SYNC 4 swap for Maverick XL / XLT (non SYNC 3 systems)

[propp2531]

Ok so time for an update. 2021 base Bronco As Built seems to work great for the 2020 escape ACM @propp2531 and I bought. No DTCs and the ACM seems to communicate with the rest of the vehicle. Going through the cluster, you can switch between AM, FM, and SiriusXM. Steering wheel volume controls work along with what appears to be all speakers.

Now for the bad news, I could not get the Sync 4 APIM to communicate with the ACM no matter how many variations I tried. This issue seems to be the root of most all APIM functions that are currently disabled (Bluetooth included). The best I was able to do was get the clock working…. So that means one of two things to me, I just haven’t found the right combo of as built yet for the APIM or the ACM is not compatible with the APIM. My guess is it’s just a programming issue since the bronco ABD works so well with the ACM.

Damn I was hoping you found a build for it. Did you try the the as built posted on cynlabs?

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[zackmd1]

Damn I was hoping you found a build for it. Did you try the the as built posted on cynlabs?

Yep... And that was farther away from working then the Bronco ABD...

Not even the rear camera works... Goes to a blue screen when put into reverse. I verified that the wiring is correct as the APIM through a DTC "rear vision system general electrical fault" and still nothing. Switching from analog to digital in the ABD gets rid of the blue screen but does not display anything in its place.

I am curious if you get the same results with your APIM when you try it. Not outside the realm of possibility that I have a bad APIM.

 

[propp2531]

Yep... And that was farther away from working then the Bronco ABD...

Not even the rear camera works... Goes to a blue screen when put into reverse. I verified that the wiring is correct as the APIM through a DTC "rear vision system general electrical fault" and still nothing. Switching from analog to digital in the ABD gets rid of the blue screen but does not display anything in its place.

I am curious if you get the same results with your APIM when you try it. Not outside the realm of possibility that I have a bad APIM.

That’s crazy the cynlabs build was worse. It’s also weird that nothing seems to work regardless of changes.
I’m hoping I have better luck and can get the build data sorted

 

[zackmd1]

That’s crazy the cynlabs build was worse. It’s also weird that nothing seems to work regardless of changes.
I’m hoping I have better luck and can get the build data sorted

Yep. I’m going to update the harness to add back the shields I didn’t pay attention to the first time around just to eliminate any chances it’s the wiring causing these issues.

 

[zackmd1]

That’s crazy the cynlabs build was worse. It’s also weird that nothing seems to work regardless of changes.
I’m hoping I have better luck and can get the build data sorted

Ok think I might have solved the camera issue. Have to test tomorrow to be sure. While the other 3 shields are acting exactly as I thought (metal sheathing encasing wires with only the APIM pin providing a ground) the camera shield looks like it is pulling double duty. Its acting as the shield and also what appears to be the ground for the camera module itself since it runs the entire length of the vehicle and is connected to the camera module as well.

Hopefully adding this lead this solves the camera issue. If it does then it is just down to the ACM communication issue.

Two things I did find interesting though while messing with the configuration.... Sync 4 has an option to enable HS4 can and communicate with an HS4 TCU. I do not have those CAN Bus leads populated in the harness but it might be worth trying and seeing if the APIM can communicate with the TCU. That would add wifi and OTA updates back into the mix for Sync 4. The other thing was that Sync 4 has parameters specific for the Maverick. That means either sync 4 was planned but then scrapped before the Maverick released, or there are future plans to bring Sync 4 to the Maverick.

 

[Mabcim]

My guess is that it was scraped due to the chip, or a display, shortage. The center area of the dash was clearly designed for a larger sync4 screen.
BTW - you 2 are doing great work.

 

[uh50]

I feel like a ctr with a Sirius tuner doesn’t exist. Only mention I’ve ever seen of it is in the manual

I'm coming to that conclusion as well.

 

[gametyme89]

My guess is that it was scraped due to the chip, or a display, shortage. The center area of the dash was clearly designed for a larger sync4 screen.
BTW - you 2 are doing great work.

I'm pretty sure it was designed for a Funko Pop companion to ride with, personally.

 

[Eagle11]

Well, I don't need wireless CarPlay but would love to have SiriusXM as a part of the audio system upgrade to Sync3/4. In that case, Sync 3 would do for me, or even a Harman CTR ACM with the SDARS capability...if I could find one.

I'm the opposite, I want wireless carplay, I don't care about Sync. Either way, upgrading always gives you more flexibility.

 

[Jobst88]

Once this is all perfected is this modification straight forward for the average person with basic hand tools and a laptop? A lot of the technical terms being used here are way over my head but I do have mechanical and some computer skills.

 

[propp2531]

Once this is all perfected is this modification straight forward for the average person with basic hand tools and a laptop? A lot of the technical terms being used here are way over my head but I do have mechanical and some computer skills.

The hardest part is the wiring harness. @zackmd1 understands this really well and I’m a big dummy when it comes to it. After that it’s just buying parts and entering the forscan entries which isn’t difficult.
It’s probably a 6 out if 10 just because of the wiring

 

[Jobst88]

The hardest part is the wiring harness. @zackmd1 understands this really well and I’m a big dummy when it comes to it. After that it’s just buying parts and entering the forscan entries which isn’t difficult.
It’s probably a 6 out if 10 just because of the wiring

Ok thanks. I’m confident if I’m shown pictures of each step I can pull this off. Plenty of time for this to be figured out by the time I get my truck some time in May.

 

[zackmd1]

Ok small victory! The rear camera now works. That shield wire did it. Now its just down to the ACM. My suspicion currently is that the ACM we bought is not compatible with the APIM since not a single change to the APIM as built has resulted in any real change to functionality. I want to see if @propp2531 can replicate my results and then ill go from there on acquiring a new ACM to test. Plus side though is that the ACM I have is a sat unit and should work just fine with Sync 3.

 

[BootXL76]

So apparently 2022 transit connect vans have an option for sync 4. I need to find a vin of one with that option so I can pull the As Built data. I think that would be a great starting point for the APIM configuration.

Not sure if you’ve already found one but here’s a VIN from a ‘22 titanium
NM0GE9G23N1516640

it says it has SiriusXM, and according to the options page for transit vans, that should line up

 

[Chris_G]

Any guesstimates what parts will cost?

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