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Old Oct 24, 2008 | 12:10 PM
  #1  
mediaman67's Avatar
mediaman67
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Laughing Gas
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Power windows

Hi,

1989, 3.0 Shorty XL - with power everything for that year.

I am not getting power to my switch on the drivers side for either of the left or right windows.

The passinger side works 100% perfectly...

I know it's not the motors, cause when those have failed, you'd see the gauge dip when you press the switch, even if the window didn't move...

I checked power to the switch when the van was running, and nothing.

I unplugged the connector inside the door that feeds the power locks and the window motor/switch, and I have continuity (actually more than I need, with black giving me a signal on some of the other wires) from that point to the contacts on the switch...

My question is - could this just be a fuse? are there separate fuses for each side of the door? or one fuse for the whole circuit?

I want to check at that forementioned connector, to see that I have 12V, but there are 6 wires that come off of it, and I'm guessing that Black is ground and Red is hot, with the yellow and blue, and the other two colors being for the two directions of each of the two switches.

Oh, and also, first thing I did was to replace the switch itself - not that simple unfortunately!

I had some body work done recently, and they did have to take the door off, so where would that harness reconnect through the door, and into the dash? the switch would only work when the van was running before though, as it wouldn't do anything just with KOEoff


Hope it's something silly like a fuse, or something else easy...

Thanks,
 
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Old Oct 24, 2008 | 02:33 PM
  #2  
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96_4wdr
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From: Washington state
AutoZone.com | Vehicle Selection - Year

 
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Old Oct 24, 2008 | 04:09 PM
  #3  
mediaman67's Avatar
mediaman67
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Unhappy More info on it

Hi, and thanks 96 for that :-)

I forgot that I had this, in actually more detail than AZ's diagram - the BIG chiltons book has it, with the pins on the switch too, but in any case...

I learned that I have good ground throughout (checked ground at switch with body (beep)

I also learned that the Driver's side switch needs to be in the same circuit as the passinger side, or else the passinger side switch will not operate - so they must be in series... but then maybe not, because I can't operate the pass window from the drivers side switch, only the one on the pass side works... so, this is why I'm confused...

Light Blue with Black stripe is my Hot - and I have none at the door (pre door lock switch and window switch) -

so, since there is only one 20Amp Fuse for the both windows, I am to assume that, since the other switch works, it's not the fuse...

how would a fusable link look in a wiring diagram? perhaps, ford spliced the Hot from the 20a fuse, and it feeds both sides, with a fusable link for each? -

has anyone ever taken the drivers side door off? does everything on the door come to a main harness with a plug on the end of it, or what? I see the little rubber tube that bends when you close the door, which would carry all the wires into the van, etc - is the disconnect right there, inside the van? (haven't pulled that panel yet)

I'm just trying to find the next place between the last place I have access to that blue wire, and where it would be next point to a quick disconnect, so I can see if I have 12V there?

so, why would the passinger switch only work, if I had the drivers side switch connected? AND - why wouldn't the drivers side switch operate the passinger side window too? - it's a mistery, and I need it solved before it gets much colder...

Thanks

 
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Old Oct 24, 2008 | 09:05 PM
  #4  
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tom_foreman
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From: Georgia
I think the most likely place for the problem will be the wire(s) going through the rubber boot between the door and the chassis. I had 2-3 broken wires in my 94.

If the light blue with black is hot going to the passenger door but not the driver's door this would explain the problem. According to the diagram, the power to operate the passenger switch does not come from the driver's side but directly from the fuse.

The ground however does come from the driver's switch. You must have both hot and ground for it to work. So, if you remove the switch from the driver's side there will be no ground at the passenger side.

The driver's side switch will not operate the passenger window now because there is no 12V to send over to the passenger side.

Here is another way to think of it. The driver's door switch will pass both hot and ground over to the passenger door when the switch is press. It will send either (hot, ground) or (ground,hot) depending if you press up or down.

If you do not press the switch, only the ground is passed to the passenger side. So, no power on the driver's side and neither window will work from the driver's switch.

As the power is also passed directly to the passenger switch, it will still work.

Does this make sense?
 
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Old Oct 24, 2008 | 09:34 PM
  #5  
mediaman67's Avatar
mediaman67
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That makes total sense, and I bet the biggest reason for this, is so that if you have two people pressing the switch at the same time, (say drivers side pass, and pass side pass switch) you are not overloading the circuit. - that must be the reason they did that... so, one switch grounds out basically, if the other is pressed too...

But, my question was, that there must be like a quick disconnect, say, just beyond that rubber tube, inside the van, so that you would be able to remove the whole door, and not have to cut 20 wires there - there are 8 for the power locks and windows, and another bunch for the power mirrors.

I am able to disconnect at the door trim panel, so that it can be totally removed, but just wondered if there was a plug type connection for the whole door?

any ideas there?

Also, lets say I find that there is a break in the wire through the door like that, easy enough to fish a new wire through there? what is this? 16 gauge? - a good carrol 16 gauge wire will work fine then?
 
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Old Oct 24, 2008 | 10:19 PM
  #6  
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tom_foreman
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From: Georgia
It's been several years since I had to fix mine. I don't believe there was a disconnect inside the wall. I didn't find one. I sliced open the bundle and fished out the wire that was broken and spliced a new wire in it.

When I bought the van the mirrors didn't work and the windows worked sometimes. I fixed 2 or 3 wires. I guess opening and closing the door over and over just was too much for the wire bundle.

I just looked at a wire gauge table on the internet. They say 18AWG up to 5 feet, 16 up to 10 feet and 14 up to 15 Feet. If you just splice in a couple of feet, you should be safe with 18 gauge.
 
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Old Oct 25, 2008 | 10:22 AM
  #7  
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cookkd
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From: Houston, TX
That window wiring jumper (harness) is a little weird. About a year and a half ago I moved the doors from a power equipped van to a non-power van. I am working from memory here, so please don't hold it against me if I screw up.
I remember that the power wire (Light Blue/Black) from the fuse ran into a connector that is behind the passenger side kick panel. According to my notes there are two connectors there, one slightly higher than the other. That is C202 and that is where the harness plugs in. The actual splice to provide power to both doors is on the other side of the van, behind the driver's kick panel. There are four connectors in line. Look at your wiring bundle coming out of the driver's door, and follow it to where it is closest to the right most connector. Somewhere in that area (in the bundled wires) you will find the splice. Once you find it you shouldn't have any trouble finding the fault.

btw: Don't know if you noticed, but there are two connectors inside the door, one at the switch, and one right after the wiring enters the door. Did you check both of them for power?
 
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