EFFORTPOST I am going to [redacted] every Escape owner I see.

Content Warning: Autism

I'm honestly just venting, I don't expect anybody to read this.

Part 1: Hey bud, doing some pop-and-lock therapy?

For those who saw the video, I'm still working on that lanekeeping project. I had to scrap the entire design AGAIN and start over from scratch. The new design is looking suspiciously like the old design. I can get it working, but getting it to both look good and withstand 100°F temperatures is proving to be a challenge.

For most Fords of my generation, the lanekeeping is built into the rearview mirror -- which is heavy and poorly balanced.

The Focus and Escape used a much smaller standalone camera. If I could get that camera working on my car, that'd be FAR easier to mount.

(If you're from a country that never landed on the moon, Escape in America is Kuga in your shithole)

I know it's a long shot for the camera to actually be compatible, given Focus/Escape uses a completely different network architecture, but maybe they're similar enough, especially since the Escape architecture is technically older than my car's. On the radio module, the network selection parameter actually groups these two architectures as one setting.

Since it's a long-shot, I didn't want to spend the $150 on an Escape camera. But, this was an off-the-shelf component also used by GM and Mercedes. I can get a Mercedes-branded camera for only $20. If I can flash the Ford firmware to it, it'll be basically the same camera with a different connector. I've flashed firmwares before, how hard can it be?

Gonna learn you some acronyms

We need to go over a few terms for context.

Forscan: Third-party software, basically a reverse-engineered version of the IDS software used by Ford technicians. If you've ever heard of VAG-COM for Volkswagens, this is the Ford/Mazda equivalent. Access in-depth diagnostic codes, live sensor readings, module configuration, service procedures, etc. Most people use this to adjust parameters like correcting their speedometer for oversized tires.

Forscan Profiles: When you first connect to a vehicle, it has to do a full, slow module detection. You can save this profile so subsequent reconnects are much faster. Forscan will only search for modules available from the factory for your model. If you're trying to access a module not normally available, you need to load a saved profile from a vehicle that was equipped with that same module at the time of profile generation. There's no personal information stored beyond a partial VIN, like 2FM*********14901

AsBuilt / AB: A list of vehicle parameters stored in various modules. Engine type, boot screen type, whether the vehicle is RHD/LHD, what type of climate control, if trailer sway control is equipped, if it's a police vehicle, if it has a reverse camera, whether it should call 911 or 999, etc. This is the most popular section of Forscan because you can change parameters to disable the double-honk when you exit the car with the engine running, or enable Bambi mode (highbeans and foglights at the same time). Ford actually makes the AsBuilt publicly available for every car made since 1999.

IPMA: Image Processing Module A, Ford's name for the lanekeeping camera.

TCU: Telecumming Control Unit, the 4G modem used for FordPass

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Turns out, people are stubborn and retarded

I have the Escape IPMA in front of me. I have Forscan in front of me. I have the Ford firmware files ready to go. The only thing I don't have is a Forscan profile.

Since this camera has Mercedes firmware, it can't be directly detected by Forscan even if I put it in a compatible vehicle.

I'm instead relying on the bricked module recovery feature, where Forscan will spend 20 seconds hammering the network with the Ford bootloader. The idea is that if you power on the module during this time, the update will start before the module loads the Mercedes-specific firmware. But in order to reach this page, I need an Escape profile so Forscan knows where to stick the bootloader.

I went to several forums, explaining my situation: I have a Mercedes camera, I'm trying to force the Ford firmware to it, I need a Ford profile.

I signed up to the Focus forum. Nothing.

I posted to /r/FordEscape. Nothing.

I signed up to the Escape forum. The validation link didn't work, and I was subsequently banned for not clicking the link.

I posted to the Forscan forum. I got one guy to respond, but he was misinterpreting what I'm saying and stopped going online.

