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Fixing a slow driver's window - Don't waste your time


EricCR
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So, my driver's side window has been getting progressively slower and slower to the point where it sometimes triggered the safety anti-pinch and rolled down. At first it only happened with the window going up so I thought the issue was with the window runners or regulator alignment. I tried a lot of things, from adjusting said regulator and lubricating the runners with teflon to actually removing the glass and moving the mechanism without the extra mass. Lo and behold, rolling the regulator down was also slow and only seemed fast because the weight of the glass was helping the weak motor.

 

Yesterday I took the regulator off the car to inspect everything and I disassembled the motor. It turns out that one of the brushes inside is gone. There was absolutely no carbon left, just the copper spring. The rest of the motor was completely covered in graphite which surely didn't help. I already ordered a new motor and regulator. Even though the old regulator seems fine, I'm sure it's going to fail as soon as it has to handle the torque of a brand new motor.

 

If you are having similar issues with slow windows, don't waste your time, especially if your Pathy has a ton of miles. The brushes looked non-standard so I doubt the motors are worth refurbishing. I ordered the part from Amazon. It's a TYC and has good reviews. Let's hope it lasts, although I must give it to Nissan, this was one of the easiest regulators to remove.

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So, my driver's side window has been getting progressively slower and slower to the point where it sometimes triggered the safety anti-pinch and rolled down. At first it only happened with the window going up so I thought the issue was with the window runners or regulator alignment. I tried a lot of things, from adjusting said regulator and lubricating the runners with teflon to actually removing the glass and moving the mechanism without the extra mass. Lo and behold, rolling the regulator down was also slow and only seemed fast because the weight of the glass was helping the weak motor.
 
Yesterday I took the regulator off the car to inspect everything and I disassembled the motor. It turns out that one of the brushes inside is gone. There was absolutely no carbon left, just the copper spring. The rest of the motor was completely covered in graphite which surely didn't help. I already ordered a new motor and regulator. Even though the old regulator seems fine, I'm sure it's going to fail as soon as it has to handle the torque of a brand new motor.
 
If you are having similar issues with slow windows, don't waste your time, especially if your Pathy has a ton of miles. The brushes looked non-standard so I doubt the motors are worth refurbishing. I ordered the part from Amazon. It's a TYC and has good reviews. Let's hope it lasts, although I must give it to Nissan, this was one of the easiest regulators to remove.

Nice! I have the switch on my passenger side that doesn’t work only the driver side switch will roll it down I wonder if replacing the regulator will also fix it as it’s slow as well. How did the install go? Is it up and running ?


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I have a mess here at home with contractors running around so the garage is for now sort of a storage room and my Pathy is sitting outside. I have yet to replace the regulator but I'll surely document the process and I'll post pictures of the now gone brushes. Most likely next week I'll tackle this.

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  • 1 year later...

Hey there, I feel your pain with the slow window struggle. It's frustrating when things start going wonky with your ride. Thanks for sharing your experience and tips. It's always helpful to hear about other people's solutions.

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Sure thing, pal.

 

Actually you just reminded me that I never came back to post an update here. I installed the new TYC regulator+motor and it's been working great ever since, so that makes it 2 years of flawless operation and doesn't seem like it will fail on me any time soon. It's not noisier than the original motor and a bit faster than the other 3 windows. I may have to replace the rear ones at some point since they also feel kinda sluggish.

 

It's a shame I didn't take pictures of the inside of the original motor when I had the chance so you could see what I mean by not being worth refurbishing it. Out of all the aftermarket crap you usually stumble upon, TYC is usually one of the few brands I do trust.

Edited by EricCR
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By the way, apologies for bringing up an old thread, but I'm on the hunt for similar info. I recently discovered magnetic car window shades, and I'm curious about their effectiveness. I found them online at https://snapshades.com/car-sun-protection-for-infants/. Have you ever tried them? Thanks again for sharing your window fix journey. It's always good to learn from others' experiences.

Edited by EmenAkpan
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That's for the side windows, right? It looks like that site only makes them for R51 Pathys and newer. I've actually been trying to find something like that for a while, but nothing so far. We bought a cheap dinosaur-themed shade for our little girl which has magnets but it's as simple as it gets.

 

Then there's this one man business in the UK: https://www.blinds4cars.com/  . Nigel makes custom-fit shades for a lot of cars and I've only heard great things about his products. I own an E39 and I've been planning for a long while to get a set, but ever since the pandemic hit and we were sent home I haven't been driving it enough to justify it. Sadly there's nothing for the R50s either. Maybe if you contact him he'd be willing to make a set? The problem is that I'm assuming he needs a car to test fit and R50s are probably unicorns in the UK.

Edited by EricCR
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