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kind of a tough question

Myslik

New member
I recently had my right side rear window motor replaced in my car, apparently when it was fixed my dad seen it working yada yada. I get it after work and the window doesn't work, the mechanic who fixed it is being a **** and not doing anything about it for a week so I really need to get this fixed today. I already went to a tint appointment with a non working window like a fool. I want to see if I can repair the maybe simple problem on my own.. the guy at the tint shop said hey maybe its a ground however its not his job to fix that so I just told him I'd see him later perhaps.

Any ideas what I could do ?

oops, it's a 2001 grand prix GT 4 door. just so you know.
 
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It would help if we had a better description of what it is (or is not) doing. Does it not roll down? Does it not roll back up when it is already down? Does it come out of the track? Does it work with the switch at that door but not at the master switch, etc.
 
it does absolutely nothing, no activity whatsoever. I tried the master switch and the one on the panel of the door it doesnt even make a sound. same problem as before I changed the motor. however I was told by my dad it was working at the point when he left the shop.
 
All the windows are on the same fuse/breaker, so if your other windows are working then your fuse is good and you have a short somewhere.

Start by checking the wiring going into the doors for lose/broken wires, and if they are accessible try wiggling them while pressing the switches. If your door panels are still off you can also try wiggling the wires at the switches and motor while you try the switches. If the window starts working or works intermittently while you are wiggling wires then you have found the problem wire and you can follow it to see where it is lose, broken, or making a bad connection.

Another way to start is with a test light or a meter. With the key on you should have power to the wire at the switches. You can also put your test light on a power source and make sure you have a good ground at the switch. If you have an ohm meter you can also put one end at the connector for the switch and the other at the other end (with the connector disconnected at both ends) and check each wire. If you find one with zero ohms that wire is broken. Wiggle the wires while doing this test too and make sure the readings don't change while wiggling.
 
use a multi meter in the resistance setting that chimes at you to check for connectivity at the switch in both directions (up and down). if it chimes in both directions the switch is good. now move on to see if you are getting volage to the switch its self. if it does not chome the switch is faulty.
 


use a multi meter in the resistance setting that chimes at you to check for connectivity at the switch in both directions (up and down). if it chimes in both directions the switch is good. now move on to see if you are getting volage to the switch its self. if it does not chome the switch is faulty.

Good idea too, but it sounds like his problem is intermittent. I know it is possible, but I have not seen too many switches that are intermittent. Either way, if you try this and it chimes while your window is still not working, you know the switch is good and you can move on.

Since it doesn't work (currently) with either switch, I am guessing your problem is somewhere in the driver's door (wiring, switch, etc.), so I would start there. Could also be a bad connection at the motor itself, but hopefully the mechanic would have noticed that while he was in there.

When it was working, did it work with both switches or only one of them?

Don't know if it would help at this point or if you could get any money back, but I would bet that if you bench test your old motor it would work, although I have seen motors that are intermittent too.
 
ended up taking the panel off and the second i tried it it worked. im guessing theres a loose wire somewhere. i took some electrical tape and did a decent job tightening up the connector. but yesterday it stopped working randomly an now works again.. odd but at least i wa able to get my window tint done this time
 
I had this happen to my last grand prix....Started intermittent then it eventually stopped working all together. I could apply 12v to my motor to roll the window up and down, so I knew the motor was good. I replaced the switch and it was all good after that. Definitely continuity test the switch first, cause the switch is around $100.
 
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