Frigidaire affinity Washing Machine FAFS4272LW0 Suspension Spring

[schwarz633]

My washing machine started vibrating very violently while in spin cycle. After I got it stopped and the door opened I observed that the boot was twisted. I got that off, cleaned up, and was going to put it back on, but then saw that the drum wasn't level or even front to back. Further investigation revealed that the right suspension spring had broken and one of the pins had come out of the left rear shock absorber. I ordered a new spring on Amazon for $45, wasn't available anywhere locally. Then I started to wonder about the shocks and took off the fronts and one of the rears. These are the original rectangular ones. The front ones have about 1/2" of backlash in them, so I'm thinking they need to be replaced. The rear one doesn't have any backlash, but the resistance is pretty light.

A pair of front OEM shocks is $142 and a pair of rear OEM shocks is $34 on Amazon. These are the cylindrical type. I'm wondering if I could use rears on the front and save a few $$. The mounting is the same front and rear, with a very small difference in the fully collapsed and fully extended dimensions. Why would the fronts be 4 times as expensive?

 

 

[Vance R]

3 hours ago, schwarz633 said:

Why would the fronts be 4 times as expensive?

No clue to why they are more expensive other than they can price them whatever the want. My guess is the damping rate and pressures are different front to back.