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From: Montgomery (Lake Conroe,) TX north of Houston
And the window misery continues.
Original owner of a 2002 WS6 with about 53,000 miles on it.
After four years of my driver's side window not working, today I finally did the shbox method and changed out the non-working OEM motor with this motor:
I was so excited to see the window go down and then up again. I wanted to take a video to share my joy with others and when I went to put the window back down and up, I noticed it was slowing down. In fact, it slowed down so much that it stopped like the dead OEM motor after maybe 3-4 round trips. Even after letting it cool down, it barely goes up. So disappointing !
I read through numerous threads that suggested replacing the motor with something better (as linked above,) replacing the driver's side switches and even cleaning the window channels.
At the moment, I've got another new window motor in the box. Should I remove the new motor I installed today and install the second new motor?
It might actually be wiring related and not so much the motor. Maybe the contacts in the switch are going to crap, idk.
On my 98 with a passenger window that didn't want to quite make it to the top anymore I wired up the autotrix passenger fix kit. Went from near worthless to faster than the new motor I had in the driver side. They had a kit for the driver side too (more expensive due to the express down feature). My 99 somehow has not had any window problems after all these years so I just have not messed with the wiring on them, and I don't know if the autotrix kits even exist anymore? Might be worth looking into though.
If you jumper the window motor with power direct from the battery (to bypass any factory wiring issues), does it work OK then? That would at least tell you if the factory wiring has any problems or not.
From: Montgomery (Lake Conroe,) TX north of Houston
Sparky, I also did the AutoTrix passenger side fix about 8-9 yrs ago. That modification fixed that "barely working" window right up. I agree, it works better than the driver's side window when it was new.
AutoTrix is still in business and they do offer the rewire kit for the driver's side. Because of the express down feature, it's a lot more money than the passenger side kit. For a working driver side window, I'd be happy to pay it.
I've noticed that there are a lot of people that don't like the AutoTrix kits. All I know is that these kits worked for you and I.
Before buying their driver side kit just jumper wire test the motor to make sure it runs fast. You could unplug the connector from the switch, and jumper 12V and GND to the appropriate connector pins that go directly to the motor to test. That tests it with the run channels and everything without tearing the door down again.
I have this dream of replacing my door switches with more modern, back-lit switches of some sort. That would require something like the autotrix kits since those modern switches can't handle the current draw directly. But I'm no fabricator so how to get those switches in there and looking good I have no clue.
From: Montgomery (Lake Conroe,) TX north of Houston
Originally Posted by SparkyJJO
Before buying their driver side kit just jumper wire test the motor to make sure it runs fast. You could unplug the connector from the switch, and jumper 12V and GND to the appropriate connector pins that go directly to the motor to test. That tests it with the run channels and everything without tearing the door down again.
I have this dream of replacing my door switches with more modern, back-lit switches of some sort. That would require something like the autotrix kits since those modern switches can't handle the current draw directly. But I'm no fabricator so how to get those switches in there and looking good I have no clue.
Earlier today, I did try a brand new driver's side window switch. The window motor did the same thing and after a couple of times up and down, it just quit. Pretty much what it did yesterday after installation.
Would jumpering the appropriate connector pins eliminate something else out of the wiring system? Maybe the express module or something else?
I looked at the "Window Racer" site and found this:For optimal operation we suggest "rebuilt" not new aftermarket *Cardone Window motors. (yes we do carry these very reasonable). They are rewound OEM GM units that are faster then even New GM motors. We tested this and spoke to others who stated the same thing as we have found.
I bought my car in 2003 and a couple of years later the driver's side pw motor failed. I replaced it with one of these, and 18-19 years later it still works like a champ. A couple of years ago I finally broke down and replaced the passenger side. Same result so far.
I'd forget about the Window Racer (which cannot fix a defective motor) and get one of the Cardone units and be done with it.
From: Montgomery (Lake Conroe,) TX north of Houston
Originally Posted by RevGTO
I looked at the "Window Racer" site and found this:For optimal operation we suggest "rebuilt" not new aftermarket *Cardone Window motors. (yes we do carry these very reasonable). They are rewound OEM GM units that are faster then even New GM motors. We tested this and spoke to others who stated the same thing as we have found.
I bought my car in 2003 and a couple of years later the driver's side pw motor failed. I replaced it with one of these, and 18-19 years later it still works like a champ. A couple of years ago I finally broke down and replaced the passenger side. Same result so far.
I'd forget about the Window Racer (which cannot fix a defective motor) and get one of the Cardone units and be done with it.
