The rear door lock actuator quit working last week on my 2002 XLT. The Ford replacement option was the entire assembly for $147. I purchased a generic actuator on Amazon for under $15 with shipping. The actual name was "Omega DS2SQ Lock Actuator". The key is the holes line right up. The old actuator comes off with an 1/8 inch allen wrench, and the screws heads are on the inside, really the top since the tailgate will be open if you are working on it. I suppose you could remove the assembly, but I didn't. I just removed the two nuts (10mm) and the one screw that held the assembly in place and let it hang on the rods that attach it to the actual latches and that was enough to get my hand in with the allen wrench to remove the old and install the new actuator. I pulled the old actuator apart and removed the plug and rigged it to hook up to the bullet connectors on the new plug. I intended to do that just to determine the polarity, but it worked so well I wrapped it in tape and went with it, just make sure it’s clear of the latch rod. The most challenging part will be to connect the tip of the new actuator to the mechanism. I pulled the tip off the old actuator, cut it a little with a coping saw, then drilled a hole in it, and one zip tie later it was securely in place. It’s working great so far! I did this in the driveway as it was getting dark, so if you ever took a clock apart as a kid this should be a breeze!
Rear Hatch Lock Actuator 
Hybrid Mode
