Window motor removal?

[Skunksmash]

Replacing the power window motor in 87. Is it necessary to take the regulator all the way out? Or can it be done leaving the regulator in? Passenger side finally quit working and I got the door panel off. Struggled for a bit, then thought I'd better ask.

And even if you don't have to take the regulator out, is this replacement usually a huge pain? Perhaps I would be better off taking it somewhere for this. Trying to feel my way around though those holes in the door seems like it might get pretty frustrating.

[Zane M]

Yes, the regulator has to come out. It isn't too terrible of a job, you just have to be patient. It will help if you can get an extra set of hands involved to help with the window(but I have done it plenty of times myself).

[J Knight]

Before you try to remove the regulator through the small opening in the door shell, position the arm at 90* if you can. It will make it easier to get it out of the door.

[Skunksmash]

Thanks for the help! This sounds like a job for...

The auto glass shop. lol

Just kidding I'll give it a try. It sounds like it may be easier if you can just take out the whole regulator with the motor attached. Then just put the new motor on there, and stuff it all back in. Does that sound about right?

[Zane M]

Originally Posted by Skunksmash

Thanks for the help! This sounds like a job for...

The auto glass shop. lol

Just kidding I'll give it a try. It sounds like it may be easier if you can just take out the whole regulator with the motor attached. Then just put the new motor on there, and stuff it all back in. Does that sound about right?

Exactly.
It will be tedious, it will piss you off at times.
But ultimately you can do the job and save yourself a fair amount of cash in the process.

[mrolds88]

If you want to hold the glass up without a helper, try a toilet plunger. The old style without the extra lip on the inside. Just make sure the glass is clean.

[1774btcrew]

You can also use Duct tape to hold the window up and out of the way while you are doing this. It is a pretty basic simple process. It just takes some patience!

[tucsonjwt]

I suggest that you search this forum for power window motor replacement to see some good ideas. I have a post on a replacement I did recently, indicating the best position for removal of the regulator from the door.

Important: Make sure that you secure the motor to the regulator before removing the mounting bolts - I drilled a hole and used another bolt/nut to keep it in place. If you look at the previous posts you will see how this works.
The key thing is to make sure that the regulator is positioned so that you can wiggle it out of the hole in the door - all the way down or all the way up will not work.

To support the window when the regulator is out I used a short piece of plumbers pipe hanger strap and looped one end under the window and the other end was screwed through a hole in the strap into the door.

I recommend getting an OEM Delco motor from an online vendor. The best one I got was one where I had to transfer the mounting bracket from the old motor to the new motor. The other Delco style has the mounting bracket already installed, but that version seemed to have less power when I used it. Look at the pictures in the online catalogs and you will see two different part numbers and what the difference is.

This can be done by an amateur (i.e. -me), but you need to be patient. Most likely you will get your arms scratched up, so put duct tape around that sharp opening in the door. My guess is that a shop will want 2 hrs labor or more - so figure $150-$250 labor at least. The Delco motor is about $35 or less.

[Malo83]

Replaced both of my power windows with new Motors and Regulators, it's a PITA but like everybody says, Patience and take your time, after you do the first one the second one is a lot easier, got all my parts from LMC, Ole' Swervin Ervin has a good write up on his old site
http://73-87.com/7387garage/interior/winmotor.htm

[Skunksmash]

Should I do a new regulator at the same time? How do you even tell if its wore out or about to be? Some parts can be misleading. I realize if it goes up and down without resistance its fine, but then again I imagine it has some resistance and I'm not sure how much its supposed to have.

[Malo83]

I replaced both due to them being in the truck for the last 30 years, the gear teeth were wearing out and you could see that once you have them out, just made sense to me to replace everything as a unit

[tucsonjwt]

I tried to replace one of my regulators with an aftermarket one and it did not work well - it was a slightly different design. If you can get an OEM one it will be very expensive. What goes bad are the plastic wheels on the ends of the scissor mechanism - mine had caked on grease and were jamming in the track. I would just clean the wheels and track and re-grease before re-installation. I could not find just the plastic wheels by themselves - just generic wheels that did not fit.

