H-body (Lancer) window regulator

[iTurbo]

Hi all. I've been trying to repair a bunch of little annoying things on my Shelby Lancer lately and one of the biggest things I've been putting of for years now is the front driver side door window regulator. The motor seems to work OK, but the plastic strip with teeth is broken about in about the middle. I managed to remove the clip that secures it to the roller track thing on the bottom of the window and pull the regulator 'tape' out the top...

So I decided I'd pirate this part from a spare Shelby Lancer door I have in my garage and you guessed it, it's broke too. Can I use the regulator 'tape' from a passenger side door? If I buy a new one, should I get it from Mopar or Rock Auto?

[Dodge Aries K]

They actually sell them at AutoZone and the like as well in the "Help!" sections.

[bakes]

Get a new one, they get brittle with age and the driver window is the most important since it's the window that gets rolled down when you get pulled over.:nod:

[iTurbo]

Help section huh? I didn't think these would be so readily available which is a big reason I kept putting off fixing it.

And I DID get pulled over once and had to roll down the rear window and explain to the cop that I couldn't roll my window down. Man that sucked. They don't like it when you open the door unexpectedly on 'em.

[looneytuner]

I hope you saved an old one. You have to cut it to the exact length. When you feed it in with the motor, it breaks if you don't guide it with your fingers.

[iTurbo]

Thanks for the tip. And yes, still got the old one.

[Mike M]

I'm just going to re-state what has already been said, but make absolutely sure you guide it in with your fingers ALL THE WAY... I've broken two of them installing them, lol! Just bump the motor slowly and guide it in...

[iTurbo]

Thanks to you guys I got it right the first time. I can see how helping it along at first with just bumping the motor helps keep it from breaking. The hardest part was lining up the window roller stud to the eyelet in the end of the tape, and then getting that little clip back on. I cleaned the tape track and roller guide with brakleen and used white lithium grease rather liberally. That seemed to help the original window motor a lot. Rolls up and down nice and smooth now.

[bakes]

Now lube up the other 3 doors tracks before they go snap and a little silcone spray in the glass runs will help to make the glass ride smooth and fast up and down.

[iTurbo]

Less than two months after installing the new regulator, it broke again. This time it snapped near the top where the roller guide slides through the eyelet. Is the aftermarket regulator tape prone to breakage more so than the OEM piece? I think I may have cut the first one too short by a couple teeth as it would roll down a little too low. Maybe that had something to do with it. It broke while I had the window rolled all the way down and went over a bump. My car rides pretty harsh with Eibachs and 35 series tires so that probably contributed to it as well.

So I went and bought another one from the Help! section at O'Reillys. I had this one installed in less than ten minutes! I'm getting really good at this.:rolleyes:

[DevoBuzz]

I replaced mine 2 months ago as well but got the OEM piece from the dealer. I did hear that the aftermarket pieces weren't as good. We'll see.

[GLHSKEN]

OEM is a better piece... I've used both

[Twisted Noodle]

Next time your in the "HELP" section, pick up a couple 3/8 X3/8 X 5/8 "T's" Thats what I used for my vent in the valve cover after the PCV. Works great and it was only a couple bucks.

[iTurbo]

Broke the regulator again! I don't even drive the car much anymore and I still go through them like crazy. Seems like it happens when it's really cold out and I either shut the door too hard or go over a pothole and it breaks. I tried to go to the dealership and get the OEM piece but it is no longer available so I got yet another one at NAPA. I'm getting really good at swapping these things out.:mad:

[looneytuner]

You have to have the same length......Try adding more length or get two and pull the old one from the other front door. Clamp it to a yardstick so it is totally flat in order to get the exact length.

[JDAWG]

your parts guys smoked his breakfast, pn 4467214, there is about 175in the warehouses and they are NOT discontinued, my guess is you told him the year and he didnt even bother to look it up or he couldnt find it, he probably had some hanging on his wall

[iTurbo]

your parts guys smoked his breakfast, pn 4467214, there is about 175in the warehouses and they are NOT discontinued, my guess is you told him the year and he didnt even bother to look it up or he couldnt find it, he probably had some hanging on his wall

Haha parts gal to be exact. After telling me they were discontinued she told me I should try Year One.:confused:

[JDAWG]

Haha parts gal to be exact. After telling me they were discontinued she told me I should try Year One.:confused:

oh yea, thats where I seen them, in the catalog next to the demon hoods lol

[iTurbo]

:lol: Good to know; I'm going to take the NAPA one back and get the Mopar one for sure.

[martin kolner]

Use white lithium lube on the regulator where the track slides. Make sure that it is clean before you install the new flex track and the regulator itself is not bent. Lube the hell out of it after it is installed and make sure that the plastic cover over the whole area under the door panel is in place to prevent dust from clogging up the lube on the regualtor. If it is missing or torn you can fabricate a new one out of some plastic and pu it in place before you install the door panel. There is a template included with the MOPAR flex track to cut the thing to the proper length.

[iTurbo]

Use white lithium lube on the regulator where the track slides. Make sure that it is clean before you install the new flex track and the regulator itself is not bent. Lube the hell out of it after it is installed and make sure that the plastic cover over the whole area under the door panel is in place to prevent dust from clogging up the lube on the regualtor. If it is missing or torn you can fabricate a new one out of some plastic and pu it in place before you install the door panel. There is a template included with the MOPAR flex track to cut the thing to the proper length.

Thanks for the tips. I reinstalled a new regulator today and lubed the crap out of the track guide and regulator with white lithium grease. I found that the last one was cut a little too long, this time I believe I got it right and the window scraper hugs the top edge of the window when it's fully down but doesn't protrude out.

Seems like the regulator keeps breaking the 'head' off, which is where the roller eyelet slides through. Breakage occurs when the window is fully up and I either shut the door too hard or go over a big bump. My SL is really stiff with poly bushings everywhere, aftermarket sway bars, and Eibach springs, so that probably isn't helping. The window regulator track in the door seems tight though. Didn't seem bent either. I think the aftermarket regulators tapes are just too brittle, especially in colder climates.

[iTurbo]

Oh, and the one I installed today was another one I got at NAPA. I am almost positive it will be broken within months. I'll install a real Mopar one next time now that I know they are actually available. For what it's worth, the original window regulator tape on my SL broke in half on the gear teeth portion, about 3/4 way down. Aftermarket ones keep breaking the head/eyelet off. I had to clean a lot of old caked grease out of the roller channel but it slides nicely now.