Driver's window switch died today

The switch in my 05 gets sticky.. not stuck, but it is much harder to push down than the other switches.. half the time it goes into "auto down" when I just want to press it part-way an open the window a couple of inches

 

Standard crappy Nissan switch. Had the same thing happen on an Altima I had before.

Same here. Switch is stickly and clickly, the dealer wanted ~$270 to fix it. I decided to just live with it.

So, my switch died today (or at least I noticed it today). Mine was clunky as described and would get stuck in both the up and down position. I would usually catch it and correct it, but I had my windows down on Saturday and not since then. So, I went to roll the window down and nothing.

 

So, if it's dead, is it definitely the switch? There's no fuse associated with the driver's switch or a chance the motor's dead? The dealer quoted me $167 for just the part. Seems easy enough to fix myself as long as that's the only thing that went.

ditto. my switch gets "stuck" in the window up position and i don't notice it until i press it down to put the window down. it doesn't go at first, but after a few tries, it rolls down, no problem. just sucks that i don't realize that it sticks in the window up position.

Welcome to the quality of Nissan switches. Perfectly normal. Had in my Nissans.

So today I took apart the door panel and more or less fixed the switch. There are some instructions in the walkthough section on how to remove the rear door panel. This is the thread you want to read. I removed the door panel, then the switch. Then, I dismantled the switch and popped off the problematic one. Using a toothpick, I dabbed some grease on the white rolling pin inside, and the springy white pin that falls out with the button. Put it back together, and it seems to be working much better now.

 

Hope this helps someone!

I fixed my crunchy window switch with some electrical spray lubricant from Home Depot. I just used the red straw on the spray nozzle and a couple quick squirts down the front and back of the switch did the trick.

 

I hope this helps someone save a couple bucks...

^^^ Did you remove the switch or sprayed it while it was still in place?

Sprayed while the switch was still in place. I used a couple quick squirts then moved the switch back and forth a few times. Then squirted a few more times. The switch feels like new now...

I fixed my crunchy window switch with some electrical spray lubricant from Home Depot. I just used the red straw on the spray nozzle and a couple quick squirts down the front and back of the switch did the trick.

 

I hope this helps someone save a couple bucks...

 

I tried the fix using WD-40. It took a few hours for the lube to get where it needed but, it worked well. Thanks,

+1 on the clunky switch

 

i thought it was just me from a time when i left the window open in the rain and it got wet but alas its 'normal'

 

I will try the lube trick and report back

+1 ... I have a 06 with the sticky switch problem. The drivers window was always hard to press, but I never thought much about it untill the switch became stuck! I took the switch apart and realized that the spring loaded white pin had broken!! The other three switches have two of these pins, but the drivers window switch only has one. I think this causes a lot of the "sticking" effect. I am going to try my hardest to find a replacement switch with an intact pin and spring (good luck right). I find it hard to justify a $70-$150 replacement switch pannel for a $0.0005 horribly designed plastic pin. Untill I find something, I have removed the spring and what was left of the F***ing pin and the window works fine. However, there is no self-centering action in the switch.

 

Be careful with your hard to press switches, they WILL eventually break!

Does the door panel need to be removed to get the switch out?

Ok, I think I have a permanent fix for the “clunky” window switch.

 

TOOLS:

· Phillips screw driver to remove door panel (search other posts or youtube on how to do this)

· Small standard (flathead) screw driver

· Sharp scissors

· Thin plastic (old credit card/gift card - the thinner the better)

· White grease (or other similar lubricant)

 

DIFFICULTY: Medium 3/5

 

TOTAL TIME: 1-2 hours

 

Once the door panel is completely disassembled, I recommend laying the panel on a towel on a flat surface (garage) to remove the switch panel (remember to get all 5 screws). After removing the switch cluster from the door panel, you can unwrap the sticky felt tape around the side. Use a flat screw driver to lift out the four tabs and remove the trim piece. Then be very careful and remove the driver’s rocker switch from the cluster. After having looked at other posts, I examined the plastic pin and thought that it looked normal. I discovered the “clunky” feeling comes from grooves on the inside of the “v” shaped channel the pin “rides” in. I took an old Home Depot gift card (very thin plastic) and cut a strip using sharp scissors to fit inside the rear of the channel. This way the plastic pin “rocks” against the smooth plastic insert instead of the grooved “v” channel. I made sure to add plenty of white grease and then reassembled the switch. Everything went back together and worked like new. There was no cutting, trimming or sanding of the original Subaru parts. Again everything worked fine for me and the switch now operates very smooth, just like new! Check out the photos for some clarification. Good luck!

I had to buy two switches (one working, one not) to figure this out. My total investment worked out to be $50 a switch. I fixed both of them, so PM me if you are interested. Thanks!

Interesting!

I'm adding this to my growing "list of things to do", lol. Thanks for putting together the DIY!

Jurassic thread revival. Thanks to AWD_Warrior for the post! Amazing that he hit one out of the park with just 3 posts to his name!

 

Only comment to add here is to make sure that the fork at the end of the button engages with the actual electronic switch below upon reassembly. Seems like a 'duh' but after pulling apart and putting back together a few times you become more focused on the switch action than on the alignment. If it gets off, just use a micro screwdriver to pull the switch back to center and the fork should again lock onto it. And lastly, verify correct operation before sealing the door panel back up.

 

Two more tidbits: Fortunately I had felt tape as you destroy the OEM pulling it apart. I wrapped the it twice. Without I'm sure it would chatter with it being plastic on plastic. The other tidbit is to add felt tape along the door panel where the fake leather wraps around. Everywhere else along the edge has a foam strip. This will eliminate a potential noise source.

Thanks Oregon OBXT, I appreciate the support. I had a problem, found a solution and thought it important to give back to the community. I'm not an engineer of any kind, and can't blame that for my success. I believe that this was just a design flaw and I possibly got lucky finding a cheap and easy solution. Long term update: Still working well, not as good as new, but still much better than before I fixed it Good luck out there!

Oh, just found this. good to know. I picked up another switch panel from the junkyard.. 2 months after I put it in it started sticking too. i'll try this when it warms up a bit.

 

Just found this thread after doing some searching...wish I had found the post from AWD_Warrior sooner...

...now...how do I modify the entire assembly to have auto-down on all windows and auto-up on all windows?