My passenger side switch went today, the window is down and I can't get it up from the drivers side switch either.
If I do this DIY will the switch work or is my switch shot and I need to replace it?

 

Even though I did the DIY, I've decided that the switches are so cheap ($15) that I just carry spares. If you're still in the window down situation maybe swap out the passenger switch with a good one from the driver's side just to move the window. The switches just pop out. I use a butter knife to pry them out of their hole.

 

Spare window switches...check
Spare DME relay...check
That's what the glove box is for

 

You don't even need to drill a hole into the window switch. Just heat the nail up and push it through (i only did one side of the switch and did not go completely through side-to-side). When the plastic cools it will shrink slightly and tighten/grab the nail. Which you can then just snip and grind off to length.

 

Just tried to repair my driver's side switch but no way because not only the little rotation axle tab was broken but one of the white actuator casings was also ruptured.
So now I have to spend a huge amount for a new switch...
Question: do I have to remove the door panel to put back the future new switch? If not how do I push towards the switch from inside the panel to reinsert the pins and finally put the switch back in place inside the door panel. Are the electrical cables long enough that I should be able to pull the connector out through the panel hole, then connect the pins and reinsert the now connected switch by simply pushing it in/ clamping it in by hand?
Chris

 

Yes. Not a lot of slack wire length, but just enough to do this, on my car.

 

Make certain you have the key turned off so that power is not being applied to the empty socket before disconnecting and reconnecting window switches. While the driver/psgr window switches are identical and can be interchanged, the switches are keyed to only go in the socket one way. But its still possible for a wrong pin to go in a wrong hole far enough to make contact (don't ask)... if this happens, you'll probably blow the window fuse. In my '97 993 Cab, its fuse #4 under the hood, on the passenger side fuse box - with rating 30A. I now carry a couple extra 30A fuses in the glove box, in addition to the spare 30A in the fuse box spare slot... hey, things happen, and its easy to blow more than one fuse before you figure out what's wrong.

The switch design is a bit flakey IMO - if you break one of the plastic tabs shown above, the switch pops up a bit on one side of its bezel (as shown in the pictures) and doesn't operate the metal rockers properly, usually causing one of the rockers to flip sideways - and possibly cause a short that will pop the fuse. If you operate the switch when that tab is broken, its likely you'll either damage the white teflon (or whatever it is) plunger that works with the spring to move the rocker, or you'll cause the plunger to come out of the spring sleeve... at which time the switch will be jammed up and won't work at all.

If the passenger window switch dies on either side of the cabin, the other (good) switch won't operate the window. Don't panic!! The two switches are interconnected, so if one dies the good one won't work until you replace the failed unit. You may have to exchange the driver and psgr switches on the driver's door panel to figure out which switch failed, but usually a failure happens when its being operated, so its pretty obvious which one is dead. In my experience, when the switch fails, the window it operates will usually only work in one direction, if it works at all.

Rod
1997 993 Cabriolet

 

Thanks Paul, will give it a try when the new switch arrives.
Chris

 

To close the loop: I replaced the switch today. Easy to fit it back-in as indeed the wires are just long enough to reconnect outside the door 'socket'.
Cost of switch including VAT:50 Euros (66 USD). I told the shop that the price was definitely the reason I was trying to repair the old switch (besides the fun) but in this case it was unfortunately not repairable...

 

Thanks for the great DIY. I just repaired mine. In my case, a short piece from a wire shirt hanger seemed to be about the right size and I used a 5/64" drill bit.

 

I bought 4 switches (extra backup) but decided to try this DIY. It worked great and the switches are now sitting on my Porsche parts shelf.

 

A very timely thread. My drivers side window switch did the side-way wobble break on my '97 C2S about a week ago. Except mine wouldn't work at all. Luckily it broke with the window up.
I purchased one of the $11.49 repro switches off Fleabay and it arrived this afternoon. Took all of about 60 seconds to swap out the broken one.
I guess I'd rather spend $11 then futz around fixing the broken one (but I'll keep it in case I get industrious). The repro switch looks and feels exactly like OEM,. I have to wonder if it's not the same manufacturer. Time will tell if it holds up, but at $11 and 60 seconds to replace it's worth a try.

Cheers.

 

I read this awhile back and filed it away just in case. Today I needed it. Thanks for posting!

 

Were these trolls here linking to old posts before IB bought Rennlist? I dont seem to remember them and they are starting to become annoying, especially when linking to bull****.

 

I did the same repair but used a nylon pin instead of a nail. My thinking was that introducing a piece of metal into an electrical switch is less desirable than plastic for safety reasons. With my repair the replacement pin sheared off in about two years. I was thinking that a new rocker switch for the earlier 911 - pre 1989 has a switch that shares the same rocker but can be had for $18. So if one wanted to they could buy the earlier switch pop off the bezel and use the new switch rocker-paddle to replace the one that is broken in the 993 switch.