Replacing Stereo in 2012 Escape XLT - need wiring info

[Footy111]

Hello all,
I'm working on a recently bought 2012 Escape XLT (w/o nav).

What I'm trying to do: Take out the factory stereo unit, and replace it with a Jensen CAR70V, fitted into a Scosche double-din faceplate, while adding in an Axxess SWC-1 adaptor in order to retain the steering wheel's media control buttons' functions. I don't mind losing the Sync functions, because the Jensen unit I'm installing has Android Auto, and I'll be using that instead.

As you'll see in the picture below, I've taken the whole center console/stereo/ac section apart -- Which means that, unfortunately, now the Escape is refusing to start. I must've disconnected some harness or connector that's crucial to the vehicle starting, as turning the key now just causes the anti-theft icon on the dashboard display to turn on and blink a few times.
So I've got to figure out these problems before I can drive anywhere again (A genius move on my part, I know!)

At any rate, I'd like to know, in reference to the pic below, what the heck parts "A", "B", and "C" are, what their functions are, and (if I'm lucky) wiring diagrams for these mystery harnesses/connectors.
(I do know that the part I've labeled "C" is a cable that ran along the right side of the stock stereo head unit, and plugged into the control panel on the front of the stock head unit. Should I assume this "C" cable is just for the controls on the stock stereo, and I should just ignore it and tape it off/away?)
I'm also VERY curious as to which part is rendering my car un-startable!

https://i.imgur.com/G5BtoQN.png

Any help is appreciated; thank you all in advance.

[bluto]

A is the satellite radio antenna, B is the secondary connector for the radio (contains pins for the CAN bus connection and aux inputs), C is the connector that goes to the radio buttons on the face of the bezel (The radio aka ACM and the buttons to control it are two separate components on the these model years).

None of these connectors being unplugged should cause a no-start situation. You need to observe the code that the anti-theft light is blinking out to figure out why the PATS anti-theft system is being triggered. The descriptions of what the blink codes mean are here: https://www.escape-city.com/viewtopic.p ... 46#p388292

[Footy111]

A is the satellite radio antenna, B is the secondary connector for the radio (contains pins for the CAN bus connection and aux inputs), C is the connector that goes to the radio buttons on the face of the bezel (The radio aka ACM and the buttons to control it are two separate components on the these model years).

None of these connectors being unplugged should cause a no-start situation. You need to observe the code that the anti-theft light is blinking out to figure out why the PATS anti-theft system is being triggered. The descriptions of what the blink codes mean are here: https://www.escape-city.com/viewtopic.p ... 46#p388292

Thank you for your help.
I think I've got to tie off the Sirius cable (not needed), and the former ACM control harness, and tape them off. I've then got to try to find info on which wire is which on that "B" connector, and if anyone makes a harness that will fit it.

Interestingly enough, I've got a larger problem to fix now, before I can get back to the stereo: The car still won't start, and the anti-theft light isn't blinking out any codes. Instead the Escape is just making the noises audible in the video below. A whole lot of clicking.

At the beginning of the stereo install process, I removed the little thumnail-sized plastic hatch to the upper right of the shifter, and used the little plastic button underneath the hatch to release the shifter and move it all the way backward, into the "L" position and get it out of the way while I installed the stereo -- I wonder if this has got something to do with the fact that it won't start now, and is clicking both from the dash display area and from the shifter's location as well. I' set it back the way it was originally, as far as I can tell, and yet there's still that clicking coming from the shifter area.

The battery had also died at some point while I was messing with the stereo, so the start attempt you see in the video below is done with a plugged-in battery jumper gadget attached to the battery.

A video of the clicking it's now doing instead of starting: https://youtu.be/52rLYybYF2o

As always, any help is appreciated.

[bluto]

This should work to connect to the connector you have labeled as 'B': http://www.metraonline.com/part/70-5520AUX
All it does is all you to use the stock AUX input jack.

You would plug the RCAs from this adapter into your new radio's AUX-in connectors. Then the stock 3.5mm AUX in jack would be available be used to connect a phone or mp3 player via a headphone jack.

I would make sure the battery is good before doing anymore troubleshooting of the no-start problem.

[Footy111]

This should work to connect to the connector you have labeled as 'B': http://www.metraonline.com/part/70-5520AUX
All it does is all you to use the stock AUX input jack.

You would plug the RCAs from this adapter into your new radio's AUX-in connectors. Then the stock 3.5mm AUX in jack would be available be used to connect a phone or mp3 player via a headphone jack.

I would make sure the battery is good before doing anymore troubleshooting of the no-start problem.

I ended up testing the battery, and it was weak. My mechanic had also experienced problems with getting the thing to start. So I bought and installed a new battery since the last time I posted, and now it's starting fine, and the clicking/no-start situation is solved.

