More about 348 window accelerators

As an electronics engineer by profession, I decided to investigate the “mystery” of the slow windows in my 348. Not wanting to invest the exorbitant cost of $99.00 each as offered by some sources, I decided to build my own. I can’t believe how simple it was to fix the problem using basic off-the-shelf components. My first attempt was to use a couple of SPST, 12V, 30 amp relays for each window. The relays were wired in such a way as to redirect the ground side of the window wire directly to the door frame. The circuit performed perfectly and the windows went up and down even with engine not running. The next step was to convert the circuit to solid state, so I spent $5.00 on two power PNP transistors from Radio Shack. Using a couple of resistors to cross-biased the transistors I was able to again redirect alternatively the ground to the door frame… and Voila! Everything worked.

Perhaps the most expensive part of the units currently offered in the market is the potting compound used for the encapsulation of the components to prevent moisture problems as well as to preserve the designers’ secret. Let me know if someone is interested in more details