window regulator

Can someone tell me how to remove the window regulator. I can get the panel of but the window motor is broke and i am replacing the whole thing. Since the motor doesnt work the window is stuck in the up position and and cant really make anything of the regulaor becuase it is behind the metal panel.

Sure greasyhog.
You did not say which window. I Just replaced the front driver side window.
You did also say the panel is already off? There are four bolts holding the regulator itself. The motor has three bolts. Before anything if you have to do it alone make sure you have something to brace the window, the last thing you want is to break the window. Maybe a wooden dowel or towels or something.
If you can somehow push the window down halfway carefully so that you can see the two bolts holding the glass to the regulator, loosen those two first but do not remove yet. Trust me pray that it comes down halfway I had a hell of a time trying to get the bolts off from the up postion.
Both the motor and regulator will have to come out. Loosen all the bolts from the regulator (4) and motor (3).
if you have and extra hand helping you great, tell them told the glass while you remove the two bolts holding the glass. If not use the wooden stick or whatever you have to wegde the glass in (only reason why is I have tinted windows didn't want to scrach the film). otherwise just let it rest on the bottom of the door panel.
Remove the bolts from the regulator and motor.
also disconnect the power supply to the motor use a screwdriver to pry it off the locking clip.
Reverse order to put back. Sorry bout the half ass direction just got off a long 10hour shift. Will amend later after sleeeeep.

I just took my left-rear window regulator and motor off the vehicle this morning after I finally found a T30 screw driver. There are several of the Torx screws you have to remove, the first one is right underneath the door handle. Then pry off the small plastic panel behind the door handle and you can find another screw. You need to also detach the panel that the window switch is in. I think I just pried it loose with my fingernails (or maybe I took it loose after getting the main door panel loose - it is okay either way). Then you can disconnect the electrical wires from it. Once that is done you should be able to finish pulling off the rest of the door panel. I just gripped the edge and began popping loose the plastic fasteners around the edge until it is loose. After removing the panel there is a formed sheet-metal spacer (about 3x4 inches and an inch deep) to remove before taking off the plastic sheet. The sheet of plastic is behind there, with some black adhesive tar-like substance attaching it to the door. Gently pull the plastic loose and save it to re-install once you're ready to put things back together. If you're careful you can preserve the adhesive so it will stick when you want to put it back. At this point you should be able to see everything, unless maybe if the window is rolled up all the way.

If the window is all the way up, and you know you're going to have to replace the whole assembly, then here is how I suggest you get the window down. Begin Disclaimer. I did not do this myself since my window was not up all the way, so please exercise common sense and caution if you choose to do this! This is my own idea, and was not recommended to me by any professional, so understand that you are taking the advice of an amateur, and you do so at your own risk. Also, this will make the old regulator unusable (but it should not damage the motor if you're planning to reuse it), so only do it if you are sure you are going to replace the whole thing! End of Disclaimer. You should be able to see two cable guides coming from the motor assembly (they are a gray color on the assembly I took off my car. Make sure there are no other wires or anything in the way, and that you are holding up the window, and then use some wire cutters to snip through both cable guides (and the cables inside). This should free the window, and you can gently lower it down to where you can access the bolts holding the window to the regulator. A possible alternative if you are trying to save the regulator, and only are replacing the motor, is to remove the three bolts holding the motor to the door, and work the motor around and maybe outside the access hole, so you can get to the opposite side (I don't know if this is even possible, given the length of the cables, and the limited space, but if you can do it, proceed with the rest of these instructions). On the opposite side of the motor is the reel assembly for the cable, attached to the motor with three bolts. If you remove these bolts and (hold up the window!) free the reel assembly from the motor, it should unreel freely as you gently lower the window. Once again, this is a suggestion I didn't personally attempt.

Once you can reach them, there are two 10mm size bolts that you can take off to detach the window from the regulator. There is enough stiffness in my window tracks that I didn't need to prop up the window - it stayed right there after it was detached (maybe that's why the regulator broke!), but lunasea808 makes a good point that you want to be careful of the window so you don't make a small expense a big one! Once the window is off the regulator, there are two bolts at the top and two bottom of the track/guide, and three bolts to the right holding the motor in place (all the bolts are 10mm). When you've got all these loose, and detached the electrical connection from the motor, you can easily remove the whole assembly. I haven't gotten the replacement part yet but it seems like you can just reverse the process to put it back together. If it's not that simple when I install my replacement regulator, I'll follow up with another post to reveal any hiccups I find.

I may try putting some spray silicone lubricant on the rubber seals around the window after I get the new regulator installed. It might be a bit messy but don't want the new regulator to go the way of the old one. Maybe it would be a good idea to lubricate the rubber seals on all the windows to avoid failure on them too? If anyone has some useful tips on this topic I'd appreciate it.

I found a replacement regulator with motor on E-Bay at about 1/5 the price the dealer quoted me (none of the local auto-parts places had a replacement, only the car dealer). That's 1/5th the price even when including shipping!!! I don't know if there's a rule about quoting prices in here so I won't do so, but let's just say I could have bought well over 300 lottery tickets for what the dealer wanted for the part. It will take a few days to ship, but I can be cool with that, especially when I can use the left over money to turn down the thermostat on my central A/C and pay two or three months of electric bills.

thanks for the help. got mine from ebay also. regulator and motor for $60 w/ shipping

so the new motor has been working great until today when it was stuck in the down position. i take the trim off and find out the little screw that looks to be going into the gears has come out. so i screw it in and it works but when the window go up the screw starts working itself loose but when the window goes down it doesnt. Now if the screw is out to far the window wont move same as if its in too tight. my problem is the screw wont stay in one position. its keeps moving when the window goes down. should i use some lock tight or what ever its called on it or is there something else i could do?

so the new motor has been working great until today when it was stuck in the down position. i take the trim off and find out the little screw that looks to be going into the gears has come out. so i screw it in and it works but when the window go up the screw starts working itself loose but when the window goes down it doesnt. Now if the screw is out to far the window wont move same as if its in too tight. my problem is the screw wont stay in one position. its keeps moving when the window goes down. should i use some lock tight or what ever its called on it or is there something else i could do?


Maybe locking washers? I don't think the lock tight will work. Or maybe if you grind the screw down a little.

there are various types of lock-tight or thread lockers. Some types will lock it in permanently. I'm sure there are super glues that will do the same now. It all depends on what you want.

If you don't want the screw to move, you can do it, -just be prepared to deal with it later if you want the screw out.

hey,

where did you get the regulator? I found it new with the motor at www.nationalautopart.com for $35.00 brand new still in the box. They even shipped it the same day via ups. Just a note to all.

Thanks, Kindly

hey,

where did you get the regulator? I found it new with the motor at www.nationalautopart.com for $35.00 brand new still in the box. They even shipped it the same day via ups. Just a note to all.

Thanks, Kindly
Just checked it out. It was $65 for the motor and regulator. $35 without the motor.