Power windows- dont work HELP
Discussion
Hey pros,
My windows were working, but I think someone took the relay.
can someone tell me what relay I need, if there is a relay that I can buy at a local auto parts store, and where it shoud go. Can someone tell me where it goes and what one I need? I will buy one from you if you hace it.
PLEASE E-MAIL ME SO I WILL BE SURE TO GET THE MESSAGE PLEASE
geo_allino@yahoo.com
really, thanks guys. its a 1991 lotus esprit
My windows were working, but I think someone took the relay.
can someone tell me what relay I need, if there is a relay that I can buy at a local auto parts store, and where it shoud go. Can someone tell me where it goes and what one I need? I will buy one from you if you hace it.
PLEASE E-MAIL ME SO I WILL BE SURE TO GET THE MESSAGE PLEASE
geo_allino@yahoo.com
really, thanks guys. its a 1991 lotus esprit
Fuse #34 on the relay mounting bracket on the front firewall under the hood in front of the driver's seat. It is on the right side of the bracket.You should have 4 relays, then the 4 fuses, then 2 relays. It is the last fuse in line of 4 and runs the windows. You might check it out, but you could have other issues as well, such as a blown motor that took out the fuse.
Why don't you give us the whole story, dude? And post/look on here so we can all learn and help.
Dr.Hess
Why don't you give us the whole story, dude? And post/look on here so we can all learn and help.
Dr.Hess
Hello Dr. Hess,
Thank you for your reply about my power window's not working in my 1991 SE.
They WERE working, the car sat for 2 yers as I done some traveling, came back, both not working where they were one both working fine.
So I figured it is a fuse or bad connecton problem.
that is where I am with this,.
If you can, if it is not to much trouble, can you send me a PDF or something showing this relay and I believe if I clean some contacts or replace the fuse or relay I do beleve they will work again.
I appreciate you help very much on this issue.
Thanks DR. Geo_allino@yahoo.com
Thank you for your reply about my power window's not working in my 1991 SE.
They WERE working, the car sat for 2 yers as I done some traveling, came back, both not working where they were one both working fine.
So I figured it is a fuse or bad connecton problem.
that is where I am with this,.
If you can, if it is not to much trouble, can you send me a PDF or something showing this relay and I believe if I clean some contacts or replace the fuse or relay I do beleve they will work again.
I appreciate you help very much on this issue.
Thanks DR. Geo_allino@yahoo.com
Might have to remove the door panel and lube the worm gear that is attached to the motor. Chances are since the car sat for a while the lube is dried up. Check the window rails and the lever while you are at it and if they are stuck use tri flow on the rails and lever.
Oh forgot, once you have door panel you can probe the switch and motor with a multimeter if you have no power at those points then go for the fuse or relay. I almost certain it is the worm gear. I had to lube mine up at least once a year or it would start to go slower than the usual 2-3 second window drop.
Oh forgot, once you have door panel you can probe the switch and motor with a multimeter if you have no power at those points then go for the fuse or relay. I almost certain it is the worm gear. I had to lube mine up at least once a year or it would start to go slower than the usual 2-3 second window drop.
Hi Calvin,
That was my thought as well. Per my past experience with my first Esprit which had more window trouble, I was thinking it would be one of two things:
1. Corroded contacts after sitting
2. Sticking worm gear needed lubrication
If it's the latter, what is the best thing to use for lubrication? (hoping Atwell's not on this list or I'll really hear it, LOL)
What does the factory recommend and what do you recommend which is probably better?
Roy
Roy,
Hope all is well with you and your car. My old car is doing well as the new owner emails and calls quite frequently. He has yet to use up all of his support hours that went along with the sale of the Esprit. He still has about 4 hours left (not really counting the hours too close). Anyone trying to get a fair price and is confident about the reliability of their car should try the same approach and sell it with 8/8 hours of phone/physical work support. Although this pseudo warranty does not cover the cost of parts that might be needed for repairs and maintenence it helps smooth the transition for the new owner so he can have a good ownership experience.
Oh well back to the window issues.
I don't know if you ever saw what happens to the grease/lube they use on the window bits and pieces (you probably have seen them). On my SE after 12 years or so the grease had hardened to the point it was similar to hard caulk or window glaze that they use on houses. It was nasty and the grease would sort of just crumble when touched. So while we are chatting windows lets go over the common stuff most of us have run across.
1) Carboned up switches.
I cleaned my switch contacts after popping them out of the door panel. I used what I had around the house which was tuner/contact cleaner from the days I used to repair TV's and stereos. If you use something similar carefull of over spray as it will remove the painted icons from switches.
2) The sticking worm gear.
I noticed my window was going real slow, then it stopped working altogether. On the top of the motor/worm gear case is the worm gear set screw. I removed the set screw and I flooded the hole with tri-flow. I think Jim used 3 in 1 oil of the type used for electric motors just plain old multi purpose oil. The only reason I used tri-flow is that was what I had handy and I could use this particular lube directly on the felt glass guide rails and plastic rollers. Although Jim and I did this proceedure at different times and by ourselves we both came up with about the same process. Just dribble in the lube into the hole, let it settle down and keep topping it up. Replace the set screw. When replacing the set screw I tightened mine down too much causing the worm gear to bind and I just backed it off a bit and it worked fine. If the set screw is not in place or it is too loose the worm gear will float in the case and also will bind. So find a happy medium. You may also want to locktite it is the screw is way too loose and might drift.
3)White plastic rollers/wheels
On the window mechanism are what looks like small white plastic wheels. When the grease dries out on the guides these wheels lock into place and instead of rolling along the guides the drag and create flat spots on the wheels aggravating the slow window problem. Sometimes these wheels break apart. I replaced a set of wheels from a cabinet store that an old geezer ran in town. That guy had every oddball part. From what I understand it was for sliding closet doors (the type with rails on the bottom). I had to grind the wheels just a touch by mounting the wheels on a dremel and let it turn while touching it with a file.
4)Foam block
Anyone ever take their door panel off and looked at the inside bottom on the door? You might see black or dark gray block of foam somewhere in there. It is supposed to be wedged under the lower window frame rail. Due to shrikage it may come loose or compress enough so it does not support the frame over time it may misalign the window guides. In some Esprit's I have seen it cause the mounting screws to the door beam to loosen over time from road vibration and/or door closure. It takes a bit of trial and error to reset back to proper alignment so the windows goes up and down rapidly. Yes the windows do go up and down quite rapidly when working as they are supposed to.
5) GKP's soution.
He is not far from an actual fix.
Lightly tapping the the motor case a few times with a screw driver handle has caused a few window motors to spring back to life. Mine did, I'm sure more than one person has done this to a starter motor that did not want to work.
Sorry for the long post. Anyone else have fixes to the cronic window problems?
I sort of miss working on the Esprit.
Calvin
Hope all is well with you and your car. My old car is doing well as the new owner emails and calls quite frequently. He has yet to use up all of his support hours that went along with the sale of the Esprit. He still has about 4 hours left (not really counting the hours too close). Anyone trying to get a fair price and is confident about the reliability of their car should try the same approach and sell it with 8/8 hours of phone/physical work support. Although this pseudo warranty does not cover the cost of parts that might be needed for repairs and maintenence it helps smooth the transition for the new owner so he can have a good ownership experience.
Oh well back to the window issues.
I don't know if you ever saw what happens to the grease/lube they use on the window bits and pieces (you probably have seen them). On my SE after 12 years or so the grease had hardened to the point it was similar to hard caulk or window glaze that they use on houses. It was nasty and the grease would sort of just crumble when touched. So while we are chatting windows lets go over the common stuff most of us have run across.
1) Carboned up switches.
I cleaned my switch contacts after popping them out of the door panel. I used what I had around the house which was tuner/contact cleaner from the days I used to repair TV's and stereos. If you use something similar carefull of over spray as it will remove the painted icons from switches.
2) The sticking worm gear.
I noticed my window was going real slow, then it stopped working altogether. On the top of the motor/worm gear case is the worm gear set screw. I removed the set screw and I flooded the hole with tri-flow. I think Jim used 3 in 1 oil of the type used for electric motors just plain old multi purpose oil. The only reason I used tri-flow is that was what I had handy and I could use this particular lube directly on the felt glass guide rails and plastic rollers. Although Jim and I did this proceedure at different times and by ourselves we both came up with about the same process. Just dribble in the lube into the hole, let it settle down and keep topping it up. Replace the set screw. When replacing the set screw I tightened mine down too much causing the worm gear to bind and I just backed it off a bit and it worked fine. If the set screw is not in place or it is too loose the worm gear will float in the case and also will bind. So find a happy medium. You may also want to locktite it is the screw is way too loose and might drift.
3)White plastic rollers/wheels
On the window mechanism are what looks like small white plastic wheels. When the grease dries out on the guides these wheels lock into place and instead of rolling along the guides the drag and create flat spots on the wheels aggravating the slow window problem. Sometimes these wheels break apart. I replaced a set of wheels from a cabinet store that an old geezer ran in town. That guy had every oddball part. From what I understand it was for sliding closet doors (the type with rails on the bottom). I had to grind the wheels just a touch by mounting the wheels on a dremel and let it turn while touching it with a file.
4)Foam block
Anyone ever take their door panel off and looked at the inside bottom on the door? You might see black or dark gray block of foam somewhere in there. It is supposed to be wedged under the lower window frame rail. Due to shrikage it may come loose or compress enough so it does not support the frame over time it may misalign the window guides. In some Esprit's I have seen it cause the mounting screws to the door beam to loosen over time from road vibration and/or door closure. It takes a bit of trial and error to reset back to proper alignment so the windows goes up and down rapidly. Yes the windows do go up and down quite rapidly when working as they are supposed to.
5) GKP's soution.
He is not far from an actual fix.
Lightly tapping the the motor case a few times with a screw driver handle has caused a few window motors to spring back to life. Mine did, I'm sure more than one person has done this to a starter motor that did not want to work.
Sorry for the long post. Anyone else have fixes to the cronic window problems?
I sort of miss working on the Esprit.
Calvin
geo_allino said:
imagine the days before internet.
Geo.
It sucked.
Living in Hawaii with my 1st Lotus in the late 70's/early 80's, all one had was the workshop manual and an address for parts in the UK. Using the mail for payment I could get speedy delivery of parts in 3-4 weeks. I had a good running record or what I called 50/50 use back then. 50% disabled and 50% of the time on the road. One year I had all 3 of my cars off the road at the same time.
Calvin
Gassing Station | Esprit | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff