The passenger-side window on my '94 began acting up a few days ago when I pressed the Up button. It thumped & wiggled but wouldn't rise up. The sound given off by the motor seemed normal. I discovered that I could get it to rise by grabbing it and gently pulling it with my hand up while pressing the Up button at the same time.

So it was on the the Ranger Forum to see if any posts covered this problem. Turns out there are several that come close but none were exact. I took the panel off to study how it works in hopes of seeing something that looked "off-track" or loose or something. Problem is, ya can't see a whole helluva lot. There is a barely-visable metal part connected to the motor that has saw-teeth along its edge. Guessing my problem lies there. I lubed the rail (as some posts suggested for other up/down problems) and tried moving it. It went up a few times without the helping hand but, mostly, it needed help. During one or more of the times it was working all on its own, it would reach the top and then abruptly fall back downward about an inch. It also appears to be a little crooked. By "crooked" I mean that the front upper corner of the glass seems just a little lower than the rear corner.

Anyone know what this needs to return it to working order?

If the answer is "The motor assembly needs replacing." then the next question is where to find one for a '94.

Thanks

 

It reads like the motor is working but the "regulator" is either out of alignment or bad.
There should be a couple of nuts and bolts you can use to change alignment, but unless they are loose alignment isn't the issue
With door panel removed and plastic liner removed you will see alignment nuts/bolts.

You can also see 4 rivets that will need to be drilled out if you are going to replace the regulator.

Any drivers side regulator from your generation will work, so 1993–1997 Ranger

 

Thanks RonD. I did not look for loose nuts. I'll take another look in the near future. I can live with it for a while. You wrote "driver's side" in your answer. Since its the passenger side thats the problem, I presume you meant to write passenger side (?)

 

Oops, yes, passenger side

 

The mechanism might just need a good lubricating too, some regular old grease or white lithium grease should get things moving smoother again.

If it's the motor or gears failing, check out partsgeek dot com, they have tons of parts that are reasonably priced.

 

I think you're going to find out that the regulator/motor is going to need replacing. After several years of use, the gears/plastics get brittle and the motor gets weak.

The good news is that once you drill out the rivets that hold the factory motor/regulator in place, the replacement is nut/bolt, making install easier, along with any future replacement.

By the way, be happy its an early ranger...Ford used a poor manufacturer of a regulator/motor in some of their 2004 to 2010 F150's that would crap out after less than two years. Owners were replacing them every couple of years until the aftermarket came in and built a stronger regulator. The originals were plastic gears that cracked.