Replace a power window motor & regulator
Manufacturers have redesigned power window mechanisms and you’re paying the price for it. The new mechanisms, known as window regulators, are lightweight and flimsy. They raise and lower the window with cables that often bind or break. If the window channels aren’t lubricated (use silicone or dry Teflon spray), the friction overloads the motors and they burn out or strip the “spool” that winds the cables.
Rather than pay a shop $350 to replace the regulator, do it yourself. Knowing where the hidden fasteners are will save a LOT of wasted time and frustration. (Be a sport and buy a subscription to either the manufacturer’s online manual or Alldata—after all, you’re saving several hundred dollars by doing it yourself).
Next, go to www.rockauto.com. There are a few other companies making aftermarket window regulators. I have no experience with those other companies, so I can’t vouch for their quality.
The only special tool you’ll need is a trim panel remover tool (about $5 at any auto parts store). Start by removing the visible screws. Then pop off any plastic “vanity” caps that appear to serve no useful purpose. You’ll find they’re covering screws. Almost every car I’ve ever worked on has screws or bolts holding the arm rest to a bracket. Once again, look for plastic “vanity” covers if you can’t find those fasteners. (See the photo)
Once the screws are out, start at the lower portion of the trim panel and begin popping out the plastic “Christmas tree” fasteners. 
They’re usually located along the perimeter of the door. (See photo)
Lift the trim panel up and off the door.
Then disconnect the electrical connectors
to the window and door lock switches. (See photo) With the trim panel now removed, peel off the vapor barrier. (It has to go back on, so be careful while removing it)
Take a look at the photo of the window regulator I shot from the outside (Yes, I DID cut a hole in a door just so you can see what you’re dealing with.
It was a junkyard door so don’t freak out 
on me. That’s also why it’s so dirty. If you want me to shoot pictures of clean doors, simply mail me a check for $145 and I’ll spray some Windex on it next time. In the meantime, you’re getting this for free, so quit complaining)
Power window
You can see that the regulator is really a very simple mechanism. The window sill gets pulled up and down by the cable. Your next step is to remove the window glass. To do that, you’ll need to move the sill down so you can reach it with your sockets. Remember, you’re doing this from the inside (unless you too want to cut a hole in your door). Can’t get the window into position 
so you can remove the glass? Reach around the regulator track from the inside and cut one of the cables with a wire cutter. BUT MAKE SURE you’ve got someone holding the glass! Then lower the glass, remove the bolts and pull the glass up and out. The glass pulls out by tilting it towards the outside of the door.
Next, disconnect the electrical connector from the motor. Then you can remove the fasteners holding the regulator in place. Tip the regulator and feed it out through a hole in the door panel. If you can’t get it out and you haven’t already snipped a cable, do that now. That will allow you to move the sill up or down.
Here’s a tip: The inside of your door contains s
harp metal edges. WEAR LEATHER GLOVES!
All these instructions are for cable regulators. If you have an older vehicle with a scissors style regulator, you can fix those too. BUT heed this warning. Scissors style regulators usually have a coiled assist spring—like a clockspring. You must secure this spring before you remove the motor. Skip this step and your next move may be to the ER for a broken finger! The easiest way to secure the spring is to drill a hold in the regulator and insert a nut and bolt through the spring to clamp it down.
Dorman sells 
replacement motors. But if you have a cable regulator, you may find that the old motor is riveted in place. If you want to spend the time to drill out those rivets, be my guest. But once you remove the motor, you may find a stripped cable spool. That’s why I recommend replacing the entire regulator. That, plus the fact that Dorman has fixed the problems that plague the OEM models.
Reverse the entire procedure to reinstall.
Not sure if the problem is in the regulator? Here’s how to check. Window motors only have two wires going to them. The window 
switch alternates the power and ground connections to power the motor up and down. So, attach the positive and negative probes of your digital volt meter to the electrical connector going to the motor. Then flip the window switch in both directions. You should see the voltage change from +12 volts to -12 volts. If you see that, it means the motor is getting power from the switches. Switches good. Motor bad.
Hope this saves you hundreds of dollars. Good luck!
Buy a new window regulator here
UPDATE!!!!
Do NOT under any circumstances insert a l
arger fuse–unless you like your vehicle on the well done side. That’s a great way to start a fire! If the motor is drawing too much power, it would have already blown the existing fuse. (Don’t ever let your friend do any electrical work on your house, car, or tree house)
If the new regulator isn’t operating smoothly, either there’s an obstruction in the track, or the regulator is not aligned properly. To eliminate the track as a possibility, run a flat blade screwdriver down each side channel to clear out any debris. Then spray each channel with either spray silicone or dry teflon lube (it’s actually a spray that dries).
Has the window glass ever been broken? If so, small glass shards get stuck in the channels and screw up the movement.
Once you’re convinced that the channels are clean and lubricated, you’ll have to try a few adjustments on the regulator. GM leaves some play in the mounting holes. So try tilting the entire regulator assembly forward or backwards a bit to see if it helps.
Just for everyone’s benefit, the window regulator is a HUGE problem (and I mean HUGE) on GM and Chrysler vehicles. In fact, this article on regulator replacement is the most popular on this entire blog. I get more mail on this topic than any other.
I went to the APEX/SEMA show (Automotive Parts Exposition) in Las Vegas in ’97 and counted at least 10 companies offering aftermarket window regulators. When you see that many companies jumping into the regulator business, it’s an indication that it’s a huge market.
The older gear driven regulators rarely failed. Sure, the motors would burn out, but the mechanism was solid. Then Chrysler came up with their brilliant plastic “window tape,” that had sprockets like 8mm movie film. The motor gear engaged the sprockets and pushed the tape up or down a channel that was attached to the glass. Needless to say, the window tape was a disaster. Now we’ve got the cable driven systems and they’re even worse.
Bottom line: The OEM cable driven assemblies are poorly designed and poorly built.
For more information on this repair or any others for your vehicle, buy an online subscription to either Alldatadiy.com or eautorepair.net. Click on this link to compare the two services: Compare Alldata and Eautorepair.
If you just need information for a single repair and want to save money,eautorepair offers a lower price 1-week subscription for only $11.99. Or, if you’ll be working on this vehicle in the future, you can buy a 1-year subscription (Alldatadiy.com for $26.99, or eautorepair.net $29.99)
© 2007 Rick Muscoplat
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Ok have a 2002 chevy silverado truck and was having a problem with the drivers side door regulator. Order the replacement regulator and reinstalled and same problem…. The control panel (on the drivers side) operates the drivers side window and the passenger side window. The passenger side window works perfect.. up and down. The drivers side only goes down. With the “old” regulator when I hit the auto there was no response, but with the “new” regulator it attempts over and over and over again… but nothing moves. The glass has been removed from the holders to see if that was the problem, still nothing. Any recommendations??
I’m going to have to repeat this warning again. If you have a window that only works in one direction, use a voltmeter to test the switch before you assume that the motor is bad. The switch just reverses polarity to make the motor move in each direction. If your meter isn’t switching polarity when you operate the switch, changing the regulator isn’t going to fix that.
So Christina, either you have a bad master switch, or a broken wire in the hinge area.
Great post. Saved me hundreds of $$. I have 2001 Altima and both regulators (driver and passenger) started giving problems. I found this page, ordered the regulators and replaced it myself. What’s worse is that there was a recall on these regulators (deadline has passed) and Nissan never informed me.
Rick,
Is there any way to just get my 2000 Durango window up? I’ve got 195k on it and if I can secure it up I would be content to live with a passenger side window up. Nobody is ever in that seat as it is. Have the door apart and hoping if I disconnect glass from regulator and prop up I will have room to see if I can manually crank that baby up. Hope to hear from you,
Steve
Hi Rick,
Great instructions and photos.
I was wondering if your advice to Marcos (8/27/08) regarding using a machnine screw on the regulator to keep window in the closed position would work for a 2001 Buick Century driver’s side window? Would the screw go through both sill and track locking it to the track or will the screw be just below the sill – thus basically wedging it and preventing it from moving?
