[Edoboss]

m.e.g , and others,
Thank you for your input and encouraging words ,but my frustration grow bigger and I took the car to the local Mercedes service. Here is the story...They quoted me installation only(of my window regulator) $375.Not bad , considering it's benz service. I dropped of the the car in the morning, very polite assistant manager took all the information and after evaluation she even gave me a $100 discount because I already did lot of the work by taking the panels of.Wow, I thought to myself, this is too good to be truth.She said,changing regulator is still lot of work and they should be done in few hours.I left the dealer all happy, but happiness didn't last long.On the way home, I received call from the "very polite" assistant manager, she said that her manager wont touch the car because regulator is used part and they don't want to be liable if any problem occur.I started literally to beg her to take the car because I didn't know where to go with it and if I have to buy new regulator I would go that route as well.She put me on the hold to speak to her manager, after short wait she said they would do me a favor this one time, but I would have to pay full quoted price($375).Needles to say I was delighted again that finally I'll have my car fixed. Around 5pm I received call thinking my car is finished, but it was her saying that mechanic couldn't finish today , it will be done tomorrow.Next morning there was a call, it was her, finally she said the window is repaired the car is finished!...Sorry about the long story guys , but here comes the final part.... I said to her" great that means I can finally open my soft top" she said "No the soft top STILL doesn't work, there must be some other issue, if you want us to take a look at that,let me know".....

I was speechless, I never had issue with the soft top before, it only didn't retract fully because rear window wont go down.
So, now I have working window, but the soft top is broken.I think they did it, deliberately or by negligence.
Before I took to the dealer, soft top would unlatch and start to go up , but it will stop at some point way up in the air.
Now when i press the button, it unlatches , but that's it.
All I can hear and see is that painted plastic cover(where the headrests are) on the back is trying to flip , but it seems like is "slipping" for lack of better words.
Sooo.... I'm back here again , begging for your help .

 

[rudeney]

This is probably a bad microswitch on the soft top cover (i.e. the painted plastic piece). It has three switches - one on the left lift cylinder (it's a square plastic "tube" parallel to the cylinder) and one on each side where the cover latches behind the headrests.

 

[jpester]

First off, HUGE thanks for all the information already posted in this thread. It has been very helpful so far and is greatly appreciated.

I am having issues with the passenger side rear window that I am assuming is the regulator. I have not yet ordered the part but am hoping to visually inspect the problem before doing so. Thanks to all the great information posted here, I have been able to remove the interior panels but am confused as to how to proceed from here and am hoping someone can help clarify for me. This is a coupe just for clarification in case it matters.

I am confused by 2 different posts regarding removing the window. One post states that it is not necessary and another offers great help explaining how to make removal easier. Do I need to remove the window in order to inspect the regulator and see what the exact problem is?

I am feeling a bit overwhelmed at this point so please excuse me if I am asking something completely stupid. I have read this thread over and over and have printed all the instructions and diagrams. I just don't want to proceed with something completely unnecessary at the point if I can avoid it.

Thanks so much in advance!

 

[rudeney]

You don't need to remove the glass just to inspect the regulator while in place. If you intend to remove the regulator, the you need to remove the glass.

 

[m.e.g.]

You will have to remove the sound deadening insulation and the round rubber/plastic plugs to inspect the regulator assembly.

-Take care removing the sound deadening insulation since you must reinstall the insulation upon completion.

-Chances are you will see the regulator cable off the pulleys due to broken plastic trolley mechanism. The trolley mechanism is attached to the window lifting mechanism. The lifting mechanism has two cables one for up and the other for down.

-When you inspect the mechanism you will notice the irony is how well made the regulator assembly is made with the exception of the window lifting/lowering trolley mechanism. Plastic gets brittle with age and the plastic trolley receives all the shock of lifting and lowering the heavy window and mechanism.

Goodluck!

 

[devthep]

As others have said, thank you so much for the information, it has been extraordinarily helpful. I'm a DIY guy, but have typically stayed away from our foreign cars (happy to hack the ever loving behoozy out of my escalade) until recently.

I have a 2003 w209/clk320 in which the rear window dropped and the regulator obviously went RIP. I ordered a used replacement, and was able to pull the back apart. pull out the old one, and pull out the rear left window - but I have a small issue in that not only did the regulator die on me, but one of the plastic "plugs" on the rear window (not the regulator) is broken. Does anyone have an idea of what the part number is for that or where I can possibly get it? It's a two piece (one for either side of one of the holes in the rear quarter window - there are three total on the window, and one is broken) plastic uh...thing (trolley?). Also, not exactly sure how the window sits on the regulator without pulling the other side apart, so does anyone have a description or pic of how the window is supposed to sit after I put the replacement regulator in?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Mugwumpy]

W209 left rear window regulator rebuild

Thank you for the printouts from the Mercedes manual. I was able to navigate the procedure to disassemble the interior and eventually remove the window regulator. The necessity of removing the outside body trim to get to the last mounting bolt on the regulator was bizarre.

