96 LX Bird - removing inner door panel

[BigBird]

My '96 LX (dubbed the "Great White") is terrific, fun to own and drive. But like all things (me included) it sometimes needs repair.

The passenger side window won't run up & down and you've got to pull or push it. The motor makes a "ratchet" sound that's very vigorous and fast, so I'm guessing that the motor is probably okay but the window has jumped its tracks.

Of course the motor or mechanism may need replacing but who knows?

Yes I can take it to a good nearby shop and pay about $300 but I'm trying to save some bucks.

And no, I'm not physically able to work on the car myself, as I'm partially disabled, even though yes, I do understand tools and can understand instructions - I just can't physically do the work.

Here's my question: How hard is it to remove & re-install the inside of the passenger door? Does it require special tools or can any reasonably competent person remove it and properly re-install it with regular hand tools (screwdriver, socket wrench, etc)?

Thing is, a pal of ours says he can remove the inner passenger door panel and check the window mechanism and even fix it. Now my car is parked in a nice private off-street space w. overhead shade, so it's not gonna be worked on while dodging traffic or something. Easy access, no problem there.

All I'd really like to know is:
1) Is removing and re-installing the inner door panel a big chore?
2) Can this job be done with regular hand tools or does it require specialized automotive tools that only a shop would have?

And 3) if possible, can someone post me the method and technique for doing this task, or guide me to a link with the necessary instructions?

In other words, am I asking for trouble if this pal "shade trees" the repair. I don't want him to get the door off and break something or not be able to put it back on, obviously.

So I'm asking about the difficulty of this job. Also, although I'm hampered by severe arthritis which precludes me from physically doing the work, I'm quite competent with tool knowledge and know all the lingo -- my arms and hands just can't wield tools that well any more.

Thanks in advance!

 

[trydave]

EASY job

My '96 LX (dubbed the "Great White") is terrific, fun to own and drive. But like all things (me included) it sometimes needs repair.

The passenger side window won't run up & down and you've got to pull or push it. The motor makes a "ratchet" sound that's very vigorous and fast, so I'm guessing that the motor is probably okay but the window has jumped its tracks.

Of course the motor or mechanism may need replacing but who knows?

Yes I can take it to a good nearby shop and pay about $300 but I'm trying to save some bucks.

And no, I'm not physically able to work on the car myself, as I'm partially disabled, even though yes, I do understand tools and can understand instructions - I just can't physically do the work.

Here's my question: How hard is it to remove & re-install the inside of the passenger door? Does it require special tools or can any reasonably competent person remove it and properly re-install it with regular hand tools (screwdriver, socket wrench, etc)?

Thing is, a pal of ours says he can remove the inner passenger door panel and check the window mechanism and even fix it. Now my car is parked in a nice private off-street space w. overhead shade, so it's not gonna be worked on while dodging traffic or something. Easy access, no problem there.

All I'd really like to know is:
1) Is removing and re-installing the inner door panel a big chore?
2) Can this job be done with regular hand tools or does it require specialized automotive tools that only a shop would have?

And 3) if possible, can someone post me the method and technique for doing this task, or guide me to a link with the necessary instructions?

In other words, am I asking for trouble if this pal "shade trees" the repair. I don't want him to get the door off and break something or not be able to put it back on, obviously.

So I'm asking about the difficulty of this job. Also, although I'm hampered by severe arthritis which precludes me from physically doing the work, I'm quite competent with tool knowledge and know all the lingo -- my arms and hands just can't wield tools that well any more.

Thanks in advance!

Pop out the switch panel under the door latch handle with a flat blade screw driver. Remove the phillips screw under it. Remove the screw under the courtesy light cover. Lift up and pull out the panel. Easiest door panel I've ever removed. It has tabs and doesn't use clips. You'll need to drill out the window motor rivets. Bolt the new motor back in or rivet it. Your choice.

 

[Scott D]

Chances are the cam buttons inside the power window motor are shot. Here's how I did mine...

The first thing I had to do was remove the reflector on the lower edge of the door. That gave me access to the screw holding the door panel to the door...

Carefully lift the bottom right corner out and the top right corner up and it will come up. Then, you can work on the rest of the switch panel. Or, start at the top right. Just make sure to move it UP. Also, the reflector (being 13 years old) may be brittle by the clips holding it in. I didn't have an issue, but if you do 3M moulding tape will hold the reflector fine, when you put it all back together ...

With the switch panel removed, access is gained to the other bolt securing the door panel to the door.

Next item to remove was the rubber-esqe inner panel. It's got an adhesive holding it to the door, so caution is needed removing this as to not ruin it.

With the inner panel off, it's time to take out the door speaker ...

There are three bolts securing the power window motor. Use caution taking those out, as the upper and lower holes are very much recessed, and it can be easy to drop a bolt. If you do drop a bolt, you can fish it out of the door. But, easier to take your time and not go chasing things.

Once the motor is unbolted, you simple unhook the power supply, and pull the motor out of the speaker hole ...

With the power window motor out, you can go inside and get out of the heat. Just make sure to keep any tools, bolts, and anything black out of the sun. It gets HOT when you leave them out

You will have to remove one torx screw from the bottom of the gear cover. Once that is removed, use extreme caution to not bend the cover as you remove it with a knife, or thin flat-tip screw driver ...

With the cover off, you can see how badly your regulator needed the rebuild ...

Carefully remove the e-clip from the shaft of the regulator. Put it aside, as you'll need it later on.

With the clip off of the shaft, you can remove the 9-tooth gear with the help of a flat-tip screw driver ...

Make sure to clean any, and all of the old nylon junk out of there. Brake cleaner works good with a brush and rag. Just make sure it gets clean in there. You want nothing left over that may damage the new buttons, or new gear.

Clean the 9-tooth gear and get it ready to put into the new nylon gear.

Insert the 9-tooth gear into the regulator gear so the shaft on the regulator is just inside of the 9-tooth gear. Then you can carefully insert the three cam buttons before pressing the two gears together....

Next is to lube the regulator gear, the 9-tooth gear, and the worm gear. I used the old reliable red high temp wheel bearing grease

Be more than liberal with the lube, as you don't want to have to change out the gear and cam buttons anytime soon after. You want it to last a while

Replace the regulator assembly into the power window motor and ...remember that e-clip you set aside earlier? Look under everything on the table, under the table, and ...ah, there it is next to the table, hiding in the carpet by your work boots ...put that back on the shaft. Tighten the torx screw back down, and you're all done.

Just put the power window motor in the opposite of how you took it out. After that's tightened and hooked back up to power, go ahead and test it. Might as well see if it works while the door's apart, as opposed to taking the door apart again.

Then, re-install the speaker, inner panel, door panel, switch panel, and light opposite of the way you took them off.

Here's a list of tools you'll need ...

Flat-tip Screw Driver (help with removing reflector, switch panel, and regulator cover)

Philips Screw Driver (to take the screw out from behind the reflector)

Needle-nosed pliers (made taking the bolts out of and reinserting them in the power window motor and the holes through the door A LOT easier)

Ratchet with extension and reducers

5mm socket for the speaker bolts

8mm socket for the door panel bolt and the power window motor bolts

#20 Torx bit for the torx screw on the power window motor

If you take your time, it should take no more three hours tops, if you do both sides. It took me just short of an hour, from start to finish.

Just make sure you push UP on the things that come off of the inside of the door not OFF, and you'll do fine.