Topaz electric windows failure

Hello Topaz owners

I own a 2008 Topaz (T5).

Just recently the electric windows on both the front doors have stopped working.  None of the switches work at all.  Tried all the obvious checks; fuse, connections under the driver's seat, turning the key anti-clockwise in the driver's door, all to no avail.

Luckily the windows are in the closed position so I can still drive the vehicle.

I've had the vehicle checked at a couple of local garages, one had a diagnostic plug, but neither could suss the fault.  My guess is that there's a loose connection in a hard-to-get-to place but I may be completely wrong.

After speaking to a VW Van Centre I was put off by their ridiculous hourly fees. They didn't know what the problem might be, "Never known such a problem on a T5" said the service receptionist.  I guess they serve mainly business/fleet vehicles so can charge what they like without too much questioning?

I wonder if anyone has had a similar problem with their Topaz?

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks, Andy Holden, North Yorkshire.

You might get more answers from one of the VW forums:
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Just seen your window problem , my passenger window works with the switch on the drivers side but not with the passenger side switch . Did you sort your problem ? My local garage tried a new switch but it made no difference

Fred,
What level of expertise do you have with vehicle electrics?
Did your "local garage" give any info- like "there was power to the switch" etc. There is a very good chance that this could just be dirty/corroded contacts down at the motor end but if you don't know what you are doing it might be sensible to involve an auto electrician rather than a garage monkey.

Incidentally, my avatar gives a clue to how I have learned about vehicle electrics!


Edit: btw welcome to the forum; both of you. It is always useful if folks who ask questions follow up when a solution is found, this can sometimes help out with similar problems.

Hi Pete , yes , they said it had power , they recommend taking it to a main dealer. The odd thing is that I can open it from the driver door switch

I am not upto scratch on the T5, but if both sides are not working give a little thought to the problem being on the drivers door.  
Most vehicles allow control of the passenger door from the drivers position and it seems odd that both sides have the same fault, so I would search here for a loose connector block or similar.
Sorry I cant come up with a solution

So; they changed the switch and still it did not work. This suggests that there was no need to change the switch. I think that, if you remove the door card and have a look at the motor you might see some corrosion to the connections, which need to be cleaned up and replaced.
Having said all this; I'm not sure if the left and right hand windows are separately fused! Have a look at the handbook before dismantling anything.

Roli,
He said that it works with the driver's door switch!

Having done  a bit of reading on the VW forum(!) it seems that a known fault with T5 door windows is a PCB inside the door card. Of course there are three types and, from VW, they only come with new motors at over £300!!!! However, folks have sourced then on e-bay, etc for £30-£40 but you need to know which number your is.

Try talking to these folks:  [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] he seems quite willing to give advice on the T5 forum:   [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Incidentally, I have found that the main dealer is not always the absolute fount of all knowledge on obscure things like electrical faults. How often will a VW "technician" actually get stuck into the wiring on a T5? Not often, yet a specialist like the one above will become far more familiar with his area of expertise 'cos he does not spend 90% of his time changing oil!

Cheers,
Pete.