How to: 4th gen hatch swap on 3rd gen Explorer DONE!!!

[loooney2ns]

The real reason I bought the 4th gen was because I wanted a V8 truck. The one I bought was the first one I found that was a good deal. It just happened to be a 4th gen. I was perfectly happy with my 3rd gen, except for the 170K 4.0L. That had me worried. Every day, I would start it wondering if that was the day the timing chains would start rattling.

 

[MartyD]

Where are the connectors located? is there room to Install an "adapter"? I'm thinking of a set of plugs with a short length of wire between that would adapt the 4th gen door wiring to the 3rd gen Explorer wiring without having to rewire the plugs.

 

[Everett Bartz]

Where are the connectors located? is there room to Install an "adapter"? I'm thinking of a set of plugs with a short length of wire between that would adapt the 4th gen door wiring to the 3rd gen Explorer wiring without having to rewire the plugs.

Hi Marty, those two plugs are above the headliner, right of the centerline, and very near the hatch and held in place with a plastic clip. I thought about an adapter but that would require getting the plugs and what not. I just spliced the wires using solder and shrink tube.

 

[TTSaleen]

I've been considering this swap on my 2003. Great thread!

 

[Donnie97]

So details on door fitment itself. The 4th gen door will bolt right on to the 3rd gen. The latch, weatherstripping and the side "guide" pieces mounted to the body are the same between the 2 trucks. The black panels beside the window along with the 3rd brake light are the same and interchange between both hatches. It is definitely best to fit your door before paint because you will have to adjust your hinges to get fitment correct. Then you can have the whole hatch painted with hinges attached.

Onto the wiring........Now my truck is an 04 and the hatch is an 06, and this is all my research consisted of. You may have completely different wiring or wiring colors (all of my colors and 6 pins were different) depending on year of truck and year of hatch. With the fact that the connectors will plug right in from the jump YOU MUST DOUBLE CHECK ALL PINS before doing so. Failing to do so will fry the body control module immediately if not worse.

I've been sitting on this idea for about two years now, and after seeing this im gonna pull the trigger. Thanks for making such a detailed install thread man.