You are probably going to have to visit a auto parts recycler for that part. Make sure you actually need it though. Maybe something just isn’t configured correctly. I repaired the window once on my Ford truck, and after everything was put back together the door handle area clearly wasn’t correctly configured. It still worked, so I just lived with it until the next time I had to take the door card off, then I matched everything up in order, piece by piece, with the other door. Now it looks correct.
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Be nice if there was a website to hook up auto yards and people looking for specific parts. Buyers could say what they need and sellers who have it could let them know how much it would cost to put it in the mail.
That’s called ebay.
Tester
Nobody in an auto salvage yard is going to spend time looking for a $2 part for you, this is something you have to search for at a self-service yard, “Pick-A-Part”.
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And that’s if a salvage yard even has a 94 Explorer?
Tester
Yes, if the yard wants to list an ad for every single part they have in the yard.
But it’s a good idea for me to search there:
Yup, I guess it’s time to see what the great state of WA has to offer in this regard.
I did just find car-part dot com which is about what I was suggesting, but like Nevada said, they don’t offer their service for tiny little trim pieces.
Okay I’m learning. Looks like there are a few Explorers not too far away that I could go look at.
Things are going well. The new gear and plugs got here today and seem to have done the trick. I put a call into Dorman and they recommend lubricating the gear and plugs with white lithium and then it just took a little gentle persuasion (rubber hammer) to get the metal part down into place.
Fyi when I took it apart, there were no plugs there. Didn’t seem like that door had been taken apart before so I guess the plugs will just wear away completely with enough time?
Currently have a little stumbling block with reassembly. There is one rivet location that my rivet tool can’t reach. It’s one of the ones on the regulator lifter to attach the window to the regulator that is accessed through a hole when the lifter is at the right height.
It appears that someone cut those holes with a hole saw to be able to remove the rivets when the glass was stuck in the full upward position. There should be access holes for the glass attachment rivets lower in the door.
The plastic rollers crumble into little pieces, someone must have cleaned out the gear before you.
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Naw, the hole just looks a little raggedy due to my efforts to get the old rivet out. (The mallet/punch trick doesn’t work very well on the lifter rivets because it flexes when you hit it.)
A friend just suggested using a little screw and nut for that one and I think that would work. Otherwise I was thinking of enlarging the hole so my tool could reach.
Just watch out, those holes are now guaranteed knuckle cutters.
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It appears you enlarged the hole enough with your sheet metal cutters to accommodate your rivet tool’s dimensions. You have now placed your brand on the door! … lol … I have a pop-rivet tool, and I think it is small enough it would fit the original hole. But the rivets might not be durable enough for that job, not sure, maybe a special tool is required for that job. What was the problem with using the large hole at the lower right? … ok , I think I see now why that wouldn’t work.
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Work is progressing. Currently stuck on getting the outside weathershield back in.
Just fyi, here’s a pic of what the right side motor gear looked like when I opened it. This one was still functioning!
Now that I know what to search for, I can’t stop finding videos on the problem I was having and how to fix it.
Ok, car-parts.Com (either leave the hyphen in or take it out, the other is a scam. Can’t remember which anymore) is a nation wide or focused part search site of junk yards. They aren’t going to list a little plastic part like that but if you search for a hood or fender or something, you’ll see if any yards have that model and maybe color. Then you can call them or visit.
Have you successfully purchased trim pieces using that method?
The closest full service yard with a rear door is more than 300 miles away and I think they will want to sell the complete door panel.
Interesting thread, thanks for posting the photos. Just curious, the window regulators on both of my manually operated window vehicles use a thick coiled spring to counterbalance the weight of the glass. I don’t see that spring w/ your configuration. Is it there, but hidden inside the door frame out of view? If not, what provides the counterbalancing force?
George, there is nothing like that. The window just sits on the lifter of the regulator. That might be why the motor needs the cushions and has a little buffer space before it reengages when it changes direction.
OP’s window reg that is shown is cable operated and does not require a coiled spring, the scissor-type that you are thinking about uses a spring due to the leverage of the extended arm to aid in the up/down of a window and track… apples to oranges…
think of a long crank arm and try to imagine the force it would take to lift something from the fulcrum point like the window motor has to like a scissor reg, then think about how much easier it would be to lift it closer to the end of the arm where the load is but not able to… so they add a spring to assist in helping the window… Now think of lifting the same weight with a block and tackle over the object, like a cable reg…
Or think of a 5 pound sledge hammer close to the heavy end, easy to pick up and hold your arm straight out, now grab the very end of the hammer away from the heavy end hold the heavy end as far away as possible and try to straight arm it, not very easy, kind of like a scissor lift reg…
I’m sure the engineers and science guys can explain it wayyy better…
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I understand what you are saying about the lever arm effect. But it still seems like it would be better to have some sort of counterbalance to offset the weight of the glass. I see some springs on the cable mechanism, maybe they provide some counter-balance. Some up/down windows in newer homes use similar looking springs as the counterbalance. Windows in older homes often use weights attached to a rope. I don’t see anything there looking like a moving-pulley block and tackle mechanism. I’d guess the same force-reduction effect is obtained just by the gears ratios they selected.