aficionado

Hi,

So, last weekend as I was 1/4 way through my 2 hour journey, we stopped at a gas station and as my brother closed the rear door I heard a very scary sound, as if the window had shattered. I looked back and didn't see any broken glass. I was surprised. The next thing I tried was the window and as expected, something had gone wrong in the window. After doing some research I am guessing that one of the pulleys in the window regulator has broken as it matches the description at the following link.

http://www.benzworld.org/forums/w210...placement.html: You try to roll down the window--probably the rear window--only to hear a horrendous clunking, grinding, and snapping sound.

I did a bit more search and saw this post, where someone took care of this issue with a cheaper, more complicated, but possibly more reliable repair.

I have a '98 E320 sedan and here are my questions.

1. Has anyone here tried the repair kit before? How was the replacement and do you think the repair will be more reliable than a new OEM regulator?
2. Is there much difference between the different regulators available on this site? There is a $50 difference between the OEM and the generic brand. Also, which site do you normally purchase parts from?
3. Do you any experience with purchasing the regulators on ebay? I have had good luck with a side mirror assembly that I replaced recently, but I am not sure if the window regulators are comparable.
4. Which one would you suggest, replacing the whole regulator or doing the repair? I am pretty confident about my mechanical skills, but I would like to save time if I can

Thanks!

handyman john

I replaced the whole regulator. They are available from autohaus of arizona from the german suppliers that OEM them to the car companies. For a '98 like ours its approx $90. No motor, you just unscrew the motor from your existing unit and attach it to the replacement regulator.

The link for the part is (driver side rear) :

http://www.autohausaz.com/search/pro...ow%20Regulator

There are some video's on youtube on how to take the door panel apart and remove the regulator. Its a pretty straight forward job but it will take you about 2 hours.

Let us know how you make out.

raymond g-

....and, it's so simple that after you've completed your first rear window
regulator repair, the next time, it'll only take you about 30 mins. seriously!

aficionado

@handyman_john Thanks. I will checkout autohausaz, and the videos on YouTube.

@raymond Which regulator did you end up purchasing and from where?

raymond g-

y'know, there is advice on this forum not to go with offshore Asian manuf
since they are likely to be crap. well, my logic is telling me that the German
wind/reg is crap to begin with, ergo the plastic failure.

when you open yours up, i'm willing to bet that it's that small white/green
piece of plastic.

if your cable has unravelled and kinked, you'll prob want to buy the whole $50-125
regular arm anyway....though some adventurous and frugal folks may simply try
to replace the cable themselves from home depot

so I just ended up buying, no doubt, some asian thang, off Ebay from a
vendor with good reputation. if it breaks, I"ll learn my lesson. but it
was MB and it broke anyway.

my experience:
there are about 5 mounting holes on the cheapo regulator...1 of which was
off by about 2mm. big whoop. i just used a smaller diameter pop rivet or
screw.

be sure to lubricate the moving, sliding parts before inserting into the door

if you're a real daredevil, you can buy the <$10 part and spend a couple
hours retrofitting it into your old regulator slider. requires drilling, dremelling,
and probably a vice.

most of the time, the regulator motor is intact and can simply be removed
from the broken regulator arm and popped into the new regulator arm. doing
so will save you about $50-75

almost always, the failure will be rear window regulator(s). the design of
the front regulators is different and does not introduce as much stress on
the weak link.

lots of good photos and DIY write ups on this forum as well as benzworld.
http://www.benzworld.org/forums/3573108-post2.html

aficionado

Thanks, raymond.

I went ahead with the complete regulator instead of repairing the existing one, mainly to save time. I will keep the regulator and buy that replacement piece later to see if I can do it for the next time (or the other window! ).

I haven't worked with rivets before so I will have to buy a rivet gun, any suggestions? Also, does this use special rivets (#003 990 24 97) that I should get from autohausz or similar sites, or can I find these at the local stores? Unfortunately, I couldn't find the size for these so I might just have to purchase these online.

suicidal4life

I did the green slider repair and was happy with the result and $$ savings. As for it being stronger then a whole regulator I imagine they are pretty much the same. I did add some 5 minute epoxy on mine so it is probably stronger now. Once you have the regulator out swapping the slides is not all that much more work so to me its a no brainer.

ohlord

or it will need to be coded clear with an sds unit.
better yet unhook the battery while working in there.

raymond g-

personally, i don't see a need to purchase a pop rivet tool unless you are
1) really wanting to fasten it with recommended steel rivet, 2) really wanting
to have a rivet tool anyway, but going cheaper and getting an aluminum
pop riveter (I use about 4-5x yrs for assorted other home stuff anyway),
3) forgo the rivet idea and simply buy machine screws and lock washers
and tube of blue Locktite.

#1 is the MB recommended method of repair but could end up costing you
$30-50.

#2 is what most home consumers have around the house if they're going to
have a rivet tool at all. $10-25

#3 is the least expensive and you may already have assortment of screws
in a can in the garage. but will require a little dexterity and you reach into
the door to assemble the screw/nuts. 0-$5

aficionado

Thanks for the all input. I was able to replace the regulator on Saturday (was waiting for the regulator and enough time to do this). Taking out two of the rivets was a little painful because I didn't have the technique down (they would start rotating with the drill bit), but I got 'em out.

Now, on to researching another new issue: Center console light goes off randomly (will research and then post more in a new thread)