Agreed.

 

Some tips about window regulators. George is correct about the small plastic piece that breaks. This now is available separately but only from the UK on EBay. I recommend replacing the entire regulator but if the cables are not too messed up and kinked this might be the cheapest fix of all.

If possible get the regulator without the motor. Much cheaper and the motor is very rarely the problem. If you do this be sure and clock or adjust the motor position before installing it on the regulator.

Don't slam the door shut unless the window is all the way up or all the way down. This is a design weakness of the regulator.

If you install speakers or take the door panel off for any reason. Take a good look in the bottom of the door. The plastic is white in color and tends to break a bit at a time. So if you see white plastic bits in the bottom of the door the regulator is already partially broken. Even if the window is working OK.

On my wife’s 2003 Lincoln LS both front doors had these broken pieces and I did not know why when I upgraded the front door speakers. I just replaced the passenger side regulator this month. Debating on getting the driver’s side regulator since I know there are broken plastic pieces in the door.
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Tbird Do you have a link to these plastic bits? That's about all that fails in these regulators.

And slamming the door with anything but the window fully up will cause the plastic to break... It's the fact that the glass isn't supported horizontally and puts pressure on the plastic clips. The WORSE thing you can do is slam a door with the window in motion.

When the glass is up, the door frame window channel stops it from moving side to side.

EDIT: If you catch the broken plastic bits BEFORE it completely separates from the regulator, the cable will not come off of it's drive, and will be fine. Replace the plastic bits, spray a bit of teflon (my prefered choice) lube on the workings, and the regulator is good to go. It's once the window comes out of allignment that the cables get snagged / worn etc..


Take care,

George

 

Ditto on what George and TBird said about only closing your doors with the windows up. That goes for all vehicles, not just these fragile-regulatored S-Types. Support that glass in its frame, and close the door gently but firmly. Best way to keep from having to replace those costly window parts. Learned that lesson the hard way back in the 1970s with my Datsun 260Z. Permanently changed my door-slamming habits as a result....

 

My god these things are fussy. In my uber sensitive Italian exotics you just don't put the windows up and down all that much because if it breaks you have to send for Leonardo Da Vinci to effect a repair and he's been dead at least 10 years ...

They all come with a manual crank in case the motor fails and if you ever saw how the cable and pulley window mechanism works on an Espada you'd run screaming.

Bob S.

 

This is odd, as I understood it was very rare for the redesign cars to suffer this window failure.

 

Nah the regulators are the same.

The new cars just weren't old enough to exibit the symptoms yet.

The only difference: Age.. And heat cycles (from 100+ in the summer to - 10 in the winter) taking their toll on the plastics. Once that piece breaks it's a matter of time before the window comes off the track, chews the cable etc...

As long as you catch the plastic piece before it breaks completely, that's all you need to replace.

Take care,

George

 

A bit of trivia on window regulators.

On the Lincoln LS club we are lucky to have several Ford Engineers that worked on the LS when it was in production. One Engineer (Alex) has stated that part of the problem is the rubber window seals stick to the glass and if the window is not used regularly it bonds tightly to the glass. Then when you try to open the window you get a "pop" sound as the window breaks free of the rubber. This is a very high stress operation and tends to bust the plastic connector on the regulator. There are two of these plastic pieces and usually both have to break completely before the window falls down.

Now how true this I don’t know but both the window regulators that have broken on the wife’s 2003 LS had a very loud pop when they let go. The upside is I can get the Ford part on Amazon for $59 with free shipping. Even comes in a Motorcraft box, so it is a factory part.
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Yeah, both need to break, but the bottom one (that has more horizontal leverage on it) breaks first. Once that's gone, It's just a matter of time for the top one to go. I've HEARD a couple break when the door is slammed with the window not in it's top position.You hear the piece bounce around in the door.

A LOT of these cars are probably running around with the bottom clip busted, and when they think the regulator is breaking, it's really the 2nd part breaking.

Btw, you have the link to those plastic pieces? Or with shipping from the UK is it not even worth not replacing the entire regulator for $60.

George

 

I will post the plastic repair part later. I don't have access to EBay right now.

I almost purchased a set but was not sure if they were correct. After replacing the regulator last weekend I did confirm they are the correct ones. I don't think Ford/Jaguar offered this but am unsure? They are only about $15/pair much cheaper than the regulator and motor. Can you even get the Jaguar regulator without the motor??
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George:
Here is the repair kit for just the plastic parts. I don't know why it's only in the UK? You get both plastic pieces plus the gear drive the motor hooks to. I guess this gear may strip or wear over time?


http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/JAGUAR-S-TYPE-...item33619fa8eb
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Well after checking you can get several different kits. Including the cable if you want it. This would pretty much allow you to repair yours no matter what was wrong. Here is a picture of the plastic parts that break.
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That's cool, except it doesn't amount to a really significant savings..

17.99 uk pounds + 5.99 uk shipping = 23.98 uk pounds x 1.60 = 38.20 USD for those pieces delivered...

The entire LS regulator is $60 shipped. Is it worth taking it all apart to save $17.80 (and wait for it to come from the UK).

Food for thought,

George

 

Well as always it depends!! The real question is why it's not sold in the US??
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No idea why they aren't sold here, but here's a pic of what breaks....



The entire force of the window is carried by those two plastic clips.

You can see them in my old regulator. They are attached to the metal clamps that carry the glass. These clips have two small tabs on them that keep them on the tracks. They hold the cable and glide up / down the tracks of the regulator (the right one breaks first). Slamming the door with the window not locked into place (closed) snaps the little tabs off, Once the right one breaks, and the window is allowed to move horizontally, its just a matter of time before the cable comes off the pulleys and falls into the bottom of the door. This also takes tension off the cable and lets the motor chew it up.
Especially as the unsuspecting owner fights with his window switch to get the window closed.

The pink marks show the clamp the window attaches too. Both should be facing up. (since the clips are broken on the right side, it's free to rotate off the track).

Here's the pic of the clips:



And what breaks off:



Take care,

George

 

Hey guys, thanks for the photos.

 

Is there a way without disassembling to check whether a window mechanism is part broken? Shaking the door and listening, or something.

 

Thanks to George and TBird for the very informative background information and photos pertaining to this subject. Molded plastic pieces supporting heavy moving window glass in a car door subject to a wide range of temperature extremes is simply a recipe for component failure. Think we could find some suitable stamped metal pieces that could be modified to do the job? Replacing original plastic pieces with more plastic pieces does not appeal to me. In the two-plus years we've owned this car, I've replaced a number of plastic fasteners in the engine compartment and trunk areas with metal screws and bolts....

Meanwhile, I'll keep our windows up and close our doors gently....

 

You can see the clips with the door panel off. With the window half way down, the window shouldn't rattle in the door... But that may or may not happen.

Oh and Jon, looks like it would be a complex exercise in machining to make metal clips to replace those plastic ones. I dunno if that would be a diy sort of thing.

George

 

Thanks. I'm keen not to take door panels off just to look.