'98 Explorer XLT 4 dr - Rear lock stuck, door won't open

Same problem here - just all of a sudden the hatch won't do anything but click. Have you found a fix or inexpensive way to get it open. I really don't want to do to the dealer and pay a bundle. Thanks for any tips you may have.

The rear hatch on my '98 Explorer won't open either. The rear lift window opens fine but the hatch won't. There surely is a way of opening it without going to the dealer or a locksmith. Any ideas.

I can't believe that any responsible car manufacturer would make a vehicle that it was impossible to open a door from the inside.

Can't anybody tell me a solution to my rear hatch problem?

A rear hatch is not considered a door. There are not supposed to be any passengers back there. (Unless, of course, there are rearward facing seats there. Buit if there are, they would have seatbelts to keep the passengers in place.) Putting an interior latch there may be considered encouraging passengers back there, and as such, is definitely not something makers will do.

You missed the point. I'm not using it as a passenger area. The stupid designed double latch will allow the window to open but I cannot get the hatch to open. The only thing I want to do is get it open some how. Then I should be able to make adjustments to the latch system. Hopefully.

A similar thing happened on the '98 Ex I had. I used a bit of bent coat hanger wire to fish around down the upper glass latch hole to trip the mechanism.

Simon H

You asked a question:

I answered it. Now, you're asking a different question. Here's an answer to that question: hire a locksmith. Maybe you don't like that answer; that's cool. But don't knock auto makers for doing the right thing, even if it inconveniences you. Your 98 is over 7 years old; things go wrong. That's a fact of life. No one ever promised you perfection. There's a solution to your problem.