Guest Chuck Rivi Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 Gentlemen, it's time to do the dirty work. I have a 63 Rivi with electric Windows, they work but are not smooth. My research says that the number one thing that will help is to remove the motors and clean and regressed them. Has anyone done it befor? If so is there a site to show how to tear it down? I'm worrying about small springs or clips jumping out. Any help will be appreciated. Thanks chuck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 My experience is that it's hardened grease on the gears and tracks; not so much the motor itself. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIVNIK Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 Greetings Chuck! I don't how often you venture into those areas on your Riv, but I try to avoid them if possible...Going in deep can turn into a real PITA ! You might consider an old solution and prevention that I have used for years. Get two or three medium sized cans of WD40..... run all the windows up....Find as many openings around the weatherstripping as you can, and slide the little red tube into them,aiming all around to get as complete coverage inside the door as possible. I actually get out my body manual to remind myself of the positions of the inner workings & aim for those areas. Once a year I empty at least two cans into the four compartments housing the widow gear. I know this sounds like a crazy idea, but when i got my Riv the windows were all very sluggish, the drivers' barely crept up & down. I thought the motor was going, & actually bought a replacement. Then an old geezer turned me on to this trick, & after a few minutes of easy work my windows worked like new & have for years. Another plus....you probably won't have rust forming in those areas either. And BaBaBoooey to You'all RIVNIK 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Chuck Rivi Posted November 4, 2016 Share Posted November 4, 2016 Thanks gentleman, sounds like something I can do with just taking the door skins off. That would be great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted November 5, 2016 Share Posted November 5, 2016 (edited) I think Rivnik is suggesting that you try the WD40 before taking the door skins off. You might as well try the easiest fix first. If that fails go one step deeper. Etc, etc. I already had the skins off and the motors out when I did this next thing. With the gears off the motors, I connected them to one of the 18V batteries I have for a cordless drill. 18V with low amps really spun the motors in one direction for quite a while. I then reversed the wire and spun the motor the other direction. I think that probably cleaned off any corrosion that may have built up. I'm not advising anyone to do this; just telling you what I did. They sure worked smoothly after that though. ? Edited November 5, 2016 by RivNut I hate predictive text!!! (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KongaMan Posted November 5, 2016 Share Posted November 5, 2016 3 hours ago, RivNut said: My experience is that it's hardened grease on the gears and tracks; not so much the motor itself. +1. IIRC, the motors aren't much different than any other motor: remove the screws that hold it together then pull it apart. As always, watch for the brushes to spring loose. Pull the shaft, clean the commutator (don't use sandpaper), lube the bearings at both ends, and reassemble. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barney Eaton Posted November 5, 2016 Share Posted November 5, 2016 I rebuild Reatta headlight motors and also do power antenna. If the problem is the motor, contamination on the commutator and brushes will reduce the power of the motor. Depending on how your motors are built you may need to open them up to do the cleaning. A lot of GM window motors are two metal stampings riveted together. You would need to remove the rivets to get inside. If someone has even a bad one out of the car and could take a picture, that would give some clues what needs to be done to service the motors. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alini Posted November 5, 2016 Share Posted November 5, 2016 Im betting on hard grease in the tracks and worn rollers. The rollers are just plastic wheels on metal shafts, and they are just press/riveted to the frame so they get loose. So the window will 'chatter' as it goes up and down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steelman Posted November 5, 2016 Share Posted November 5, 2016 The WD40 does work, but you will need to use at least a full can in each door. Works on the rear windows, too. Find a place that won't be a problem when the WD runs out the bottom of the doors and pools up. It will be nasty and can stain your floors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jsgun Posted November 6, 2016 Share Posted November 6, 2016 I reconditioned my power window motors today actually. They're easy to do, and really simple. Mine were heavily coated in black enamel paint from the factory, I think to seal the seams. The hardest part of the job was chipping the paint off the end cap and screw heads. The screws are 1/4" head, and not tight at all. They run the full length of the motor, and go into the gear-head. I pulled them, and the gear-head pulls off. Once off, you'll see the brushes and communicator on the armature. They're attached to a flat circuit board held in place by two clips at each side of the motor case. It just lifts up. The brush that's closest to the outside edge of the case is attached to the case on a