Swapping out electric window motor

[Trstno1]

Hey guys-

The passenger power window on my car works but is very slow and on its last legs. I recently replaced the whole drivers door mechanism because it didn't work at all. When I bench tested the old unit, I found that the motor actually worked but it didn't seem to be connecting with anything in the mechanism. Does anyone know if I can just replace that working motor with the failing one in the passenger door without consequence or should I just purchase a whole new mechanism for the passenger door?

[DavidProehl]

I'm not entirely sure what you are saying isn't working.

There are two common problems I am aware of with the OEM window motors:

The plastic gears inside the motor strip
The plastic support bracket that supports the flexible rod breaks


For case #1 you might be be able to replace only the motor, but eventually your plastic support bracket will break and then you are having to fix it again. For #2, replacing the motor only won't help, you might be able to super glue it back together, but it will break again.

I'd recommend just buying a full window motor unit, even though they are painfully expensive.

[Shep]

For what it's worth, that plastic is 30 years old and very weak. Save yourself the hassle now and get them both replaced instead of trying to transplant the motor. Usually the track, gears, or some other plastic part goes bad rather than the motor itself, so even if you get the motor fixed, how long the plastic will last you is a huge unknown. Could last you a few uses, or a few years, but either way it's best to replace the entire unit while you're in there than try to Frankenstein two together ;)

Then you can sell the working motor separately for someone else to attempt the same thing on :shhh:

[DMCMW Dave]

You can fix them if:
--your time is completely worthless and you don't mind doing it over a few times;
--you can get old used ones shipped to you essentially free to use for parts, assuming you can get broken ones that are broken differently than your broken one. I would presume the cost of shipping to Alaska is not insignificant.

Otherwise bite the bullet and replace them. This time you can trust everyone.

[Trstno1]

Yeah, I think you guys are right. I'm just going to order a new one and be done with it. Thanks for the input.