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Window motor woes

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Old Sep 20, 2012 | 03:40 PM
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Default Window motor woes

Okay, I have replaced my drivers side power window twice now. I put the second new one in today and it worked great for about 5 minutes and then it stopped working. I can hear a faint click in the motor when I hit the switch.I tried running a ground wire from the motor with no change. What else can I check? This seems like the never ending story.
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Old Sep 20, 2012 | 03:41 PM
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I forgot to say my car is an 80.
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Old Sep 20, 2012 | 03:50 PM
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How long did the first replacement last and what were its symptoms?
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Old Sep 20, 2012 | 04:04 PM
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The first motor and the original motor both worked on and off. The new motor didn't really seem anymore powerful than the old one. The one I put in today seemed stronger than the other ones. New motor is an A1 Cardone brand. I scraped the paint off the mounting surface so it would ground better. I have had the wires come lose before, but that's not the issue. I have swapped the window switches around before as well in the past.
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Old Sep 20, 2012 | 04:24 PM
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If you have a test light, you can test the pins on the connector that connects to the motor. If you are getting light then you should be getting power.

I had some issues too. If you remove the motor, (I know you dont want to) you can use one line of your jumper cables for a ground. Then I just ran a smaller wire from the battery to the pin on the motor to see if it would spin. If that works then you have ruled out the motor and know its either a power issue or ground issue with the car.

Have the tracks in door been cleaned?
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Old Sep 20, 2012 | 04:31 PM
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Originally Posted by johnt365
If you have a test light, you can test the pins on the connector that connects to the motor. If you are getting light then you should be getting power.

I had some issues too. If you remove the motor, (I know you dont want to) you can use one line of your jumper cables for a ground. Then I just ran a smaller wire from the battery to the pin on the motor to see if it would spin. If that works then you have ruled out the motor and know its either a power issue or ground issue with the car.

Have the tracks in door been cleaned?
The window regulator is new as well. I got the good stainless one. Cleaned and greased all the tracks and replaced the window rollers. I tried the test light while working the switch and it didn't light up? I think the motor is good, but I will test it.
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Old Sep 20, 2012 | 04:39 PM
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If you get no power through the wires to the connector, And, you have swapped a known good switch, Then the problem sounds like a short in your wiring.

With the motor installed you could run a small power lead to the connectors on the motor and that would confirm your ground and the motor work. Then you just gotta run some wires.
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Old Sep 20, 2012 | 05:09 PM
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Thanks. I just had a little more time to investigate. I plugged the old OEM motor in and grounded it and it worked outside of the car. I grounded the new motor bolted in and still nothing? I put an alligator clip on my ground and put that on the neg batt terminal, so I know the ground is good. Could that motor really be bad after 5 minutes?
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Old Sep 20, 2012 | 06:01 PM
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The wires between the door and the body could be the problem, remove the 2 prong plug at the rear of the window motor and apply 12 volts to one terminal at a time and see if it works that way.
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Old Sep 20, 2012 | 09:11 PM
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Originally Posted by petes74ttop
The wires between the door and the body could be the problem, remove the 2 prong plug at the rear of the window motor and apply 12 volts to one terminal at a time and see if it works that way.
I just went through similar problems with my 79. Intermittent window not working turned out to be a broken wire where it went into the door. You're sure your ground is good. Does the motor work better going up than down or vice versa? If the same problem exists in both directions, I would look at the wire supplying power to the switch. If the problem is in one direction only, look at the wires from the switch to the motor.
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Old Sep 20, 2012 | 11:02 PM
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Run a jumper from your battery, or any 12volt source, including ground, directly to the motor leads and see how the motor reacts. Take everything else out of the loop. If it runs well, then start the elimination process.
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Old Sep 23, 2012 | 11:18 AM
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I put the old motor back in and it is working, but seems a little weak. Put 12 volts to the new one and no go. Good thing they have a warranty.
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Old Sep 23, 2012 | 10:21 PM
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Originally Posted by Camss57
I put the old motor back in and it is working, but seems a little weak. Put 12 volts to the new one and no go. Good thing they have a warranty.
another incident of a new part being faulty, sheesh. aggravating as hell and dissapointing in manufacturers...sorry
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Old Sep 24, 2012 | 04:50 PM
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Originally Posted by Doug1
another incident of a new part being faulty, sheesh. aggravating as hell and dissapointing in manufacturers...sorry
Yah, and the parts guy made it sound like it was my fault...
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Old Sep 24, 2012 | 08:22 PM
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Originally Posted by Camss57
Yah, and the parts guy made it sound like it was my fault...
wow really? was this a chain auto parts store like an Auto zone or Advance Auto, if so what do those guys care, its not their money. hate that kinda stuff
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Old Sep 24, 2012 | 08:46 PM
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i only have one complaint about the drivers side on my 77, it makes a terriable noise while going down, but they both go down in about 2 sec, they are very strong.
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Old Sep 24, 2012 | 10:09 PM
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Originally Posted by 1977L48
i only have one complaint about the drivers side on my 77, it makes a terriable noise while going down, but they both go down in about 2 sec, they are very strong.
the spring in there probably broke/fell out
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