As many of you are aware, LRS has turned it's attention to the Mustang Convertible Crowd that so often gets overlooked. We purchased a 1988 Mustang GT Convertible that we have nick-named project "Intro-vert".  This Mustang was a good representation of what the average neglected fox body Mustang convertible looked like with a worn out top and interior but still very fixable.It was a perfect project for us to do the "How To" articles so that you the consumer can fix your own car and continue to keep your hard earned money where it belongs.

In this blog, we are working on a problem child of 99.9% of fox bod Mustang convertibles out there on the road. These Mustang Convertible Quarter windows are notorious for not working properly.  How many fox verts' have you seen running down the road with the side windows & the top down, but one or both of the quarter windows are still stuck in the up position?  It may not just be the motor. We'll take care of that problem so you can ride with the top down and not have the quarter "flags" flying!

 The interior trim panels were already taken out due to us installing a replacement top frame that intro-vert desperately needed.  We used this Convertible Mustang Guide Book that has all the convertible information to help with all the ins & outs of the Fox Convertibles.

The first common problem is by far the easiest to fix. If the window doesn't move when you hit the switch, then obviously you have a window motor issue. Here's how you can help diagnose your problem.  If when the switch is activated, and you don't hear the motor running, then you either have a faulty motor or switch that isn't activating the motor. First step is to try both front and rear switches to see if you can get some kind of reaction. If not grab a trusty volt meter or test light to verify that you have power to the motor plug. Test both switches to verify both are functioning properly since you are already there.  If the switches are working, and you are getting power to the motor, you need a new motor. This is easy to fix! Once you have ordered your Driver's Quarter Window Motor, or Passenger's Quarter Window Motor, Simply unplug the motor plug and unbolt the three 11mm bolts that hold the window motor to the inner structure.

Once the bolts are out, pull straight out and the motor gear will dis-engage from the regulator.

Once the motor assembly is in your hands, there are three 8mm screws that attach the mounting bracket to the window motor itself.  Take these loose to remove the bracket from the old motor housing. * * * NOTE: you must re-use the original hardware for the motor and bracket!* * *

With the new motor housing in front of you, locate the three screw holes that you will mount the bracket.  If you will notice, the new motor does not have threads cut for these screws.  This is normal and all new motors come like this.  It is designed this way so the original screws can cut their own threads into the housing. Once the bracket is re-installed, apply a small amount of grease to the gear and re-install motor. It's that simple!

Now comes scenario # 2 !!!!!

If you do hear the motor running when you hit the switch then that means the motor functions and also means that you don't have to replace it. The Fox Mustang Power Window Motors are notorious for the nylon gears and gear bushings wearing out or getting broken. Since the convertible quarter window motor has a metal gear and does not strip out, that leaves only the bushings to go out.  These are just a little more involved to replace than the motor but quite a bit cheaper.  You need a LRS-WLK52 Window Motor Gear Bushings to get the job done. With the window motor removed, there is a phillips head screw that attaches the dust cover to the motor housing.

Once the screw is removed simply pry up on the cover and slide it over the gear. With the cover off, you can now pull up on the gear assembly and it will slide off the center shaft.

With the gear out of the way, you need to remove the remaining pieces of the original bushings.

Once those are cleaned out you can install the new bushings. It can be difficult to get them lined up properly by just dropping them in like the picture shows.  I found that it is easier to apply some grease to them, install them on the gear assembly with the grease holding the bushings in place and re-install the gear assembly on the center shaft. Make sure the bushings tapered edge is pointing down "away from the gear end".

Once the gear assembly is seated all the way, re-install the dust cover and make sure the opening flange is on the bottom so it holds proper tension on the gear. Reinstall the mounting bracket, followed by the motor assembly and your done.

Now, here is another common problem on the fox convertible quarter windows.  The window moves in excess while in the upright position.  To put it simply, it's a "floppy window"  From the factory, Ford made the quarter window guide rod mounts and window guide bushings out of plastic which made them very susceptible to breaking. 99% of the Fox convertibles out there have these mounts broken and there has not been a fix for this, until now!  LRS recognized this problem and came up with a solution. We made these replacement mounts "part # LRS-29530A" out of durable billet aluminum instead of the plastic that can become brittle over time and with heat.  You won't have to worry about them breaking now and as with most work on your Mustang, you only want to do this job once!

  We tore apart the entire window mechanism so we could research all aspects of the windows, get a better understanding of the function, and see if there were any other items that needed to be addressed as well.  We stumbled across another useful bit of information while doing this. The window guide bushings for the convertible quarter glass are the same ones that are used for the 79-93 coupe/hatch back front doors. The quarter window uses two of the LRS-22362A window guide bushings to keep the assembly in place as it moves along the guide rod. While we had it out, we replaced them with new bushings.  It was much easier with the assembly removed from the car but it can also be accomplished while it is still installed....it won't be fun though!!!

Here is how to replace the window guide mounting plates. 

NOTE: Make sure the window is in the upright position before you start!

First step is to remove the anchor brackets for the for the front seat belts.  They are held in place with 2 seat belt bolts.  You will need a T-50 Torx bit to take them loose. These are difficult to get to and will require some patience to remove but it is necessary to have full access to the window guide rod. This picture is taken on the floor level right beside the door opening. 

Once you have removed the brackets, you then take the cotter pin out of the original clevis pin which retains the guide rod to the mounting bracket. With the cotter pin removed, you can slide out the clevis pin of the bracket to free the guide rod. Work the guide rod up and out of the bracket and once the guide rod is out of the bracket, remove the two 11mm mounting nuts from the bracket assembly. With the bracket mounting assembly removed, now you can start replacing the bracket.  The OEM plastic bracket is mounted to the metal base using rivets.  Using a drill or die grinder, remove the rivets so the bracket comes loose from the base plate. Now you can install the new mounting bracket to the base plate with the supplied screws. * * * NOTE: Due to differences in manufacturing tolerances, you may have to enlarge the original holes in the base plate for them to line up with the new bracket.* * *  Once the holes were lined up we screwed down the new bracket to the original base plate. Here is a picture with the new billet bracket attached to the base plate.

Once the new bracket assembly is constructed, re-install into the car but do not put the retaining nuts back on at this time.  This will allow you to have extra movement when re-inserting the guide rod.

It helps to have an extra set of hands when putting things back together so they can hold the window assembly up while you work the guide rod into place. Once the guide rod is in place, insert the new clevis pin through the bracket and guide rod so it is secured like factory. This can also be tedious work so patience is needed here too. Once the clevis pin is installed, insert the new cotter pin through the hole so the clevis pin won't work its way out.

Once all the new assembly is secure, make sure the mount assembly is positioned correctly over the retaining studs, and tighten down the retaining nuts.

 Now that the bracket is re-installed, all that is left is to re-install the window motors and make sure there your window adjustments are still correct.  If you had a broken guide rod bracket "or a combination of everything in this blog like we did"  there is a chance the window could be set to the "broken" adjustments instead of the "fixed" adjustments.  You just have to look at them and make changes where need be. New Mustang Convertible weatherstrip could help too, but that is another blog.

Congratulations!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You just repaired the three major malfunctions of the Fox Body Convertible quarter windows. With a little time and patience you can really save yourself some cash by tackling projects like this yourself. If you run into any problems or have any additional questions please feel free to give us a call and we will do our best to get you the parts or information you need to get the job done right.