I just want to be 100% clear-On 12/11/2024, I installed a brand new window motor and I can tell that it isn't working correctly. Yesterday, 12/12, I tried a brand new Dorman, driver's side window switch. It didn't fix the problem. At this moment, one or more of the following things are wrong:
1. new window motor is defective out of the box
2. wiring is bad (corroded, too much resistance)
3. window mechanism is sticky with too much mechanical resistance
25 or 30 yrs ago, I don't think that we consumers had to deal with as much defective stuff right out of the box. Today with what I call the "china effect" everything is of low quality and it's common to find brand new stuff right out of the box that doesn't work right. Perhaps my new motor is bad. I like your suggestion of trying one of the rebuilt, Cardone units. I found them here:
Earlier today, I did try a brand new driver's side window switch. The window motor did the same thing and after a couple of times up and down, it just quit. Pretty much what it did yesterday after installation.
Would jumpering the appropriate connector pins eliminate something else out of the wiring system? Maybe the express module or something else?
Pull 12V from the battery with a thick jumper wire, and a good ground wire, and feed power directly to the motor wiring, bypassing the factory wiring up to the switch connector, to rule all that out.
If you have to take it all apart again, I'd clean out and re-grease all the tracks while you're in there. Who knows what kind of crud has built up in them.
From: Montgomery (Lake Conroe,) TX north of Houston
Originally Posted by SparkyJJO
Pull 12V from the battery with a thick jumper wire, and a good ground wire, and feed power directly to the motor wiring, bypassing the factory wiring up to the switch connector, to rule all that out.
If you have to take it all apart again, I'd clean out and re-grease all the tracks while you're in there. Who knows what kind of crud has built up in them.
Later today, I'll try this and let everyone know how it goes.
As far as cleaning out and re-greasing the tracks go, I don't have a clue as to how or what to do. If I have to take the new motor back out, I think that I'm going to put a mirror inside the door itself so that I can get a good look at the door mechanicals. Once I see it, I should be able to figure out what needs to be done. Any suggestions on what type of grease to use? The factory, OEM grease is a thick, sticky yellow/brown grease.
Well I'm pretty sure the factory grease wasn't originally yellow brown. I'm not sure the best thing to use is. Some swear by white lithium, others say no use this marine stuff. Wheel bearing grease is too thick though hah.
Do yourself a favor and DON'T pull the regulator out of the car if you can avoid it. I did that on my 98 and it was a nightmare getting it back in and aligned.
Any suggestions on what type of grease to use? The factory, OEM grease is a thick, sticky yellow/brown grease.
Sli-glyde is an excellent choice for this purpose. I've used this stuff for years to lubricate everything from drum brake parts to things exactly like window tracks; excellent weather & heat resistance. It's available online or from a variety of stores (I think I've even found this in the automotive section of Walmart before):
From: Montgomery (Lake Conroe,) TX north of Houston
Thank you, RPM for the SIL-GLYDE recommendation. I had no idea what grease to use. I ***think*** that this may be the same stuff as dialectric grease but much less expensive in bigger quantities. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.
From: Montgomery (Lake Conroe,) TX north of Houston
Originally Posted by wannafbody
Superlube from Harbor Freight is an awesome teflon grease.
I have a grease gun tube of Teflon grease. I think that it's the Superlube brand. Teflon grease is clearish colored, thick and very sticky. It is often used to lube up aftermarket suspension parts, i.e. polyurethane and delrin. Do you think this would work well on the window mechanisms? I'm thinking the SIL-GLYDE is a thinner, less sticky grease.
I confirmed today that my OEM grease is a yellowish brown (or light brown) color and very sticky. Probably similar to the Superlube in consistency.
From: Montgomery (Lake Conroe,) TX north of Houston
I made good progress today. I had another, new old stock Dorman window motor. This one was made in Vietnam vs the other one that was made in Korea.
I hooked up some loose, 12awg wires to the motor to test it and it tested good outside of the door. I left the loose wires on and insatlled the Vietnam motor into the door. I then connected the loose wires to my battery and the window went down and then up. I did 3 round-trips and the Vietnam motor had no problem with it.
Next, I wanted to see if the car's OEM, 22+ yr old wiring could run the motor. I removed the loose 12awg wires and installed the OEM window motor wires. I ran the motor up and down three times. It was slightly slower than the direct wires but it made the three round-trips just fine. I could tell this Vietnam motor has a lot more muscle than the Korean motor. At this point, I called it success and put everything back together.
It appears that some of these new motors and just junk right out of the box. If I were going to buy a new motor, I'd buy the rebuilt Cardone motor that I previously linked in post #10.
Honestly, I wouldn't mind trying the Window Racer. It would probably make my driver's side window as fast as the passenger side, AutoTrix modified window. However for now, both of my Trans Am's windows are working I've got other more important car work to do on my LS3 swapped Foxbody Coupe.
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And the window misery continues. 
!
