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Damn window regulator!!!

3K views 29 replies 7 participants last post by  Faron79 
#1 ·
Frak!!
Closing the car windows last night in garage, then <<bang!!>>.
Drivers window grinding away, glass not moving...*^^$*$*&%*^%$ it!
Had dealership do the diagnosis for me. Then, had to race off to work. Total for them to do complete job was $500! Yikes!! If it would've been $250-ish total, I'd have let them do it. Got the call that it's $500 altogether....Uffda!
So.....asked them to button it all up & tape up the window. Paid $340 for the diag-time & the new GM part. Been looking at the 1aa auto vids, & it sure seems easy!! The 1aa parts were cheaper, but it's only ONE time....I HOPE!!:)
I'll report back Tues nite....

Faron
 
#2 ·
Theg are fairly easy. Take off the door panel. And there are 3 nuts to unscrew. Have something to hold the window up in place. Then unplug and pull out the old and reverse to install. 74 dollar part with do it yourself free labor.
 
#3 ·
Jeeeeezzz....
Maybe I SHOULD return the part?!
$226.11 for the GM part!?! Holy Moly!!!!!
Had to have DW pick up the car, & drop it off @ my job this evening. I didn't see actual invoice 'til now! Damn....$220+....again, Uffda!
Are the 1aa parts any good?
I noticed they had "HQ" versions of their part. Hmmmmm....
Opinions?

Faron
 
#5 ·
Yeah, NEVER, EVER, EVER go to a dealer for a window regulator issue!!! Either DIY (buy parts from RockAuto) or even a lot of auto-glass places can replace those for you dirt cheap. Dealers are ridiculously expensive for stuff like that (and just about everything else). I used to think dealers were expensive because they did a better job - I WAS WRONG! The ONLY time I will go to a dealer now is for warranty coverage - and sometimes I don't even do that (would rather take on the expenses and do it myself if relatively cheap)!

Sent from my HP SlateBook 10 x2 PC using Tapatalk
 
#8 ·
Woooo! Got-'er done!
Went to an Autozone in town that had a Dorman in stock. ~~$140 with tax I think. That way, I could get get it DONE today on my day off. Thanks to present & past posters here that gave me confidence to do it myself....with the help of good y/t vids as well!
Having the Dealer do it......$500 ($225 GM part!).
ME doing it, with $140 aftermarket part, + paying Dealers' diag-fee....~~$250.
That "saved" $250 goes immediately toward having a needed brake-job done!
* Don't think I can do THAT one, lol!

Took pix of my window-reg job, but gotta figure out the re-sizing issues....
Faron
 
#10 ·
Any of the late model GM car and truck window reg and motor
no matter what brand were all china made knockoffs.

Quality seemed the same on all!
Prob. the same sweatshop made them all!

BTW: Its funny the rear motor/reg. assmb. cost TWICE
as much as the fronts!
I have never done/seen a rear one to note any difference.
 
#11 ·
congrats! I will say that if you can replace a window regulator, you can most likely do a brake job. Pads are easy to replace, rotors usually must be resurfaced or replaced. Rock auto would be the best bet on the parts for a brake job.
 
#13 ·
I have also gotten away with using a C-clamp and the old pad on the inside of the caliper. Also take note that if your master cylinder reservoir is full, remove a little as some will push back through the system when you push in the caliper. Just test the brakes somewhere you can go slow as you wouldn't want to find out there is a problem while out on the highway or something. Like I said, disk brakes are an easy job. You don't open up the system so no bleeding is involved. :eek:k3:


EDIT: Pads self adjust back into place on the rotors also.
 
#14 ·
Agreed - replacing disc brakes and even rotors is a relatively easy job. Once you do it once, you'll realize just how easy it is.

Like mentioned above, it does help to have the right tools, such as that cube to turn the rear calipers in!

Also make sure to clean and lube the guides, etc. Watch a few YouTube videos before you do it the first time. But as mentioned above, if you can replace a window regulator, you can change brake pads/rotors!

