This review is based on my first impressions only; I have not fitted it yet and so cannot comment on the durability or even it's performance in use but it certainy looks more substantial than the OEM part.
I bought this to replace the failing, entirely plastic, original fitted part (made by LUK). Mine has the ubiquitous, but intermittent, leak which drips down the pedal into the rubber pad, making it slide around and causing the carpet oilslick... (why am i telling you this? you obviously know...)
The push rod and the lower connector on this Dorman version are made of aluminium and steel. (The photo showed some yellow metal parts but on mine they're not.) I had heard about this product in a forum and had been trying to find one in the UK for a while, without success.
In the end I opted to import this from the US, which did turn out marginally more (around £3) than a new LUK one (but less than half the price Ford want for a new plastic one, which will have LUK written on it).
What I didn't know until I emailed the seller is that the cylinder body is also of cast metal. It looks reassuringly solid and in general feels more worthwhile to be fitting this rather than another original one, which just looks flimsy.
Only time will tell if the seal is any better, which is how these normally tend to fail. Dorman do make a big deal in their blurb about selecting the correct fluid-compatible seals and uprating parts where deemed necessary, but so far I'm taking that for what it is, marketing. (although I guess I did buy it so the marketing worked.)
I have read that the leak can be caused by the connector where the push rod fits to the pedal, which can become loose and allow too much lateral movement, which makes sense as the rod would then be pushing at an angle which may well stress the seal (depending how it's designed) . I have also heard a couple of cases of the welded tab on the pedal (for that push rod connection) breaking off and causing the (plastic) rod to snap under the pedal pressure so I will inspect this weld and the rod connection when I change it.
The bolts that hold this in place seat into threaded bosses in the cast body, instead of the original's screws self tapping into the plastic.
Also, the part does come with plastic caps on the fittings to stop ingress, although the photos show it without.
I will add an update when I actually fit it!