If you’re not sure or you can’t tell, just click them on and off a few times, checking the window after each click to see if you notice anything different. If this solves the problem, just take a deep breath for now—you’ll laugh about it later.
For example, if you’re using the switch on the passenger side door to roll up the passenger side window, try using the master switch on the driver’s door.
If you can, try to slam the car door while pressing the switch to roll the window up. This can also help jolt the motor back to life if it’s starting to go. It doesn’t fix the motor, but it might just get that window back up.
You might also try striking along the top of the door panel next to the window. If something was stuck there, this can sometimes jar it loose. You might also try giving the door a firm whack roughly where the window motor is located (it’s usually near the bottom). If the motor’s sluggish, that can sometimes do the trick to get it moving.
If there’s not much of the window sticking up, try to pull it up a little with your fingers so you can get your palms on it. Move very slowly and be careful—if the motor engages and the window starts moving on its own, you could end up with some smashed fingers!
Take a look at the gaskets along either side of the window. If those are damaged, they don’t usually take a lot of work to repair yourself.
To get your window back on its track, try slamming the car door while holding the window switch in the “up” position. If that doesn’t work, you might have to take the door panel off so you can slot it back into place.
Fuses are super easy to replace. Just pop the old one out, stick the new one back in, and you’re good to go. This is not something you need to call a mechanic for.
Since the leads were originally clamped to your battery, they should clamp to each other just fine. If they’re too short to reach, you can use jumper cables as a sort of extension cord. Always remove your battery completely from your car. If you simply disconnect it but leave it in place, the battery leads could slip and touch the battery, frying your system.
Try to roll the window up or down with a different switch in the car. If it’s a passenger window and you can move the window with the master switch on the driver’s door, it’s definitely a problem with the switch in that door (or the wiring somewhere along the way).
Once you have the door panel off, you can easily see the window motor and track for the window itself. If the motor is your problem, you can usually replace it yourself—it’s a fairly straightforward process. Unfortunately, you can’t replace just the motor—you have to replace the entire regulator assembly. The whole thing is sold together as one piece in auto parts stores. Try the quicker, easier fixes first before you replace the motor. Even though you can do this yourself, it’ll take you a couple of hours.
