Maytag Atlantis Timer or Transmission?

[tagm]

Hi All, I would really appreciate some advise on this. I have a Maytag Atlantis MAV7600AWW washer which has the following symptoms:

i) In Wash mode (Normal/Colors), the Agitator sometimes agitates. On occasions when it is not agitating, the machine still makes sounds (guessing belt and motor are running)
ii) When it is Draining, the agitator is agitating (is this normal?). Also, the drum spins for about a minute and then stops (the agitation and draining continues).
iii) In Spin mode, it does the same thing as when it is Draining. So, the agitator is agitating. The drum spins for about a minute and then stops (the agitation and draining continues).

I'm looking for some advise on the following..
1) Is this an issue with the timer or transmission? I've been told it is likely the transmission.
2) I've looked and not been able to find a transmission (35-6615?) at a reasonable price. It shows discontinued from what i can tell. Anyone know of a source?
3) Is this worth fixing or is it time for a new washer?

Thanks for reading this far and appreciate any advise.

 

[thatwasherguy]

Welcome to the forum!

I had an Atlantis about a year ago that exhibited those exact symptoms, and the transmission was the culprit. The pinion gear is a known weak link in these machines, as it has small plastic tabs on the side of it that slot into a set of grooves to lock up the transmission when the motor reverses for spin. When those tabs break off, they exhibit those exact symptoms. The gear is available on Amazon and Ebay (part # 20234), but taking the machine apart to replace it is a chore. However, its not really any more difficult than replacing the transmission. Used transmissions are available on Ebay. However, I would strongly recommend replacing the pinion gear in any of these as well, given how prone they are to failing. If you decide to go either route, plan on replacing your tub seal as well, as it’s likely going to get destroyed in the removal process. You’ll have to buy an aftermarket one, as OEM’s are NLA. I used one from Amazon with a two year warranty. I keep up with some relatives of the machine’s new owner, and it has yet to give them any trouble.

Hope this helps,
Thatwasherguy.

 

[tagm]

@thatwasherguy Thanks for sharing your experience... definitely very helpful!

Regarding the pinion gear, i briefly youtubed it. If there is a guide you'd recommend, please do share. Any tips on this replacement? e.g. how long it took, special tools needed, things to look out for, etc.

The part about tub seal was something i had not considered and will have to look in to. I see several on Amazon.. did you get the one from "Whole Parts" for $83.80?

Once again, very much appreciate the guidance!

 

[thatwasherguy]

There are several videos on YouTube covering the pinion gear replacement. I’ve linked one of them. Technically, the tub seal requires a couple of special wrenches to remove it, but I was able to get away with using set of vice grips. The worst part of the job is removing and reinstalling the six suspension springs, so I would highly recommend either buying a spring stretcher, or finding some way of keeping them under tension while you work on the machine. The E-clip for the lug on the transmission pulley is quite irritating to deal with as well. The only other big thing I can think of is the spring for the brake assembly. It is under about 200 lbs of tension, and must be removed in order to remove the transmission. To safely do this, I took out one screw at a time, and replaced each one with a longer screw until they were all longer screws. I then loosened them up until the spring was no longer under tension. At that point, it can be safely removed. Other than that, it’s really not difficult, it’s just time consuming. It took me about a day to do the repair. The Whole Parts tub seal was indeed the one I used. It seemed like a decent quality part to me, and it’s been working fine for about 9 months so far now.

 

[thatwasherguy]

Part 2…

 

[thatwasherguy]

And the process for disassembling the rest of the machine.


Hope this helps,
Thatwasherguy.

 

[d-todd]

A few years ago, maybe during Covid, I did a MAV transmission replacement. While I was able to get the transmission, I couldn't get OEM bolts. After going through that, for myself, I wouldn't attempt to do one again.