2003 Sebring Convertible rear quarter window regulator failed.

Chrysler Sebring convertibles have a common problem of rear quarter power window regulators failing. The window will typically stop 1/2 or 3/4’s of the way up at the worst possible moment  – i.e. when the the convertible top and windows are going up due to a torrential downpour! Kidding aside the rear windows on these cars do have a lot of problems. Sebring quarter windows may not fail as often as the New Beetle windows we blogged about previously. But like the Beetle, the Sebring has a particular weak point in the quarter window regulator, they were either designed horribly… or were designed to last until out of warranty, I’m not sure which. As the picture shows above, the pulley has grooves that keeps the cable separated.

When the grooves wear the cable rubs and wears causing frayed pieces to tangle and bunch up. Removing the regulators is the easy part, switching the power window motor over to the new regulator, loading the cable onto the pulley and routing the cable around the spools is very difficult. I would not consider this a DIY (Do It Yourselfer) job – so there it is fair warning.

This 2003 Chrysler Sebring needed two quarter window repairs

With the the top down to allow more room to work, the rear seat pops out easily by lifting up on the front and pulling it on out. Use a trim stick to remove the speaker grills. There are Phillips screws behind the speaker grill and one screw on-top to the trim panel. After those screws are removed a trim stick is used to pry the quarter trim panel away from the inner body. Unplug the speaker once the panel can be pulled away. Make sure the white trim fasteners stay attached to the panel for proper re-installation later.

The nuts are easy to find with the panel out of the way

Unplug the window motor and remove the 3 securing nuts holding the quarter window regulator - DO NOT try to loosen Allen’s, those are the window adjustments. Once the regulator is at this point, pull up on the assembly making sure the mounting studs don’t get caught on the sheet metal cut-outs of the uni-body.

These regulators are beefy - it’s a shame the pulleys aren’t stronger 

With the old and new regulators laid out on a work area, unbolt the window and lay it to the side. Resist the temptation to clean it! The dirt on the the bottom of the window will be a reference for positioning it onto the new regulator, see the picture below.

The mounts position is clearly marked

Another key part of this job is matching the window adjustments on the new regulator with the old one. It’s a common mistake to just switch the motor and window over, then install it without thinking about adjusting the angles. An easy way to use a feeler gauge to check the depth of adjustments on the old regulator and make it the same on the new one for each respective position. Check the gap (or depth) with a feeler gauge like shown in the picture above. Adjust all three positions with an Allen wrench or socket before proceeding. There are two slotted adjustments not pictured that will need to be tightened using the old regulator for positioning reference.

When switching the window motor over, try not to let the cable come off the main pulley – if it does it can be put back on, but it’s a bear. Once the motor is switched and the previous steps are followed, it’s time to put it all back together in reverse order.

Tools used on this repair

• Makita drill and flashlight
• Trim stick
• Allen sockets
• Metric sockets
• Feeler gauge

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