short wire. Remove the two brush springs (you'll need small needle nose pliers), lift up the board, and pull it towards the narrow side of the case, and then you can pull out that brush. Once it's out, you'll have enough wire slack that you can lift the board over the armature and pull it to the side. Once it's out of the way, you can pull the armature out. It has bronze bushings in the case ends, and mine were bone dry. I used some very fine sandpaper (about 1000, and 1500 grit) and polished the communicator. I also cleaned the gaps between the sections of the comm (very gently). I used some Mobil 1 grease on the end of the shaft, and dropped the armature back in. Then just reverse what you did. Once you see it, it'll all make sense. I then greased the area where the bushing sits (you'll probably see wear marks on the shaft). I used q-tips to clean out the end of the gear-head, where the shaft rest. There's a small bronze bushing in there, it's worth fishing it out, and putting grease on it. The gear-head goes back on easy. I also did the power seat motor, and gearbox. I'm glad I did, because they were dry too. The original grease seems to turn into a glue, and needs to be completely cleaned out. I had to use lacquer thinner. It was bad enough to glue the solenoid in place in the gearbox. I also had hardened original grease in my window tracks, and window channel rubber that was falling apart. Just a heads up, that the weather striping might need to be replaced. 50 yr old cars! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
68RIVGS Posted November 6, 2016 Share Posted November 6, 2016 (edited) . . . you have to remember - the mechanical and electrical systems in a Riviera were not designed or built to last forever, especially on these 50+ year old vehicles. Rust, corrosion and ordinary use, or the lack thereof, plus the ravages of time will take it's toll on mechanical or electrical parts ! At some point in time they will require some servicing and/or periodic inspections or adjustments to keep everything working as it was designed to do. Not sure about the smell, or longevity of a WD40 bath, but it sure does work wonders on seized door locks. There are some very good tips and instructions posted in this thread !! Edited November 6, 2016 by 68RIVGS (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIVNIK Posted November 7, 2016 Share Posted November 7, 2016 AAAAH! I love the smell of WD in the morning! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Chuck Rivi Posted November 13, 2016 Share Posted November 13, 2016 Gentlemen thanks for all your suggestions. I can see that I'm in the right place. I have the motors out of car and will try the battery trick and WD40. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric's.64.Superwildcat Posted November 13, 2016 Share Posted November 13, 2016 It would be great if you could post photos as I'll be doing the same thing in about a month. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatAk98 Posted July 24, 2019 Share Posted July 24, 2019 Hello, would the WD-40 be something to try on a 98 Riviera? I have an odd problem where the automatic windows appear to only work when it’s cool out...the car is not driven often and has a few problems; however, has sentimentaL value. Would like to start with the windows as the A/C not working is one of the problems! They work great in the morning, but as hot summer day progresses, they do not. Has anyone heard of this? If I park it in the shade and wait a bit, they will work again. Sounds like I’m reaching, but this seems to be the problem and it only happens in hot weather. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivman Posted July 24, 2019 Share Posted July 24, 2019 25 minutes ago, CatAk98 said: Hello, would the WD-40 be something to try on a 98 Riviera? I have an odd problem where the automatic windows appear to only work when it’s cool out...the car is not driven often and has a few problems; however, has sentimentaL value. Would like to start with the windows as the A/C not working is one of the problems! They work great in the morning, but as hot summer day progresses, they do not. Has anyone heard of this? If I park it in the shade and wait a bit, they will work again. Sounds like I’m reaching, but this seems to be the problem and it only happens in hot weather. Thanks! There are a few things that can cause problems with the window operation of the last generation cars. I'm not sure about your temperature issues, but a couple of things you might check are ... When you try the window, and it does not work, do you hear any noise, like the motor is getting power and just not moving, or nothing, like the switch is not transferring the power? With these cars the problems range anywhere from the switch, the motor, and/or an adjustment issue. I just had the motors out of both doors on my '99. The drivers side had been acting up a bit, then finally quit altogether. I would hear a noise, a slight click, when I tried the switch, so I assumed the motor was getting power. I took the door apart and removed the motor. With these cars the motor has fasteners holding it together, so what I did was take it apart, cleaned the brushes and contacts, reassembled and installed it, and it took care of the problem. On the passenger side it would bind going down and/or going up. When I took the door apart I found a couple of the adjustment fasteners were loose or had fallen into the bottom of the door. I put those fasteners back where it looked like they were when it was built. Then I tried cleaning the motor to no avail. I put in an aftermarket motor and it seemed to work better, but still not correct. And, the mounting of that motor was different enough I didn't like it. I removed a factory motor from my parts car and cleaned and installed it and it seemed to work better still. However, there is still a binding issue, it will not go down all the way, my next step will be to make the adjustments shown in the service manual, I just haven't gotten to it yet. Sorry so wordy, just thought I would give you a few options to look into. