front driver side window issues

nikanika0

Hello,
 yesterday Wed. @10.30pm I stopped at employees car park barrier to scan in, window came down with no issues, I drove through, but it struggled to go up, it crept up very slowly and stopped half way up, I put a plastic sheet there I found and worked my shift, this morning I started my car and tried to close the window, it did slowly. My colleagues mentioned fuse, switch or motor. The switch/toggle is very responsive, I haven't noticed any problems, window rolles down with ease, struggles going up, yet it will after some time passes. Any ideas? thanks.

victor2

nikanika0 said:

Hello,
 yesterday Wed. @10.30pm I stopped at employees car park barrier to scan in, window came down with no issues, I drove through, but it struggled to go up, it crept up very slowly and stopped half way up, I put a plastic sheet there I found and worked my shift, this morning I started my car and tried to close the window, it did slowly. My colleagues mentioned fuse, switch or motor. The switch/toggle is very responsive, I haven't noticed any problems, window rolles down with ease, struggles going up, yet it will after some time passes. Any ideas? thanks.

Could be damage to the trim that seals against the window - or could be the motor/mechanism is shot. Worth trying a bit of vaseline around the window edge first. 

GrumpyDil

What car is it in case it is a known issue with a specific car. As an example VW EOSs have an issue where water gets down between the glass and seal and rusts the cabling on the window lifter which can end up with similar symptoms to yours.

Mildly_Miffed

Try giving it a help with the flat of your hand on the glass when it's coming back up.

Most car windows use a steel wire within a guide. Over time, the wire rusts and swells and sticks. Going down, you have gravity helping but going up, you have it hindering.

Eventually, the wire breaks. A new motor assembly is rarely that expensive, and easier to fit than you might think.

chrisw

victor2 said:

nikanika0 said:

Hello,
 yesterday Wed. @10.30pm I stopped at employees car park barrier to scan in, window came down with no issues, I drove through, but it struggled to go up, it crept up very slowly and stopped half way up, I put a plastic sheet there I found and worked my shift, this morning I started my car and tried to close the window, it did slowly. My colleagues mentioned fuse, switch or motor. The switch/toggle is very responsive, I haven't noticed any problems, window rolles down with ease, struggles going up, yet it will after some time passes. Any ideas? thanks.

Could be damage to the trim that seals against the window - or could be the motor/mechanism is shot. Worth trying a bit of vaseline around the window edge first. 

Vaseline can get a bit messy. Try some silicone spray on the window guide rubbers and once the window's up, try and spray into the door itself through any gaps or the external door handle.

oldagetraveller1

"Vaseline can get a bit messy."

And a Petroleum based product which could attack certain materials, e.g. rubber.

Silicone spray would be preferable, yes.

facade

Mildly_Miffed said:

Try giving it a help with the flat of your hand on the glass when it's coming back up.

Most car windows use a steel wire within a guide. Over time, the wire rusts and swells and sticks. Going down, you have gravity helping but going up, you have it hindering.

Eventually, the wire breaks. A new motor assembly is rarely that expensive, and easier to fit than you might think.

This.

Also, the reason it stops halfway and won't move for a while is because some better quality motors have an overload cut-out that trips when it overheats and resets when it cools down. If you "help" it so there is less load on the motor it may well go all the way up without overheating.

In The Olden Days, windows used to have an anti-trap feature whereby if you moved it up with someone's head in the way, or fingers, it would measure the load on the motor as it jammed on the fingers and go back down- I wonder why you don't see tat anymore?

nikanika0

hello, it's Suzuki Swift Sport 9y old, this problem started with the frost we had this year, I was trying to help it with my hand it moved only millimetres, it was doing better without my assistance, I have checked some YouTube videos on disassembling door, changing the motor will be a bit tricky, I will attempt it.

cymruchris

I'd still give the runners a very generous spraying of silicone spray first. There may very well be something that needs doing - but start with the simple and work towards the compicated.

Username03725

Discount the fuse or the switch; they either work or don't, esp the fuse. I'd open it as far as possible then squirt silicon lube down the guides and then do the window up & down a few times to get it into the crevices. If you can shine a torch down there you might be able to spot obstructions or see if the runners are rusting up.

It's also not a massive job to remove the door furnishings on the inside to get at the mechanism. It may be that it's dried up over the years and just needs a good lube on all the moving parts. If you can gain physical access that might be all you need to do. 

This isn't the cause in this case but I noticed my Volvo V40 driver window stopped opening & closing on a single touch of the switch, the switch instead needing to be held up or down to fully open & close it. It turns out that trying to open it when the glass has frozen to the frame unsets its limit parameters when the motor stops trying to move the fixed glass. To reset it it needs to be opened fully with the switch held down for at least 5 seconds, then it all works properly again.