Question about Axxera wiring on 2021 and up E450

Bob Nodine

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 23, 2021
Messages
1,085
Location
Knoxville, TN
I have a question that I believe will be unique to the 2021 and up Ford E-350/450 cutaway chassis that Thor installed the Axxera double din radio in. To say the least this was quite a hack job by Thor. I will get into that in the future when I post what is involved with removing the Axxera. Unlike earlier models you can't just insert a tool and slide the head unit out.

There is a 9 position Molex plug that may be Ford or it may be Thor. I am thinking Thor because it brings two wires from the house 12 volts form some place and a ground. In addition to that it provided two pairs of wires that connect to the rear speakers. In our case the rear speakers are part of the house and mounted above the couch.

There is one mystery wire and the subject of my question. This position of the Molex connector is wired back to one of the house 12 volt pins via a fuse holder that Thor as wired into the Axxera radio harness. Obviously the intent is to power something downstream from the Molex connector. I don't know what that could be and was hoping someone here may know the answer. See the sketch and photo below.
 

Attachments

  • 9 pos Molex to chassis.jpg
    9 pos Molex to chassis.jpg
    12.5 KB · Views: 32
  • 20241222_055305.jpg
    20241222_055305.jpg
    114.9 KB · Views: 33
Last edited:
How about the "rear" camera trigger wire?

You mentioned power from the house batteries, did you identify the chassis battery "memory" line?
 
There is a power antenna wire involved in most modern radios. I don't know why. I haven't seen a power antenna in years.
I've installed four or five rado heads in the last two years and they all had one.
The most recent I've messed with had something that happened when you opened a car door. It attached to the dome light circuit. The Chinese instructions weren't clear.
I assume electric cars have had to be adjusted for.
 
Last edited:
How about the "rear" camera trigger wire?

You mentioned power from the house batteries, did you identify the chassis battery "memory" line?

Don't think so because this wire is going to supply significant current and is fused at 5 amps. Maybe my sketch was not as self-explanatory as I had hoped. After making this post and doing my daily routines with the wife and dog (they both have extreme cases of cabin fever and must go to the the dog park, shopping, etc. daily) it dawned on me that the connection could be powering the camera multiplexer. It is stuffed precariously (which seems to be the norm for Thor) behind the double din cavity. When I go out to the big garage this morning I plan to do a test with the meter to check that out. Will post beck what I find.

The plug in the photo I am holding is the Ford factory speaker plug. Thor did a hack and as opposed to purchasing a mating connector to connect the door speakers to the Axxera they cut the wires from the back of that plug and used butt connectors to connect the front speakers to the head unit. To remove the Axxera it was necessary to cut those wires. I will be installing Molex connectors when the new unit goes in.
 

Attachments

  • Ford factory speaker plug.jpg
    Ford factory speaker plug.jpg
    131.2 KB · Views: 18
Last edited:
There is a power antenna wire involved in most modern radios. I don't know why. I haven't seen a power antenna in years.
I've installed four or five rado heads in the last two years and they all had one.
The most recent I've messed with had something that happened when you opened a car door. It attached to the dome light circuit. The Chinese instructions weren't clear.
I assume electric cars have had to be adjusted for.

Yep, the new unit I am installing and the Axxera I took out both have a power antenna lead. I have not seen a vehicle with a powered antenna since the 1960's. If memory serves me they would send up the antenna when the radio was turned on. Of course, I am to cheap to buy high end European cars which may still have that feature. The US seems to be doing away with the old whip type antennas.

My wife's new Chevy can be annoying because ever time you approach it with the key fob it wakes up and turns on exterior lights.
 
Last edited:
I have confirmed that the power feedback to the 9 position Molex is to power the camera multiplexer.
 

Attachments

  • Axxera harness.jpg
    Axxera harness.jpg
    193.7 KB · Views: 32
What new unit are you installing in place of the Axxera?
 
What new unit are you installing in place of the Axxera?

This is the unit I am upgrading to:



Here is a short video of my bench test setup I used to make sure everything was working before doing the actual installation.

I have installed Molex connectors on the harness and plugged it into the 2021 Ford E-450 chassis. Everything is working but I have not finished the installation because I am waiting on a Double Din kit for the 2021 E-450. The other folks on here who have installed this unit have Class A motorhomes and are not up against the Double DIN bezel problem that comes with the Thor installed Axxera unit in the late model cutaway van. The bezel Thor used will not allow either the Axxera or the new unit I am installing to pass thru the bezel. I may end up doing a custom thing but wanted to see first if the Double DIN kit I have on order will work.
 
Bob thank you for the response and looks like I’ll be following you with that mod for my RV. Again thank you for the information.
Kevin
 

New posts

Try RV LIFE Pro Free for 7 Days

  • New Ad-Free experience on this RV LIFE Community.
  • Plan the best RV Safe travel with RV LIFE Trip Wizard.
  • Navigate with our RV Safe GPS mobile app.
  • and much more...
Try RV LIFE Pro Today
Back
Top