How screwed is my Coupe's window regulator/door? It's clearly been welded previously.

[bjschrum]

For starters I have a 2000 M Coupe with a salvage title and 100K+ miles. So, lots of fun has been had in it by previous owners.

My driver side window has been sluggish going up and needed assistance to get more than halfway up. Then it stopped going down that extra inch when I open the door. So, I pulled the door card off, replaced the slider bushings, cleaned up the caked on old grease, and re-lubed. That didn't help so I lubed up the front window channel. It slides up pretty well, now, but I hear a pop in the door when I lower it with window up & door closed.

I took a video to show how much the door flexes while the window is moving. Clearly it has been welded before (and riveted?), and the window regulator looks like part of it was welded and the stud bent (top right of the picture below). Weirdly this part does not move much when I raise or lower the window. So, I'm not sure how bad that really is.
PXL_20211114_162734656.jpg

I've been reading threads about bent window regulators and popped welds. Before I replace the whole regulator or take it to a shop for welding. Can anyone offer some insight? Does this look like I have a cracked weld, or is that flex normal?

Two more questions to help me wrap my head around how this regulator works...

I have found a "Mounting Plate" for sale for Roadsters but the part number is not compatible with Coupes. Do Coupes not have this mounting plate in the door?
Capture.JPG

And lastly, I am curious about the adjustable bump stop bolt on the regulator. The long bolt with a little plastic cap on it. I have adjusted it a whole bunch and it never gets close to anything at the top most position. Is my door really fucked up or does this bolt not do anything?

[s8ilver]

If the regulator itself isn't cracked (mine spider cracked in about 6 directions), that's not your issue. However, yours has been welded back together so it's anyone's guess if it's still the correct geometry. Your other issue(s) seem(s) to be the central boss and the front motor mount. It looks like central boss was possibly replaced with a bolt (that's what I did) or it's just missing its nut, and the rivets certainly aren't holding up at the motor.

This has gotten me by the last few years. I occasionally get a little pop sound depending on ambient temperature, but it's holding up. The factory hole locations certainly didn't hurt.

20180331_171611_resized.jpg20180407_120039.jpg20180407_132549.jpg

I also had a slight tear at the motor mount, but drilled a hole to stop the crack and used a JB Steel Stick to reinforce it. Still holding as well.

20161020_144746.jpg

I'd be looking for a new door and regulator in your case. Hard to hear, but it's probably the cheapest option. Fortunately any old door will do, so look for an Imola one. Your motor mount only seems to be held on at one spot (the rivet). There should be 5 or 6 attachment points IIRC.

The adjuster sometimes misses its stop (for a variety of reasons), but what I did was just match its length to the regulator I removed. Then you perform a reset procedure on the window (window down, hold to lock in driver's door to roll up and reset window); that restores the auto up/down feature.

[bjschrum]

I'll probably try to replace and reinforce that bent bolt before replacing the door entirely. I can't easily find an Imola Red driver door (plenty of passenger doors). But a new door is probably not a bad idea, my diver door handle is also misaligned or otherwise broken and the exterior handle trim piece will not stay on without interfering with the handle. Are roadster doors the exact same as coupe doors? I think the regulators are different, but I may be wrong. It's hard to find a clear answer.

I was already planning on selling the car in about a year, so it kinda sucks if I end up having to dump $2000 into the door right before selling it. I'll do my best to not leave it looking like the hack job that I bought, lol.

[s8ilver]

Doors are the same. Regulators are almost the same. Coupe regulators start off as Roadster regulators AFAIK. Same price, so didn't fuss much when buying one.