spayordie Posted July 30, 2023 Share Posted July 30, 2023 Hi. Long time lurker, first time poster. I've acquired a 2002 outback 2.5 manual, and it has power window problems that are frustrating the crap out of me. Basically: drivers side window works great, two passenger windows barely work, rear driver's side window does not work. Door locks work geat. The passenger windows used to work a little better on their specific door controls, but now they work barely, on any switch. Something seems to be causing huge resistance somewhere; when I press the driver's side controls for the passenger side windows you can hear the cabin fan become quiet. What I've checked so far: Driver's window switch (replaced with known functioning switch, no change) Passenger window switch, same as above. Small resistor under dash - Same as above Power window relay ( I think...unlabeled relay under dash , removed it and no windows even tried to work; replaced with one from a known working system - windows go back to barely) Passenger side window motor has been replaced - no joy Passenger side tracks lubricated and examined Yes I've checked all the fuses. Everywhere that I can see the wiring harness looks okay so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonathan909 Posted July 30, 2023 Share Posted July 30, 2023 (edited) That's a bit of a head-scratcher, alright. I'm tempted to dig out the drawing and see if anything stands out. My only comment is over your "Something seems to be causing huge resistance somewhere", because the symptoms you describe - particularly the fan slowing down when you try to actuate the window - suggests too high a current draw rather than increased resistance (which would reduce the current). But that doesn't make a lot of sense either, since you've verified the motor and mechanism. [edit] Hmmm... actually... increased resistance somewhere upstream is a possibility too, as that could cause an unusually high voltage drop when the window motor draws serious current. You said you checked the fuses, but did that include the fusible link? They're usually a little less obvious. [end edit] About all I can suggest at the moment is the old tried-and-true "check the grounds". Seriously, a missing ground (or even a broken +12) can cause astonishingly weird symptoms as the current finds an obscure, unanticipated path. And since the wiring harnesses have to pass through the door hinges, that's primo opportunity for a wire to get flexed and broken, or for a little nick in the insulation to allow moisture in to invisibly corrode through the wire inside (that happened to my Grand Cherokee years ago where a +12 passed through the firewall - drove me nuts). p.s. Your punctuation does not go unnoticed; I thought I was the only guy using semicolons these days. But you need to follow a colon with a capital letter... Edited July 31, 2023 by jonathan909 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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