5 November 2022 Reading time: ~1 minute

This custom module enables the use of a Sync3 navigation system (originally designed for models from 2016 onwards) in a 2014 Mondeo Mk4 by bridging communication and control signals:

• Built around an STM32 microcontroller
• Features two CAN buses: one interfacing with the Mondeo Mk4, the other with the Sync3 system
• Includes a LIN bus dedicated to controlling ambient lighting
• Provides a timed power output for the rearview camera
• Analog input to read steering wheel control signals
• Two additional analog inputs for extra button interfaces (useful on a Ford Escape)
• An analog input for ambient light level detection — unused on Mondeo but handy for other models like Focus Mk2 and Escape
• Ultra-low standby power consumption below 1 mA

4 November 2022 Reading time: 7 minutes

When I needed a crossover with some off-road chops in the Kuga class, I started looking around. I was considering a Ford Maverick (2001-2003) or even a first-generation Ford Explorer, but since one of my friends already spends way too much time and money on Explorers, I thought I’d go with the Maverick instead.

Knowing that Radu once owned a Maverick with the classic Duratec-HE engine gave me some confidence and a good place to start my search.

Not long after, I spotted one for sale in Brașov. The price was right, but the color... well, it was green. "Any color, as long as it’s blue," I told myself. What surprised me even more was that this 2005 Maverick was actually a Ford Escape Hybrid - something I hadn’t expected.