Window won't go down; quick car wash

Maintenance/Repairs
1

Only my drivers-side window will go down on my 2013 Nissan. Maybe something in the electronics, i.e. a blown fuse or 2 or 3? (Do cars still use fuses?)

Also - I probably need “Car Washing for Dummies” book - I’d like to hose down, using just water, my car and blow-dry it, i.e., drive while it’s still wet. Good idea?

Thanks.

2

1.Obtain a wiring diagram for your Nissan, and check what component would have to fail to cause your observed failure mode. Verify failure, replace, test to see if functionality restored.

  1. You won’t remove much dirt with just water. You need a surfactant to hold dirt in suspension until it can be rinsed away–otherwise known as soap. Rinse, soap, rinse…then dry with chamois. Evaporative drying will leave mineral residue: you need to physically remove the water from the car. Driving speeds generally speed up evaporation more than they transport water away from the car.
3

First check that the window disable button isn’t pressed. There’s a button near the driver side window controls that locks out the other windows to keep kids (and immature passengers like me) from fooling with them. In some cars this disables the driver’s controls as well.

As for the washing bit, you won’t do any harm doing that but you also won’t get rid of the dirt so it won’t look good. Even the touchless car washes that use actual soap don’t get the dirt all the way off. If you want it done right, you’ve gotta do it yourself with soap and a wash mitt, or pay a detail shop to do it by hand.

4

Depending on which model Nissan you have it may have an auto up feature with the power windows. These systems must be initialized each time the battery is disconnected. Which model do you have?

5

If you hose down the car and leave it wet, it’ll probably look worse, unless your car is white or a very light color. You’ll leave much of the existing dirt (which tends to adhere pretty tightly to the paint) and add water spots on top of that. Either do a proper hand wash or go to a touch-free wash.

6

As Shadowfax suggested, the lock-out button for the windows on the other 3 doors is almost surely the “culprit”. The OP should look for the window lock-out button on the driver’s door panel, and deactivate it. (Hint: Perhaps reading the section of the Owner’s Manual’s regarding the car’s controls might be a good idea.)

And, the others said, using just water–without some kind of car-washing detergent–will do as much as simply exposing the car to rain, in other words…almost nothing…in terms of getting dirt off of the paint.

7

Maybe the OP lives in California and forgot what a car looks like after it rains.

8

I would hope that the OP returns so that we know whether or not the problem was as simple as the window lock-out button on his door panel.