connection, tap allow.
5. Go to the folder with the APK:
   cd ~/storage/downloads
6. Install OverDrive (use the exact file name you downloaded):
   adb install overdrive.apk
   When Termux shows Success, the OverDrive icon appears on the car's screen.

Tip: not sure of the file name? Type ls and press Enter to list the files in the folder.

Part 3: First launch

1. Open OverDrive on the car's screen.
2. When the car asks to allow ADB access, tap Allow.
3. Go to Settings and make sure Disable Autostart is switched off. This keeps OverDrive running in the background.
4. Restart the screen (important): press and hold the Volume Down button for 5 seconds and wait for the system to restart fully. The developer says this step is needed to finish the install.
5. Pick your recording mode, choose where to save videos (a USB stick is a good idea) and set up Sentry Mode.

Part 4 (optional): Watch your car and get alerts away from home

1. Sign up free at zrok.io and copy the invite token from the email.
2. In OverDrive, paste the token into the Zrok settings. A web address for your car is created automatically.
3. Open that address on your phone and add it to your home screen (iPhone: Safari → Share → Add to Home Screen; Android: Chrome → ⋮ → Install app).
4. Open the new icon, go to Notifications and tap Enable on this device.

Prefer Telegram? In Telegram message @BotFather, send /newbot and follow the prompts to get a bot token. Paste it into OverDrive's Telegram settings, tap Generate PIN, then send /pair and the PIN to your new bot.

Keeping OverDrive up to date

In Settings → About → Update channel you can choose Alpha (the stable channel, recommended for everyday use) or Braveheart (newest features first, with more chance of bugs). You can also back up all your settings and trips to one file, which is handy if the car's screen is ever reset.

Troubleshooting

• The dial code does nothing: check your phone is paired by Bluetooth, and that you included the star at the end.
• "adb connect" fails: make sure the car and the phone running Termux are on the same hotspot, the IP address is correct, and the Wireless adb switch is on.
• App stops after a while: check "Disable Autostart" is off, and do the 5-second Volume Down restart.
• A camera shows the wrong view: OverDrive has a camera set-up option to assign each camera correctly for your model.
• Still stuck: the app can send a diagnostic log (personal details removed) and give you a short code to share on Discord or GitHub.

Frequently asked questions

Is OverDrive free?

Yes. OverDrive is free and open source under the MIT licence, with no subscription. The developer says the optional internet-bypass feature may become paid later because it costs money to run servers. You can support the developer through the Ko-fi link on the official website.

Which BYD models does OverDrive work on?

BYD cars running DiLink 3, 4 or 5 with the 360° camera system. It was developed on the BYD Seal, and the developer names support for the Sealion 7 and Shark 6, plus the Seal U / Sealion 6 DM-i, Atto 3, Dolphin and Yuan Pro among others. Because it's an early version, some features may not work on every model and year.

Does OverDrive work on right-hand-drive BYDs in Australia, the UK and New Zealand?

The developer doesn't limit it to one drive side; it depends on your car's DiLink version and cameras. If your car has the 360° cameras and DiLink 3 or later, it should be supported. Check the Discord group for owners with the same model in your country.

Do I need a computer to install it?

No. An Android phone with the free Termux app is enough. iPhone users will need a Windows or Mac laptop with Google's Android SDK Platform-Tools to run the same commands.

Will installing OverDrive void my BYD warranty?

We can't say for sure, and it may depend on your country and dealer. OverDrive is not made or approved by BYD, and installing it means switching on hidden developer settings. Ask your dealer before installing.

Does Sentry Mode drain the battery?

Recording while parked uses some power. OverDrive has a low-power parked mode that idles the cameras until something moves, and an "On Only" setting that shuts it down completely when you park. It can also alert you when the 12V battery is low.

Where are my recordings saved, and does anyone else see them?

Recordings stay in the car: on internal storage, an SD card or a USB stick. There's no account and no cloud upload. When you watch live from your phone, the video goes directly from the car through the tunnel you set up.

How is OverDrive different from BYD's built-in dashcam?

BYD's own dashcam records the front camera. OverDrive adds parked Sentry Mode with AI detection, proximity recording from the parking sensors, live remote viewing, phone alerts, trip and charging history, automations and more. It can also record the factory front camera alongside the 360° cameras.

Our take

OverDrive is one of the most complete free apps we've seen for BYD owners. If you've wanted a Sentry Mode like Tesla's, it's well worth a look. Just go in knowing it's community-made, early-stage software, and take the warranty question seriously. If you try it, tell us how it went on your model at support@funbyd.com and we'll add your findings to this guide.

FunBYD is not affiliated with BYD or the OverDrive developer. App features and install steps are taken from the developer's official GitHub page and website as of November 2026 and may change. Follow these steps at your own risk.