So now I'm back to having a stereo that won't turn on, and winter is approaching fast. I'm getting hectic 'cause I want to get this thing done and dusted before I'm outside trying to work on my car in a blizzard.

I'm at the point where I'm just trying to get power to the new stereo head, by just connecting the most basic and necessary of the wires -- the +12V rail, the ground wire, and the 4 pairs of wires that go out from the stereo unit to the stock speakers (I'm not doing any adding of amps, subs, whatever).
When I do that, it still just sits in a state where the main blue power button on the stereo unit blinks briefly once every 8 seconds or so. It looks kind of like what my old Toyota's anti-theft light used to do, though I don't know what the odds are that the blinking is some sort of stand-by mode for the stereo unit. Maybe it's that, or maybe it's just broken?

At any rate, it looks like I've got to figure out which wires are which on the main "A" harness. I'd also like to know what the other wires on the "B" harness do. I know you've mentioned the AUX input, but there are three other pairs of wires on that "B" harness, and I'm wondering what each of them does.

I don't know if, for example, there's an "Accessory/12V" rail being provided by the Ford harness, but I haven't connected it because I don't know which wire is which.

Thank you for the help so far, and for anything else you might be able to offer.

[bluto]

The main 24 pin connector has the power, accessory, ground, all 4 speaker +/- connections, and the 2 wires for the steering wheel audio controls. If you purchase an aftermarket installation harness it should have all of those wires labeled. Here is a connector pinout that should be close:

The smaller connector has the wires for the aux input connector, the audio in from the SYNC module, and the MS-CAN bus data connection to the factory radio. An adapter like this: https://axxessinterfaces.com/product/AX-FD1
can connect to the MS-CAN bus and then output discrete signal wires for parking brake, reverse, & speed sense for aftermarket radios that have inputs for these.

[Footy111]

Hey Bluto,
Thanks again for the helpful info. You're the only person I've gotten any info from, and it's been a god-send.

Ok, so I made a video yesterday, with a lot of un-necessary editing, to give a better look at where I'm at, and what all the Frankenstein'd harnesses and wires I'm using look like:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TntHmG3y2i0
(Part of this video is a little more obsolete, in light of the info you just gave, but maybe the video helps anyhow.)

So it looks like, if the main 24-pin connector contains the wires you described, then the unknown 3 wires I've got going on are probably: Accessory, SWC in, SWC out.
Do I have that right?
If that's the case, then I'd want to assume that the two wires, out of the mystery 3, that are right next to each other, are the SWC wires. The lone wire over toward the ground would then have to be the "accessory power/ignition" wire (I actually don't know what that means --What's an accessory/ignition wire is supposed to do, that the main +12V power wire doesn't do?)
but I've tried connecting that lone, 3rd wire to the "acc/ignition" wire on the new Pioneer head unit, and the unit still wouldn't turn on, and instead seemed to be making an unhealthy quiet buzzing sound.

I did buy an aftermarket harness, as you'll see in the video, and I did email the Chinese manufacturer about which wires were supposed to be which. They got back to me with this:
https://imgur.com/1NrMv0i
I don't know if it's accurate, and the way they've labeled the wires is a little janky because the writer's English is bad.

About the smaller connector: - I definitely don't have a harness like that, but I think this Jensen, cheap as it is, can make use of those CAN-BUS signals, so I wonder if I should just buy one of those harnesses for it. Hell, I'm wondering if I should buy a whole new set of Crutchfield pre-made harnesses, etc. Just so I don't have to figure anyof this out -- Here's the thing though, I've searched through Crutchfield's site, and their filter mechanism says that they don't make harnesses for a 2012 Escape XLT.

So that's where I'm at now. Thank you again for the help. I wonder if you have any thoughts based on my ramblings here.

[bluto]

You are almost there. The aftermarket radio needs two 12V feeds. One is constant 12V and the other is switched when the key is on. The wire on your new radio harness marked ACC or similar needs to connect to pin 15 on the vehicle connector. That one should have power only when the key is on and will trigger your radio to activate. The other two wires (pins 18 & 19) are for the steering wheel audio controls. I can see from the steering wheel in your video that you have 8 buttons. Five of them (vol +, vol -, skip up, skip down, media) go to the radio connector on pins 18 & 19 on the main connector. The other three (phone, voice, ok) are wired to the sync module.

[Footy111]

I attached the accessory wire today, but no luck on the power issue. I can't see what the problem might be. I made a video of the results:
https://youtu.be/4bSC4KzaGIg

Thanks again, for whatever you may be able to tell me.

[bluto]

I would suggest using a DVM or a test light to verify that you have power coming out of the (1 constant power, 1 switched power) harness where you expect it. You could have blown a fuse while messing with the wires. If that works OK, you might have a bad radio. I would try bench testing it with a power supply to ensure that it works.