Your electric windows move up and down by way of a mechanism inside your door. Sometimes you may find it is not working. Sometimes it may just be a temporary problem, but often it means the window is broken.

Electric windows have a couple more parts that can go faulty in comparison to manual windows. They are therefore more prone to failure. Often it can simply be a case of the mechanism having seized and needing replacement. But sometimes it may be that the window motor which powers the mechanism is faulty. A fault in the electrical system might have been the cause of this. A minor part in the system like a blown fuse or faulty relay can cause the window to stop working.

Before getting anything replaced it is worth to check the electrical system of the car first. After inspecting the electrics, the mechanical parts should be checked. That way potential causes can be eliminated one step at a time. Checking first could save you a lot money as it may be that your window mechanism is not actually broken.

What Can I Do To Get A Broken Electric Window Fixed?

If you’re not sure what you need it’s best to just get help from a professional and get the things checked over. Rather than replacing a part and hoping for the best. A mechanic will be able to find the exact fault in the system, and pinpoint what part needs replacing during a window inspection.

The window regulator, or window mechanism, assists in opening and closing the side windows on the car. Most cars nowadays are fitted with an electric regulator, which is controlled by a window switch on your door or dashboard. Cars with basic trim levels and older cars are usually operated by a manual mechanism. In that case, the door is fitted with a window winder.

What parts does the window regulator consist of?

The window regulator is fitted inside the door underneath your window. It consists of a bracket that holds the glass in place and the actual mechanism. On some cars this is a ‘scissor’ type mechanism, on other cars this is a cable-type window regulator. Attached to that is either the window motor or a manual window winder, depending on your car.

With a ‘scissor’ type, or gear driven regulator the mechanism the X-shaped regulator part will effectively close itself as the window is lowered. When the window needs to close again it will return to its normal position pushing the window back up.

The cable-type regulator on the other hand consists of the bracket that holds glass which is moved across a sliding bar inside the door by the cables. As the bracket moves up and down the door window glass is closed and opened respectively.

How To Diagnose Window Regulator Problems

Sometimes problems can occur with the mechanism itself. Or if you have electric windows, with the electrical parts of the regulator. It can be tricky to get to the bottom of the problem. So if you’re not sure make sure to get an inspection first, so that a mechanic can select the right parts.

As you drive the car, the car collects dirt and debris in all kinds of nooks and crannies. Usually a bit of dirt won’t affect the car’s functionality, it only ruins the looks of your car. In some cases though it can be that dirt prevents parts of the car working properly. Take, for example, water leaks which usually come about due to inadequate drainage of water in wet weather conditions. A common drainage problem usually occurs at the drain holes just under the windscreen.

How does it happen?

Dirt (like sand, decomposing leaves and so on) can block the drain holes preventing water to clear from the plastic windscreen scuttle (or cowl) underneath the car’s windscreen. If, added to that, the seals around this area are not in a good shape it can be that water drips into the passenger compartment, in many cases it will run into the footwell. If not addressed, the affected areas can ultimately start to corrode leading to further, more expensive repairs.

INSTANT QUOTE

Prevention?

Thankfully, preventing the drains from clogging up is super simple. It just takes you, your hands and some regular effort. With other words you ought to make sure the scuttle is clear of leaves and sludge whenever possible, to reduce the chance a drain clogs up. Especially because water drains are not usually cleaned at regular services. Remember to raise this at your next service with your mechanic too. The drains and scuttle should be cleared of any dirt and debris at your next service. Of course, if you can, do remember to clean the scuttle of leaves and dirt yourself daily.

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How to clean?

Should you be so unlucky to already have a blocked drain hole, then try following the following to clean the drains:

• Accessing the drain holes depends on your car, in some cases it might mean that you would have to remove the windscreen wipers and scuttle.

• Once having gained access to a drain hole it can usually be cleaned with a flexible wire and flushed with warm water.

• Seek professional advice if you find that the water still does not drain correctly or if water still leaks into the passenger compartment.

• Done!

The nitty-gritty?

Don’t forget that every car is a little different and might need a different approach to unclog the drain holes than the one presented here. Seek professional advice if you find that water has seeped through to other areas, risking corrosion of underlying components. Especially, as water leaks around the windscreen are not necessarily down to clogged drain holes (in this case consider one of our other guides).

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