DIY Fix D2 Window Regulator

[knp]

Gedday,

Back in September last year MrC hit 60,000km and with that we got a nice cracking sound from first the drivers window and then front passengers window. From what I've read in this forum it is a fairly common occurrence when you get to around this distance.

Anyway the problem turned out to be cracked plastic wheels on the window regulator in various stages of disintegration. A search of this site turned up a number off options to fix and all involved removing the regulator from the motor and either drilling/welding or doing stuff beyond my capabilities.

So this is a bit of a variation on an old theme since I'm a big fan of least is most and I also didn't trust myself to be able to re-fit and re-adjust the regulator again once I had it fixed.

This is what the old man and me came up with over a few too many whiskeys one night we hit upon the idea of a split bearing block to replace the roller. (We weren't binge drinking - just lubricating the grey matter - honest :D) Errrrupppp! - better have another one I 'spose...

So here are some pics. We went through a number of prototypes and ended up with a pretty accurate duplication of the original roller but in a square block slider form.

Start with a slab of 12mm thick nylon. Can be oil impregnated but not really necessary. Cut out a block 27mm x 40mm.

You then route out a 6mm rebate (refer to diagram below) along each side and drill an 8mm holes with a 12mm countersink 2mm deep in the middle. Then split into 2 halves with a 1mm tenon saw which should give result in a width of just under 26mm. Result is 2 halves that will fit together almost perfectly. Note: before sawing in half you can drill some screw holes so that the halves can be screwed together to enable easy drilling out of the hole. Then you re-drill the 8mm and 12mm centre holes as they will elongated after cutting in half.

To fit you remove the old roller and slide the channel out far enough to get the 2 bearing halves onto the regulator shaft. Then slide bearing back into channel and reinstall channel onto window.

This is the latest and greatest version with the screws. I only added the screws to make it easier to drill out the holes for the regulator shaft. The screws are not needed to hold the blocks together in service - the channel does that.
http://img515.imageshack.us/img515/5837/sany0007qf1.th.jpg (http://img515.imageshack.us/my.php?image=sany0007qf1.jpg)
http://img504.imageshack.us/img504/445/sany0006gg9.th.jpg (http://img504.imageshack.us/my.php?image=sany0006gg9.jpg)
http://img363.imageshack.us/img363/8086/sany0005ng1.th.jpg (http://img363.imageshack.us/my.php?image=sany0005ng1.jpg)
Rough diagram:
http://img401.imageshack.us/img401/6456/diag1rb7.th.jpg (http://img401.imageshack.us/my.php?image=diag1rb7.jpg)
You need to allow for the width of the saw cut when cutting the original size. e.g. my tenon saw makes about a 1.1mm cut so I set the width of 27mm and after cutting in half, end up with a block width of just under 26mm which works just great. The inside of the window channel measures 26mm.

This one shows two good-uns in the foreground (on the specially built router table), some rejects in the back and a failure on the right where the router bit me:
http://img403.imageshack.us/img403/1892/sany0056uy0.th.jpg (http://img403.imageshack.us/my.php?image=sany0056uy0.jpg)
This shows the new bearing block in place:
http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/4575/sany0051ow3.th.jpg (http://img84.imageshack.us/my.php?image=sany0051ow3.jpg)

Materials used: 1 old nylon chopping board - used for prototypes - too thin. 1 slab of oil impregnated nylon any size but has to 12mm thick to avoid too much sanding which is a pain. I also had some nickel anti-seize on hand and I used a dob of that for lubrication too.

The original piece of oil impregnated nylon came from the scraps in Dad's workshop but I have since found a good supply at Reverse Garbage here in Brisbane.

Please contact me if there's anything else I need to explain.

Cheers
Peter

[Scouse]

Good work Peter. I look forward to your next write up when the regulator gear welds break ;).

[maggsie]

Finally fixed the window problem using KNP's drawing. It worked perfectly,thanks! The only downside was I had to spend $42.00 for a 19mm cutting board, being a Sunday (the car needed to be fixed by tomorrow) my options were limited. So as well as fixing the window, we have a new cutting board for camping and the material to do another fix if it occurs.

Regards
Maggsie

[It'sNotWorthComplaining!]

been done before, here is a easier one.


