87Vetter81

Tape or Ribbon..........Hey guys. I noticed my regulator tape/ribbon on my drivers side is not functioning properly. Heck, it's not even attached to the regulator. I have a new one that came with the car when I bought it.

Can someone tell me or is there a thread with detailed explaination of how to install this regulator tape/ribbon. Its the white plastic piece with all the notches in it. If you need a pic I can download one real quick. Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

oldalaskaman

my 87 doesnt have the tape

87Vetter81

Wow really? That's weird. Yeah my tape/ribbon broke in half near the top. So it goes all the way up nicely but when i push the switch down, it goes down without the window. I have to push the window down to get it to go down with the tape/ribbon.

Funny how they call it tape. It's a piece of long white plastic with grooves on it which passes through the regulator I assume but why they call it tape is beyond me. Anyways, I have one ready to install, I just don't want to have to disassemble anymore than I have to and def don't want to start a project I can't complete.

Here is a pic of it:

http://www.shopping.com/1330640-repl...uvxB7bw==/info

Scary cause everything I found on this does not say it's for a Corvette. Says '87-91 Plymouth, Dodge and Chrysler.

Z51JEFF

Early 86 had the ribbon,late 86 on had the better regulator.Do yourself a favor and upgrade to the later part.Do some digging and you can find the better design for around $200 new.

87Vetter81

ok thankx Z51Jeff! good to know. Yes mines is March 86 date...

JackDidley

87 should not have the ribbon. 84, 85 did. My 86 did not. My 87 does not. Have the doors been replaced ? I cant imagine retrofitting to something prone to fail.

87Vetter81

Doors have not been replaced to my knowledge. The regulator is ooooold. The ribbon is oooooold. I do not want to take apart this door. What a pain it looks like....yikes!

wbc4

The factory service manual tell in detail how to do it. It is not that hard.

This is an abbreviated version I made up. There are a few things left out.

Take the door arm rest off. Take the plastic panel off which has your power door lock swith in it. Take off the door panel while unplugging the windshield wiper and door lock switch etc.

Take off the inner door panel. Take out the window glass and then the regulator. Drill out the rivets. Install new tape and rerivet. Reinstall.

JrRifleCoach

The 84-5 had ribbons on both doors.
86e had ribbon on the pass side only
87-on were all scissor type

Yep! Same tape and it fits and works just fine. Cheap too!

oldalaskaman

now that you know your vette is an early 86 might make your searches for info and parts more productive, best advice is to upgrade to the later regulator while you have it apart

fredd1

The drivers side ribbon on my '84 failed after 3 years (25 years ago -ouch!8o). I had to remove the door panel and Aluminum mounting panel to gain access to the drive mechanism -not too bad a job. Of course two months later the passenger side failed which only took half the time to replace (since I knew what I was doing then). I was a bit suspicious about two failures so close together, especially since the drivers window got far more use than the passenger side. From what I gather the factory installed ribbons were made from a poor plastic that would oxidize and become brittle over time, hence both cracked at nearly the same age. the replacements were made from a nylon-delrin material I believe and are still holding up 25 years later. Of course replacing the mechanism with a more reliable scissor-type might not be a bad idea since you never can tell what material the replacement ribbons are made from these days. More work for sure but probably worth the effort.

PNG2005

I have the same problem with my 87 drivers door. I have it pretty much torn apart now, but still can't get anything a to move. I read on one of the messages that there are rivets that have to drilled out to remove the ribbon. the motor still runs but will not pick up the ribbon due to some broken teeth. My question is can you replace the ribbon without removing the regulator?

87Vetter81

I'm almost 99.9% positive you must remove the regulator. The rivets can be replaced with something that does the same job. Holds it on tightly. My car is now working excellent since the restore job. Good luck.

Cliff Harris

I upgraded to the later window regulators that are MUCH faster than the ribbon type. I was glad I did.

I heard the engineers made the early motors small to save weight so they had to gear them way down to get enough torque to get the windows up and down.

PNG2005

I just finished replacing my tape on an 87 also. It seemed as though someone had replaced the door, because every thing was the same as an 85. The regulator must be removed from the window. It is a pain getting the regulator out, but replacing the tape and motor is very easy. the tape is $16, use a Chrsyler tape and the moter was $39. Change both at one time so you don't have to tear it apart again. Do not remove the window guide unless you are replacing the glass. It is located on the left upper side of the drivers door. That is were the window locks in the up position. My tape broke at the very top near were it connects with the pin. Runs great and also very fast now.

PAINTER MAN

I have a late 86 that was built in March 86 and both of my regulators have the ribbons.