Flame Red

There was a recent thread in the General Discussion forum about a mod to make the windows go up and down with one touch. I thought I would post my experiences.

This procedure will convert 90-93 vettes to have automatic window up and down management. Other years may be similiar, but I do not have any other service manuals for comparison.

The materials you will need are:

A DEI 530T window control module. This unit can be obtained from: http://<a href="http://adelcom.net/i...index.html</a> These guys were good and sent me a lot of diagrams and were happy to answer questions, so I paid more than from other vendors.

Supplies:
Two spools of 16 gauge wire (two colors of your choice)
Two spools of 18 gauge wire (two colors of your choice)
Misc crimps
Medium size insulated disconnect crimp connecters – two male and two female (better get some spares)
Lots of electrical tape
A couple of coat hangers

Tools:
Helms service manual (has all the schematics and wire colors)
Volt/Ohm Meter
Soldering Iron and solder
Wire stripers, wire cutters, crimp tool, etc
Screw drivers, 7mm socket, etc.

Procedure

Installation of this unit can be done at minimal splicing into your vette’s wiring. Actually, only four wires need to be cut. Four wires will need to fished into each door.

First, start by building a four wire bundle for each door. Use 2 -16 gauge wires and 2 -18 gauge wires (of different colors, of course) and cut them to about 5 feet in length. Then wrap each bundle neatly with electrical tape to protect it during the fishing process.

Start with the driver’s side, this is the hardest one. You will need to remove the door panel to fish the four wire bundle thru. First remove the two screws that are in the door handle. This will allow you to remove the power window switch assembly.

Next for the door handle plate. Pop out the door light (using a screw driver) that is above the door handle. There is a screw that must be removed behind the light. Next use a screw driver to pop off the plastic cover of the door lock slide (below the door handle). There is a screw behind there that must be removed. The final screw is visible behind the door handle. After all three screws are removed the plate can come out with. You may have to open the door handle slightly to work it out.

The door panel is next. Remove a large screw that is at the back of the door panel near the hatch pop switch. There is also a large screw at the front of the panel. There are several screws along the bottom. After they all come out, the panel lifts off. Tilt it out from below and it kind of lifts off the top. There is no need to disconnect or remove any electrical connectors, as you can move the panel enough to get the wires fished through.

Now take the four wire bundle and fish it through. I did this by using a straightened coat hanger and forming a hook on the end. I fished this through the driver’s side kick panel, got it through the rubber passageway enough that I could see it. Then I used a second hanger with a hook on the end (through the door) and grabbed the first one. Taped the wire bundle real good to the hanger and pulled it through. Pushed the wire bundle into the pocket into the door where the window switch was.

Next I reinstalled the panel. There is one pit fall. When you reassemble the door panel, the wiring harness that connects the door light (first thing you removed) will try to feed back into the door below the door handle. If you leave it this way, your panel will not go on right. Make sure the harness goes back into the door ABOVE the door handle. Otherwise, everything is straight forward.

Driver side wiring. Now that the panel is back in, time to splice into the switch. You need to cut the thick brown wire (this controls the down side) and the thick dark blue wire (this controls the up side). You should check your Helms schematics for your year. I also checked with a volt meter. These wires have 12 V (with ignition on) when the switch is a rest. When you toggle the switch, one will go to ground (for up and down) Solder the 16 gauge wire to the side that goes into the door (towards the motor). Solder the 18 gauge wire to the switch side. Insulate carefully. Bury all the wires and reinstall switch. You are done with the driver’s side.

Passenger side is next. This one is a little easier. First start by removing the cover to the fuse box and remove the cover around the fuse box (a few 7 mm screws). Then you can remove the panel that covers the underneath of the dash. There is one screw behind the fuse panel cover to get this panel off!

Now for the door panel. It is similar to the driver’s side, with one additional hidden screw. You must pop off the window switch (gently using a screw driver) and inside the hole you will see a 7mm screw that needs to come off. Remove the door panel and fish the wiring harness as before. Once fished thru, have the bundle come out thru the hole where the window switch is and you can replace the door panel. Remember to make sure the door light harness is above the handle when you put it together or it will not go back right.

Now to connect the passenger sides switch. You should not cut any wires. I found that the wires that go into the switch change colors at the at the switch connectors. So I could not trust the schematics. So using a VOM, identify the leads that activate the motor. These leads have 12 V at rest, with ignition on, and go to 0 volts when the switch is toggles. This tells you which is the up and down side. Do not cut the leads! Instead, use a needle nose pliers to wiggle off the disconnect connector at the switch for these two leads. Then connect the 16 gauge wires in you bundle to the wire going into the door (towards the motor) and the 18 gauge ones to the switch using appropriate crimp connectors on each. I was able to find insulated connectors for a nice job. I also wrapped them in electrical tape to keep the ones going to the motor from coming apart. Pop the switch back in and you are done with the doors.

Next to connect up the module. Remove the hush panel on the driver’s side. Find a suitable location to tuck the module out of the way under the dash. There are a bunch of connections.

Connect the red wire to a constant (unswitched) 12 Volt source. Unswithced is needed if you want to have the vehicle’s alarm operate the windows.

For the ground, I used a 10MM screw that was grounded under the dash. You need to ground the black wire, violet wire and violet black together.

Next connect the four wires for the driver’s side. Use the diagram for Type B windows that came with the 530T. I just twisted them together and tried it out. I had it backwards (windows went up when I pushed down) so I reverse two leads. Solder when correct and wrap with tape.

For the pass side, fish the four wires from the module through the center of the console to the pass side and repeat connections, testing and soldering. Replace hush panels.

I have a Viper 600HF alarm system and was able to use the alternate channel (on the key thob) to get the unit to roll the windows from the remote. You can also get the unit to roll the windows up when the system is armed automatically, but I did not desire this feature. A diode is needed for this.

Enjoy your one-touch up and down!

kittmaster

Does it still allow for manual control to drive the windows to a predetermined spot.........i.e. half way down or is it auto up down only?

Let me know as silly as that question may sound

Kitt

Flame Red

Kittmaster,

Not a silly question at all. In order to stop the window, you must toggle the switch a second time. Then it stops where it is.

If something blocks the window's operation, it stops too - nice safety feature.

kittmaster

Sounds like a viable solution....Gonna have to look into it myself.......I like the auto feature in my girls z28.......Thanks

Kitt

Goody

Have the moderators add this one to the Tech Tips section before it gets lost.

JCAIRE2

:iagree:No doubt! Thanks for posting these directions.:cool: Most appreciated :cheers: