Add A Window Switch for 3rd Gen 4Runner Rear Window

[@The500poundman]

You need to save folks a headache and make a note on this video that it will not work for the 01-02 runners , because the ecu . the do has to be unlocked for it to come down. It is possible with relays but requires a lot of additional work…

[@PhoRunner]

Pinned your comment

[@wcsoblake85]

Sir you have shown me a solution to a problem I didn't know I had. I have a 02 4Runner and this would be an awesome mod! Thanks for posting.

[@PhoRunner]

Check the comments for color codes and test it before committing to a hole lol. I’ve seen some unsuccessful results! Hope it works out for you though. It’s a nice add for sure!

[@danegrim4515]

The reason 3rd gen switches are like that, is because they were located in the center console left of the parking brake, placed upside down, at a downward skew. If you can only find a 3rd gen switch, and want to install it in a vertical position, just peel the "back window" sticker off the switch with an exact-o knife and flip it, so up is up, and down is down.

[@cowboyjunky90]

This works great! Thank you! I bought this switch a year and a half ago. Figured since I just got done installing a new backup camera I might as well finally do this!

[@Tintdaddy88]

I like the "raw" style of this video.

[@Airbaja]

Awesome, Thanks!

[@PhoRunner]

Np

[@yrigoyen0108]

Very nice!!!!! And it looks great!!!

[@davidmaclennan5400]

Excellent mod! Recieved switch and installed in no time. Appreciate all the foot work on wire harness in vehicle. Only difference is I used razor knife to cut out and put a zip tie around base of switch to make it snug. Appreciate the help once again!

[@davidmaclennan5400]

I also like the way it simultaneously locks and unlocks doors respectively as well.

[@PhoRunner]

@@davidmaclennan5400 wait what lol. The zip tie is a smart idea. Mine keeps backing out!

[@davidmaclennan5400]

@@PhoRunner I put just a little super glue with zip tie. So if have to take off just razor knife super glue off zip tie. No superglue on panel at all

[@davidmaclennan5400]

I have a question? Can you share link for the magnetic light you use in videos?

[@PhoRunner]

@@davidmaclennan5400 www.harborfreight.com/390-Lumen-Magnetic-Slim-Bar-Folding-LED-Work-Light-63958.html try to find it on sale for $20-$25

[@bryantnguyen4595]

Thanks for this idea! Keep the videos coming brother!

[@quinnbi8716]

Wow awesome idea! Thank you for sharing.

[@kokadjooutdoors620]

Great idea! Got to tear apart my rear hatch as won’t open. Might add this to it at same time

[@sterlingblevins1162]

This is an awesome idea!

[@rojohnboy5351]

1997 4runner coming from the white connector pin up : red/black coming from the gray connector pin down : green/yellow ground : black/white

[@PhoRunner]

Cool. I will pin this for others!!

[@Copenhagendeputy]

I have a 96 and I’ve tried red/black and green/red for up and it hasn’t worked. But my down does lol. Idk what to do.

[@rojohnboy5351]

@@Copenhagendeputy did you try starting or on position. before trying it.

[@Copenhagendeputy]

@@rojohnboy5351 no I thought you didn’t need to due to constant power

[@Tintdaddy88]

Beautiful!

[@micahelijah40]

I need help my 1989 Toyota 4Runner. How can I do a remote for rear window to go up n down.

[@PhoRunner]

I am not sure on the wiring for that one

[@tubehelpr]

Amazing. As soon as I find a swtich I'm doing this! I was wondering what you mean about "put the cover back on" to not scratch the glass? Why would the interioir trim need to be installed? Do you mean to say the interioir piece actually moves the glass slightly away from the track?

[@j.a.8970]

Too bad I can't find full switch harness' on ebay. Only the up/diwn switch + blue female portion. Know any links where i can get the full thing? The junkyards around here dont have any.

[@PhoRunner]

hmm try a toyota parts guy. Find them on the relevant 2nd/3rd gen mafia pages.

[@daniel7529]

Hey mate, long shot but im using the gen 3 switch from my 96. Found the wires in the tail door, hook up the switch but it only goes down. Any advice?? I know this was a while ago but hopefully you still have memory of it! Cheers!

[@PhoRunner]

Try finding the wire by the key that makes it go up and trace it back to that module. If it goes up with the key, there should be a way to simulate this

[@daniel7529]

@@PhoRunner i tapped into the key wires, two green ones, still wont go up. Both wires work, have tested it but just only does down. Do you think i need to connect all three? As i just have an earth going to a bolt

[@DynamicJourenys]

@@daniel7529 have you found the solution?

[@danielhoefer9168]

I'm planning on doing this mod, but would rather not cut into that rear door metal (I've got a big switch). I want to put the switch in the side of the back area of the trucks interior, right next to where the wheel well sticks out. Instead of fishing a wire through, do you think I could just tap into the wires already going to the front? It looks like those green-red and green-yellow wires run all the way to the front.

[@PhoRunner]

I’m not too sure. I would think you need to access the ecu since the ecu module sends the signal back to the front

[@danielhoefer9168]

@@PhoRunner thanks for the input. Just pulled the rear headliner back and found the same green-red and green-yellow wires headed to the front. Checked em with a multimeter and they link directly to the lock cylinder sensor. For some reason it just bypasses the rear ECU in my 02. Guess the main ECU handles it. So for anyone reading this, you don't have to fish a wire through if you want to put the switch in the rear interior body panels, just tap into the appropriate wires

[@kendrick153]

@@danielhoefer9168 Did this work? I hear that some weird locking/unlocking behavior occurs when you do this mod in the 2002 models. Let me now, thanks. (+ any other details much appreciated)

[@danielhoefer9168]

@@kendrick153 It ended up being more complicated of a project than I thought. I'm in studying electrical engineering so it wasn't too difficult but I had to make use of two relays to get it to do what I wanted. Basically I have it wired so when I push the down button it unlocks the whole vehicle and then lowers the window. Same thing goes for raising it. Pressing the up button locks the whole truck and then raises the window. So I had to run two wires up to the interior junction box in the front of the truck to tap into the unlock/lock door wires. Then I just used two double pole double throw relays to connect the to switch buttons to the appropriate wires to raise and lower and unlock and lock.

[@kendrick153]

@@danielhoefer9168 1. Does the problem still occur / is your relay fix required if you place the switch further down the line (e.g. what PhoRunner does in the video, tapping in very near the harness/plug? 2. Yep. That is complicated. If you got a diagram/pictures for me? I'd send all the good internet karma your way I can muster.

[@jamesgiddrey4892]

It would be great to know what wires you're messing with as you test them.

[@PhoRunner]

I mention the colors in the video and the description

[@KeviinezYT]

If you use your car key and turn the key to right the rearwindow will go down and biseversa to the other side. Thats a nice trick, I mean putting the key on the mechanisim of the rear window

[@Jonnygriffiths]

Helpful video, thank you very much. Tried this mod on my 96 surf. Worked well for the down button, except the up button did nothing… any suggestions?

[@PhoRunner]

Hmmm maybe wrong wire?

[@DynamicJourenys]

I'm having the same issues.

[@kayladillon13]

May be a stupid question, but is this deleting the switch in the front? I just finished the hatch light mod, and am doing some research on this one in your video..i want to keep the one up front active, bc the dogs like the fresh air while driving.

[@PhoRunner]

It is not deleting the switch in front. It’s basically creating a switch off the rear key system

[@trevorchipps3389]

Dont all 3rd gen 4runners have a switch on the hatch key- turn left to unlock and then hold that position and the window goes down, turn left to lock hatch but hold and the window goes up. is that only on limiteds?

[@PhoRunner]

Yeah my sr5 has that but that’s be hard to do sleeping inside the vehicle unless window was down (bugs!!). This is actually tapping into that circuit

[@georgejackson1833]

can you do the same for the hatch lock ??

[@PhoRunner]

It's a little complicated but i hear it can be done.

[@michaeljohnson4158]

Did you have to cut the inner black metal panel behind the brown outer trim panel? Also, if you did, did your wiring stay in front of the inner black panel so it didn’t come in contact with the window when it goes up and down?

[@PhoRunner]

I did not have to cut that

[@richlien5598]

Great video. Thanks for sharing. Do you know if a universal 5 pin switch will work with this mod?

[@PhoRunner]

Hmm I’m not positive

[@richlien5598]

I tried the mod exactly how you setup. Windows goes down but not up. Any advice?

[@PhoRunner]

Try wiring at the key cylinder area. I saw some reports of this not working on newer models. Not sure what the problem is

[@edlim315]

I just did this mod on my 02 and the weirdest thing is happening. The switch will only open or close based on the last position of the key in the tumbler. So if I raise the window with the key, only UP will work and DOWN will not. If I lower the window with the key, only the DOWN will work and the UP will not. And it doesn't matter how much I raise and lower the window with the key, it's almost as if the little computer remembers the last position of the key and allows the switch to only work either up or down.

[@PhoRunner]

That’s very interesting and a bummer. Not sure how to fix this

[@eddielim4849]

After some more trial and error I found that the window will go down only when the tailgate is unlocked and will go up only when the tailgate is locked. Weird. I wonder if there’s a way to bypass this.

[@PhoRunner]

Interesting. Must be an ecu thing on the 01-02 since many have reported only being able to go one way. But good news is you can unlock the key and use the switch either direction once inside?

[@edlim315]

@@PhoRunner, I tried that but if the lock tumbler is in the unlocked position the rear window will only go down from the inside switch. To use the inside switch to raise the window the tailgate lock tumbler needs to be in the locked position.

[@PhoRunner]

I see that’s interesting and kinda lame. Maybe you can find the wire in the tumbler and feed it ground or power when switch is depressed to simulate the tumbler / key

[@robertlawson1184]

but the key has to be on the ignition for that rear window to work correct?

[@PhoRunner]

It does not.

[@robertlawson1184]

@@PhoRunner Oh thank you! Guess ill be doing that soon. Thanks for sharing!!

[@Bud4me0007]

Where did you buy that magnetic light from?

[@PhoRunner]

harbor freight but its finicky these days with charging. www.harborfreight.com/390-lumen-magnetic-slim-bar-folding-led-work-light-56329.html

[@Bud4me0007]

@@PhoRunner tks

[@Ray_Palma]

I been trying to do this mod to my 2000 t4r limited and it doesnt work at all ive purchased 4 different switches thinking that was the issue but it never worked i used the same switch as in the video and i plugged everything in the same not sure what could be the issue

[@PhoRunner]

Can you roll the window down with the key? Some have tapped into the key cylinder wires and found success

[@Ray_Palma]

PhoRunner Channel yes i am able to roll it down with the key

[@PhoRunner]

Try tapping into those wires instead of the one I mention. It means there’s a controller back there.

[@Ray_Palma]

PhoRunner Channel do you know the color of those cables? And which one does what?

[@PhoRunner]

Should be same as what I said. You can check with a volt meter using continuity test. Find the ground and other 2 are for window

[@Not_That_Chris]

I can roll my window back up with the key. Just turn the key the other way. Is that not normal?

[@PhoRunner]

Hmm not sure. Did you hold it for a while?

[@Not_That_Chris]

@@PhoRunner Just a few seconds

[@allenh7835]

@@Not_That_Chris My 97 works the same way.

[@alejandrozamoralopez6340]

Where did you buy the connection ?

[@PhoRunner]

The switch? Just salvage yard or eBay

[@gideonel-rahi7564]

Sick mod! I would pay you to do this for mine if you lived nearby

[@PhoRunner]

you can easily DIY! that's why i made these vids!

[@rumail2377]

Отличная идея

[@Reqzabx]

@PhoRunner Channel will this mod work with a 3rd gen 4runner hatch window switch? Or are the wires different?

[@PhoRunner]

It should but the switch will be upside down printing . Wire colors will be different but you can use a meter to figure out what wires you need

[@tubehelpr]

Hey, I just got my switch and wired it up! Works great! Before I cut any holes in the pannel I was wondering if you had any recommendations about the best mounting spot? I really want it to sit flush and not stick out at all or it will drive me crazy ahah...

[@PhoRunner]

Lol well mine is pretty flush. I dont know where else you could put it without doing a bunch of wire fishing!

[@blurmgru6632]

Hello Well I have been attempting to wire this up for the last week and for some reason I can only get the window to run in one direction. I used the wires described ( green/red and green/yellow ) and the motor will only run one direction. Occasionally it will reverse and I am able to run it the opposite direction but again once that cycle is complete it will not run in the opposite direction and the relay will just click when pushing the button for the direction that it just ran.

[@PhoRunner]

Try the wire at the key cylinder. I see that the 96-98 seem to use that wire from there

[@xCYNICOUTCASTx]

Think I’m gonna try this switch near the rear passenger head rest. Sorry if you mentioned it in the video, but do you need the key in the ignition for this to run?

[@PhoRunner]

You do not

[@ddemier]

Would I be able to order this switch for a 3rd gen Toyota 4Runner? Mine is a 2002 sr5

[@chevylandt.v]

Will it work for the 2nd gen considered putting one on my 95.

[@PhoRunner]

probably not. the wires will be different probably.

[@chevylandt.v]

@@PhoRunner oh ok thanks.

[@PyrateRumRunner]

So it has constant power?

[@PhoRunner]

yes, it's constant power from the factory

[@PyrateRumRunner]

PhoRunner Channel could you use a side door window switch?

[@PhoRunner]

@@PyrateRumRunner i don't see why not

[@PhoRunner]

you'll have to figure out the wiring using a volt meter tool though.

[@blakehoffmann3373]

Can you roll it up and down without battery on?

[@PhoRunner]

without the key, yes. without a battery, no.

[@SDKlimber]

Been trying to get the rear window to even work In my 3rd gen (97) 4Runner, it's never worked the entirety of my ownership of the car. Would love to install this once I get it fixed

[@PhoRunner]

check the wire hardness that goes from the vehicle to the lift gate. sometimes the wires inside there break. i lost my 3rd brake light this way and had to repair it

[@Scavs_Inc]

I love pho. So yummy.

[@PhoRunner]

Yummy indeed lol

[@DynamicJourenys]

These window switches on eBay are like 50-60 dollars. For a used 30 year old electronic part!

[@PhoRunner]

Good god lol

[@DynamicJourenys]

@@PhoRunner none of them with an actual harness. All the yotas at my junkyard are picked clean

[@PhoRunner]

Gotta be fast lol

[@craighall4298]

Tried this in my 1998 4Runner Limited and it isn't working. I don't have a green w red wire. Down works on green yellow with white black as ground. Up doesn't work. If I plug the up into down T-tap, it also goes down.

[@PhoRunner]

Check the wire at the key cylinder and see what color it is. You can also tap it there too. Check to make sure it works by using your key too.

[@craighall4298]

@@PhoRunner thanks, I'll try that. Would you know the connector pin location numbers? Might be more accurate than wire color? Our wires might be different colors but maybe they are in the same location?

[@PhoRunner]

Not sure what location but a few guys direct messaged me and said tnhe colors are the same for their 96/97. Also the key cylinder will only have 3 wires so it’s those colors for sure.

[@craighall4298]

@@PhoRunner Maybe because I have a 98 Limited model? Anyway, thanks for the help.

[@blurmgru6632]

@@craighall4298 Did you ever get this working ? I have been trying for a week now to get the motor to run in both direction with no luck. It appears that I do have the same colored wires but for whatever reason the wiring doesn’t run the motor correctly .

[@ScrewBigTech333]

I know this video is super old but I have a question I do hope you're still around and able to help...my rear window dropped one day on its own and drained my battery...I found some wires with split sheathing and fixed that but everytime I try to activate the switch to roll the window up all I hear is a click coming from the rear hatch??? Any thoughts on how to fix this issue I'd like my window back up lol...