Check on sanity

It's not to bad to do. Inside the door itself is a fairly small space so it's a pain in the butt but I replaced mine. The hardest part was figuring out how to get all the interior door padding/trim off without mucking it up.

hmmmm. so do you just pry it out? are there screws? did it take you long? i don't mind tedious miniscule work, i'm patient.

To do things properly you'll need some hand tools. A few standard screwdrivers, open-end wrenches and an allen wrench set which should all be in any standard toolbox - even if you don't already have them you can get them all for less than $20. For the door padding/trim - there are special tools for removing them without doing any damage. If you don't have them you might break a few plastic stand-offs but it can be done if you go slowly with a screwdriver and pry the clips out.

It took me the better part of 4 hours to replace mine since it was a learning experience.

uh-oh, four hours. i can do it, i can do it!!! i got me some scredrivers, wrenches, allen wrench, all sorts of bike tools... but i suppose i should get the right instrument to get the padding off. in auto parts? online? will try the little car parts shop down the road. did you know what you were doing or did you figure it out as you went?

I had a general idea but I didn't have a manual and had never done it before. The only thing I had going for me was that I had a fairly good idea of how the whole thing worked. The only thing I can recommend is that you really pay attention to everything as you disassemble it.

You should be able to get the door trim removal tool at any fairly major auto parts store I'd think. Just don't try to get it the day you want to start working on it. If they don't have it in stock they should be able to order it and have it for you within a few days.

ha. i think i'll take pictures 'before' and 'after'. if nothing else, it can provide for a good chuckle.

Fishing gave you some pretty good advice so far.

Getting the door apart probably will be the hardest part. You usually have to remove the arm rest and maybe the part around the door handle. Basically search for every small little round plastic part you can pry out that might be hiding a screw.

Once you've removed all the the parts that are screwed on start to remove the door panel from the bottom up. If you work your way slowly you should be able to find most of the retaining clips and pop them.

The last door I was in also had a plastic film to help keep moisture out. Then comes the part of finding the bolts that hold in the motor. They can be difficult to get to. If you get the replacement part first you will have an idea of where the bolts should be.

Make sure you swear and yell a lot when trying to get the new motor in place. They make sure there isn't enough room to get your hands in to hold it and some edges can be sharp. You might need some socket extensions to get into the right place too.

A little blood and a lot of frustration and you should have a working motor. Good luck.

blood and pain don't scare me. socket extensions... interesting. no idea what they are, but will look for them.
hmmm, this looks like quite a challenge. i'm excited.

thanks so much for the step by step instructions. i'll print them out and when i do curse and yell, i will keep you in mind :-)
no, really, thanks.

Dag,
Before you start taking apart the door, you might think about replacing the switch. Usually , that is the part that wears out before the motor. Just something to consider.

ummm..... switch....switch <blank stare>
ok, provided i find out what the switch is, how do i find out which is the faulty part in the whole shabang?

The button you push to open the window is the top portion of said switch.

How many doors/windows does yer car have ?

Also you might want to get a chiltons manual. They have pretty good diagrams and step by steps for almost every repair you can do to your car.

Dag, can I come watch?

hehe, sure! chiltons manual - check, tools to remove the padding - check, fiddle with the switch - check.... oh boy, how can a girl remember all that. i'll print the whole thread out and see what happens.

Oh I'm loving this. Wish I could come watch.

Good luck, brave Dag.

ok, now i have a reason to prove you doubters wrong. that's part of what i was looking for. motivation. it's on. i'm doing it!!!

I think you can do it! I also think it'd be fun to watch. Especially if I brought beer. When will you take up the task? Honestly, I might be able to help. I don't have socket extenders, but I know what they are.

How about sunday afternoon? we'll turn it into a block party. then we can watch a movie and have more beer.

hmmmm.... I'll let you know.