Convertible window drop?

[RSJ]

I've just bought the car and the last owner did point this out although wasn't sure either.

being a convertible are the windows supposed to drop a tiny bit when you open the door like newer cars do?

I'm guessing so because they seem to tuck under the roof.
The windows work from the switches. door wiring is good.

Is it just the door locks themselves that control this?
Or is there a module for it on these?

I have tried looking for this on here and even google but couldn't find anyone having the same problem.

At the minute I'm having to keep the drivers door window slightly down because you can't open the door with it fully up..

I'm also guessing that the rear windows drop slightly too as in the fully up position they hit the front when closing the door.

Many Thanks...

[andysheep]

I think your windows just need adjusting ,i could be wrong but the e30 cabbie windows dont do that drop thing,and if they do id love to know cos mine both sides catch the roof,check the wiki guide because it tells you sort out your rear window problem,and you may find it helps a little with the front window and properly set up windows stop leaking too hope this helps
Andy

[sajad09]

Yeap the windows do not drop when door is opened as they do on an e36 or e46...

Sounds like your windows just need to be adjusted slightly to stop them catching the roof seals.

[BenHar]

This covers adjusting the front and rear windows:
http://www.e30zone.net/e30zonewiki/inde ... ont_window

Ben

[RSJ]

Ah! well that explains a lot. I'll have to strip it down this weekend. Guessing who ever repainted it must not have put them back correctly then.

Many Thanks

[paultv]

I've adjusted the windows which appear to sit correctly in the seals and align correctly to the front quarter light - but, my problem is more likely related to the roof itself, not the seals but the canvas bead which has a nylon (I think) wire inside it to tension and support the lip. On my cabby, this is probably worn and a bit saggy so it's not possible to get the rear edge of the window to clear the roof on closing and get a good wind/waterproof seal at the same time. The canvas has been worn and damaged in the past, and despite being careful (shutting the door by pushing the upper part of the glass, causing it to flex under the canvas lip) the glass still traps outside the roof sometimes. DULL.

Anyway, I got so bored with this that I designed a bit of electronics to drop the windows and raise them again - I'll post some car tests as they happen...

Paul

[andysheep]

Clever man,use the light switch as a trigger for the final raise?sounds like a keep it simple stupid kinds of affairs,anyway sounds good because bmw realy didnt great the soft top thing quite right(from a longevity standpoint).look forward to your results
Andy

[paultv]

Well, my 1989 Cabby is slowly getting better to drive after 3 years of fiddling, diagnosing and fixing. It was in awful shape when I bought it.

The roof cloth has become damaged over the years by badly adjusted windows catching the cloth and scraping past it or staying bent on the outside of the roof lip, letting water in if you don't notice it when the doors are closed.

I decided to try and design a bit of electronics that would not require invasion of the car body, such as retrofitting micro switches, drilling holes, and so on. I also wanted the window controls to work as usual, and the automatic drop and lift should be disabled when the roof is down too. Power consumption should be as small as possible, and the whole thing should be fitted without physical mods to the cars interior. Attaching all the sensing cables can be done using snap connectors, making it simple to remove the electronics and returning the wiring to its near original condition.

The ONLY caveat so far is that by the nature of the electric window control system, 8 cables in the centre console have to be cut and spliced, allowing the new controller to be fitted, this again can be achieved using snap connectors, which means reverting to original wiring is relatively easy.

One thing became apparent, the damage is done to the roof as the door closes, the glass pushes easily past the roof lip when opening, there is no real stress involved, so my design is now based on a timer system which drops the glass both sides, by about 2 centimetres (can be set ) when you open the door, and raises the glass after a set time ( user adjustable ) If the door (driver or passenger) is left open the window will raise briefly and then drop again. Once the doors are closed, the windows will rise and then stay shut.

OK, so that's the theory, here's a video I did in the summer whilst testing a rats nest lash up... messy!!



Paul

[paultv]

....after 3 months of design work and further testing, I've got my prototype circuit boards in.



Consists of a relay unit that lives with the switches in the centre console and the control electronics that lives in the tunnel next to the handbrake.

Now in the process of building the first boards up to test in the car

Paul

[Brianmoooore]

The ONLY caveat so far is that by the nature of the electric window control system, 8 cables in the centre console have to be cut and spliced,

If you study the OE switch wiring, you will see that in the rest position each side of each motor is earthed. By dividing the brown earths from the 'up' side and the 'down' side of each switch into two groups, all the windows can be powered up or down at the same time by applying 12 volts to the appropriate group. This can be done with two SP c/o relays, with the NC contacts connected to earth and the NO contacts connected to 12 volts+. The relays will need to be break before make types, of course.

[paultv]

yup, quite right indeed, I'm using paired physically small relays to handle the stall current of two window motors - the automotive relays were just too big, at least it is all pretty small now....

Paul

[Acox99]

What ever happened with this, did it make productioni would be very interested, it would be nice to make it more integrated so they only drop 10mm or so. Can it not be done with the relays but also with a micro switch in the door latch so that when the handle is operated It triggers Down and then when the Door is shut it closes the switch and returns? Thus not needing to be on a loop. In my head the therort works but my wiring skills aren’t exactly hot.

[paultv]

I built this, and yes there are numerous ways to make it more "integrated" except you need to modify the car quite a lot - either with dedicated switches or adding E36 door catches which I think need you to cut a larger hole in the door jamb and so on.

I opted for something that whilst not "perfect" requires only the odd cable adding and some wiring mods under the window switches in the centre console.

I've been running this on my car for years - it has a nice personality - dissabled by lifting the rear ashtray - or lowering the roof - I built it because my roof cover sags and I'm unable to adjust the windows to compensate -

The problem is that a lot of people have aircon controls in the centre console which is where I stowed the electronics - so it only fits in some versions of the car, making the demand for this about 3 people who've voiced an interest - just not worth the hassle.

There's also a guy who wants the drawings for my design... nah. I think not... I had fun with this and until I get a new roof I'll keep using it or I might re design a new mosfet/non relay much smaller unit if lockdown comes around again!


You can easily pull the design from my blog if you have a spare few weeks

(The Window Drop Module is below the ABS article - just scroll down)

Paul