91 Grand Prix window motors

[mdpierce8]

Hello there. I’m getting ready to tackle replacing the driver’s side window motor on my 91 Grand Prix SE coupe. I was curious if anyone had any experience dealing with these. It looks like I need to grind/drill out rivets, remove the seals around the window frame, and the whole assembly lifts out; window, window regulator, and motor. The window looks like it’s riveted to the regulator so the window has to come out also. Does that sound right?

[jiggity76]

3 hours ago, mdpierce8 said:

Hello there. I’m getting ready to tackle replacing the driver’s side window motor on my 91 Grand Prix SE coupe. I was curious if anyone had any experience dealing with these. It looks like I need to grind/drill out rivets, remove the seals around the window frame, and the whole assembly lifts out; window, window regulator, and motor. The window looks like it’s riveted to the regulator so the window has to come out also. Does that sound right?

Hello and yes, the pwr window motor and regulator are one unit.  They are riveted in from factory.  You'll need to drill them out and I slid the whole assembly out thru the door cavity.  I didn't have to remove the door glass.  I moved the regulator or lift arm for the glass thru one end of the glass channel to remove it and left the glass in the door.

Edited July 16 by jiggity76

[pwmin]

Yay, looking forward to doing the one in my Monte.  I've had the motor for weeks now 

[jiggity76]

30 minutes ago, pwmin said:

Yay, looking forward to doing the one in my Monte.  I've had the motor for weeks now 

For me...and for a 1991 W body car, it wasn't that bad really.  I was expecting a lot of work but surprisingly easy.

[mdpierce8]

Well it looks like the glass is even riveted to the lift arm which is why I was considering lifting the whole thing out. They really liked their rivets back then.

[GnatGoSplat]

I've done this on an '88, you don't have to remove the glass.  Just put something over the window frame and tape the glass up.  The lift arm has a wheel that rolls horizontally in a channel.  Once you've got the regulator loose, you can move the lift arm far enough to the side that the wheel will come out of the channel and the regulator will be completely loose in the door.

On 7/16/2025 at 2:51 PM, pwmin said:

Yay, looking forward to doing the one in my Monte.  I've had the motor for weeks now 

Monte looks a little different.
https://charm.li/Chevrolet/1995/Monte Carlo V6-204 3.4L DOHC VIN X SFI/Repair and Diagnosis/Windows and Glass/Windows/Window Regulator/Service and Repair/Window Regulator/Regulator/

[mdpierce8]

Oh ok I see the wheel in the channel now. That makes things a little simpler. But after looking into it a little more I’ve encountered another problem. One of the black guides for the glass is broken. Can these parts still be found or am I SOL?

[pwmin]

13 hours ago, GnatGoSplat said:

I've done this on an '88, you don't have to remove the glass.  Just put something over the window frame and tape the glass up.  The lift arm has a wheel that rolls horizontally in a channel.  Once you've got the regulator loose, you can move the lift arm far enough to the side that the wheel will come out of the channel and the regulator will be completely loose in the door.

Monte looks a little different.
https://charm.li/Chevrolet/1995/Monte Carlo V6-204 3.4L DOHC VIN X SFI/Repair and Diagnosis/Windows and Glass/Windows/Window Regulator/Service and Repair/Window Regulator/Regulator/

Nice, thanks for that!

[mdpierce8]

Finally got around to starting on this project again. The window motor turned out to be really easy. Thanks jiggity for the pointers! Just ignore the shawty grinder job. I’ll paint over it so it doesn’t rust.

Now I’ve decided I want to try and fix this guide for the glass. I bought the car with this piece already broken and I suspect this is what caused the original window motor to fail.  I super glued it for now but I have access to a plastic welder. I’m assuming a junkyard is the only option for replacing these. Removing the glass was a little more difficult but nothing too crazy, I made sure to be really careful with the trim and metal clips. Luckily everything is still intact. Gonna work on it some more tomorrow and see what happens.