Maytag A806 Oil Leak

[marks]

I got the A806! I love it! However, it was loosing a little bit of oil, and I noticed it must have been doing this for a while, because it was spun out on the underside of the machine. It's leaking right from the centre screw. I took a picutre (sorry it was before I cleaned it all up, while taking it out of the car)
How should this be addressed?

As a side note, anyone selling a matching dryer? The back light on the machine is really cool!

 

[goatfarmer]

That repair entails pretty much rebuilding the transmission. I'd live with it.

 

[combo52]

A806 Oil Leak

There is supposed to be a black rubber cap over the screw, do you still have it?. A slight oil leak on an older MT Washer is almost normal, just clean everything up and keep using it. There is no way to check the oil level in the transmission and even if all the oil leaks out it will not destroy it but instead it will just seize up, if the oil leak is too bothersome you may want to consider replacing the complete transmission. You can still update this washer to the newer more effective orbital transmission and Load Sensor agitator to get better turnover and less clothing ware.

 

[marks]

ahhh ok... is there any way to refil the oil, so it doesn't go dry? I lived with a car that needed a quart of trans fluid a day... HA!

 

[marks]

What is a good source for parts? The spin does seem a little slow, but other than that it works well. It does have a load sensing agitator (4 holes in the side).

 

[redcarpetdrew]

The only way to add oil is to remove the transmission and open it up. At that point, you might as well rebuild it. The old style Helical transmission was just that fun to work on. As far as the agitator is concerned, you have the old style power fin agi. The load sensor agi that John mentioned is what the newer Dependable Care washers used. It's white and is actually two piece with a upper section that looks like a corkscrew or auger...

As far as not spinning well, I'd be looking at the motor carriage or belts. The motor rides on a carriage that is spring loaded so that it naturally keeps tension on the belts. Pull the front cover off to see this. The belts may be contaminated with oil or just plain worn out. Fresh belts come as a set now and are not bad in price.

Congrats on a nice machine. The matching dryers show up from time to time as they sometimes lasted longer than the washers. Just keep an eye out. You have some great fellow club members out there in New Jersey land and hopefully will make themselves known to you.

RCD

 

[marks]

How difficult is it to rebuild these? Are there parts needed, or just seals?

 

[DigAPony]

I'm in the middle of A806 (Sept 1967 vintage) trans rebuild right now, picked it up on Craigslist for $25. Turned out it needed just about everything. Hoses/belts were all dry rotted, motor glides were in pieces, outer tub had some rust spots and the oil leak of course. Fortunately, the agitator and stem nut came off easily and the rest of the machine is in good condition.

All the parts were purchased on Ebay or AppliancePartPros.com, local supplier prices were sky high. Came to a little over $100 so far, including the tub spanner wrench. Just need to get the proper gear oil, trans o-ring and start reassembly.

I do a lot of involved auto repairs so rebuilding a Maytag washer is relatively simple in comparison. However, it could be a challenge for someone without mechanical experience.

Here is a link for a Maytag helical drive trans rebuild:



http://www.automaticwasher.org/cgi-bin/TD/TD-VIEWTHREAD.cgi?38714