Opinions on Aftermarket Window Regulators for Gen4?

[Rattlin_Steele]

Anyone have any opinions good or bad? Searched on the subject, didn't find much at all. Aftermarket on ebay is about $40 shipped. Best OEM price I can find online is about $70 shipped.

My drivers door has a simple little plastic bushing that has broken apart but I can't seem to find only that bushing.

[BamZipPow]

Do you have a piccie of the bushing? Do you know the dimensions of it?

[uibalnme]

Check out your local salvage yard. You could probably get the whole regulator for $20, maybe less.

[Rattlin_Steele]

Originally Posted by BamZipPow

Do you have a piccie of the bushing? Do you know the dimensions of it?

I haven't taken the regulator out yet, so it's hard to get a pic at this point. I can barely see the broken part. I did find two other small pieces from it at the bottom of the door. I'll try to get a pic, but its been threatening to rain last night and today. It's basically mounted on the channel to which the glass mounts. Two "scissors-like" arms connect to that channel, the rear arm has a roller wheel on it which moves back and forth in the channel. The front arm has peg/pin/dowel with a rounded head which is supposed to be pressed into the bushing that's broke. It appears that the bushing is mounted in a fixed position in the channel and the front scissor arm simply pivots on the bushing. It appears to be sort of figure 8 shape with one of the lobes of the 8 having a fastener which holds the bushing to the channel and the other lobe having the hole to receive the pin.

Thanks for any suggestions you may have.

[Rattlin_Steele]

Originally Posted by uibalnme

Check out your local salvage yard. You could probably get the whole regulator for $20, maybe less.

I may look into that. Problem I've had before is that around here they don't want to part with stuff like that unless the door can't be sold whole, which can be hard to find. Plus, the bushings in it may not hold up much longer since its the driver's door.

[Rattlin_Steele]

Just a followup in case anyone searches this subject later...

I decided to take a chance on an aftermarket regulator, $42 shipped off eBay including new motor.

After I installed it, I was disappointed to find that it still had a little tracking problem. The window would get about 3-4 inches from being closed and then the rear vertical edge (which is the straight edge, front driver's door) would slip out of the track toward the outside of the car. I found I could wiggle the glass from side to side a little and if I pressed it toward the rear of the car as it approached the slip point that I could get it to stay in place. But it would slip out next time I rolled it down then back up with no help.

I can't say it is the fault of the aftermarket regulator because it jogged my memory that the window had pretty much the identical issue when the problem first started back in the past, and that regulator was the Toyota factory one. The window tracking got worse and worse until ultimately a plastic bushing broke and the window was flopping around so something had to be done.

I'm not sure if the problem is something with the door or the rubber/foam "glass run" around the frame or what. I was able to remedy the problem and get it to where it would role up properly and stay in track, but it took some drastic measures. Basically I ended up wallowing out one of the mount holes with a dremel tool and mounting the whole regulator assembly with a slight tilt to it. Now the window seems to track up properly.

If anyone has run across this before and knows the "right" way to fix it, I'd appreciate any suggestions.

[Just Out of Reach]

'98 GEN4
I have a similar question.

Today the driver window clunked and tilted. When I took the door panel off, there were two bolts laying in the bottom of the moisture liner and the regulator was tilting. I couldn't tell where one of the bolts fell from and decided to remove the glass as a next step. I bumped the motor a bit to reposition the regulator and the fixed bushing on the bottom track went CRACK and a piece flew out so now it looks like I have to replace the regulator (instead of just remounting). I'm assuming you can't just buy the bottom glass-mount track. I don't need a motor.

My question:
Will the OEM motor fit with an aftermarket regulator?


edit::BTW, I have an extra fuel filter for this model.
edit2: I don't know how to access prices from ToyotaPartsMan

[RichieRichJP]

This is why I always tell people not to shop on Ebay.
There are members who act like Toyota parts distributors (that actually work for Toyota) like the ToyotaPartsMan on this board and Aaron from Toyota Lithia that give their employee discounts for member purchases.

[MASTER YOTA]

oops