Driver power window stuck down

[sub0carfanatic]

I rolled the front drivers window down yesterday when a friend approached to talk with me and went I went to roll it back up afterwards it at first tried to go back up but now does nothing, it was a -20F here yesterday and the same today, I notice it struggles when it is very cold out like this. I thought maybe it was just frozen, but even after warming it up it still will not work, no sound at all like it's even trying, the others windows are working fine though. I was thinking maybe a blown fuse, but only thing I could find in the engine bay fuse box is 1 50 amp fuse and I figured something that big could not just be for 1 window so I figured it must be for all the windows, including the back side vent windows, and since the others are working I do not think it is that unless I am wrong on there being only 1 fuse for all the windows.
Maybe it is the window switch itself , the driver master switch works the other windows , just not the drivers window, or maybe the motor went out. We tried countless times to get it up, maybe it was too cold and was stuck and overloaded the circuit trying repeatedly, or maybe the motor just quit which is what I think. Is there a separate fuse for the window itself I am missing? Any help much appreciated. If the motor has to be replaced how difficult is this job, I have replaced many of these over the years in different makes and model of vehicles but not the QX56.

[VStar650CL]

There's no separate fuse for the driver's window. You'll need to pull the door panel and access the motor connector to determine if the problem is the switch or the motor. Put a test lamp across the heavy Green and Blue wires at the motor and see if it lights in both directions, if so the motor is shot. Use a bulb-type test lamp and not LED or a voltmeter. You're testing a power circuit so you need a device which draws power. A dim bulb tells you the switch isn't healthy, an LED or meter can't tell you that.

[sub0carfanatic]

There's no separate fuse for the driver's window. You'll need to pull the door panel and access the motor connector to determine if the problem is the switch or the motor. Put a test lamp across the heavy Green and Blue wires at the motor and see if it lights in both directions, if so the motor is shot. Use a bulb-type test lamp and not LED or a voltmeter. You're testing a power circuit so you need a device which draws power. A dim bulb tells you the switch isn't healthy, an LED or meter can't tell you that.

Hello again. I have everything apart, there are 2 heavy green wires, going to the motor connector but no heavy blue one. One is green with red stripe the other is green with white stripe, I assume this testing procedure applies to these two wires?

[VStar650CL]

Sorry, my bad, I was looking at the wrong callout. The '09's don't have EWD's and the older PDF WD's are harder to look at.


Yes, Green/White and Green/Red is correct.

[sub0carfanatic]

Ok VStar, here's what I got. Green wire with white stripe lights test lamp when window down is pressed but nothing on up. Green wire with red stripe lights test lamp when window up is pressed but nothing on down. This was the results from testing each mentioned wire individually. Thanks for your help again!

[VStar650CL]

You're checking across the terminals, or to chassis? If you're checking to chassis then that might be normal, it means power is getting there but it doesn't verify ground. Checking across the terminals verifies both, and both directions should light up. If you get none, it means the ground leg of the relay inside the switch is shot.

[sub0carfanatic]

You're checking across the terminals, or to chassis? If you're checking to chassis then that might be normal, it means power is getting there but it doesn't verify ground. Checking across the terminals verifies both, and both directions should light up. If you get none, it means the ground leg of the relay inside the switch is shot.

So you meant taking the test light and touch it on both of the large green wires at the same time then? I connected clamp end of the test light to a screw on the metal part of the door frame, then checked each pin for the 2 green wires one at a time, I did touch the test light test end across both of the pins of the wires at once, when I did the roll down switch made a clicking sound when pressing it up and same with down, but the test light did not light up, and yes I did connect the clamp of test light to a screw head on door frame area, all this was done while the connector was unplugged from motor, was this correct?

[VStar650CL]

If it lights up to chassis but not to the companion wire, it means the "hot" throw in the master switch is working but the ground throw isn't. The switch needs to supply both, nothing will happen without ground. Check the ground wiring into the switch, but since the other windows work, I suspect you'll find it's okay. That means the ground contacts on the switch's internal DPDT relay are shot.

