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simplified door wiring in 98

denverd1

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Dallas, TX
Door wiring is prone to cracking with age. a few months ago, was out ripping some trails. I put the pass window down with the switch on driver side and all was well. A day later, put the jeep on the trailer to head home and couldn't get the passenger window to roll up.

Couple things came to mind. The rig is over 20 years old and the motor was likely tired. the passenger window's attitude has been in steady decline since I've owned the jeep, 8 years IIRC. I thought it had finally bit the dust. I also recalled pulling the window up with a friend holding the switch in 'up' position last time out.

So I tore into the door panel. Jumped +12V to the plug and lo! The window rolled up with ferocity and vigor absent in today's generation of young men, no this window acted like a real man in his fledgling years, aggressive and determined.

With the 'business end' of the door working in excellent condition, what can be done to simplify the series of plugs and wires in the passenger door? In my amateur judgement, I just need power coming from a 2 position momentary switch. Really only care about driver door controls, if the passenger can't agree with my window adjustments next to their seat, they can GTFO. The other 3 windows work fine from driver and their respective door control.


Anybody ripped the wiring guts out of the doors and made life simpler for window operations?
 
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Re-wiring is easy, just make you use good wire. Good connectors are readily available, I've been using Deutch late for almost everything.
https://deutschconnectorstore.com/
 
those connectors are tits. thx for posting. +10 internet pts.

I more interested in the ramification of ripping all that shit out. Looks like NASA designed that mess of wires.

Anybody done it or have a link to such a thing? wiring diagrams aren't really my thing. probably run my own +12V. prolly have to use relays to keep the switch alive.

bueler?

surely there has to be a way to tap into pin 132 of the small socket and connect it to pin 238-3 of the big one to get the switch to work like normal.

pretty sure I have to bypass the lockout on driver side... OTT can't find much
 
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My 2001, 1997 and brother's 2000 XJs all had broken wires the doors.
Years ago I bought a roll of electronic test instrument lead wire, the type used for voltmeter leads.
It is very flexible, multi-strand wire designed to bent and twisted without damage, it's good wire for door rewiring. If you have an old, inoperative voltmeter, use the wire from its test leads.
The breaks occurs in the flexible rubber tube going from the body to the door, where the wire bends each time the door is opened and closed.
Pull the wiring apart and one by one, splice and solder in new wire in the section where the breaks occur.
 
My 2001, 1997 and brother's 2000 XJs all had broken wires the doors.
Years ago I bought a roll of electronic test instrument lead wire, the type used for voltmeter leads.
It is very flexible, multi-strand wire designed to bent and twisted without damage, it's good wire for door rewiring. If you have an old, inoperative voltmeter, use the wire from its test leads.
The breaks occurs in the flexible rubber tube going from the body to the door, where the wire bends each time the door is opened and closed.
Pull the wiring apart and one by one, splice and solder in new wire in the section where the breaks occur.
There is much better wires that meets the conditions (temp/environment) with a smaller jacket diameter and more flexible that are available.
 
There is much better wires that meets the conditions (temp/environment) with a smaller jacket diameter and more flexible that are available.

well don't keep us waiting....
 
Start with Waytek and DelCity, then if you want to go crazy check with AircraftSpruce and then there is SIS industrial wire which is indestructible.
 
FYI my window issues.
Had the exact same thing with the pass. window not working from the driver's switch pod. Didn't work from the pass switch either.
Turned out to be a bad driver's side switch pod which are notorious for bad solder connections letting loose.
Bought a new (not used) driver's switch pod from fleabay for around $40 and its still working some 100K miles later. A bonus, all the LEDs in the new switch pod are working again.

The other issue was with the driver's side window intermittently working.
Long story short turned out to be worn regulator motor brushes.
Had a hard time locating a 2-door window regulator. Every one has 4-door regulators.
Finally got one from an on-line junk yard site.

Also had the broken door jam wire thing but that was with the driver's speaker.
 
Wire plugs are for the speed and convenience of the assembly line. Undersize wires cost less, but introduce resistance into the wire circuit, as do wire plugs.

The simple solution is to use more flexible wires with larger physical size to replace existing wires and wire plugs. No need to decipher the circuits or understand what is what, just trace back the colors from the window motor to switch to the interior wire harness and upgrade those specific wires. If you wanted to build a more complex but more robust system, you could install some relays triggered by the existing wires, not unlike the common XJ headlight wire harness upgrade.
 
Start with Waytek and DelCity, then if you want to go crazy check with AircraftSpruce and then there is SIS industrial wire which is indestructible.

thx

FYI my window issues.
Had the exact same thing with the pass. window not working from the driver's switch pod. Didn't work from the pass switch either.
Turned out to be a bad driver's side switch pod which are notorious for bad solder connections letting loose.
Bought a new (not used) driver's switch pod from fleabay for around $40 and its still working some 100K miles later. A bonus, all the LEDs in the new switch pod are working again.

The other issue was with the driver's side window intermittently working.
Long story short turned out to be worn regulator motor brushes.
Had a hard time locating a 2-door window regulator. Every one has 4-door regulators.
Finally got one from an on-line junk yard site.

Also had the broken door jam wire thing but that was with the driver's speaker.
never thought about back of the switch pod. I'll check it out

Wire plugs are for the speed and convenience of the assembly line. Undersize wires cost less, but introduce resistance into the wire circuit, as do wire plugs.

The simple solution is to use more flexible wires with larger physical size to replace existing wires and wire plugs. No need to decipher the circuits or understand what is what, just trace back the colors from the window motor to switch to the interior wire harness and upgrade those specific wires. If you wanted to build a more complex but more robust system, you could install some relays triggered by the existing wires, not unlike the common XJ headlight wire harness upgrade.

ok. I'll ID the wires and start testing
 
back of switch terminals look clean and corrosion free. Had chance to do more diagnosing today. Pass window will not roll down using any switch. When 12 volts is jumped to the correct wires in the big plug for passenger door, the window roll down. reverse polarity and rolls up. all other windows operate from driver door pod.

passenger door switch has never worked. will probably start looking for passenger door switch pod.

thinking seriously about installing a back up switch until I get this figured out.
 
It's usually the switches themselves that f*** up.
 
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