The passenger window in my 1986 325ES was clearly seized, as I could hear a click in the door panel area while operating the switch. Getting access to the motor is straightforward, and has been well documented here and elsewhere. I removed the motor by removing the two T-25 Torx bolts using a 1/4"ratchet with a 3" extension. A T-25 Torx screwdriver will also work, as the bolts aren't torqued very tightly.
Here's the motor:
It was so badly seized that I couldn't turn it by hand. I put in in a vise, and spun the housing by hand to free it (having a beer close at hand seemed to help with the process).
I was unable to separate the motor body from the housing, as I had seen in a YouTube video. So I sprayed electrical parts cleaner into the motor while spinning it by hand, tapping the bottom of the motor to free up trapped gunk, and draining dirty fluid (rinse and repeat).
It was still not as smooth as I would have liked, so I found a way to automate the process:
To test, I hooked the motor up directly to a 12 volt battery:
While I was at it I put a bunch of white lithium grease on motor spindle prior to reinserting into the regulator, and also greased the tracks on the regulator. It now works perfectly and is as smooth and quiet as the drivers side.
With all the research I have done it is still not clear which window motors fit what cars and how interchangeable they are. It is also hard to find one on Ebay without a regulator included. I would encourage anyone with a seized motor to at least attempt to bring it back from the dead before seeking out a replacement; as long as you are going through the trouble to gain access to it you have nothing to lose!
Here's the motor:
It was so badly seized that I couldn't turn it by hand. I put in in a vise, and spun the housing by hand to free it (having a beer close at hand seemed to help with the process).
I was unable to separate the motor body from the housing, as I had seen in a YouTube video. So I sprayed electrical parts cleaner into the motor while spinning it by hand, tapping the bottom of the motor to free up trapped gunk, and draining dirty fluid (rinse and repeat).
It was still not as smooth as I would have liked, so I found a way to automate the process:
To test, I hooked the motor up directly to a 12 volt battery:
While I was at it I put a bunch of white lithium grease on motor spindle prior to reinserting into the regulator, and also greased the tracks on the regulator. It now works perfectly and is as smooth and quiet as the drivers side.
With all the research I have done it is still not clear which window motors fit what cars and how interchangeable they are. It is also hard to find one on Ebay without a regulator included. I would encourage anyone with a seized motor to at least attempt to bring it back from the dead before seeking out a replacement; as long as you are going through the trouble to gain access to it you have nothing to lose!