Slow electric windows - Need grease?

[nedfunnell]

I've got a 1982 C1500 Sierra Classic. It has electric windows. The thing is, both of them are quite slow. I imagine that they've never been serviced. Do they need to be greased, or any kind of lubrication? What can I do to speed them up? I can't help but think that something in there is grinding without lube. If they can be re-greased, how can I do that? What kind of grease should I use?

[Robyn]

Here is the scoop

This is a comon problem with these after they get some time on them.
The grease dries out,collects dirt and generally gets hard.
The guide rollers on the regulator get stuck and dont work right any more either.
The motors suffer about the same fate as the rest of the equipment in there too.

Pull the door panel off and get the window about half way down before you unplug the electrical.

Unbolt and remove the regulator/motor assembly and then remove the motor.
Check out the window glass tracks too to be sure the are ok and lube them with spray silicone.

Steam clean or otherwise wash the regulator and the other slide tracks well to remove all the old grease and crud.

Look things over and make sure the rollers on the regulator are in good order and relube them as well as rease the regulator gear.

I would recommend installing a set of rebuilt motors and then put it all back together. You can just realign the bolts with the spots they came from and the suckers hould work great.

I had to do my dually a few years ago and my 91 Burb is next on the HIT LIST.

Just the joys of owning a rig with power windows I guess.

This may sound like a nasty job buts its not all that bad.

Get all your parts ahead of time and your set.
White grease works good on the regulators. Be sure and check the switches too as they have a nasty habit of going south too.
Napa and other fine Auto stores sell replacement ones at reasonable prices.

While you have the door apart it would be a great time to lube the electric lock assembly as well as the rest of the lock works.

Replacing the outer seal that resides just outside the window in the door is easy to do at this point too.

Good luck

Robyn

[nedfunnell]

Thanks for the great info, Robyn!

I was just trying to track down the instrument panel bulb/bulbs. I looked under the dash, but I wasn't able to find it. The Haynes manual more or less says 'Reach in, take out bulb holder, replace bulb, reinstall'. I have no idea where it is. Is there one, or multiple? Can anyone approximate which instrument it is behind?


Here is the scoop

This is a comon problem with these after they get some time on them.
The grease dries out,collects dirt and generally gets hard.
The guide rollers on the regulator get stuck and dont work right any more either.
The motors suffer about the same fate as the rest of the equipment in there too.

Pull the door panel off and get the window about half way down before you unplug the electrical.

Unbolt and remove the regulator/motor assembly and then remove the motor.
Check out the window glass tracks too to be sure the are ok and lube them with spray silicone.

Steam clean or otherwise wash the regulator and the other slide tracks well to remove all the old grease and crud.

Look things over and make sure the rollers on the regulator are in good order and relube them as well as rease the regulator gear.

I would recommend installing a set of rebuilt motors and then put it all back together. You can just realign the bolts with the spots they came from and the suckers hould work great.

I had to do my dually a few years ago and my 91 Burb is next on the HIT LIST.

Just the joys of owning a rig with power windows I guess.

This may sound like a nasty job buts its not all that bad.

Get all your parts ahead of time and your set.
White grease works good on the regulators. Be sure and check the switches too as they have a nasty habit of going south too.
Napa and other fine Auto stores sell replacement ones at reasonable prices.

While you have the door apart it would be a great time to lube the electric lock assembly as well as the rest of the lock works.

Replacing the outer seal that resides just outside the window in the door is easy to do at this point too.

Good luck

Robyn

[HammerWerf]

Ned,

There are somewhere close to 9 bulbs that light up the instrument cluster.

Yea, I saw the instruction once about reaching up and removing the bulb. With all the wires I saw when I looked up there, I could barely see the back of the instruments, much less touch or remove.

I've found it easier to take the panel out and replace all of the bulbs at the same time.

Careful with the speedometer cable, it's held on by a clip that is under the cable housing. ( I do all my dash work from by the steering wheel. I'm always reaching in/down). Cruise Control, clock are wired seperately from the instrument harness, and have seperate take apart joints.

When you get the screws that hold it to the metal dash, removal may require finessing the position to get it to clear the overhangs.

HammerWerf

[mhagie]

I have had the instrument cluster out of my 84 cab more times than I care to remember.
I have found that I can have the cluster out in about 15-20 minutes and not hurry, the worst part is the speedo cable unhook.
I also remove the two nuts holding the steering column to the dash so the wheel drops a few inches, it really helps with the cluster removal/install.

Merle

[nedfunnell]

Alright, I suppose it's pretty unlikely that all 9 bulbs went out. They've been that way since I bought the truck in November. I thought the fuse was okay, but I'll check again. Any other ideas on what might cause all of them to go out at once?

Actually- the high beam light works- the two little blue dots. Also, the glow plug, 'Water in fuel', and E-brake lights all work. It's just the illumination ones that don't work, i.e. I can't see the speedo, fuel gauge, or any other gauges.

[RoverIIa]

They didn't all go at once, but by now they're gone. Two things happen:

1) They get old and die.

2) They get hot, melt the little plastic clips holding them on, and fall out the back of the cluster, where they happily light up the darkness that is behind the dash.

You may find that you need some new cluster parts to put it all back together well.

Tip: Dis-assemble the entire cluster, gently clean the printed circuit on the back, and paint the inside of the white/green plastic piece with gloss white or shiny silver plastic paint. Your brightness will go up greatly. That plastic gets yellow with time and doesn't want to shine any more.

Also, on the WINDOW Regulators:

DO NOT REMOVE THE MOTOR while the window is partially extended. The spring in that thing will easily take off your fingers if they are in the wrong place. The manual has an instruction for drilling a small self-tapping screw into the regulator frame to hold the spring tension. Be ABSOLUTELY sure to do this. I'm pretty sure those are the only fingers that you get to have.

I found a bunch of cracked rollers on mine. I wish I would have bought replacement regulators instead of just motors. Also, this is a good time to change all of your door/window seals. LMC Truck has some decent seal kits that will silence the rattles and whistles in your doors.

If you get ambitious and decide to replace the vent window seals... don't waste your time. You are better off to buy new assemblies, replacing the seal involves drilling out the rivet in the hinge, and it is a special shoulder rivet that is more than difficult to replace. I still have a truck with Vent windows that won't hinge properly because I was too cheap to replace the whole assembly.

Good Luck.

Have fun.