RAV4 driver door window fell down, DIY or Pro?

[LoneRanger]

Girlfriend's 2008 Toyota RAV4 had the driver door's power window fall out of its track or something. I've not seen it but she said she had to hand pull it back up the best she could or something and it's loose and inoperable right now. Said she had went to run it up from the down position, something went twang and it fell down.

Is this something for a body shop or more for an auto glass shop? Big bucks?

 

[Tuffy1760]

With 2077 posts you need to do this yourself... get beer... might be some weird bits needed to get the door apart... also must be Toyota/rav4 website to help...
She will be very grateful... post pics of door apart and girlfriend when you get a chance.

 

[HerrStig]

How many times did she try to open it when it was frozen? My 15 year old 300K Camry has had no window problems, and sees at least two ups and two downs evey day. IMHO to be sure it all goes back together properly you should let a pro do it, but there are stereo install videos which show how to get at the door speakers (and everything else) by removing the door card if you want to try.

 

[LoneRanger]

Tuffy1760, yes I should but I don't feel like the hassle. I can still win the day by telling her the best place to take it.

 

[901Memphis]

1) gorilla tape it to the door frame

2) duct tape and plastic bag

3) just replace the whole door with a junkyard pull if you have to

 

[The_Eric]

Originally Posted By: HerrStig
How many times did she try to open it when it was frozen? My 15 year old 300K Camry has had no window problems, and sees at least two ups and two downs evey day.



Well pin a rose on your nose... Sometimes [censored] just happens. When I worked at a different shop (around 2010), we were changing oil on a 2005 or 2006 F-150 and as force of habit, we rolled the window down (again because things happen, especially with power locks- don't ask). When we were done, another guy went to roll it up and POP! The regulator broke.

What makes this so interesting is the truck had an honest 3000 miles on it! The guy just never drove it, kept it in his garage all the time and NEVER saw the snow. It was primped, pampered and babied like no other... and still the regulator broke. No abuse, no extenuating circumstances.

 

[Leo99]

It's a pain in the butt job. Pulling the door panel off is tedious. Getting the glass back on track will require you to put your hands through the door frame which is lined which razor sharp edges that will slice your hand up. Friend of mine has a BMW that he performs this repair on annually. He's gotten very good at doing the repair but the first time took a while. Look on youtube for a tutorial.

 

[Vikas]

can you not find youtube video showing step by step instructions? if you know me, I do not even change my own oil but I gathered up enough courage and replaced two window regulators on the Camry.

If I can do it, *anybody* can do it

 

[zvm77us]

go to a glass shop and call it a day, my glass guy told me he's seen too many DIY people bring in the whole door window mechanism because they tried doing it on their own and couldn't. It shouldn't be too expensive

 

[RF Overlord]

Originally Posted By: Tuffy1760
also must be Toyota/rav4 website to help...
I use this one to help with my sister's RAV.

It was a lot cleaner and easier to navigate, but since AutoGuide bought it it's become infested with advertising.

 

[CT8]

What is your mechanical ability?

 

[jigen]

I remember doing this twice on my camaro a few years back. It used the same power window motor as a cavalier and the camaro windows were just too much for it so failures were common.

I found a DIY video on YouTube. It wasn't fun but it wasn't all that bad. I never lined the window up though. Just had to take off the door panel and replace the motor.

I'd try to DIY first and see how it goes.

 

[Trav]

Does the motor work? It may have just come off the glass, that's a quick and easy job, changing the regulator is a bit more difficult but not that big a deal.

 

[Nick1994]

Originally Posted By: 901Memphis
1) gorilla tape it to the door frame

2) duct tape and plastic bag

3) just replace the whole door with a junkyard pull if you have to


Lol!



You could probably do it yourself but if you haven't done this sort of stuff it's a learning curve. I've done lots of them, it needs a new regulator assembly. Buy aftermarket if you do it yourself, buying from the dealer would be a waste of money. Lots of clips and screws and electrical connections to remove to get to it. It's not rocket science though.

 

[KitaCam]

could be just a bolt that came off the regulator holding the glass to it...easy to fix once you get the door panel off....if that's the same problem I had on the Camry

 

[HerrStig]

Originally Posted By: The_Eric
Originally Posted By: HerrStig
How many times did she try to open it when it was frozen? My 15 year old 300K Camry has had no window problems, and sees at least two ups and two downs evey day.



Well pin a rose on your nose... Sometimes [censored] just happens. When I worked at a different shop (around 2010), we were changing oil on a 2005 or 2006 F-150 and as force of habit, we rolled the window down (again because things happen, especially with power locks- don't ask). When we were done, another guy went to roll it up and POP! The regulator broke.

What makes this so interesting is the truck had an honest 3000 miles on it! The guy just never drove it, kept it in his garage all the time and NEVER saw the snow. It was primped, pampered and babied like no other... and still the regulator broke. No abuse, no extenuating circumstances.
The Toyota regulator unit is very reliable. Every so often someone manages to break one. I own FOUR Camrys including a 2008, never lost a window regulator. You know what you can do with the rose. One sure way to break the unit is to try to move a frozen window. Yes there are safeguards, no they're not perfect.

 

[Pop_Rivit]

They really aren't that difficult to work on. I've opened a few door panels in the past, from older vintage vehicles to at 2002 LeSabre. They were all just common sense simple to work on.

It could be a number of things, from regulator failure to the glass just having slipped out of the regulator's grip. Pop the door panel off, see what's wrong, and then fix it.

If you're worried about a couple scratches on your hands, then wear gloves.

 

[cat843]

Typically its the regulator that is gone and needs to be replaced. The PIA part is getting the door panel off without busting the plastic pins/connectors used to hold the door panel in place. Its best to work on the door panel in a warm area as the plastic pins/connectors snap easily in the cold.

 

[dishdude]

If you have mechanical aptitude, you can do this yourself. This is one of those $100 jobs if you do it yourself, $600 if you take it somewhere.

There are a gazillion RAV4s on the road, so I am sure you can find a step by step on removing the door panel online. From there the regulator is usually held in by 4 rivets or nuts and a wiring harness.

 

[SatinSilver]

Originally Posted By: RF Overlord
It was a lot cleaner and easier to navigate, but since AutoGuide bought it it's become infested with advertising.


They bought the Accord website I used to frequent:

www.driveaccord.net, looks pretty similar to the Rav4 site.