I'm assuming he's a pajoot or something, because he really seemed to struggle with the whole "I'm fully aware that a Mercedes camera will not be directly seen by Ford software. That is why I am trying to use the bricked module recovery to force Ford firmware onto it." Of note was his sentence about "If you want, I can provide IPMA configuration". That means he's offering to send me his AsBuilt parameters. I do not need the AsBuilt. The module doesn't even have an AsBuilt until the Ford firmware is loaded onto it. And what does he even mean by 'Ford does not allow programming' -- the entire point of Forscan is to do programming. That's all any of us use it for, editing parameters and performing firmware updates. And no, it's not going to be an entirely different hardware structure. It'll be the same chips with manufacturer-specific firmware. He stopped responding after that.

Another person on the Forscan forum suggested I find a used car dealer to get the profile. What world do these people live in? Do they really think I can just walk up to Dave's Used Cars and say Hey, I have zero interest in buying this car, but can I hook my laptop up and do (something) with this Russian software? I promise I'm legit. This would only work if the dealer let me drive the car alone, which is very hit-or-miss, and even then -- they will do the whole song and dance about trying to sell me a car once I return. How do I get my laptop into the car without them noticing? If they catch me connecting, that software technically could be used to program a third key so they COULD claim I was potentially trying to steal the car. If they insist on riding with me, then what? "Eh I'm gassy, nevermind, I'm just gonna go home"?

But that was nothing compared to the Escape forum. Holy hell. You thought I was repeating myself a lot in that little screenshot? At a certain point I was wondering if this next guy was just trolling me, or if he really is that big of an idiot. He's from Kansas so it could go either way.

My initial post, similar to before, explaining what I'm doing and why I need a profile:

While I admit it kind of beat around the bush, I didn't want to spend too much time babbling about Mercedes cameras and whatnot when the bulletpoint was that I needed a profile.

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Here was the first response:

So he doesn't seem to be understanding what I'm trying to accomplish, telling me there's unique brackets and how to search for AsBuilts.

In my reply, I reiterate that I'm already plenty knowledgeable in both AsBuilts and the windshield differences. I have a working system using the Gentex IPMA, now I want to try the Continental IPMA used on the Escape. I'm admitting it PROBABLY won't work, but I want to TRY.

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A few days later, I noticed my post was moved from the '3rd Gen Escape' subforum to the 'Other Vehicle Discussion' -- I bump the post saying "Why? My post is requesting information from 3rd-Gen Escape owners"

Again, he talks about the fucking AsBuilts, and just says "it wont work".

I tell him AGAIN that I don't need AsBuilts, I need a profile.

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Oh my god. Shut. The. Fuck. Up. About. AsBuilts.

Everything else he says is factually wrong, as I mention in my reply:

I'm definitetely getting into territory here because he keeps going about AsBuilt comparisons. I repeated myself like three times over, explaining that I need a profile. I know about AsBuilts. I have successfully done AsBuilt comparisons in the past. At this moment, the IPMA does not even have an AsBuilt because I'm still stuck on the 'Putting Ford Firmware' stage.

I very carefully explain every little goshdang detail behind what I'm trying to accomplish. An earlier draft even had me stressing "And when I say Continental, I am not referring to the Lincoln model. I know that does not use these cameras. I am referring to Continental, the company that produced the camera used in the Escape."

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After all this, where there's no longer ANY room for ambiguity, what does our brave dipshit respond with?

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Jesus tapdancing christ. I never once implied I was trying to do lane centering, which is a whole different thing. I never said the word center PERIODT. And guess what he means by 'you will have to modify the PSCM'? You guessed it: ASBUILT!

I already know the AsBuilt modification for the PSCM, as evidenced by the fact that I already had lanekeeping working with a different camera. It's address 702-02-01, 6th byte, change the 0 to a 1.

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So now we stand at my most recent reply.

He hasn't responded yet. I am fucking because this shouldn't be so difficult. It's a Forscan profile. Every Ford forum has multiple threads on Forscan. There's entire databases of the AsBuilts and vehicle-specific spreadsheets on common changes.

I've been working on this project for years, and I was hoping to finally get a break from the single hardest part: getting the mirror to stick to the glass. But no, somehow getting a 2KB file with zero personal information from a community with thousands of users is more difficult than getting a 2-pound mirror to stick to a windshield in direct sunlight.

I'm just waiting for SOMEONE to come through, so I can go back to that thread and call him an illiterate n-slur.

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Maybe this'll work. Don't even give these """people""" an opportunity to say it won't work.