Materials/tools needed:
A min of 6mm thick plastic ( ie: a cheap kitchen cutting board) or scrap of Teflon.
1 x Metric 6 x 200mm bolt.and nut.
I x Nyloc bolt to suit.
Some Loctite.
Router table
Saw table
Drill.
Angle Grinder.
Sand paper.
Ruler.

Step 1: Route the piece of plastic to dimensions.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v228/Rovernaut/3d353f1a.jpg

Step 2: Grind the head of the Bolt head flat, leaving enough head to give strength to head area.

Step 3: Centre drill the runner guide to accomodate the bolt shank and counter sink the bottom to allow bolt head to now sit just below flush with base.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v228/Rovernaut/e137f5a3.jpg

Step 4: Fit bolt and screw nut tight to runner guide top, use some Loctite to secure it. Fit the runner guide to window glass channel and check for freedom of movement.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v228/Rovernaut/Windoe%20regulator%20modification/00719776.jpg

Step 5: Use angle grinder and carefully grind away the old broken Runner guide from the Regulator arm.

Step 6: Fit your new runner guide to the regulator arm. Fit nylock nut and tighten till there is still enough play for the runner guide to spin on the regulator arm. Cut off any excess bolt thread that protrudes.

Step 7: Fit the runner guide to window channel, apply liberal grease and refit to vehicle.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v228/Rovernaut/Windoe%20regulator%20modification/Runnerguidefittedtochannel.jpg
All up cost for this repair is very little.

[wardy1]

LOL... I'm so glad that someone else has trouble getting pics up:D

[Andrew D]

Guys

Some good engineering there but why not just buy a new one for 25 - 45 clams.

Pretty sure there's engineers story here somewhere.

Regards
Andrew

[slug_burner]

Given all the good work I thought I would post the images directly for anyone having trouble getting the images up

been done before, here is a easier one.

.......snip...

Step 1: Route the piece of plastic to dimensions.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/02/872.jpg
Step 2: Grind the head of the Bolt head flat, leaving enough head to give strength to head area.

Step 3: Centre drill the runner guide to accomodate the bolt shank and counter sink the bottom to allow bolt head to now sit just below flush with base.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/02/873.jpg

Step 4: Fit bolt and screw nut tight to runner guide top, use some Loctite to secure it. Fit the runner guide to window glass channel and check for freedom of movement.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/02/874.jpg

Step 5: Use angle grinder and carefully grind away the old broken Runner guide from the Regulator arm.

Step 6: Fit your new runner guide to the regulator arm. Fit nylock nut and tighten till there is still enough play for the runner guide to spin on the regulator arm. Cut off any excess bolt thread that protrudes.

Step 7: Fit the runner guide to window channel, apply liberal grease and refit to vehicle.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/02/875.jpg

All up cost for this repair is very little.

[Phil HH]

Thanks knp, the split-block idea is brilliant. Minimum work, maximum strength. I have just this moment finished repairing my 2003 D2a window, and have a couple of observations:
*To operate on this mechanism, the window needs to be about 100mm from all the way down. Once the channel is loose, pull the window up and use duct tape over the top of the door frame and onto the glass, to hold it up.
*I used a 7.5mm breadboard with a 2 or 3 mm counterbore, and with the wavy washer already on the rivet, it fitted perfectly. Perhaps some rivets are different lengths?
*Also, new players need to be careful not to make the front block so long (i.e. more than 20mm from centre to end) that it fouls the screw that holds the channel to the window (mine didn't, but I used a round file to put a notch in the end just in case).
*When I routed the breadboard, I just routed a complete side, then cut off a 13.5mm strip on a small table saw. Then I did another one, and so on. I hand filed (flat bastard is best) the thick edges, and then put two thick edges together. The width was filed down to 26mm by filing the thick edges, then the long strips were held together and clamped to the table of a cheap drill press.The 8mm holes were drilled and the counterbore was made in the drill press using a 13mm router bit. The 40mm blocks were then cut from the lengths, and the edges trimmed using a snap-blade knife.
*The channel that the wheels run in was crimped in slightly at the ends on my car. These crimps need to be straightened using a pair of pliers.

These sorts of repairs are my forte, and I just naturally did what needed to be done to achieve the result, but not everyone has that sort of mindset, so that is why this post may seem a little long-winded.

