Window Motor Re-Grease... Don't Bother

So I dreaded doing this job. After watching videos of people doing it and reading various threads with pictures of people doing it, I pretty much knew it was going to be a nightmare.

Well it did not disappoint.

Do yourself a favor, if your window goes up and down and it's slow... LEAVE IT ALONE. I don't mean slow like it barely goes up and down... I mean it's just slow but it goes up and down just fine.

Two things will happen if you leave it alone.

1. You will be able to avoid the complete Mickey Mouse engineered cluster of cabling that Ferrari designed on our windows... I mean... wow.

2. Your window will be just as fast if you DID take everything apart, and clean the old hard grease out and re-grease the motor.

If my window goes up or down any faster it's pretty much not perceptible. MAYBE it does? Was it worth two days of complete BS for the result... HELL NO.

Now unfortunately I do HAVE to do my passenger side since that one just BARELY goes up and down.

But I can guarantee you that I will be cleaning and greasing the pulleys and the cabling before I even think about taking the motor out.

Yes I'm sure the motor on that side has sticky hardened grease just like the one I spent an entire day cleaning. But if I clean the pulleys and it goes faster it'll be keeping that grease right where it is... since new grease doesn't appear to do ANYTHING to help the motor.

If I DO have to take it out, I guess this time I'll be able to know that I need to remove the door handle BEFORE I start futzing with the cabling so that I don't manage to break the $300 piece of plastic that IS our door handles because... reasons.

Now I'm off to find a driver-side interior door handle that maybe won't cost me $300 but probably will since that's all I've seen it for.

 

I’m dreading doing this. But if were to take the door apart to do it, I would definitely take the opportunity to add window boosters

https://www.ricambiamerica.com/window-accelerator-module-pair.html

 

Yup a real PITA! I did my drivers side, 1978 US with two switches on drivers armrest and one on pass armrest, and it made no difference. The grease wasn't all that hard. The passenger window was slow, less than half the speed of the drivers side so rather than mess with the motor I put dedicated relays on the passenger motor. I also put relays on the drivers side which sped it up a little. The passenger side, however, now goes up and down at exactly the same speed as the drivers side. Not as fast as a modern car but plenty fast. The relay (2 per window) installation is really easy with little if any modifications to the wiring. The reason the passenger window is so slow, at least on the cars with 2 switches on the drivers side, is the power for the passenger side runs through the drivers side switch then to the passenger switch then to the motor. Huge current loss. The two relay deal cost about under $20 for both windows and was a snap to install. The schematic for the mod is floating around FC somewhere.


Good Luck
Barry

 

The grease was basically solid and very sticky around the gearing.

I soaked it for a whole day and I still wound up spending quite a few hours cleaning it.

Made little to no difference at all with the speed of the window. I think it goes DOWN a little faster?

I have an '82 so I have two switches in the center console.

Is this relay mod for an '82 and where can I find it?

 

The dual relay mod from forever ago is the way to go. Just have to pull+12v switched power to the door. Then the window switch only switches low amp and the battery can feed directly to the window motor. The factory routed it thru the window switch, for whatever crazy reason. The amp and volt drop is nuts.
The dual relay mod resolves that and the windows actually move like one would expect.

 

Are the window "boosters" above just relays?

 

I don't know honestly. But in old threads there's a difference between the booster option and dual relays. Dual relays require adding a switched 12v supply to the door and the booster option did not.

 

Yep mine are painfully slow and the passenger side is even slower.

 

Booster units still have the high current going through the switch. A full blown relay system requires a 12v feed in to the door so that the window switch only handles the small “primary “ current and the relay handles the main motor current

 

I didn't run any new wiring to the doors. I put the new relays in the relay panel and pulled the power wire off the switches and moved them to the relays, then rewired to the switches....maybe not easier over-all, but my consoles already apart so for me it. The grease helped and I'm sure was needed but the relays were a massive improvement

 

How about Booster PLUS Relays?

 

In this thread they appear to just be grounding the switches with the relay rather than having the ground run back through the harness.

No additional power wire is run

https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/threads/slow-window-fix-for-less-than-30-00.310804/

 

Was the 328 window circuitry modified from the 308? I ask because the windows on my 328 run up/down as quickly (or slowly) as the video in post 10 and they are totally stock and have had no attention since leaving the factory in '89.

 

Are we sure that it's the motors not doing enough because of the hardened grease, and not the window channels that are hard and grimy? I took my doors appart for paint, and the hardened grease doesn't seem as bad as the hardened rubber.

 

Just curious, did you also replace the u-channel for the window frame? If not, is the velvet still visible in the back of the channel?

 

All of my channels have been cleaned and sprayed with dry lubricant. All of the little pulleys have been as well.

It did little to nothing for my driver's side. I'm guessing the driver's side was always that speed. It MIGHT have made if faster to go down?

I have to do the opposite side but I can't until I get my brake booster back so I can move the car away from the wall enough to do it.

I'll take it apart and do the grease because... I don't know I'm anal and I guess I really enjoy frustration.

BUT I will definitely be doing the relay mod to hopefully help.

If the relay mod doesn't work I read somewhere that there was a guy selling just the motor upgrade that you can attach to the spool. I don't know if he's still doing that or not though... was a few years ago.

 

The velvet is still in tact in the back channel

 

@Imatk - At least you have the knowledge of having been in there, laid eyes on all the parts, and did what you could to mitigate any issues. Frustrating to not get any visible gratification from all that work, but certainly not worthless.
I’ve been fortunate: after the Birdman fuseblock upgrade, my ‘83’s windows work as well as my wife’s Audi’s do!
But……the recently acquired ‘79 is a different story and I’m now looking to also book a ticket to Windowhell.
- Dave

 

Ferrari's of this era doesn't differ much from other cars with respect to maintenance and care. I just fixed the windows in my Porsche 911SC from 1981. It had about the same symptoms and needed the same fixes as my 308QV from 1983 - It needed new grease in all the moving parts and oiling and exercise of partly stuck bearing / bushings. It would also have benefited from a double relay installation and possible also a new velvet covered channel seal. The Porsche system appears more solid and easier to service but it still need regularly maintenance. Owing these old cars, and being on limited budget, includes the joy of days of hard, complex and some time meaningless work. The reward is to drive them knowing that all systems works and continue to work for the next many years. I think that feeling is more intense if no corners are cut. For a poorly maintained 308 (Door) that has been sitting still for long periods that means new grease everywhere incl.motors, new drive wire, new seals and channels, possible new electrical cable connectors, alignment and testing and preferably also local control relays with separate power supply. Good wrenching.

Best regards,

Peter

 

Is there a schematic and step by step tutorial for the double relay fix?

 

There are numerous threads on Fchat with detailed schematics and how to do - Search is your help. I also think you can buy complete relay units already wired and configured for the task.

Best, Peter

 

This is the one I'm going to try.

https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/threads/slow-window-fix-for-less-than-30-00.310804/

If this one doesn't work I'll likely try to seek out the upgraded motors. From what I can tell the "accelerators" do the same thing as this they're just ready-made.

I'm not going to plasti-dip mine though I'll just use insultated connectors

 

See here:
https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/threads/slow-window-dual-relay-mod-amazing.317471/

 

I would recommend replacing the channel. I have seen where the exposed rubber will drag on the glass. There are places you can source this from and not pay the F-tax.

 

Where would those places be?