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garysriv Posted July 26, 2019 Share Posted July 26, 2019 Did mine a couple months ago. After removing the skins I actually cleaned all the roller runners with brake clean. Some of them you can take out and clean W/o messing up the window alignment. Then I got some silicone grease and a small paint brush and slathered the runners with it. You have to reach around but you can get to all of them. Only thing I used wd40 on was the little rollers. Also took out the back seat and panels and did the same to the rears, they were so gummed they needed manual help to go up. Now they all work fast and easy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KongaMan Posted July 26, 2019 Share Posted July 26, 2019 On 7/24/2019 at 5:19 AM, CatAk98 said: Hello, would the WD-40 be something to try on a 98 Riviera? No. Filling your door full of WD-40 instead of doing a proper fix is hackeration of the highest order. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIVNIK Posted July 27, 2019 Share Posted July 27, 2019 Hackeration I would agree! But removing doorskins unnecessarily , especially ones that have never been off the car, is not a fun job, can be fraught with difficulties (like impossible to remove Tnuts & possible paint damage, or anything else that can go wrong),& should be avoided if possible. My widows were all sluggish, the driver's would almost come to a stop in one place. I even bought 2 replacement motors(which at the time were cheaper than the time & labor spent rebuilding one, (& no springs fly out, hit the ground,& disappear forever)). After fretting over the upcoming job I decided to try the WD "hack". Since then they have worked better than new.The passenger window practically flies up & down. And I guarantee there will be no rust forming in the doors and quarters. And after a short while not a hint of WD smell. BTW, I now have 2 motors for sale (at cost, w an added surcharge for Konga). As they say, sometimes the best things in life are free, or in this case the price of a couple cans of WD40. So there! ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted July 27, 2019 Share Posted July 27, 2019 WD-40. W - water. D - displacement. 40 - success on the 40th attempt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PWB Posted July 27, 2019 Share Posted July 27, 2019 (edited) I concur with this statement: "WD-40 isn't actually a true lubricant. WD stands for "water displacing" and its main use is as a solvent or rust dissolver. The lubricant-like properties of WD-40 come not from the substance itself, but from dissolving components. And the effect doesn't last. WD-40 can be a good substance to start with — it can help clean up rust or other grime. But depending on what you're working with, you should probably follow up WD-40 with use of a true lubricant such as one based on silicone, grease, Teflon, or graphite" In my experience it evaporates well within 6 months. Then if you love it, you go buy more. Great for initial and quick fixes. It has freed up my window tracks, initially. I'm a fan of lithium based for tracks and hinges., Edited July 27, 2019 by PWB (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bdad Posted August 3, 2019 Share Posted August 3, 2019 I replaced the motor on the drivers door window and it's still sluggish and needs help. So, either the skin comes off again and then I clean out the build up from the years or I try the WD40 solution to see if it helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted August 3, 2019 Share Posted August 3, 2019 Take the time and effort it takes to do it correctly. If you spray enough WD-40 in there and it happens to go where you want it to go. Where is all of the excess WD-40 and the crud it loosens up going to go. It just doesn't evaporate. It sits in the bottom of the door and collects more moisture. Easier to fix the motor that to repair a rotted out door. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KongaMan Posted August 4, 2019 Share Posted August 4, 2019 2 hours ago, Bdad said: I replaced the motor on the drivers door window and it's still sluggish and needs help. So, either the skin comes off again and then I clean out the build up from the years or I try the WD40 solution to see if it helps. Should be an easy decision. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted August 4, 2019 Share Posted August 4, 2019 Take a can of WD-40 with you when you clean your engine at the self-serve car wash. When you're finished and the car won't start then spray the ignition wires and distributor cap... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted August 4, 2019 Share Posted August 4, 2019 You need to understand the to get the WD-40 to the gears, you first have to disassemble the case that houses the gears. On one of the last ones that I cleaned up, I used Brake-Kleen and a putty knife to scrape it off. And that motor was working pretty good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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