Sent from my HP SlateBook 10 x2 PC using Tapatalk
 
#15 ·
Agree with the others, get the cube as it will be worth it! I did say that I got away with a C-clamp and old pad, but it wasn't easy as you have to turn and apply enough even pressure to "push" the fluid back. The fronts do not need that tool, but you can still use it and it is very good to have. As stated by myself and others, if you can replace the window regulator, you can definitely do a pad change! Believe it or not, changing out the window regulator is harder to do on most cars than changing out brake pads and rotors!
 
#17 ·
LOL Sheila!!!
Although.....can a "Hot" Girl do a better job than a "not-so-hot" Girl...?!??!!??! :laugh
I've always wondered about that.......hee-hee! :lol:

Thanks for the "Brake encouragement" guys!! Guess I'm just intimidated by the "bad brake job = possible death" issue!
Will I need new rotors? Do I take-'em off & have them machined regardless??

Got a lot of pix on my new Droid Turbo 2. I'll try to get them here....hopefully!

Faron
 
#18 ·
Depends upon the condition of the Rotors. I would still get them machined, but it can be hard to find a decent shop that will do it and do it right. A new rotor is in the $25 range at rock auto for a front, rear is usually a tad cheaper. If you find a place that will "turn" one, usually they will charge about $20 per. For your case, I would just replace them. Autozone wants about $50 per front rotor. You can get away with a light sanding using 80 grit paper if the rotor is still true (just enough to remove the glaze from the old pads), but being that this is your first time doing something like this, I would just get new ones and call it a day. After a brake job or two, you will know what to look for.
 
#19 ·
Either which way, when you do a brake job, brake cleaner is your friend. Use brake cleaner, never blow off anything with compressed air as brake dust can be toxic and bad for you! Brake cleaner has so many other uses than just brakes also, good stuff to keep around. Just don't use it to clean anything in your induction system.
 
#22 ·
Oh my!
Are you tryin' to turn this 54y/o guy with a 1.75y/o new left knee, into a "Brake Man"? :lol:
More power to ya my friend!
(I did also put in 3 new "Blend-door actuators" under the dash a couple yrs ago! The one above/right of the accel-pedal was REAL fun for a not-that-flexible dude!! Saved a total of ~~~$800 of labor doing it myself!)

Faron
 
#23 ·
Lol. Just trying to save you some money is all. While the parts for the fronts are a bit more robust, the concept is basically the same. You just don't have to "turn" th we caliper piston back in, just push it back into place, use the old pad so the piston goes back even and won't go too far.
 
#24 ·
Well FINALLY figured out how to get my Droid-Turbo 2 pics sent to the "Cloud"! And...I can now view them on my PC, since I've now installed "Drive" on the Laptop too.

Does that now mean I can upload photos from my Laptop-PC (using the "Drive" on my PC) into a post here?????
Do I still have to resize them somehow???
Can I just use the new phone to post them here?!?!?!

>>>> Sorry.......54y/o guy learning about Smartphones & whatever the "Cloud" really is LOL!!!

Faron
 
#25 ·
The cloud will allow you to go and view them on the laptop (if you have the Same Drive pointing to the cloud as you say you do.) There are many cloud services and you did not state which one you used, so can't provide specifics. There are also resizing tools out there- Faststone Resizer, Irfanview both are free downloads for personal use and will resize photos. Or you could use the smart phone and text them to your email address (texting usually requires the photos to be resized and will prompt you to resize them also)

Attaching the photos on here is as easy as clicking on the Insert Image icon above and then pointing to the file on the "Drive" on your laptop.
 
#26 ·
Tanks RShea!

Sorry....using the normal "Google Drive" on both the laptop & Droid Turbo 2. I thought I could "cut & paste" from the cloud to here, but I see that's not the case?! When using the "Insert Image" icon here, the "http://" line implies an address? This where my understanding stops!
Help!
Faron
 
#28 ·
Don't know what I'm doing yet....
Have to use the "Attachment/Browse" button here.
Then...have to open Google-Drive pics on PC.
Next...try to clumsily resize in Pictures....

HELP!!!! HAS to be a better way?!?!!?
Faron
 
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