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DIY replacing window lifter mechanism

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StigJ
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Posts: 586
Joined: Tue May 04, 2010 8:58 am
Location: Sola, Norway

DIY replacing window lifter mechanism

Post by StigJ » Tue Aug 26, 2014 8:58 am

So the lifter mechanism broke again. This time on the passenger side (driver side for you guys :P) The wires they have used on these lifters are really crappy :headbang: They rust and breaks easily.


So here is an, I hope, ok writeup of the swap for you to use if your time is up for this job. Please look through the whole DIY before doing it yourself :)

I had also bought a new water splash cover. This needs to be changed also. You will not be able to remove that in one piece.
Also had some Dynamat sound deadening sheets for deleting the tin foil sound when closing the doors. Hate that. Sounds cheap....
Had some Tec7 to glue and seal the splash cover in place.
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Disconnect you battery. You will need to remove the door airbag. Remove the 10mm hex nut on the battery's ground terminal.
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Removing of the door panel.
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Locate all the Torx T25 screws that holds it in place.

Pop out the plug with the Airbag logo
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Unscrew the T25
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Remove the trim on the door handle. Begin at the top. I did not. So I broke a little plastic lip on the bottom of the trim. So pry out from the top and slide it down a little.
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Unscrew the two T25's
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Then I found the smallest flat screwdriver I had. Gently pry out the plug that sits over the screw on the door opener.
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Unscrew the last T25
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Remove the power button for the window. Just pry up. Then unplug the connector on the underside.
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Wedge something flat that is made of a material that will not scratch between the door and the panel. Pop out and work you way around.
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At the top you need to apply some more force to get it off. It should be pulled out (towards you). Not upwards like on many other cars. Begin in the one end and work our way along the window. (I usually begin on the end with the door lock pin.) You can see the metal clips 3 pictures down.

Pull off the wire to the door opener. Just grab it like in the pic and pull up/out.
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Door panel is off. Now you can see the metal clips along under the window.
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Now you need to remove the airbag. 3 pcs. 10mm hex bolts
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Unplug the connector for the airbag.
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So off to the crappy part. Removing the splash cover.
Start peeling off the cover. Remember to also remove all the black seal. Its very important that you get the new cover fully in place without gaps. If you don't you will have a little pool of water inside your car after a while.

All removed.
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Ok, now you need to align the window mechanism and the bolt that holds the window. So connect the Airbag, and connect you battery. You need power for the window.
Align so you can see the bolt in this hole:
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You see it in the picture of the whole door just above.

Well, If you think a little ahead, something I didn't do :P You can disconnect the battery after removing the door panel. And before you remove the airbag you can just punch a hole in the splash cover to align the bolt ;)

On to the removing of the window.

Unscrew the Torx T40 bolt that holds the outer/right side of the window.
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Remove the locking clip on the inner/left side of the window. Use a flat headed screwdriver to pull it to the left.
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Here is a better picture of the holder of the window.
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Forgot to take a picture of this. But just take a flat headed screwdriver and pry the ball out of the socket to remove the window.

Now the window is loose and can fall down.

The best thing now is to take off the plate that the T40 bolt you just removed is going in to. I did not so I broke a little piece of it. It still works fine but it will be a little fiddle to get it in place again.
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There is a little plastic lip the you need to unlock to get the white plate off the window. You can see that just below.
The you can pull up the window and remove it from the door. Just wiggle it a little to get the other fastening bracket through.

Place the window on something soft to not scratch it.
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Here you can see the little lip that I broke. It hold the two sides of the plate together.
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Clean you window ;)

Now start removing the lifter mechanism.

Unplug the connector from the motor.
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Still 10mm hex nuts :)
First:
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Second:
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Third:
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Fourth:
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Remove the plastic plugs from underside of the door:
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And fifth:
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There is a little platic holder on the inside that holds one of the wires. Remove that.
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Now you can wiggle the whole mechanism out from the door.

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Crappy wire :headbang:
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Remove the motor from the old mechanism and mount in on the new.
3 brass Torx T30 screws
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And you know what to do with the old one.
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Before installing the new lifter I wanted to put in some sound deadening.
I used one sheet of Dynamat Superlite.
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Not that heavy ;)
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Now you can install the new lifter. Just work backwards like when you removed the old one. Jus do not tigthen the hex nuts yet. You need to align the window a little later.

Slide down the glass and align it to the rail that goes down from the mirror area.
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Use a good amount of time to get the window properly installed and aligned to the rails and brackets.

Pop in the front bracket and secure it with the clip.
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Place the white bracket for the T40 bolt on the window. Then align it to the lifter. Here is a plate that you can adjust the window with. Here you just need to try a little. I hooked the airbag back on and the battery so I could adjust the window. Remember also the hex nut on the underside of the door. This is also working as alignment to the glass. The further out you fasten the nut, the more pressure the top of the glass is on the window sealing at the top.

Then I put a nice thick strip of Tec7 around the exactly at the same place as the old gooey
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Remember that this needs to be all sealed so that the water do not run into your interior.

Then start working backwords again starting with installing the airbag. Then the door panel, and finally the connecting the battery.

Hope this will help someone. Thanks for reading ;)
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Hellrot '06 BMW Z4 Coupe 3.0si
Instagram: @StigJ77 & @bmwe86driver

StigJ
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Posts: 586
Joined: Tue May 04, 2010 8:58 am
Location: Sola, Norway

Re: DIY replacing window lifter mechanism

Post by StigJ » Tue Aug 26, 2014 10:09 am

Woops. Wrong Section :cry:
Please move to E85/E86 :)
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Hellrot '06 BMW Z4 Coupe 3.0si
Instagram: @StigJ77 & @bmwe86driver

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fixit man
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Re: DIY replacing window lifter mechanism

Post by fixit man » Tue Aug 26, 2014 10:45 am

Nice write up, and very professional job ! :thumbsup:

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Georgio
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Location: Hockley, Essex

DIY replacing window lifter mechanism

Post by Georgio » Sat Jul 23, 2016 6:44 pm

Only small thing I would add is regarding the air-bag.
Wait at least 15 minutes after disconnecting the battery before unclipping the air-bag connector as it has a capacitor which needs to dissipate otherwise there's still a chance of it going off.
Did this today with a £17.50 kit off EBay and in comparison with doing the roof motor it's quite enjoyable.... :D
E85 2.0l 2006 Zeeee 4 Roadster, black with black leather, whippy spec. and a few toys.
3 kids, one wife so a Zed makes a perfect family car in that you leave the family at home... :D

zagamuffin
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DIY replacing window lifter mechanism

Post by zagamuffin » Thu Jul 05, 2018 8:48 pm

Best how to ever

Cheers
2003 2.5 silvery goldish
gaptech,19" ispiris,iPod kit,xcite halos,load of petrol

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