Kenmore washer not working

[Brett1]

I have a Kenmore 110.21102010 that is not working. I noticed that the transmission was making a loud sound while in the spin cycle. Last week I ran a small load and when I came back later to remove the cloths, I discovered that the were still soaking wet. The machine will no longer run. I ran the diagnostic and all the lights flash. I decided to purchase a used transmission/complete assembly still attached that is guarantee'd to work from eBay. I installed that and still nothing. It just clicks a couple of times and the lid lock flashes. The lid does lock so I don't think that's the issue. Capacitor maybe?? I'm scratching my head. Any ideas????  

[Hiroshi]

Have you located your tech booklet and run any diagnostic tests? "clicking" from this model is usually the sound of the shift actuator working (or trying to), if it unlocks after it's first load sensing movements, it is usually because the actuator tub sensor is bad...Part number: WPW10006355. 

[Brett1]

Thanks for the reply. Yes, I have the booklet. I ran the diagnostic, all lights flash 4 on 4 off. Nothing in the book about that. Now when I run the test, hot/cold water inlet works, spin seems to work but when it comes to agitate, it does seem to fail. 

[Brett1]

Also, when I changed out the transmission and components, I did run a recalibrate mode. Still nothing

[Hiroshi]

If I recall the Whirlpool tech class on this, the agitate is controlled by triacs on the main control board... if it will perform every action except agitate, I would lean toward replacing the board. Did a new shift actuator come with the components you mentioned changing along with the transmission?

[Brett1]

Everything was used but guaranteed to work. The unit I purchased came complete. Trans, motor, shift actuator etc. I thought maybe the drain was plugged, but during the test it worked as well. When you say "Board" do you mean the control board? That sounds expensive? I thought I might take a chance and replace the shift actuator mod and capacitor and see what happens. 

[Hiroshi]

Before buying more parts, I would watch the machine perform the auto test while you have it propped up, so you can see if the actuator shifts between agitate and spin positions... If the unit spins at high speed, it suggests the motor, capacitor, and the sensor in the actuator are OK. There are Remanufactured control boards at a site called Partsimple for $84, slightly less than the actuator and capacitor will run you... If it shifts into agitate, but just sits there without attempting to power the motor, I am thinking control board.

[Brett1]

Ok, I just got a chance to preform another test cycle. This is what happened, cold water opened the hot water opened, then I believe both open, the drain kicked on the quiet for about 15 sec. I did observe the actuator moving. Then about 4 hums, (it acted like it wanted to do something) then nothing.  It did not spin at all. I Never saw the main motor kick on. The lights that are on are wash rinse spin and lid lock is blinking.  What do you think?

[Brett1]

Checked the errors codes again, it's showing F7 E1. 

[Hiroshi]

F7 E1 is a basket speed sensor fault- the sensor is in the actuator... Part number: w10006355. This part has a high failure rate.

[Brett1]

Thank you again for all of the help! I really appreciate it. One more question, When I tried to run just the spin cycle, nothing happened. The wash,spin, cycle complete and lid lock just flashed. Same thing with the agitate cycle. Do you still think it could be the actuator stopping the motor? I do notice the actuator moving.

[Hiroshi]

Yes, most computer controls will just freeze operation or error code if any sensors are registering as bad, this is a safety feature to keep the motor from spinning out of control- or an oven from heating until the house burns down... The actuator sensor registers the motion of a marker on the spin tub in order to estimate how fast it is spinning...

[Brett1]

*Update* I fixed it! This is what I did. 1.  I removed the original shift actuator from the gear case ( remember I bought a complete assembly from eBay and installed it). I noticed that the plastic lens on the sensor was dirty and cleaned it with water and an old toothbrush.  2. The capacitor that came with the eBay unit was bad. You can see that it, at sometime, got so hot that it started to melt the splutch assembly. I removed the capacitor and reinstalled the original on the eBay gear case. The splutch assembly was new on my original gear case so I removed the old and reinstalled the original. Tipped it back up and plugged it in and "wall-ah" it came back to life. I think what happened to shut my machine down to begin with was that my transmission was wore out and the shift actuator sensor was dirty and could no longer read the speed. Then when I received the unit from eBay, the capacitor was blown out. So by swapping out parts between the two, I was fortunate enough to get it going again. It's been almost a week now and it's running great!  Thanks again for your willingness to help! I appreciate it.  Brett

[Hiroshi]

Glad to hear it, you are fully checked out on your washer now... You have performed just about every repair you can on that model- no more surprises left!