Replace my car's window regulator & motor?

August 4, 2006 11:50 AM

GearheadFilter: How foolish would I be to try and replace a window regulator and motor by myself?

It's a '97 Honda Accord. I have no specific experience with the mechanics or repair of cars, but I am savvy with tools and the building, or taking-apart slash putting-back-together of things in general. I don't really want to pay the money that I'm finding it will cost to take it somewhere to get it fixed (part + labor). It's the driver's side front window, and I can order the piece that needs replacing online and do it myself.

I understand that I'll need to pull the inside door panel off, and I've found instructions online on how to do the whole thing. Does anyone have any experience with this? Do I need any specific automotive tools to deal with the wiring or the electrics/electronics? What nasty surprises await me once I get in there? Am I just asking for trouble in trying to tackle this myself? I know that this is why there are experienced professionals out there, but come on, what ever happened to the DIY sense of adventure?

posted by scallion to Technology (9 answers total)

I am about as mechanically inclined (or less so) as you and did the same job on a Mazda a few years ago. It was pretty easy; everything just bolted/plugged into place. You will need some replacement clips for the trim panel as it is pretty much impossible to remove it without breaking some. You might be able to get replacement parts from a junkyard pretty cheaply: that is what I did.

The only real problem is that you are working in a pretty tight space and might need screwdrivers and/or sockets that work in confined spaces. I say go for it.
posted by TedW at 11:55 AM on August 4, 2006

Funky, that's exactly the part that blew up on my '91 Honda Accord. I fixed it by being lazy and pulling up and down the power window by hand for many years, until I converted the car into a cube ("You have 10 minutes to move your cube...")
posted by thanotopsis at 11:59 AM on August 4, 2006

Did this on a '96 Jetta passenger side door some time ago, with no real difficulties to speak of. As TedW said, it can be an awkward work space, but that's true for just about anything automotive.
posted by Dean King at 12:55 PM on August 4, 2006

I'd disagree with Dean King and say working in the door is more awkward that average automotive work, but then it depends on the car - I had an 86 Bronco II whose design engineers apparently hated knuckles and wanted to do everything possible to punish them.

But it's doable and I think the door panel can be the most difficult part. My advice would be to be extra cautious pulling it off. Sometimes you miss a screw (my old Civic had one under a removable plug and another deep inset into the door handle so look carefully) and sometimes a plastic plug is just a little sticky.

I suggest you resist the urge to just yank to pull those plugs out. Many door panels are made with cheap pressboard and you can rip them loose from it rather than pull them out of the door itself, and once you shred enough of those the panel doesn't stay on well and rattles. Might not be an issue for you - I believe my old Honda had a plastic panel vs my Mazda's pressboard.

Be particularly sure to follow the classic advice of screwing everything in loosely before going back and tightening everything down. You want the window to go up and down without binding.
posted by phearlez at 1:10 PM on August 4, 2006

I replaced the window regulator on my '86 Samurai a while back, and it was one of the first automotive repair projects I ever did. If you have any mechanical aptitude, automotive or not, go for it - the worst that can happen is that you'll have to get the shop to finish the job for you.
posted by Mars Saxman at 2:13 PM on August 4, 2006

Response by poster: Awesome. Thanks for the advice everyone. It's a go!
posted by scallion at 3:54 PM on August 4, 2006

One thing to get is a nylon blade that you can use to remove plastic caps that cover the screws in the door. If you use a screwdriver or knife you'll end up gouging the plastic. Also useful for prying the door card off without scratching paint etc. And nobody else has said it, so I'll also point out you likely will need torx screwdrivers (the weird star bit that most automakers use for interior parts).
posted by drmarcj at 6:36 PM on August 4, 2006

FYI - door panels can be removed quite nicely with a nylon plastic bike tire tool. no scratches while you slide it along to the next press in. Also, this applies to Ford and may apply to your vehicle, the screws that hold the motor in place were put in before the door was assembled so you had to drill a hole into the sheet metal after the door cover was removed to get at them. Not a big deal since it is hidden when you put the door cover back on.
posted by ptm at 10:18 PM on August 4, 2006

I have done this on my '97 Honda accord! it is not bad at all if you are moderately mechanically savvy.

However, you may want to consider that window regulator problems may instead be the switch itself. The driver's door master switch in mine was faulty, causing my problems, only finding this out after I swapped with a known good window regulator.
posted by toastchee at 5:29 AM on August 5, 2006