Moderator: F9K9
Every now and then the window loses power. It work fine then all of a sudden has not enough power to put the window up or down. Maybe once a week is does this. 
I finally got around to opening the door and taking a look inside this past weekend when the window got stuck open and rain storm was approaching. A minute or two with a test light showed all the switches to be working perfectly. A few whacks with a rubber mallet got the electric lift motor turning again long enough to get the window closed up tight.barch97 wrote:I've been having trouble like this for quite a while but since I don't use the CC as daily driver, I've been ignoring it. The recent snow-pocolypse has forced me to drive the CC a lot more than usual. Open driver's window at highway speed in snow storm is rather unpleasant to say the least.
It looks like the others who have experienced this had repairs made under warranty. The switch panel & window motor seem rather pricey to replace not knowing for sure which one will fix it.
Anybody got any advice that might help fix this on the cheap? I suspect that once I pull the door panel, I'll be able to tell better what is wrong. I'm hoping that lubricating the track might reduce the load on the window motor enough to put the job off 'til spring? How 'bout swapping with the rear driver side window motor?
Or I suppose I could just keep the window up until the thaw...
Thanks for the input. Rivets are probably the way to go. I was thinking that I'd make it easier for next time but realistically, next time is likely eight or nine years away.HenryJ wrote:How about going back with rivets? The advantage to a rivet is that it tightens in the hole and keeps the motor from shifting, whereas a bolt will rely upon pulling the two together to keep it from shifting.
I would be tempted to try riveting it back in place if possible. Both the motor and rivets should be available through NAPA. They carry lift and lock stuff now. Check to see if they are steel or aluminum. The grip range (thickness to be clamped) and the flange diameter (head size). You should be able to get a suitable replacement. If you don't have a pop rivet gun, they are a good tool to invest in. If it should happen to be the 1/4" or larger pop rivets, those tools can be quite expensive. See if a body shop can help you out, or rent one if possible.
The door panel retainers should be replaced each time they are removed to keep the panel tight. Any parts store should have those.
Another source for rivets and panel retainers is your local Au-ve-co dealer. Sometimes you can buy a whole box for the price of five at the parts store.
I was leaning very heavily that way as well but after opening it up and checking all the connections, I got strong solid on test light every time I hit the switch. The motor on the other hand, I could hear it click as if to engage but would only move the window after giving a few minutes of cool down time between tries and I could hear the motor strain and see the window motion slowing during up or down movement.killian96ss wrote:The problem is the window switch. I've had 2 or 3 replaced under warranty and the problem never came back on any of the windows. The symptoms are exactly what everyone has described, intermittent up or down with cold weather or rain making it happen more often. The GM dealership that did the work for me said that it is a common problem on the late model s-series. The window motors rarely fail and usually outlast the vehicle!
Steve
Ha ha, you guys and all your damn toll booth/turnpikes everywhere! Those things have driven me crazy every time I've visited back east. Went through one once that wasn't working right, so I proceeded to go and was greeted by several "short" state troopers all with bad attitudes. I was starting to believe that me and my girlfriend were about to get a beat down! All over a $1.60 or something like that! Fun times!barch97 wrote:hmm... maybe there really are too many toll roads in NJ
The replacement motor came with 3 long flat headed bolts and matching nuts with lock washers to replace the rivets. It also included 4 little nut/bolt combos to replace the rivets holding the mounting plate assembly to the door panel. Sadly this entire assembly had to be removed to make room to remove the oem rivets and install the replacement bolts. This would have been a MUCH easier repair had there been just a tiny bit more clearance in there.HenryJ wrote:How about going back with rivets? The advantage to a rivet is that it tightens in the hole and keeps the motor from shifting, whereas a bolt will rely upon pulling the two together to keep it from shifting.
I would be tempted to try riveting it back in place if possible. Both the motor and rivets should be available through NAPA. They carry lift and lock stuff now. Check to see if they are steel or aluminum. The grip range (thickness to be clamped) and the flange diameter (head size). You should be able to get a suitable replacement. If you don't have a pop rivet gun, they are a good tool to invest in. If it should happen to be the 1/4" or larger pop rivets, those tools can be quite expensive. See if a body shop can help you out, or rent one if possible.
The door panel retainers should be replaced each time they are removed to keep the panel tight. Any parts store should have those.
Another source for rivets and panel retainers is your local Au-ve-co dealer. Sometimes you can buy a whole box for the price of five at the parts store.
You are in good company. I read codes on one of the fleet rigs. Two weeks later I got the chance to work on it. Guess how long I left the key on? I charged the four year old AC Delco battery back up and hopefully I didn't kill it. It started the truck, but I'm going to let it sit for a week or so and see if it holds the charge.barch97 wrote:... I realised I had left the key in the ignision turned to "on" for the entire 45 minutes or so this took. I'm waiting for my 6 year old battery to charge and hoping that it too doesn't need to be replaced now.
