Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting Loose connection of power window switch?

I'm guessing it maybe a loose connection somewhere. My driver side power window switch is acting strange. Twice, the window came down and would not go up. I SLAM the door hard and push the switch again, up came the window, nice and smooth.

Both times when the window failed to come up, I did NOT hear the motor whinning. So it doesn't sound like it's a jammed window. My guess is the switch itself acting up. Like, maybe a loose connection in the switch inside the door? The slaming of the door made the shaky connection touch again? Only the up window is doing that, down window is fine (so far).

Now it's working again, but I'm afraid it may act up again in the future, in the least opportunistic time. So I'd like to see if I can tackle it before it gets totally inoperable.

So my question is:
1) what other things I should check before dissembling the door?
2) if I need to work take the door apart, how hard is it?
3) once I get inside the door, what should I look for?

I believe you just have to remove the surround that covers the drivers switches, there's a screw behind a plastic cover behind the inner door handle. Then gently with a flat head or something you can pull and pry if off. The switch is then accessable. You can pull it out and the plug to it will come out too (a little ways)

I doubt it's a connection, but I could be wrong. Sounds more like one of your switches on the drivers control is bad. They are pretty hard if not impossible to repair (but I'm no expert)

My advice is to go to the salvage yard and get a new one, they are all alike. Plug it in and I'll bet your problem will dissapear.

Remember, the salvage yard is salvation!

Having the same problem with my 97 Mystique. Replaced my driver's side switch earlier this year and it seemed to work for awhile. Then a month or two later I started having the problem again. What I found was that if I pulled the switch out of the door and pushed down on the switch while I pushed up on the connector, that it would work. Eventually this didn't work as well. Don't know if it's the cause of the problem, but I finally started to look at the female part of the connection, not the plug. Turns out that it's damaged -- and looks as if it's been that way. Haven't tried to fix it yet. Will let you know if this works.

None of my power windows or door locks worked right. I WD-40'd the switches and they have worked flawlessly for many months now.

What year model is your vehicle? I have an extra window switch that I do not mind donating for the cost of shipping.

The power window switches in the new fords are horrible. I had to take mine apart and burnish the connectors. You will have to replace the switch. You do not have to take the door apart to do so, but the switch is steeler only.

jeff

WD-40 works wonders

What are you talking about? Spraying WD-40 on the switch? How does that help??

WD40 has lubricating and cleaning properties, but does nothing for conductivity. It's mostly kerosene with a few additives and a fragrence. Try Caig Laboratories "Deoxit D5" available from Parts Express.
www.Partsexpress.com.

Here's a link to the Deoxit page:
Deoxit D5

Had similar problems with my window switch and used this stuff. Its been about a year since then and the switches are still working great. I must admitt that I did take the entire assembly apart to clean it out, but spraying it in should still work. I've also used it on my door switches when they were giving me problems and they too are still working good 8 months later. For electrical connections this stuff is just flat out superior IMHO. Its used by all these companies:

Allied Signal
Bell & Howell
Boeing
Diebold, Inc.
Dolby Laboratories
Federal Express
Fluke Mfg. Co.
General Electric
Grumman Aerospace
Hewlett-Packard
Honeywell
McIntosh Labs
Motorola
Nakamichi
RCA
Switchcraft
Tektronix
Texas Instruments
Wayne-Dresser
Xerox Corporation

Nuff said?

The mini spray is not worth the $ compared to the 5 oz spray, (Item # 341-200). FYI, Parts Express also has great deals on Bosch type automotive relays, fuses, car stereo stuff and lots of audio/video etc. I've been dealing with them since 1991 and have never had anything but good results.