Well, Once again I have to rip all of this apart.
I took the tensioner spring off origionally, and this made my handle very very tight to turn, had to turn it with two hands to open it.
I just broke mine again, and have to rip it all apart to take it apart due to a faulty electrical lock, the lock is working, but the 'aftermarket' screw on lock deals that act as your lock/unlock always catches while unlocking electronically so I have to basically get into the truck, go through the back hatch area and unlock it manually then I can open ti, well I didn't do this, and seeing as it always would be hard to turn, I broke it again..
Stupid explorers are made for falling apart just look how the rocker panels are designed, to hold in water and rust out... way to go.
It never ends with this viehicle, and on top of all of that, now my driver door window wont roll down, and I have no clue why.
Well that spring is inside the lock to provide the 'loose' handle feeling you are most likely used to, since I remove the spring the handle was tight afterwards, but I think it prevented my stereo from being stole last month when my window rear hatch smashed glass trying to steal my stereo, the hard to open hatch handle saved my stuff from getting stolen, so I can preach about that.
Other then that I am going to have to take it al apart again... So if I remember right, there are 4 punch plastic panel holders at the top, so you have to remove those.
There is a screw that hold the handle inside to the back hatch, you have to unscrew that screw..
Then you take the interior paneling off,...
My issue will be not to break the inside paneling because I have cracked it last time I took it out, where the window part starts, it bent and cracked but didnt break.
So just be careful pulling that out
And If I remember right you have to remove a circular thing by the lock that falls out after you remove it once, so mine is already removed.
I think there were 2 bolts that held the mechanism in place...
The mechanism works like this, you turn the hatch handle down to the left side, it opens the glass, so it pulls a rod inside the rear hatch door on the left side down to open the glass, and pulls a rod down on the right for the door hatch to open..
its a very simple mechanism, I just wish that they would have made something not out of plastic in this instance, but have it made out of metal instead, the handle could have been plastic, but the interior mechanical plastic moving metal rods down makes for a 2nd break...
Suppose its good I can work on some stuff, not all.
Hope this helps, if I really get into it I will take pictures, although i DO KNOW its a heck of a lot easier to open the hatch door, remove the paneling, and do it like that but I am in a spot now that I have to remove it while the door is closed, and that right there is a b....
Thanks for the help everyone and you can do this too, just be careful.
The spring isn't needed, but when you tighten everythin back up, just becareful because it will feel like it is locked, when it isnt, and in my case of thinking it was unlocked I used the strength to open and broke it because it was locked... so do not do what I just did
EDIT:: My handle inside hooked to rear hatch had two screws on it one was a philips, the other was allen head, fyi.
They work perfectly though, and much cheaper than the $50+ from other vendors.
