WINDOW JAMMING

[mallymoo]

Hi guys<br><br>Iv been looking at an Elan which is for sale and although everything seems fine with the car one of the only problems i can find is that the drivers window goes down falf way and then stops.  It goes down quick enuogh so it looks as if its not a problem with the motor but when it gets half way down it stops and the door trim pushes out slightly.  My guess is that its coming out of its runners and getting jammed, am i right and is this a common problem? And how hard to fix?

[AndyV]

Don't want to scare you off it, but I had *big* problems with my driver's door on my first M100.  It would go down about half way like yours, but then you'd see the glass shift slightly at an angle and then stop.  Sometimes it would then struggle to get enough power to lift it again.<br><br>I put it into my local Lotus dealer at the time (Bell & Colvill), and they said there's tons of little plastic parts in the mechanism for the windows, and they can snap.  <br><br>(continued...)<br><br>AndyV

[AndyV]

It's v. difficult to fix, and many hours of labour so they said.  I then took the car to the South of France for 2 weeks, and decided one day whilst down there to see what the trouble was all about.  The window glass moves down on 3 metal runners, one on each side and one in the middle IIRC, and one of these was twisting slightly just before the window stopped.<br><br>Anyone else know how to resolve this?<br><br>AndyV

[PANTZ]

Hi Mallymoo<br>I repaired my drivers window when i first bought my elan . my window would stop halfway. I class this as a straight forward easy job. depends on your mechanical capabilties.  I just removed the door panel and on investegation noticed that there are three nylon bobbins screwed to the window glass(which slide up and down in the runners) these are fixed by 4mm2 screws..2 out of 3 of mine the screws had fallen out.the screws were nowhere to be seen .the nylon bobbin things were sitting in the window runners.You will need to get a few m4 screws and a new orange plastic retaining clip for the door locking button. Im sure theres a write up on elancentral...Be careful not to scratch your door...(cover it with something) and when you take the glass out be careful because it does scratch easily.

[stevo]

iv'e replaced the nylon runers on mine, it's not that bad to fit. it needs two pairs of hands and a bit of time. the parts 1x buttefly clip and 2x runners are available from sj or paul matty and only cost a couple of quid each. they will post them out to you in a jiffy bag 1st class, i got mine next day.<br><br>the problem i had was getting tention on the cable for the window motor.(have some plasters and a swear box close to hand) >:(<br><br>have fun mate, stevo.

[Darren]

Pantz, Stevo,<br><br>I've been looking to overhaul my window lift mech but aren't 100% sure of a few things and wonder if you can help ?<br><br>I'm ok with the door panel removal etc but I'm a little confused by the manual i.e will the glass come out with the bobbins attached ? Also, do you need to do anything with the runners i.e undue them (or one end) ? If the glass does come out with the bobbins attached, I'd surely have to remove the stops at the top of the door  ???.<br><br>Ideally I'd like to remove the motor, clean it up and then replace all the bobbins but as above, I'm not 100% happy with this proceedure  ???. <br><br>I seem to remember someone saying that window alignment was a real pain if/when you remove the glass/mess with the runners  ???.<br><br>Thanks in advance  ::)<br>Darren<br>~~~~~

[stevo]

darren, <br><br>theres 2x bolts at the bottom of the middle runner and 1x( ???) at the top, then 3x hold in the motor. undo these and the butterfly clip in the glass and get someone to hold up the glass for you then the motor,cable,middle rail can be removed in a oner.<br><br>the write up on the main site helped me and has the part no's for the nylon bits.<br><br>stevo.

[Darren]

Stevo,<br><br>Thanks for that.<br><br>With the motor removed, will the glass simply lift out then (after removing the stop bracket at the top for the door) ???. Or will I need to remove the bobbins first ?<br><br>Thanks again<br>Darren<br>~~~~~

[mallymoo]

Cheers guys<br><br>Cheers for the advice,<br><br>looks like it'll either be a simple repair or a pig of a job (probably the latter)!<br><br>Dont think itll put me off buying it though, ill make sure i get some plasters in!!!!! [smiley=banana.gif]

[PANTZ]

Darren<br>Why take the motor out that either works or it doesnt.The problems are caused by the runners and nylon bobbin thingies.If i remember you cant get to the nylon bobbin screws with the window in the door...My window was easy to pull out of the top of the door..(coz 2 bobbins not attached to window)But twice as hard to put back with bobbins attached....<br><br>MALLYMOO...i hope your knocking at least £200 of the price for the window not working properly ..

