What can you tell me about this Whirlpool washer, please?

[revvinkevin]

I just brought this home about 3 hours ago, I assume it's 1990's something. I've tested it and everything seems to work (so far) except the "auger" ratchet / clutch / mechanism is worn out.

I'd like to know the year and if it was a MOL or TOL model please. I believe it's new enough to be a direct drive machine, but I don't know anything about them.

Thank you in advance for your help!
Kevin

 

[revvinkevin]

The "dash"...

.

 

[revvinkevin]

and the data plate...

.

 

[volvoguy87]

Direct Drive.

You will need new agitator dogs. They are cheap and pretty easy to install. Then your agitator should be fully functional.

Dave

 

[DADoES]

1988 model release. Manufactured 15th week of 1989. Far as I'm aware, Kenmore had exclusive use of the auger-type agitator until a while after belt-drive was discontinued so any Whirlpool machine with it is direct-drive.

 

[alr2903]

now thats a good camera!!!!!

Kevin, the pictures are so clear, in the first pic, you can see the speckle and the perforations in the drum of your new Kenmore F/L machine. Pretty amazing since you were photographing the whirly. arthur/alr2903

 

[tuthill]

My grandma had a machine very much like this! I thought it was the coolest machine in the world lol. I'd say this is MOL cuz I remember her's had some more water temp options and what not. Nice looking machine.

 

[vintagesearch]

wow i never seen older model whirlpool washer with a extra rinse option cool.

 

[appnut]

Kevin, this was an upper end model. This was probably the next to last year or two before they ended the ot wash/warm rinse combination.

 

[revvinkevin]

Thank you all!

Thank you for all of the information guys!

Now I know it was built in 1989, is direct drive, a middle / upper end model but not TOL.
If any of you have more information or comments, please jump in!

I am surprised this Whirly has such a short, fast stroke, it looks like it's less then a quarter of a rotation!!

DAVE (Volvoguy87). Do you know if the agitator dogs are the same for all auger type agitators in the Whirlpool/Kenmore lines? I should be able to go to Sears to pick them up, yes?

I STILL can't believe that I even have a washing machine "collection" and I'm amazed it's growing SO FAST!!! I am picking up ANOTHER washer later this morning AND... in about 2 weeks I will be bringing home a nice White-Westinghouse FL stacked set! But you know the best part about all of these?? They are ALL FREE!!!

ARTHUR (arl2903) Thanks, I really like my new camera! It's a Nikon D40 Digital SLR (single lens reflex). I wanted to get camera with better quality and more importantly, superior optics to a "point & shoot" pocket camera. I bought it last April using Bush's "stimulus rebate check".

 

[whirlcool]

I also have a Nikon D40 and I am very happy with it as well. It takes great photos plus has tons of options on it.

I had the agitator problem on our Whirlpool DD machine. There is a kit sold by repairclinic.com that is an agitator overhaul kit. It costs about $25.00 including shipping. It is a very easy job, all you need to do is to remove the agitator. No need to open the machine up or anything like that. I took my time and the total time to fix was something like 20 minutes.
I think ours broke because Karen was using the top of the agitator to mix the detergent in the water by turning the top manually back and forth before the bottom part started agitating.

 

[DADoES]

The little dogs are the same, but there are different repair kits due to some design changes to other pieces of the auger drive on the agitators over time. The one I bought online (I *did* reference the correct model #) for my KA wasn't quite right, so I had to reuse a couple old pieces that weren't worn.

The web designer friend I work with gave her husband a D40 as a Christmas gift. I used it recently when we did pictures of jewelry for a site. It surely is a nice piece.

 

[alr2903]

Thanks for the camera info, you guys are better than CU, for product reviews. i like to get a "real world" opinion, so i don't end up with junk. arthur

 

[tbolt25]

nice washer

That is a nice older-model direct drive Whirlpool washer there!

 

[toggleswitch2]

When I lived in a multiple-dwellign apartmetns building, the laundry room had a screw connecting the top and bottom portions of the agitator, in that the "DAWGS" were forever breaking down and the repair service tired of repairing/replacing them. I'm guesing thse machiens were routinely and severely overloaded.

I did a similar thing to repair the agitator by shoving a piece of a clothes-pin into the ratchet mechanism, locking the two pieces of the agitator (cork-screw auger and lower fins) together to get the top portion moving again.

 

[kenmoreguy64]

The worn agitator dogs seen to be a VERY common problem. Using the agitator to dissolve detergent is a common thing to do and probably did wear them a bit faster, but they would have worn out eventually anyway I think. I don't have a lot of experience with Direct Drive machines, but work on them for friends at times and I've done a number of these. With that ratio I'd guess that they go bad A LOT. I think it's the fast stroke transmission that causes so many "engage-dissengage" grips by the auger that it wears the dogs very fast as compared to the older belt-drive version.

I can tell you in a bit how many models there were ahead of this machine, but I remember this on display at Lowes in 1990 and it was their best Whirlpool washer. The first version of it had the regular Surgilator without the auger. The infinite water level and the second rinse put it pretty high toward the TOL.

Did that machine come out of a moist environment? I have not seen rusty tops on DDs very often (again I don't have a lot of exposure to them).

G

 

[revvinkevin]

Did that machine come out of a moist environment?

I don't think so, but I don't know for sure either. I would assume it's been here in So Cal since new.

Do you know if I could swap agitators in this washer? You know, install one of the other Whirlpool or Kenmore agitators (can't think of the names right now...). But then depending on the design it may not work so well with the short fast stroke. Buy hey, it would be fun to try them out anyway!

 

[kenmoreguy64]

Do you know if I could swap agitators in this washer?

You can put other direct drive agitators in it, I think they're more or less interchangeable, however the older belt-drive agitators will not work as they require taller agitator shafts.

I would also question how long the short-stroke transmission could put up with the drag that a belt-drive agitator would put on it with their larger vanes, etc. That would be an interesting test should one of us figure out a way to make a shaft extension or swap in a taller agitator shaft.

 

[autowasherfreak]

A friend of mine has a Whirlpool DD that needs new dogs, I told her they were inexpensive to buy, and that I could probably replace them for her. Just how easy are they to replace, and do they come with instructions on how to replace them.

Jim