[Malo83]

Originally Posted by tucsonjwt

I tried to replace one of my regulators with an aftermarket one and it did not work well - it was a slightly different design. If you can get an OEM one it will be very expensive. What goes bad are the plastic wheels on the ends of the scissor mechanism - mine had caked on grease and were jamming in the track. I would just clean the wheels and track and re-grease before re-installation. I could not find just the plastic wheels by themselves - just generic wheels that did not fit.

Where did you get your regulator from? The new motor and regulator I ordered from LMC were an exact match with the old, and the plastic wheels on the old regulator were wore out and starting to come apart

[rs74]

You can get an AC Delco from Rockauto for about $93 bucks plus shipping it looks like. Or Sherman brand for $61. Just have to wait on shipping.

[tucsonjwt]

My regulator was from 1A auto. It was also made in China.

[Skunksmash]

ACdelco is all I will buy if they still make the part. Learned not to waste my time with the cheaper stuff.

[Skunksmash]

Ok well I finally got time to work on this again. I got the regulator out, and the new motor on. Old regulator's teeth look fine so I'm reusing it. For now.

I'm having some problems getting the regulator to line up with the 4 bolt holes that are nearest the front of the truck. I got it all back in there, but it seems... tilted somehow. I just can't get those two protruding studs that stick off the regulator, to go through their holes in the door. I can only get one, or the other.

Has anyone else ran into this issue? I tried sort of prying over on it with a screwdriver but I'm afraid to go to far with that.

[Greenlee]

Originally Posted by Skunksmash

Ok well I finally got time to work on this again. I got the regulator out, and the new motor on. Old regulator's teeth look fine so I'm reusing it. For now.

I'm having some problems getting the regulator to line up with the 4 bolt holes that are nearest the front of the truck. I got it all back in there, but it seems... tilted somehow. I just can't get those two protruding studs that stick off the regulator, to go through their holes in the door. I can only get one, or the other.

Has anyone else ran into this issue? I tried sort of prying over on it with a screwdriver but I'm afraid to go to far with that.

Sounds like you must have something in a bind. I did the regulators on both doors and didn't have any problem getting those studs to line up. For me the hardest part was getting both of the little plastic wheels into the channel at the bottom of the glass. Seems like I had to remove the weather stripping along the bottom of the door glass to get everything lined up and get enough room to put the glass in.

[Skunksmash]

Maybe I'm reading your post wrong but are you saying that you took the glass out of the door?

[Greenlee]

Originally Posted by Skunksmash

Maybe I'm reading your post wrong but are you saying that you took the glass out of the door?

My glass was out for painting. While it was apart I greased the regulators and put the motors on the regulators. Maybe you could it without removing everything. Seems like you could do a better job of greasing all the parts if you took it out.

[tucsonjwt]

If the regulator is not lining up properly you should try to give the motor some juice to move the regulator to a slightly different position. It should go in just as it came out, but sometimes a little different position on the re-install will help. As was mentioned above, the regulator needs to be in about a one half crank position to give you room to maneuver it. You should not have to move the regulator position very much - just a little nudge should do it. Also, try pivoting the regulator toward you or away from you and see if that helps. Until you find the exact right spot it will seem like there is no way that thing will work, but just keep at it - little by little adjustments will get you there.

[Skunksmash]

Thanks for the help everyone. I got it all back in there. Its odd though, the new motor doesn't seem to perform quite like I'd hoped. It goes up and down faster, but it still slows down at a certain point. And then speeds back up lol. So I'm not real sure what's up with that. Maybe its just the old regulator. I greased it all up good though.

[piecesparts]

I bought some metal pipe hanger material at a local hardware store. It is a perforated malleable metal strapping material that you can cut to length and use to hold up piping under a house, but it works great to hold up your window while you replace the window regulator drive motor. Make a hook in the strapping and fit it down past the window, then fold it over the top of the door and shoot a short metal screw through one of the holes to hold it in place. Once done, take the screws out of the regulator and zig zag it out of the door through the hole in the bottom.

Did you grease ALL of the moving parts. That includes the spring.

[Skunksmash]

Yeah. I'm thinking it might be voltage droop like they're talking about in that one thread. Where they are doing the relay mod to the power windows.