Phil
Series IIA (sold to buy RR)
'81 RR Classic (last 28 years)
2003 TD5 Disco 2a (last 2 months)

P.S. ...... Before I replaced the door lining I played with the window, winding it up and down whilst using a mirror to look up into the door cavity. When the window reaches the top and the actuating mechanism encounters resistance, the rear arm undergoes a massive twist (when the window frame gives its characteristic upward hop). The plastic wheels are adequate for the job, but the poorly designed actuating mechanism places abnormal sideways stresses on them when the arm twists. The existing over-current cutout is necessary for safety reasons, but it is a cheap and nasty substitute for proper limit switches when it comes to stopping the window at the end of its travel. This design flaw is what causes the common plastic wheel and spot weld failures. As mentioned elsewhere on this site, it is prudent to park the window in its up position in small increments and stopping before it is fully home, thus avoiding the stress caused when the winder tries to shove the window frame into the underside of the roof gutter.

[banarcus]

My front passenger window just dropped the other day. Turns out that one of the runners had already died which resulted in twisting and warping which ultimately resulted in the large gear plate falling off.

The fix?

Welding the plate back on the regulator and making a small nylon block just like that of INWC but I used a file and hacksaw rather than routers etc. Regreased and straightened up, the regulator is smooth as.

Thanks to those who posted up photos and ideas for inspiration. Cheers :)

[dolphinberserk]

I used the diagram above and made a repair to the 1999 D2 regulatir yesterday.
When I opened up the door I didn't find wheels sliding in the regulator but clip together nylon sliders. One had broken in two and was obstructing the regulator movement. I had little time and tried a quick fix by glueing it back together (using plastic splints) around the pin, which was a waste of ten minutes as after degreasing and sanding I still couldn't get any glues to gain purchase on the nylon (grease impreg? Absorbed grease from regulator track).
I didn't feel like drilling the pin out and teplacing with a screw (time, hassle, metal shavings) so I made a slider with a gap in the bottom edge that clipped around the pin. I made as per the drawing above but 40cm in length to prevent it from flipping around or diagonal in the track. The thickness of 6mm worked fine with the pin. The backside pin head was 12mm diam and 2mm depth and I used a router bit in the drill press to drill a 2mm bed in the back of the slider for the pin head. The pin shaft is 8mm so an 8mm drill bit for the hole was fine. I cut a 7mm 'access' cut for the pin into the bottom side with a hacksaw. It clipped quite nicely onto the clip.

[GIL]

Hi All,
Thanks to all the above posters for your posts.
I have, today, fixed the front left hand side window regulator (the Boss 's window).
The disintegrated roller was the rear most on the bottom channel. The rollers on the front most and the top channel were good.
I used the 'make a block from a cutting board' method, (I now owe the Boss a new cutting board as she, for some reason, doesn't want the old one back). However I don't have access to a router so all fabrication was by hand using hacksaw, coarse file, sandpaper and drills, and elbow grease.
I also used Dolphinberserk's method to clip it onto the original mounting post on the arm, as it was solid but I had to reform the end of the arm as it had distorted.
I did not use the 6mm cutting board but a 10mm thick one because it was available and it can be made to be snug on the mounting post of the arm and the full length of the mounting post bears on the new 'runner'. It finished up as 25 mm high by 40 mm long and about 8 mm thick and used the original wavey spring washer.
The recess in the face for the mounting post head was done with a suitable drill bit (12mm) twisted by hand to get just a shallow recess and not go too deep, THEN the through hole for the mounting post, of 8mm, was drilled. This left a neat slightly chamfered recess which worked just fine.
One thing I found which is not mentioned in previous posts.
My metal channel that the rollers (and now the new runner) travels in was a little worn from the action of the mounting post rubbing on the edge of the section and creating a burr. I carefully filed off this sharp burr so it would not cut into the new runner and chew it out prematurely.
I fitted it with a liberal dose of Molybdenum Disulphide grease to all parts of both channels and this freed up the other two rollers nicely as they were gummy.
All now works as good as new.
A second runner was made and put into the tool box ready for the right hand side should it be required.
This has saved me at least $75 to replace the whole regulator assembly AND I didn't have to remove the old one to fit the new runner.
Cheers GIL [smilebigeye]