BMW 550i xDrive Window Motor Regulator Replacement at your home or office.

What is the Window Motor/Regulator Assembly all about?

The window regulator typically has over a dozen components that help it move up or down in a very specific fashion throughout the entire raising or lowering of your windows. These components all work together in two unique assemblies: the scissor style window regulator and the cable operated window regulator.

There are scissor-style window regulators that operate like a giant pair of scissors inside your door. They’re usually almost flat when your window is all the way down and in a near perfect X when the window is all the way up. You can look at a scissor style regulator as having several thick pieces of steel that keep the window in place. It’s sturdy, but requires a strong motor that often wears out before everything else.

Cable-operated window regulators use a near vertical cable to help the window get into the right position. It’s a more compact design that puts less stress on the motor. But it is also more susceptible towards breaking due to the increased stress that the pulley and cable must harness to raise and lower your window. In most cases, a cable operated window regulator is composed of one thick piece of metal with a pulley and wire attached to it -- along with a more compact motor.

The electric motor is designed to withstand a certain number of raises and lowerings of your window. While the regulator helps hold the window in place, the motor provides the force needed to make the window stay exactly where you like.