Recent purchase of a 71 Avanti, that sat outside for 5 years. The drivers side window had been down about an inch, allowing a lot of moisture into the car. The windows would not work...

I have 1 hole about the size of a silver dollar where I can see a little of the gear box. I have no direct access to the motor. But with a mirror I can see the whole setup. Anyhow, the only way I can get to the top nut is through the 11/16" holes I drilled thru the door After I removed the 2 bolts I thought were holding up the gear box, I found a 3rd bolt.	(Click for larger image)
At that point I just decided to get out my little sabre saw and cut a large hole. Being very careful not to hack the wiring, I cut a hole and that made the whole job a piece of cake. The motor is a Ford C1AB-14553A.	(Click for larger image)
Once greased up, the regulator worked fine	(Click for larger image)

After removing the motor & gearbox, it was very easy to move the window up and down, so my fear of rusted pivot points was not the problem. ........ In my shop I set up a nice work area and started by separating the motor from the gear box. 2 screws and separation. I decided to start with the gear box so I removed the exterior cog gear, then removed the fibre disc to gain access to the inside. Surprise, inside was just 1 large brass gear crusted with grease. No plastic gear or those separators. Then I removed the drive shaft, cleaned off all the grease and set it all aside to dry. ......... I tried turning the motor and the shaft was almost frozen. So, I completely disassembled the motor and discovered that the spring used to put pressure on one of the brushes was broken. Cleaned up both bearings and dressed the shafts. From an assortment of springs, I made a spring to replace the broken one. Got all the bearings greased and reassembled the motor. .......... Took it out to the car, hooked it up and it ran like a charm. Back to the shop, greased and assembled the gear box, mated it to the motor and then back to the car for one final check before installation. Putting the assembly back in the car was a snap with that nice hole. Cleaned all the wire ends and discovered a bad ground connection. Corrected that, tried the window and what a great sight seeing it going up and down. 1 down and 1 to go. S/ Rudy Korb - June 2008