[rob]

Pantz<br><br>love the new avatar  [smiley=eek2.gif]

[Darren]

Pantz,<br><br>If I'm going to get that bloody door panel off again, then I'm gonna make sure there's nowt left to go wrong in there. So if I'm replacing bobbins, then I'm gonna check out the lift motor i.e clean it, may be change the bushes etc and if I'm doing that, then I may as well check out the CDL module, microswitch etc.<br><br>Then there's always the pads that hold the glass in place ...................<br><br>Lotus may be able to make excellent chassis, tune engine, create suspension but it's fair to say their door internals were deffo an after thought.<br><br>Thanks again<br>Darren<br>~~~~

[Doug]

[quote author=Rob_B link=board=help;num=1057064467;start=0#10 date=07/01/03 at 11:45:54]Pantz, love the new avatar[/quote]<br>Problem is I can't seem to read any of PANTZ's replies any more cause something is diverting my attention. <br>

[Dimitris_GR]

[quote author=AV8NDOC link=board=help;num=1057064467;start=0#12 date=07/01/03 at 22:47:23]<br>Problem is I can't seem to read any of PANTZ's replies any more cause something is diverting my attention. <br> [/quote]<br>But we all now understand why the inner triangle of the lotus badge has rounded corners.<br>It's just melted...

[Jeff]

Mine seems to be fixed now (a bit unorthodox) but it worked!    <br><br><br>I had a problem where the window would go down , but when coming up, it would be at an angle, and I might have to help lift it on one side to  come up properly.  I got use to only cracking it half way to avoid having to do that every time.   Well,  I went to the beach with a friend of mine and when opening and closing the door, she would of course slam the door very hard, much to my dismay.   However now the window goes up and down just fine!   Alright its prolly only a temporary fix and I will have to sometime go in there and see what's happening but it is ok now!

[ab2cv]

I have a very similar problem with the drivers window on my new Elan. (It worked fine before I bought it - typical :-[)<br><br>Basically, the window goes all the way down no problems, but then it gets stuck coming back up again - roughly about a third of the way up.<br><br>Could the cause be the same as mentioned earlier in this thread?<br><br>Alan

[Doug]

Welcome to Elan ownership Alan,<br><br>Time to dive into the door and fix it.<br><br>

[Darren]

[quote author=ab2cv link=board=doors;num=1092638983;start=15#15 date=09/13/04 at 12:32:10]I have a very similar problem with the drivers window on my new Elan. (It worked fine before I bought it - typical :-[)<br><br>Basically, the window goes all the way down no problems, but then it gets stuck coming back up again - roughly about a third of the way up.<br><br>Could the cause be the same as mentioned earlier in this thread?<br><br>Alan[/quote]<br><br>Alan,<br><br>From my humble experiance, it's either the 'bobbins' that attach the glass to the sliders have worked loose or it's a 'dry' channel i.e the lubricant has broken down or it could be track alignment.<br><br>Try getting someone to operate the lift mech, while you 'steady' the glass and see if you can see/feel it catching. Also watch as the glass goes down, can you see it 'kick' out ?<br><br>There is a 'mod' for the earlier rear bobbin mount, as this is known to cause issues etc.<br><br>A word of warning, by all means try the up & down test a few times but remember that the motor/mech wasn't designed for that kind of load.<br><br>A set of bobbins cost around £20, lithium lub around £5 & a window lift motor £140+.<br><br>Darren<br>~~~~~<br>

[ab2cv]

I think I'll have a closer look at the window as you suggest Darren (probably this weekend). I reckon the motor is ok, so it could be a set of these 'bobbins' I'm after. Where's the best place to acquire parts for the Elan - is there an online specialist/supplier or is the only option a Lotus dealer?<br><br><br>Cheers,<br><br>Alan

[Rob_Ibbo]

unless your unlucky the lift motors probably ok,best left in place,thats the middle channel.  <br>The rear channel has 2 sliders mounted to glass via a metal strip glued to glass & one bolt,this comes unglued.<br>front channel also has 2 sliders mounted on glass via an 8mm &12mm plastic boss.1 screw holds boss to glass another screw slider to boss. Being plastic the thread strips . <br>SJ quoted me £15 for 8mm high plastic boss.I put bolt straight through & reglued metal strip.refitted with new rollers in sliders & door to glass rubber seal.Get the write up from service manual & the hours will vanish.