That was my grandmother's machine in Brooklyn (Bensonhurst). What killed it for her was a crack in one of the hose connectors underneath. She combed all 5 boroughs and could not find any dealer or parts store that could/would help her. When I visited her and would wash, I would always transfer the load from the wash basin to the extractor each time the machine would go into drain (after wash and after each rinse).
The impeller does reverse, but there is a long period of agitation before the direction change and it really gets up to an impressive speed. Often times I thought the machine would tip over as the load got "out of balance" while washing. The water would also ride pretty high up the sides.