[sub0carfanatic]

If it lights up to chassis but not to the companion wire, it means the "hot" throw in the master switch is working but the ground throw isn't. The switch needs to supply both, nothing will happen without ground. Check the ground wiring into the switch, but since the other windows work, I suspect you'll find it's okay. That means the ground contacts on the switch's internal DPDT relay are shot.

So then the drivers master window switch more than likely needs replacing then? I pulled the entire motor and regulator assembly out yesterday thinking it was the motor assembly. Geezz. All that extra work for nothing.
How do I check the ground wiring to the window switch like you suggested?

[VStar650CL]

The Black wire on the 3-pin connector is the switch ground. Inspect the connector for signs of blackening or melting, and ohm the pin to the chassis (you should see milliohms). If that's all good then the switch is shot.

[sub0carfanatic]

Ok, thanks again, I will check this out and let you know my findings.

[sub0carfanatic]

The Black wire on the 3-pin connector is the switch ground. Inspect the connector for signs of blackening or melting, and ohm the pin to the chassis (you should see milliohms). If that's all good then the switch is shot.

I ohm tested the ground wire on the window switch, I used the door striker as a ground, it was 11.5 ohms, what does this mean, seems a bit high but I do not know what it is supposed to be. The second wire on that switch read battery voltage.

[VStar650CL]

That's a very high reading, but the strikers generally aren't a very good ground (don't ask me why, but they aren't). So your test may not be valid. The bolts on the door stop are 100% reliable, try again with those. If it still reads 11 ohms then that's probably enough resistance to keep the motor from starting, so there's a problem in the wiring.

[VStar650CL]

Use this bolt head or the connected stopper bracket when you need a ground for the door or interior. Always reliable.

[sub0carfanatic]

That's a very high reading, but the strikers generally aren't a very good ground (don't ask me why, but they aren't). So your test may not be valid. The bolts on the door stop are 100% reliable, try again with those. If it still reads 11 ohms then that's probably enough resistance to keep the motor from starting, so there's a problem in the wiring.

Why would all the other windows work fine from the master switch I wonder if the wiring is bad?

[VStar650CL]

If it's a resistance issue, 11 ohms is probably fine for digital communication between the switches, but it may be enough to prevent the motor from starting, especially if the motor is old and cranky. That won't affect the other windows if their grounds are all good.

[VStar650CL]

That said, you can prove out what's wrong by jumping a ground from the door stop direct to the switch ground. If the motor starts working then it's a bad ground, if it doesn't then it's a bad switch. You can verify that the motor works the same way, I usually use a jump box across the motor terminals to verify whether a problem is the motor or something else.

[sub0carfanatic]

That said, you can prove out what's wrong by jumping a ground from the door stop direct to the switch ground. If the motor starts working then it's a bad ground, if it doesn't then it's a bad switch. You can verify that the motor works the same way, I usually use a jump box across the motor terminals to verify whether a problem is the motor or something else.

I have the motor removed as of yesterday evening, I did take some alligator clips and connect to the 2 pins on the motor plug where the 2 larger green wires would connect and then the other end of my jumper wires were connected to the positive and negative on a small 12V mower battery I use for testing and the motor did not make a noise or do anything, if that was the correct test that is.

[VStar650CL]

Yep, that should be all it needs to make it spin. The driver's motor is usually the first one to fail because it gets the most work, and they typically draw a lot of current before the brushes lose contact. So it's not uncommon for a dying motor to burn the relay contacts in the switch. If it didn't spin with a test battery, try replacing the motor first. Then if it still doesn't work or the operation is spotty, replace the switch too.

[sub0carfanatic]

Yep, that should be all it needs to make it spin. The driver's motor is usually the first one to fail because it gets the most work, and they typically draw a lot of current before the brushes lose contact. So it's not uncommon for a dying motor to burn the relay contacts in the switch. If it didn't spin with a test battery, try replacing the motor first. Then if it still doesn't work or the operation is spotty, replace the switch too.

Thanks again for all your help, you are a valuable asset on this community and so very helpful. I appreciate it. The new motor fixed the problem.

[VStar650CL]