Interesting outcome fixing the power windows, '89 GL 3-door.

[Hachiroku $B%O%A%m%/(B]

I was trying to get the power windows working on my '89 GL 3-door coupe. I
found a bad ground on the passenger's side, got the pass side switch
working by 'adding' a ground, and then was having trouble with the pass
window from the driver's side.

In the meantime, I 'ordered' a new switch on eBay, just in case...

I took the driver's door control out, opened it up and cleaned the
contacts (some of them were carboned heavily), put it back together and
the pass window went down OK, but up hard (um, with some smoke coming from
my whopping 22GA 'ground' wire...

Took it apart again, cleaned some more, and tried again. Up and down OK,
more smoke from the ground.

Removed the ground and the pass door was working. The third time I took
the switch apart, I lost one of the little rollers on the pass side
switch. OK, there's two of them, let's see what happens...

Cleaned everything again and put it back together, and both windows began
working perfectly. Except...

With the roller missing, the pass side window is now auto up/down. It does
this by the switch sticking in the related position. This is what I was
going to try to attempt to do with the new switch.

I also found the Lock button works on either switch, so once the window is
where I want, I can 'Lock' the windows and be safe. I believe the Lock
button interrupts the ground so no current can flow. I believe this was
the original trouble with the pass window.


Now to find some speakers that work...(who the heel designs the rear so
you have to remove the WHOLE REAR INTERIOR to replace the rear speakers?!?!?
um, Subaru, and whomever designed the 86-92 Supra!!!)

 

[Jeff Strickland]

I was trying to get the power windows working on my '89 GL 3-door coupe. I
found a bad ground on the passenger's side, got the pass side switch
working by 'adding' a ground, and then was having trouble with the pass
window from the driver's side.

In the meantime, I 'ordered' a new switch on eBay, just in case...

I took the driver's door control out, opened it up and cleaned the
contacts (some of them were carboned heavily), put it back together and
the pass window went down OK, but up hard (um, with some smoke coming from
my whopping 22GA 'ground' wire...

Took it apart again, cleaned some more, and tried again. Up and down OK,
more smoke from the ground.

Removed the ground and the pass door was working. The third time I took
the switch apart, I lost one of the little rollers on the pass side
switch. OK, there's two of them, let's see what happens...

Cleaned everything again and put it back together, and both windows began
working perfectly. Except...

With the roller missing, the pass side window is now auto up/down. It does
this by the switch sticking in the related position. This is what I was
going to try to attempt to do with the new switch.

I also found the Lock button works on either switch, so once the window is
where I want, I can 'Lock' the windows and be safe. I believe the Lock
button interrupts the ground so no current can flow. I believe this was
the original trouble with the pass window.

Since ground is as easy as screwing a wire to the frame, I'd expect the Lock
switch to interupt the power. For the lock button to interupt ground, all of
the window grounds would have to come back to the switch, but if the switch
opened the power, it would only have to have one or two tires.

I had an Accord once that had cold solder joints inside the window
controller, the result was similar to your trouble.

 

[Ph@Boy]

I was trying to get the power windows working on my '89 GL 3-door coupe. I
found a bad ground on the passenger's side, got the pass side switch
working by 'adding' a ground, and then was having trouble with the pass
window from the driver's side.

In the meantime, I 'ordered' a new switch on eBay, just in case...

I took the driver's door control out, opened it up and cleaned the
contacts (some of them were carboned heavily), put it back together and
the pass window went down OK, but up hard (um, with some smoke coming from
my whopping 22GA 'ground' wire...

Took it apart again, cleaned some more, and tried again. Up and down OK,
more smoke from the ground.

Removed the ground and the pass door was working. The third time I took
the switch apart, I lost one of the little rollers on the pass side
switch. OK, there's two of them, let's see what happens...

Cleaned everything again and put it back together, and both windows began
working perfectly. Except...

With the roller missing, the pass side window is now auto up/down. It does
this by the switch sticking in the related position. This is what I was
going to try to attempt to do with the new switch.

I also found the Lock button works on either switch, so once the window is
where I want, I can 'Lock' the windows and be safe. I believe the Lock
button interrupts the ground so no current can flow. I believe this was
the original trouble with the pass window.


Now to find some speakers that work...(who the heel designs the rear so
you have to remove the WHOLE REAR INTERIOR to replace the rear speakers?!?!?
um, Subaru, and whomever designed the 86-92 Supra!!!)

I think that Jeff is right Hachi. Ground is rarely switched. It would be
like your wall switch in your home. Line to load (hot) is switched.
Ground is not switched. But you may have an unusually wired home.

 

[Hachiroku $B%O%A%m%/(B]

I think that Jeff is right Hachi. Ground is rarely switched. It would be
like your wall switch in your home. Line to load (hot) is switched. Ground
is not switched. But you may have an unusually wired home.

Hmmm....It's been my experience with my Toyotas that most of the
connections to the dashboard used to control features and accessories
around the car are switching Ground! I went to replace a windsheild washer
switch in my Mom's Camry, and couldn't get it to work. I took a meter and
discovered it was the ground wire running to the switch.

Also, hooking up other 'interesting' little circuits in my Corolla GTS I
have noticed that a lot of things are switching grounds.

However, when I set up my driving lights on the GTS, I had two sets (I
used to drive a lot very early in the morning in deer/moose country...)
One set was the...um..."Off Road" lighting (yeah...on a Corolla GTS...)
100 Watt H3's wired to come on with the high beams, and one set was "Aux"
lighting, wired to come on with the Parking lights. Both of these
connections were switching voltage.

 

[Anssi Saari]

Hmmm....It's been my experience with my Toyotas that most of the
connections to the dashboard used to control features and accessories
around the car are switching Ground!

It makes sense in a car, in my opinion at least. If a wire comes loose
from a switch, there's usually a lot of grounded metal around which
would cause a short if the loose wire is hot and hits something.