Review on 🔒 Enhance Security with Install Essentials 524N High Power Door Lock Motor by Jeff Olson

Beautiful escapement. I bought it because, as many people will attest, Ford decided that if your drivetrain fails on your Escape, you need to replace the entire mechanism in the tailgate, which would cost around $190. In most cases, this is a waste of around $160 since the mechanical parts only need to be lubricated when the drive is replaced. This is not a replacement part that you want to use. If you make a mistake installing this item, your tailgate could open suddenly, with fatal consequences. In addition, you should also check if your car's tailgate is responsive because on some models this part has failed during a collision. So you have been warned. To install this part I had to remove the door handle assembly. . It's not a lot of work, but a little boring. I removed the old actuator and removed the link arm (small piece of plastic attached to the actuator) from the old and new actuator. The plastic heads are slotted so they only engage and disengage with the actuators in a specific way. If you're trying too hard, you're probably trying to take it off the wrong way. The first change I had to make to use this drive was the drive's attachment point. I had to use a dremel to cut the groove at a 90 degree angle to the existing groove so the old plastic link arm could slide properly. After checking the fit of the old link arm, I placed the actuator on the door lock plate to figure out where I would need to drill holes to mount the actuator. To do this, you need to do a little tinkering. You need to make sure the drive movement is essentially the same as the old one. I had to drill 2 holes, one just below the old hole closest to the powerhead and another hole for mounting the mounting bracket almost opposite the new hole. It's hard to describe here, but I've chosen a location that has the least chance of getting in the way and still offers a triangular fortification. These drilled holes were made on a drill press and are the second modification I had to make. The third modification was the included mounting bracket, a long piece of metal that comes with the drive. I had a lot of extra clips hanging from the door lock assembly that I cut off with a Dremel tool. Don't forget to file/smooth the edge where you cut off the extra bracket. If, over time, a wire or something rubs against it, the sharp edge can damage it. This was the fourth change I had to make. I didn't want to cut into the wire harness on the car for the wiring, so I disassembled the old actuator and used the connector from it instead. It's not as easy as it seems. The connector is actually part of an injection molded plastic assembly that connects to the motor in the drive. I had to carefully remove it, sanding down the plastic until there was a spot where new wires could be soldered and bent so they could short out there in a new way. If you follow this path you will understand what I mean. Again I used a Dremel tool to gently remove the plastic. Then I soldered the cable connectors included in the kit (shortened the length), shrunk on several protective hoses, sealed them with insulating tape and made sure that this part could not short circuit or become a fire hazard. Keep in mind that your vehicle will experience a lot of shaking/movement over its lifetime and you don't want this connection to be faulty. Since I wasn't sure which way to properly wire the drive, I didn't completely rewire when I reinstalled. What I did was loosely insert the wires from the actuator into the appropriate barrel connectors which I attached to the old actuator connector. If you push them all the way down, they snap into place and it's painful to pull them out. After you connected them loosely, I checked the locks. When I first tested it, I had reverse wiring. I swapped the cables and checked again a few times. This worked as expected. Now connect the wire connectors securely and secure all the wires with electrical tape so they don't rub against the metal and don't move. After reinstalling the trunk lid, I found this drive to be a little louder than the old one. failed on escapes, so I wanted to understand why it failed. The drive comes from the German company Kiekert, part PA6 GF30. and good luck finding that part. many have tried. and failed. After disassembly, I found that the electric motor inside still worked perfectly. However, the gears associated with the engine were mostly frozen. The fat had thickened so much that the engine could no longer be turned. Too bad for Ford and Kickert that they don't do a better job here. This part fails on enough cars so this is clearly a design/manufacturing issue and should be addressed. At the very least, there should be a cheaper replacement that doesn't require you to buy the entire tailgate latch due to failure from a poorly matched lubricant in the actuator.