Thanks Rick, your information on how to change a window regulator helped a great deal. Picked up a RR reg for a 2002 Bonneville for $50.00 from windowregulators.com
RICK YOU’RE THE MAN FOR GETTING ME THIS FAR WITH YOUR POST!
Here’s my situation:
-2005 subaru outback
driver side front window switch noticeably felt different when using…and it occasionally would get stuck up or down or in the middle positions…occasionally i could hold it up longer than normal and it would roll up..of course today it finished off and is not working with the window down/open. I believe it might be a bad switch, after doing some research on outbacks and the way the button feels different. The thing is, that all the other windows that operated from that switch work fine. Got most of the panel off today but haven’t found the screws to unscrew for the switch. So any and all advice would be greatly greatly appreciated. What do you think it is.
Thanks so much!!
Rick,
Thank you.
This has saved me many dollars. We appriciate the straight forward step by steps.
Thanks Again,
Kevin
Great advice here! Thank you! The left rear window of my 2000 Subaru outback is stuck down. The switch is okay, as i witched it with the right side’s and it worked fine over there. The regulator seems okay and on-track. There is however no sound coming from the motor. At this point I am most concerned with just getting the window closed before it rains. Your notes about the spring in my scissor-style regulator have scared me sufficiently. So, I ask: where on the regulator should I drill a hole, and how can I just manually close it while I wait for the motor to me shipped to me and get around to facing the repair? The subaru has very little access space to see and work with.
Rick, great site, found it while searching for 2004 grand prix power window repair info. The passenger window on my son's 04' grand prix would not go up so we removed the door panel and found the wire/cable hanging inside with a small kink in it as if it had been pinched or snagged. At first I thought maybe the cable needed rerouted or had just slipped of some kind of pulley so I have been searching the internet just trying to get some info on the cable/reel system and found your blog. After reading through the posts it seems that the best/only solution would be to purchase a new regulator. What would you think? Any help would be great!
same problem as earlier post….1999 lincoln town car windows work when temp is cool, but do not work when temp is over 78 degrees. help!
Temperature related problems can be due to either electrical or mechanical expansion/contraction. The ONLY way to diagnose this is to use a voltmeter at the motor terminals. If the motor is getting power, both +12 volts and -12 volts as you toggle the switch, then you've got either a bad motor, or the mechanism is binding. If you're not getting those readings, then you have either a bad switch or a frayed wire.
There is just no other way to diagnose this. You have to find out if it's getting power
thank you Rick for your incredibly fast answer to my problem with windows that do not work in the heat. The driver's side 2 do work, the passenger front and rear do not…until cooler. We will follow your advice..thanks again.
Hello Rick,
I was surprised to find such a helpful blog. I hope you can help me out.
I have a 1997 Buick Century. On the driver's side the upper window trim has snapped off at the high end for almost 10 inches because one of the plastics things that kept it attached to the frame broke off. The lower trim has also cracked, peeled off and it's rusting.
The dealer is very expensive, so I went to a scrap yard, and found decent trims for $10 each but in order to get them I have to do the removal myself, and I do not know how (except for trying to rip them off).
Please advise, what tools I need and how I can do that, REMOVE and REPLACE.
Much appreciated
EuroCan
Rick:
Great advice.
Both the power window and door lock on my 03 taurus left rear door don't work. I hear a grinding sound when I try the lock and a clicking sound when I try the window so I assume there's power going to them(?). Both stopped working at the same time.
Where do I start?
Rick, thanks a lot for the great blog. I found exactly what I needed to help me with my 2000 Impala. The drivers window is stuck down, so I’ve been driving in the cold with it down for 2 weeks.
Hey Rick,
Great article!
Question: The widow will go up and down only part way. I am assuming that the cable guide is obstructed or a tooth or teeth are broken. I have a 1999 Buick LeSabre, drivers side widow that is not functioning properly.
You mentioned the cable drive could be purchased from “Dorman”. Would you know the web site address?
Thanks again for all the FREE!!! information.
Roy
http://www.dormanproducts.com