A Bowden cable-window lifter for motor vehicles which includes a cable drive, at the housing of which is supported a cable drum adapted to be driven. The cable is guided in a closed loop starting from the cable drum to an entrainment member carrying the window and back to the cable drum. The cable sections starting from the housing are each guided in a Bowden casing, whereby the Bowden casing-end supported at the housing by way of a connecting member and the cable drum are displaceably supported relative to one another in the direction of the drum axis in such a manner that with a rotation of the cable drum the instantaneous cable starting point of the cable section at the drum always assumes essentially the axial position. In order to achieve this displaceability with simple structural means, the respective connecting member is movably supported at the housing essentially parallel to the drum axis. The cable takes along the respective connecting member during a cable drum rotation.