water on door controls

[jchapin]

Has anybody had problems with water dumping on the electric window/lock controls?



I'm on fence about SLT and never cared much for electric windows/locks. However, I don't have a choice on the SLT's so if I go that way I'm stuck with 'em. My case against them is they're just another thiing to go wrong, with expensive repairs... I'm pretty hard on stuff.



I use truck to carry me to all sorts of places in all kinds of weather doing all sorts of activities. A salt water splashing is not out of the question and probably will happen (scenario: playing in ocean in Winter, decide on another location but not far enough to take off wet suit(brrrrr!), so I throw a few towels down on seat and hop in... . inevitably dripping salt water out of left arm and onto controls while driving around)



Of course the remedy is to cover door armrest with something to prevent it from happening in first place, but y'all know how Murphy works... .



Anyway, has anybody ruined these controls with water, or are they pretty water "resistant"?



TIA

 

[John - K5AWO]

For the most part, they are going to do pretty well. Just plain water won't be a problem if it is just a splash. Salty water won't help things, but shouldn't be a real problem either. Most of those controls have a small water shield just above the switch behind the panel.



I would think that if you are going to be in/out of the vehicle in a wet suit, it shouldn't be too hard to just keep a rubberized blanket or piece of tarp handy. Leave the glass down and lay the covering on the window sill. Short of that, just tuck some visqueen down between the glass and seal and let it drape over the controls.



Personally, I don't ever want to see a manual window crank again ever... .

 

[rbattelle]

I frequently get in the truck soaking wet, and my door switches have taken a lot of water. They still work fine.

 

[radar doctor]

Way to Go RB

Way to go RB. I APPROVE of that message... DOC

 

[jchapin]

You guys aren't making it easy for me to maintain my bias against electric windows/locks!



C'mon, somebody out there has got to have a horror story about bad things happening when you spill your beer all over the door controls.



... and I don't mean bad as in spilt beer:{

 

[JSchutz]

I recently left my truck out for the night with the windows open and a rouge thundertstorm came through. Pretty much did in the phone books I had in the door storage but the controls still work fine. Sorry I don't have a gremlins in the system to report. Jeff

 

[thejeepdude]

Haven't got my 3G yet to test out the waterproofness of the controls, but on my '99 there were many times I spilled things on them, got sand and salt water on them, and quite frequently they were covered with snow... they even got pee'd on once (lol don't ask)... never had a problem! Would never consider cranking a window manually on such an expensive truck... yech!

 

[Dean Upson]

I've had electric windows and locks on most of my vehicles since the 70's and they have been put to the test many times (never peed on, though) and I have never had any kind of a problem with them and wouldn't buy a new vehicle without them.



Dean

 

[sbrennan007]

Have gotten salty, snowy water in them several times while plowing. Never any issues.



I think your more than safe.

 

[thejeepdude]

I think the bad rap that electric windows get comes from the reliability of the motor and gear hardware rather than the switches themselves. I wouldn't worry about the switches at all, and usually the problem inside the door with geartrain or motors is due to misalignment from the factory, causing undue stress on things. As long as you take notice of these conditions and have them fixed while under warranty if they exist, then your electric windows should be trouble free for a looooong time.

 

[jchapin]

Sounds reassuring. My wife wants 'em too. Thanks for the replies!