stuck window

Discussion in 'General Motoring' started by Oliver, Jul 7, 2006.

  1. Oliver

    Oliver Guest

    Hi!

    I got great help here last time (seatbelt light: thanks,
    hyundaitech!).

    So now I have another small challenge. The driver's window won't go up
    on my wife's 2003 Tibby GT. I've got the door panel off, and my
    question is .. what next?

    For example, could it just be the switch? How do I test that? Is
    there anything else I should test?

    If it's the motor that's the problem, then it appears that I can detach
    the window (by unbolting it from the carriage) and pull it up through
    the slot, and then unbolt the motor from where it's mounted to the
    interior door frame, and then slide that contraption .. ?down and
    through the frame holes? .. or ?up through the window slot?

    How much should I expect to pay for a used window motor? New ones
    appear to be around $80.

    Any advice will be much appreciated.
     
    Oliver, Jul 7, 2006
    #1
  2. Oliver

    hyundaitech Guest

    I'm presuming the regulator isn't the problem since you've got the door
    panel off and you make no mention of the window attempting to raise when
    you activate the switch.

    Plug your switch back in and try to raise the window. It still won't
    move, right? While holding the switch in the up position, give the motor
    a good whack with a wrench. If the window begins to go up, then there's a
    problem in the motor.

    If nothing happens, then you're back to doing electrical testing.
    Usually, the issue is indeed the motor. So, I'd recommend unplugging the
    motor and putting a test light between the terminals in the harness
    connector. Then move the switch to the up and down positions. If the
    lamp lights in each position, the switch is good and you have a bad motor.
    If the lamp only lights in the down position, you have a bad switch. If
    the lamp lights in neither position, you'll need to check the wiring to
    the switch.
     
    hyundaitech, Jul 7, 2006
    #2
  3. Oliver

    Oliver Guest

    It worked!

    I took a long flat file and beat the crap out of that motor, and the
    window went up, all the way. Cool .. now she won't have to worry about
    rain, and I have time to get a replacement motor.

    Thanks again!
     
    Oliver, Jul 7, 2006
    #3
  4. Oliver

    Mooron Guest

    That reminds me why I don't like power windows.
    Are they really worth the trouble?
     
    Mooron, Jul 7, 2006
    #4
  5. Oliver

    Mike Marlow Guest

    In my opinion they are. I've had them for decades in cars and have had
    scant few problems with them. If one were to base a preference on failures
    that rank in the infrequent category, one certainly would never consider a
    car in the first place. Lord knows - the whole car suffers more than just
    an occasional need for attention.
     
    Mike Marlow, Jul 7, 2006
    #5
  6. Oliver

    JS Guest

    Exactly.

    Power windows have cost me $9 and 30 of my own labor minutes above the
    initial purchase expense. They usually increase resale value on a
    vehicle. I've broken manual window handles (and getting good exact
    replacements isn't always easy/cheap) and torn clothes on them.

    If you're mechanically/electrically clueless and plan to keep the car
    'forever' I can see the manual window option being smart. If you have
    any troubleshooting and repair skills power windows are *very* simple to
    maintain and shouldn't add a significant amount of extra hassles to any
    vehicle purchase.

    Now if you've got annoying kids/people that like to play with the window
    buttons theres no way to get around that. The same applies to manual
    windows - theres usually some weak plastic part involved in the window
    mechanism - almost like a "mechanical fuse" to keep from putting too
    much pressure on the glass.

    But, hey, who needs power windows when theres air conditioning? :)

    JS
     
    JS, Jul 9, 2006
    #6
  7. Oliver

    PMDR Guest

    One bit of advice: use all the power windows from time to time even if
    you don't need them or never carry passengers or whatever. Give each
    window a workout once or twice a month or even weekly, all year round.

    My last used car had power windows. The back ones apparently went
    without use for years and years; perhaps three owners, and nobody used
    the windows. By the time I bought the car at age six years, the back
    windows no longer worked properly because of the lack of use. One
    motor had seized solid. The other one was so weak, the window had to
    pushed up by hand.

    The front windows work perfectly because they got used.
     
    PMDR, Jul 10, 2006
    #7
  8. Oliver

    JS Guest

    A lot of folks also let their window seals fail, exposing the power
    window works to a lot more water than they're designed to see. They're
    usually not prohibitively expensive to replace on cars reaching the age
    that they're failing...

    JS
     
    JS, Jul 10, 2006
    #8
  9. Oliver

    Bill Dotrie Guest

    I had the same problem with my '03GT Tiburon. The driver's side
    window would start to go up and then slow right down and then stop at
    any point. Unless you are out of warranty I would take it to the
    Dealer. It turned out mine was the motor that had given up but it was
    due to a faulty switch. When I brought it in they also told me the
    Passenger side window wasn't working! Which was news to me.
    Anyway I only had 35k on the car so it was all under warranty motor,
    switch, and labor. Just for fun I asked the Service Mgr. how much if
    it wasn't under warranty and he told me $428 for everything. They
    said the motor was $118. Good luck!
     
    Bill Dotrie, Jul 15, 2006
    #9
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