This article will provide instructions and photos on how to save money and change the motor ourselves.
Recently the power windows on our driver's and passenger side of our 1995 Ford Explorer Sport stopped working within weeks of one another. This sounded coincidental. It possibly could have been that the motor's were made to break within weeks apart from one another or there was an electrical problem with the vehicle.
We decided to check the prices of a local shop and Ford dealership in the South Florida area. The independent shop quoted us at $500 dollars a window. He also advised us that Ford is known to have bad power window motors. We also check with the local Ford dealership who quoted us at $600 dollars a window.
Due to the high prices we decided to check area auto parts stores. We checked Discount Auto first, the cost per power window lift was $89 and they did not have it in stock. I would have to pay for it and come back in a day. The next place I checked was Advanced Auto. They were also going to charge $89 per motor. It would take 2 days for them to get the parts. The third auto parts store we visited was Bennett Auto Supply. Bennett had the parts in stock for $83.19 and had a core replacement reimbursement of $10.
Core replacements on motor vehicle parts are for people to return the original part, so it can be remanufactured to be used again. Many auto parts stores allow this on replacement parts. Many do not. As our example above shows, Bennett was the only auto parts store that took core replacements. Therefore we highly recommend users of CarCondition.com to use Bennett Auto Supply for their auto parts needs.
For the Ford Explorer (most models), follow the instructions below to replace the power window lift motor
1. Unscrew the two phillips head screws next to the door handle. See the picture of the inside of the Ford Explorer door depicted below.
2. Peel back the inside plastic door cover (See picture of door cover below)
Start at the bottom and pry it back with your hands. If you cannot get an opening with your hands, pry it out with a pry tool that has auto blue tape on the end. The tape will prevent the paint from getting chipped.
3. There will now be a thin plastic layer of plastic covering the inside of the door. Carefully peel this back and put it aside.
4. Now you have the metal door accessible. At this point, it will be necessary for you to set something in to the door frame to hold the window up. The window weighs approximately 40 lbs and there is a tension spring holding it in place. When you take out the motor, this will swing that window down on you with an incredible force. You need to set something in the frame to hold it in place. We cut a piece of wood which we put in to the door frame to hold up the window
5. At this point we recommend that you take out the speaker. You will need to fit your hand in the hole to take out the motor. There are 4 screws holding in the speaker. It is easily removed.
6. Now it is safe to unscrew the bolts holding the motor in place. There are three bolts holding motor to the frame. Two are readily accessible. You can take them out. Getting to the third bolt is a little tricky. You will need to drill a hole in the dimple on the side of where the speaker was. In order to find that exact dimple, you can line up the motor on the outside of the frame. You will readily see the dimple.
7. Why Ford has you drilling the door frame to get the power window motor out of the vehicle, we do not know. But it is a necessity unless you take out the whole inner door housing which entails taking out rivets. A near impossibility unless you have a rivet kit. After you drill this hole, you can use your socket wrench to take out the 3 bolts. Also, unplug the power window motor cord. 8. To replace the motor
you will have to place it inside the car in to the exact position as the other motor (obviously). Line up the bolt holes. You will feel it when it locks in to the position where it belongs. Tighten up the bolts and plug in the chord.
After taking the window block out, it is time to put the key in the vehicle and try out the motor. Hopefully there will have been no problems and the window will work.
We replaced the two motors and they work perfectly. The first window motor took a little over an hour to replace and repair completely, while the second motor we replaced within one half an hour. With the instructions provided above, you should be able to accomplish your repair rather quickly.
Good luck in yor auto repairs,
Michael Manning
CarCondition.com