retired mechanic74 Posted October 9, 2017 Share Posted October 9, 2017 ...For all you DIY's out there......Both headlight motors stopped opening. I removed them and found the plastic balls had turned to dust. I went to the pluming supply store and bought a PVC pipe ( It's the pipe you find under the sink that connects the water supply to the faucet) got the shortest one they had and measured the height of where the balls would go and cut 6 peaces-3 for each motor and being that the pipe is hollow I took a 1/4" steel rod and put it into the hole of the pipe and then cut the rod off with a hacksaw. Put everything back together and they work great. One note tho when you put the motor back together the barrel of the motor that holds the permanent magnets has to go back on the same spot it came off other wise if the barrel is 180 off it will change the polarity of the motor, up would become down and down would be up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DAVES89 Posted October 9, 2017 Share Posted October 9, 2017 You may want to reconsider your idea as the idea behind the design is that the plastic balls are sacrificial to save damage to other more valuable parts. The repair parts you modified are available on ebay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retired mechanic74 Posted October 9, 2017 Topic Author Share Posted October 9, 2017 You may want to reconsider your idea as the idea behind the design is that the plastic balls are sacrificial to save damage to other more valuable parts. The repair parts you modified are available on ebay. ...Yes I know that the parts are available but I refuse to shop on line and the pieces I installed shouldn't hurt anything but time will tell. But thank you for the heads up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted October 10, 2017 Share Posted October 10, 2017 ... One note tho when you put the motor back together the barrel of the motor that holds the permanent magnets has to go back on the same spot it came off other wise if the barrel is 180 off it will change the polarity of the motor, up would become down and down would be up. Make one more note in case you have to do this job again. The motor doesn't have to be, and should not be, taken apart to replace the Delrin roller bushings. If the rollers were disintegrated the crank arms will probably need to be replaced soon. They are made of soft metal that allows the keyed hole that fits over the motor shaft to round out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retired mechanic74 Posted October 10, 2017 Topic Author Share Posted October 10, 2017 Make one more note in case you have to do this job again. The motor doesn't have to be, and should not be, taken apart to replace the Delrin roller bushings. If the rollers were disintegrated the crank arms will probably need to be replaced soon. They are made of soft metal that allows the keyed hole that fits over the motor shaft to round out. ....I tried to remove the gear but the drive shaft on the end of the armature would not allow it to be removed to make sure I didn't damage the gear I found it necessary to remove the armature and the gear came right out. Believe me if I could have removed the gear without dis-assembling the motor I would have, getting the brushes lined back up on the commentators was not fun. I was lucky that no other parts were worn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted October 10, 2017 Share Posted October 10, 2017 I know it may seem like you are covering new ground here but we could have saved you a lot of time if you had asked for help on the forum before starting. The gear can be popped right out if you pull on it the right way. It will also pop back in easily without removing the motor when done properly. You got the results you were looking for and that is what counts. Your fix might last as long as you own the car. However, in the interest of anyone reading this in the future... the instructions you posted for repairing the headlight motor gearbox are not the best solution even for a DIY job. I don't mean to be disrespectful but you did this job the hard way and the material you used weren't the best choice. Just my opinion... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retired mechanic74 Posted October 10, 2017 Topic Author Share Posted October 10, 2017 I know it may seem like you are covering new ground here but we could have saved you a lot of time if you had asked for help on the forum before starting. The gear can be popped right out if you pull on it the right way. It will also pop back in easily without removing the motor when done properly. You got the results you were looking for and that is what counts. Your fix might last as long as you own the car. However, in the interest of anyone reading this in the future... the instructions you posted for repairing the headlight motor gearbox are not the best solution even for a DIY job. I don't mean to be disrespectful but you did this job the hard way and the material you used weren't the best choice. Just my opinion... ...Ronnie I am always open to constructive criticism and welcome a spirited debate on the issues. When I took the motors apart it was because something was keeping the gear from sliding off the shaft as you know the gear is made of plastic and prone to damage from miss handling. Back in the 60's 70's and 80's we mechanics were trained to rebuild everything and not replace, that meant if you had a bad wiper motor under warranty you fixed it instead of replacing it so taking these motors apart was not a big step for me. The reason i warned about the position of the magnets was because, If you had to remove the armatures. Back in the 80's I was a shop foreman for an Olds Dealership and was required to attend engineering seminars and believe me GM's only concern was the warranty period of their products and that they were built to maximize profits not longevity. Those motors are of a bad design and who knows my repair may out last the rest of the car. But I must say I thank you and i do value your opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted October 10, 2017 Share Posted October 10, 2017 ... Back in the 60's 70's and 80's we mechanics were trained to rebuild everything and not replace, that meant if you had a bad wiper motor under warranty you fixed it instead of replacing it so taking these motors apart was not a big step for me. ... I know what you mean. I was a mechanic and machinist during those years too. I worked in a garage that also had a complete automotive machine shop in the back of the building. All machine work including crankshaft grinding was done in house. We rebuilt everything back then including engines and automatic transmissions. I still rebuild anything I can if it will save some money. Most mechanics today (now called technicians) are just parts swappers. They don't rebuild anything if they can avoid it. The biggest problem with taking the motor apart is the screws that hold the motor to the gearbox are notorious for breaking off in the gearbox and it's really hard to get them out if that happens. This would not be a big deal for you since you are a mechanic and have the knowledge to get the broken screws out of the housing but for the average DIY guy this could be an expensive proposition to have to pay someone to do it for them. Barney Eaton will repair the broken screws if you send the motor to him. I don't know what he charges for repairing the broken screws but his charges and shipping costs can be avoided by not removing the motor. I do appreciate you posting DIY ways of making Reatta repairs. I'm a DIY person myself. I just wanted to point out that there is an easier way to do this particular job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retired mechanic74 Posted October 10, 2017 Topic Author Share Posted October 10, 2017 I know what you mean. I was a mechanic and machinist during those years too. I worked in a garage that also had a complete automotive machine shop in the back of the building. All machine work including crankshaft grinding was done in house. We rebuilt everything back then including engines and automatic transmissions. I still rebuild anything I can if it will save some money. Most mechanics today (now called technicians) are just parts swappers. They don't rebuild anything if they can avoid it. The biggest problem with taking the motor apart is the screws that hold the motor to the gearbox are notorious for breaking off in the gearbox and it's really hard to get them out if that happens. This would not be a big deal for you since you are a mechanic and have the knowledge to get the broken screws out of the housing but for the average DIY guy this could be an expensive proposition to have to pay someone to do it for them. Barney Eaton will repair the broken screws if you send the motor to him. I don't know what he charges for repairing the broken screws but his charges and shipping costs can be avoided by not removing the motor. I do appreciate you posting DIY ways of making Reatta repairs. I'm a DIY person myself. I just wanted to point out that there is an easier way to do this particular job. ....Your right Ronnie had the gear come out I wouldn't have touched the motor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MOUSE Posted October 10, 2017 Share Posted October 10, 2017 ....Your right Ronnie had the gear come out I wouldn't have touched the motor. When replacing my plastic rollers, I had difficulty removing the plastic gear also, but found that wiggling it back and forth while pulling on it, it finally popped out. So glad, because i didn't want to go into the motors. When I got into the rollers i found they were new!, because the motors had recently been replaced by previous owner. But they did not replace the "Actuator Arms" that was really all i needed to do. Should have checked list of repairs made on it in the glove box! Both motors new, A/C compressor New, switched to R-134, and new battery. I did a lot of work for nothing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captmike Posted October 10, 2017 Share Posted October 10, 2017 ...For all you DIY's out there......Both headlight motors stopped opening. I removed them and found the plastic balls had turned to dust. I went to the pluming supply store and bought a PVC pipe ( It's the pipe you find under the sink that connects the water supply to the faucet) got the shortest one they had and measured the height of where the balls would go and cut 6 peaces-3 for each motor and being that the pipe is hollow I took a 1/4" steel rod and put it into the hole of the pipe and then cut the rod off with a hacksaw. Put everything back together and they work great. One note tho when you put the motor back together the barrel of the motor that holds the permanent magnets has to go back on the same spot it came off other wise if the barrel is 180 off it will change the polarity of the motor, up would become down and down would be up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captmike Posted October 10, 2017 Share Posted October 10, 2017 Thanks, going to do that this week...i have one that runs on for a few seconds may be stripped nylon gear? If so I may try pc7 then shape it. Just for fun, see if it holds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retired mechanic74 Posted October 10, 2017 Topic Author Share Posted October 10, 2017 ....Your right Ronnie had the gear come out I wouldn't have touched the motor. ...FYI ...I am very familiar with rusted and corroded bolts after 50 some years of being a mic. in Michigan, but something I picked up through out the years is, when confronted with a frozen bolt (you may already know this) I found that if you gently tighten the bolt instead of trying to loosen it first to get some of the inside threads of the bolt exposed and soak it with a rust repellent and tap on the bolt and surrounding metal to vibrate the rust repellent and let it stand for a few minutes most often it will loosen up. (But there are the exceptions) Just thought I would pass this along, it could help someone out there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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