I obtained most of the plastic parts and new cables for the cable system on the regulator from a supplier in Turkey (Bross Auto Parts). I have a couple of questions:

1. What is the force that should be required to move the regulator up and down in its tracks once reassembled? If it is too tight, it will just wear out again.

2. Should the tracks be greased?

3. The plastic parts that ride on the (somewhat sharp) tracks should be replaced, as they are wear items. They seem to be made of some sort of UHMW (Ultra High Molecular Weight) plastic. Are they self lubricating?

4. Any idea where I can get those parts?

 

[rudeney]

Because of the design that makes the glass move in a non-linear motion, the regulator will not operate smoothly. I would use a bit of lithium "white" grease. The plastic bushings are not individual parts, they come with the regulator.

 

[ML Dude]

208 completely different?

Guys, this is a very interesting read but because I have the w208 Cabriolet, I'm guessing I need different set of procedures? My other question would be did you guys hear the motor turning when activating the window switch, that based on findings that the cable plastic connectors have broken. I'm wondering why I hear a faint click when I try to lower my rear window(drivers). I'm just wondering if my issue was not mechanical but electrical, power reset didn't help.

 

[kryp]

I will be needing to perform this DIY but am having trouble with unclipping the seat belt extender by pressing the catch hook. How exactly do you access the catch hook? I pulled out the extender but don't see the hook.

Could anyone elaborate on this step? Thanks in advance.

 

[keyhole]

Guys, this is a very interesting read but because I have the w208 Cabriolet, I'm guessing I need different set of procedures?

Yes. W208 procedures are quite different to W209 here - but similar to W202.

I have noted from the WIS that as from 06/1997 the coupe (W208.3) has "2-way power windows', ie, only the front aside windows can be lowered. The rear side windows are fixed. I am not sure if this changed later.

As from 06/1998, the cabriolet (W208.4) has 4-way power windows, ie, both front and rear side windows are power operated.

If you can find no information in the W208 archives on this topic, (use the Search facility) pm me and I will put a DIY on that forum based on WIS drawings, as I used here.

 

[jannickj]

My window is stock ! i can't open it enough. w209 2005 convertible
I can't get it down. I miss 1 screw, before clearance



anybody have any idea. I can't get it to open the last part
i see the post here

"But since the window was only partially up, this was quite difficult and time consuming. It is a lot easier to lower the window completely, remove the top plate, this will allow for your arm and hand to go where the window bolts are located.
"

i can't understand what to do on the convertible


im trying to get the window out, so i can repair the regulator ( small white plastic or buy new or used )
left rear. drivers side..

 

[rudeney]

So have you removed side panel to access the regulator? If so, try removing the motor from the regulator so that you can manually lower the glass.

 

[jannickj]

the side panel. how do i remove.. i need to take more apart than i already have?, thx

 

[rudeney]

Go back to the beginning of this thread - Keyhole has posted all the WIS docs needed for both coupe and cabriolet so that you can remove the side panel and window regulator.

 

[rhat]

First.. Thanks for all the information here..
I have seen this kit on eBay to replace the plastic parts and cables. Are the plastic parts easily replaced?
Is this not advised to avoid the cost of the complete part?

W209 Mercedes 03 09 CLK Rear Left Driver Side Window Regulator Repair Kit | eBay

I have a 2005 CLK320 Cab

 

[m.e.g.]

You will have to remove your regulator to inspect what parts have failed. Usually the parts provided in the kit are not the parts that break (at least on my regulator and the two others I have seen). On my regulator it was the plastic trolley that pulls the window carriage up and down in the center channel. Both the up and down cable ends attach to the plastic trolley, the plastic trolley piece is the one that broke on my regulator. I am sure other pieces also break however I have not seen a new plastic trolley as a replacement part for the regulator.

Good Luck, take your time and remain calm, take a break and step away when you run into a problem. You can figure it out!

 

[jetlife504]

I just completed the installation of the broken plastic parts and regulator cable this weekend, while it wasn't too hard, it is time consuming. Better than paying $500 though! I got my kit from BROSS Auto Parts on ebay and it works just fine now. You can find the diagrams and instructions for removing the regulator if you look through this forum.

 

[Benzyle]

Hi everyone,
I have read this entire thread but have a couple of questions ,please.
To replace a damaged window only, would I only need to remove the upper trim panel to get access to the screws/bolts?
Am I correct to presume that no adjustments via the exterior screw would be necessary?
Thanks

 

[Benzyle]

Hi everyone,
I have read this entire thread but have a couple of questions ,please.
To replace a damaged window only, would I only need to remove the upper trim panel to get access to the screws/bolts?
Am I correct to presume that no adjustments via the exterior screw would be necessary?
Thanks

I now know that only the upper interior trim panel has to be removed in order to remove the glass.
I am hoping that if I can replace the new window into the same position as the old one, then no adjustment will be necessary.