These did use the stepped-down agitation speeds - three speed motor runs on medium speed for "normal" agitation, high speed for drain and fast spin and lowest motor speed for low agitate. I love the wash-action of these three speed, larger agitator machines. The earlier KitchenAid washers didn't utilize this speed profile, they had the standard WP/KM agitator (in blue) and had the same strokes/min on normal and low speeds as their WP & KM counterparts. The very earliest KA washers (1986-87) didn't have the auger agitators, they used the straight-vane version (also in blue) that Whirlpool used until the Kenmore rights to the DAA were up in 87-88 or so (?)
My pushbutton rapid-advance control Kitchen Aid never came in a three-speed version, two speed only with smaller agitator (base) and speed selections. When I put that machine back into use again someday, I'm going to try to convert it to a three speed machine w/the larger agitator as I have couple of the KA "Gold Seal" motors around I saved out of other KA's.