Window Regulator

In a post on his blog earlier today my son, Craig, mentioned that the window in their van had come off the track. However, it isn't quite that simple anymore. We encountered the same problem last June. The day before taking a trip to Illinois for a family reunion we discovered that the passenger side window was open. I knew that it had been up when we had parked the van in our parking area. I went out to put it up and discovered that it wouldn't go up. I called the fellow that does most of my "mechanic work" and he informed me that it was the window regulator.

According to an article I read on the internet, there are two basic types: the manual and the electric. The manual is activated by the use of a hand crank which engages the various worm gears, spur gears, linkages, plates and bars. The electric regulator uses a small electric motor to accomplish the same thing. Another article states that the cable mechanism used in most vehicles from the big 3 as well as most Asian imports are light weight, extremely adaptable and inexpensive to manufacture, which makes them the system of choice. The next statement is quite telling. It says, and I quote, "Unfortunately, high reliability isn't on the top of this list."

After talking to my mechanic I pulled the door panel loose and was able to push the window up. I then put a prop under it, blocking it up so it would stay. The only thing I did after we started on our trip was to duct tape around the top and front edge of the window because of wind noise--the window just wasn't closed as tight as needed.

A couple of weeks later I got my mechanic to replace the regulator. Even though the regulator may be inexpensive to manufacture it didn't seem that way when I went to buy the new one. I found that they generally cost $85.00 to $100.00. And, I still had to pay the labor charge.

I hate to be the one to inform my son of what he is facing.