Electric Windows on Series 2 Maestro VP

[mtamin]

The passanger side window in my recently purchased Maestro VP Series 2 (£7!) just stopped working. The driver side works ok. I was frankly a bit surprised that both were working when I bought it. What are the most likely causes and what can I check for? The switch panel seems a little loose as someone had been mucking around with the wiring for the radio I think. There are no clicking sounds or anything when the button is pressed - just dead. It was working before but did seem slow.

Any clues gratefully considered. Sorry if this has been dealt with before. I have done a search but can generally only find references to mods and physical window channel problems and the like. It does happen to be a very rusty door. I have not had the door card off yet. I have not had previous experience of electric window issues before.

Martyn

[Rich]

Try holding the switch down, and slamming the door shut, or whacking the door panel with your fist while holding the switch down, or hit the motor with a small hammer while holding the switch down.

All these methods work on my LX when the passenger window decides to stay up on a hot day. I believe its somthing to do with a rubber seal or o ring in the window unit which swells up over time causing the mechanism to stick.

HTH, Rich

[ChrisM]

whacking the door panel with your fist while holding the switch down,
we used to have to do that on our old Volvo 340GLE :laugh:

[skipweasel]

It was working before but did seem slow.
Martyn
Almost certainly the slowness is caused by grime in the window channels. The extra load will have increased the current drain. In my experience, this shags the switches.

However - the good news is that if you're patient and don't let bits go PING across the room, you can take the switches apart and "fettle" them, cleaning up the contacts, making sure the springs are springy enough to hold the contacts firmly together etc. Takes ten minutes or so per switch and lasts a few years before they go again.

[mtamin]

Thanks for these suggestions. The hit the door and hope aproach did not work.I'll try taking the switch apart. I'll also try and clean the window channels to try and ensure the other one does not go.

[JohnE126]

Thanks for these suggestions. The hit the door and hope aproach did not work.I'll try taking the switch apart. I'll also try and clean the window channels to try and ensure the other one does not go.

I have the same trouble....will let you know how i get on.

[e692wtt]

On my early Maestro Vanden Plas, the nearside front door electric window often stays shut and will only decide to open intermittently... usually after driving for some time.

But I have found that if I open the window (when it decides to open) and don't quite let it shut again, it will open every time I subsequently try. I now do this with both my electric windows, they are not-quite shut but there is no extra wind noise at speed, it doesn't rain in and they aren't open so that a gap can be seen at the top.

It's not a permanent fix, but it sorted the problem for me... :cool:

[E_T_V]

That sounds like a motor dead/dirty spot to me. A good clean of the motor itself might help in that case as all the arcing and crud will accumulate in the one place where the window is permenantly shut.

[SimonR]

Yeah, I've seen this in a couple of Maestro VPs. Each time sourcing a new motor assembly solved the problem. I even wrote somewhere the easy way of fitting it back into the car because the first time I did it, it took me hours.

However, recently my Driver's side window on A335 has started acting up. Sometimes it won't go down until it's ready (!) and also sometimes when it's fully up you can hear the relay clicking as if trying to lift it further. I just make sure that after I've raised it, I lower it a tiny bit. Again, I think a replacement motor will fix the problem because although I've already replaced it, the replacement was rather sluggish and knackered.

Perhaps cleaning out the relays would help as well? You'll find them attached to the door speaker appeture on the passenger side when you take the door card off (this is true on a Mk. 1, don't know where they are on a mk 2: on the glovebox lid?)

My advice would be to go and find a late Monty with leccy windows and butcher it. Even though the multiplugs are different on the Monty, you can cut off the Maesty plug from the broken motor (NOT the Maesty loom!) and fit it to the Monty motor assy with a couple of cable connectors.

Good luck - you were going to take the door cards off anyway, to waxoyl the bottoms of the doors, right?!