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Hi, I'm Mike from 1A Auto. I hope this how-to video helps you out, and next time you need parts for your vehicle, think of 1AAuto.com. Thanks.
In this video, we're going to show you a front window regulator/power window regulator replacement on this 2003 Nissan Maxima. It's pretty much the same for any 2000-2003 Maxima, as well as the Infiniti i30. The tools you'll need include a small flat blade screwdriver, a Phillips screwdriver, a door panel clip tool or a putty knife, and then a 10mm socket and ratchet with extension. We're going to show you the driver's side front, but the passenger's side front is basically the same procedure.
First, use a small flat blade screwdriver and pop off this cover here. Down here, you'll see a little grommet here. You can use a screwdriver to twist and pry up. You'll see a Phillips screw there. Then right here, you want to put the screwdriver in and pry out. Once you pry it out some, you'll see the handle back in here. Just kind of put the screwdriver in there and then release that.
Phillips screwdriver: remove the Phillips screw behind here. Then just fast-forward here a little bit as I remove that Phillips screw, and then the one that's down in that door pull cup. Now, this whole switch plate comes up. Kind of work it back and out. Then grab your small flat blade screwdriver again, and on each one of these connectors there's a little tab in the middle. Just push on the little tab and release it. Same thing here; push on the tab and release.
Now, you use either a door panel clip tool or a putty knife. I usually go right in the bottom, put it between the door and the panel, and then right in the bottom I put it between the door and the panel, and then slide it to find one of the clips, and then pull. Once you release one of them, usually the rest of them come out. My screw actually just came out right out of there. Then right around, I've got a release, and then the door panel comes up.
Now you find, again, a small screwdriver, and there are a few harnesses. There's one up here. Press in on the tab and release it. There are two down here. This one you just press up and release. Then your courtesy light, just press the tab and release it. It'll come off. A 10mm socket with a ratchet, or a wrench would work as well, to remove two bolts that hold this bracket on. Fast-forward here as I just remove that other bolt and the bracket, and then carefully pull the water shield down so you can access the inside of the door.
On these vehicles it's a cable style regulator. I'll be able to show you better what that means when I take it out, but generally, when you hear when the regulator goes bad, you'll hear kind of a pop and then a grinding noise. Then you can try and activate it with your switch, but you'll just hear the whirring of the motor and really nothing will happen with the window. Generally, when that happens, once you get the door panel off you can take the window and move it up and down by hand. You may want to have a helper hold the window for you.
Through these two holes here, there are two bolts that hold the regulator to the window, so you would remove those. The window motor connects right here. You actually would press on the little tab here and disconnect it. Using my screwdriver, I press on the tab and disconnect that. Then this actually will push down and come off there. I can remove the two bolts from the window here. I'll speed up here as I remove those two bolts and just reach in behind and try and pull them out. Make sure you don't drop them down in the door.
Once I've removed those two bolts I can flip the window up, tilt it forward, and just take it right out of the door here. Now, I'll remove these two bolts, this bolt, loosen this one, and remove these three from the motor. Okay, so I'll fast-forward as I remove the seven or I remove six bolts and loosen one bolt. Those bolts hold the regulator rail and the window motor in place. Okay, with the bolts removed I can slide this forward and back and out. Reach in here, and pull the window back up and out. Then take the regulator out right through here, like so. You can see here there's a cable for this regulator, and a lot of times what happens is this cable will break, or one of these bushings or something will go bad, which then basically causes the cable to break. My original's in good shape, so I'm just going to reinstall it to show you.
New ones from 1A Auto are going to be exactly the same. They're going to go in. They're going to have the correct connector and everything. The one thing you might want to do is transfer over this bolt. Take it out of this one, put it into your new one so you'll be ready to hang it right up. Put the regulator in, put the motor in, and reach through. Now position the motor. Okay, so now you can see I've put the bolt through up there, and then the motor just has little tabs that it hangs right up on. Now that it's all hung up I can start all the bolts in by hand and then tighten them up. Then you can actually take your harness and clip it back into this clip right here and reconnect the harness.
Now take your window and put the front end first. Then kind of look in and make sure you have the angle on the window correct. I'm going to pull that up here. Make sure the back goes into the channel. Then look here at the front. Make sure the front goes in. Grab it on each side, make sure it goes up and down nice and easily, and then slide it right down in place. Then take the bolt and put it right into your socket. You can look right through the hole and see if everything's lined up. Adjust it a little bit if you need to. Then start the bolt in. Of course, fast-forward here as I just put those two bolts back in that hold the window to the regulator. Just make sure you line them up correctly and tighten them up nice and firm.
Then you reconnect your switch panel, turn your ignition on, and move the window up and down to make sure everything's working. Just disconnect the switch panel before you go further. I'll speed up here, again, as I carefully put the water shield back up in place. Make sure you pull the harnesses through, and then put the bracket back in place with the two bolts. Make sure you tighten that up nice and firm. You'll see here, I just realized that I had to pull another harness through. Make sure that's all set.
Then to reinstall the panel, just bring the panel close to the door, reconnect the three harnesses, and one for the memory switch. This car has memory seats, so one's the memory switch; one's just the door module; and then the other one is the courtesy light. Now bring the door panel up and hang it off the windowsill. It goes in towards the window and then down on top of the windowsill. There's a little piece of insulation that's usually glued to the door panel. It had come off mine, so I carefully put it back in there.
Before you go too far, just make sure that you pull the harnesses up and through for the window and mirror switches. Around the edge of the panel you can use your fist and just activate the clips around the edge. Now, I'm going to speed it up here as I just finish up. Two Phillips screws: one up at the front install that. Then plug in your window switch and put it down in. Put the front up in first, force it forward, clip the back in, and put the Phillips screw in and tighten it up. Then the bezel around the door handle, and finish up by putting the little trim panel over the screw in the front.
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