Drivers door window switch doesn't always work, but if I toggle it on/off a couple times, it works.

Should I try to remove & clean the switch before replacing? Contact spray maybe?
How exactly does one get it out, just pry on door armrest?

 

It is a common problem from what I have read the switch has gone bad and needs to be replaced. Lots of people around here have had the same problem.

 

can the switch be opened without destroying it? Maybe easy to clean contacts if accessible?

 

That I don't know.

 

I just replaced mine for the same reason. You can take it apart and clean it but from what I have heard its not to long before you end up replacing it. The switch cost 55 buck and you can change in 5 minutes. If you have the cash I would just replace it.

 

simple to get to - gently pry straight up on the cover and it will pop up.
The switch bank itself is a little tougher to get apart, mostly you can see the clips and just release them. The rockers on top are tough but steady upward pressure and they will give up and pop off.
I took mine apart and found there are three little plastic posts in the switch. One on each side which press the contacts to activate the window. It pivots on the center post.
The up post was just slightly deformed like it had melted. I switched out the middle one with the deformed one and it work for several months.

It did however start acting up again, so I just replaced it, but it got me by until I could afford a new one.

 

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/7...ow-switch.html

 

my dealer says there is no stock of these in North America---backordered. Seems strange.
So I disassembled it, put compressed air to all the contacts, and the bad one I scraped lightly with a dental pick, and applied some electrical anti-oxidant grease sparingly.
Works fine, but for how long???????????????

 

I am not sure if all of the contacts are the same, but how about switching a less used window contact into place of the frequently used one? My switch lasted for 5 years before acting up.

 

didn't have the nerve to actually remove the contacts...just looked at what was moving when operating the driver window, and scraped, blow dried and anti-oxidized them. Not sure if they are interchangeable but just air-blew the ones that were working.

 

Wouldn't you think that Ford would figure out that they need a new design.

 

This IS a new design---designed to break right after your warranty ends and fabricated in such a way that there is probably no aftermarket...does anyone know where these can be bought outside of a dealership??

 

Too bad I didn't take any pics to fix mine. My window worked intermittently to the point it stopped rolling up at all.

Take out the switch module and disassemble it. The whole thing is snapped together, so it comes apart almost as easily. There's like 3 different plastic covers that snap on top of each other. Why they made this so complicated, I don't know, but it seems like it was a kludge.

First thing (very important!!!) is to be careful not to lose the little metal piece which is the window disable switch contact. It will drop out when the last cover is removed.

My driver side window switch contact was pitted/burned due to arcing that happens every time the switch is used. It's just a pair of contacts on a single piece of metal like a lever that flips each way for up and down. File the contacts smooth with a fine file and reassemble. You're good to go.

Spraying contact cleaner from the outside won't do anything since there's a seal/gasket protecting the switch, and it won't do anything about the burned out section of the contact.

What you can also do is swap the driver side switch contacts with any of the other window switch contacts; they're all the same. However, if you've gone through the trouble of taking the whole thing apart, it's just a few more seconds of filing the contacts down a bit.

 

Just did mine yesterday!

works like new now!

This helped me a ton.

http://www.f150online.com/forums/art...ow-switch.html

 

Yes, watch out for that little piece, i dropped mine in the rocks where I park my truck and looked for 15 mins before i found it