E430-2001

Ok , I know you guys have had this problem before but I have searched this site for over an hour and cant find the answer so here goes. I jumped in my e430 today and started down the street , hit the windows and they all went down, then the right rear window fell out of the track. What a joke, I mean I love how smooth the benz rides but man , my chevy truck never chunked the window out of the track before. So anyway I take the door panel off to see what the problem is and there are about 4 broken plastic pieces and one metal one laying in the bottom of the door. So I gather the parts up and put them in a cup , put the window in the track and slide it up and duck tape the window so it will not fall ( on a MFN benz, duck tape?!?!?!) So I am begining to hate this car at this point but it gets even better. After securing the broken window with tape I turn the key back on to roll the other windows up and loud snap comes from the other rear door. Now I am not the smartest guy but I am thinking this other window just broke too,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,and it did. So at this point will someone out there please talk me out of pouring this 5 gallons of gasoline that I bought in my perfectly running chevy truck onto this MFN Mercedes Benz and burning it to the ground. I am looking hard for the good in all of this but damn , all I ever do is work on this car or its in the shop because the problem is over my head. Anyway , does anyone have a idea about how these windows go back together and what parts I need to order from the stealership tomorrow to fix it or should I press on with the car-b-que ?

eddietr

Broken regulator. This is a very common issue, in my experience, with German cars. Has happened to me with VWs, Porsches, BMWs, and Mercedes. Keep the cars long enough, and it's only a matter of time.

Either that or I've just had rotten luck with these things.

Yellow98Cobra

Dont order from dealership. Google Window Regulator + W210. Look for a good website and buy it there. Expect to pay around $70 for one without a motor. Look in phone book for a repair place. It takes LESS than an hour from someone, IE a shop, who has done it before. So another $70 in labor. Fixed. Im talking from experience.

E-Klasse

I am on my third set for my rear doors. Got the last one on ebay without the motor for $60. No need to buy the motor because it doesn't get the chance to go bad. I swapped it myself in about an hour.

ProV1

i guess the moral of the story is never use power windows in a MBZ..

E430-2001

I hear you ProV1 , own a nice car but don't dare roll the windows down. Anyway I ordered the regulators for both sides off ebay . They were $120 shipped so I guess that was an ok deal but now that I am reading everones replies I think I should have ordered an extra set. That my friend is

Musikmann

The good news is, that for some reason, the front windows rarely go bad. I talked to a dealer tech about this issue, and he said the regulators are cheaply made. I certainly agree that a car that costs as much as a Benz should not have sub-standard made parts.

ProV1

no shortage of cheapa$$ parts in Mercedes cars.. cheap window regulators, cheap inferior rustproofing, bulbs, sunroof cables, instrument cluster, power rear sunshade, MAF...

Air Marshall Eldritch

I paid $50 for the replacement at stopshopanddrive.com

It is the cheaper aftermarket brand that is identical to OEM (as far as I can tell).

If you are in the area, I can help you replace it.

E430-2001

Thanks for the offer to help me fix it but I am in Georgia, south of Atlanta a good ways. I may have questions though when I get the regulators. They should be here tomorrow or Thursday at the latest. Thanks

victorylap

Ironically, my right side passenger window was not responding, but, for whatever reason, it's working perfectly fine - I'll be sure to keep this thread for future window regulator problems which appears to be common - thanks.

j944

Just when I forgot my $500 experience.

E430-2001

Hey guys, I can put this one to rest now. I got the new regulators from ups this afternoon and put them right in . Was done with both sides in less than an hour. I bought them off ebay monday and recieved them today. Overall I think this was the easiest thing I have ever done to this car. I would like to thank all of you for you help and for saving me a lot of money at the stealership. I do think from now on when I roll those rear windows up I will just bump the switch a touch so they are not under so much pressure all the time. Dont know if it will help but going to try and make this set of regulators last. Once again thank all of you, and if anyone needs regulators , I paid a little less than $120 for both sides shipping included off ebay. Now on to things we should be spending our time doing , like racing!!!!!!!!!!

dan_cobb

my drivers' side rear window stopped working immediately following a loud snap and the clatter of what I expect to be broken parts now lying in the bottom of the door.
Just to check things out here, I called hte local dealer and asked for the parts guy. Price was $120 per door. I transferred to service and they told me $227 to install per door.
I found the part on ebay for $54 plus shipping.
I'll bet you can guess which route I took.

I just wondered if there were any tricks or issues associated with this project that I should be aware of. Any special techniques or tools required?
Does anyone have a link to one of those fancy instructional videos?

I sometimes get frustrated and act too quickly when something doesn't come apart the way I think it should. This is not the best case for my frustration to show through.
+++

MaxVon

Here's a pretty good link, http://www.benzworld.org/forums/w210...placement.html
Every year has it's little quirks. If you have rear airbags you have to pry back the "SRS" emblem to access the screw to remove the door panel. Take your time and don't get impatient and "go animal". If you get stuck, just Google "Mercedes door panel removal" and you'll find the answer most likely. Good Luck!

ccmbduong

(Hey guys, I can put this one to rest now. I got the new regulators from ups this afternoon and put them right in . Was done with both sides in less than an hour. I bought them off ebay monday and recieved them today. Overall I think this was the easiest thing I have ever done to this car.)

It would be helpful if someone could post step-by-step instructions with pictures so that others can use in the future. Thanks

raymond g-

did you not see the link to DIY above?

Air Marshall Eldritch

The link to the pictorial on the "other" forum is quite good. I used it.

The one step missing is to make sure you re-attach the motor to the regulator before riveting the new regulator piece to the door frame.

ccmbduong

(did you not see the link to DIY above?)... Thanks, I overlooked until I look over.. Hope that I never have to use it. I bought my '96 E320 in 2000 and I rarely move the back window glasses up/down, just because I am the only driver

E430-2001

Sorry ccmbduong , for not responding sooner, I have been out of town . Did you figure it out ? I can give you my number and you can call me if you have any questions. Let me know, you can email me also to reach me.

dan_cobb

Doing this was a snap once i realized that the catch has to be connected to the window BEFORE attaching the motor to the new track.
With the motor connected, you cannot manually slide the catch up/down to match the position of the window.

It took about 45 minutes including time to gather the tools.

BTW, I used aluminum rivets.
+++

E430-2001

Hey dan_cobb , I used aluminum rivets also, I dont see it as ever being a problem . The biggest reason is you will most likely repace the damn regulators again before the rivets ever have a chance to give you a problem But thats just the way I see it

KADE

Any way of getting the rivets out easier? from the DIY it sounds like they are a pain to remove!

Air Marshall Eldritch

Its not that bad if you have a strong drill with a bit that matches the rivet size. In my case, I use a cordless 18-volt drill/driver which isn't the best choice for this.

KADE

So you had to drill holes to break head off of them?