7MMSE7999TW0 Maytag Washer - Instructions

researched potential causes, found cluch dust under the washer and determined that it wouldn't engage because clutch was too worn. ordered the assembly, removed agitator from inside the tub as it is connected to the gear shaft, turned washer on it's back for access to motor, unattached the direct drive water pump from the motor drive, unbolted the 3 gearcase mounting bolts and took the entire gearcase, shaft, motor, etc... together, out from under the washtub. the clutch slides off the gearshaft with a little fidgeting and the new assembly is easily installed where the previous was. put everything back together... then... spin spin! worked perfectly

I removed the two screws on the back of the control panel. The control panel then flips back. The switch is on the left side. To remove the switch, I first detached the wire to the control panel and unscrewed the grounding wire. The new switch drops right in. I had a little trouble getting it in until I realized the washer lid had to be open. A little awkward but once it's in you can shut the lid and then I reattached the wire from the control panel and screwed in the grounding wire. Pretty easy. $20 for the part (with shipping) and 15 minutes. Way cheaper than a repairman.

Diagnosing the problem was the toughest part. I originally called a repair man - described to him the problem and he said it was most likely the transmission (gearbox)... of course that is one of the most expensive parts! I asked him if it was maybe the clutch... he said there was no clutch.. only a brake... I knew he was wrong after researching. The fact that the washer would agitate fine and spin very light loads but not spin anything heavy told me it was NOT the gearbox.. or the brake.. it was the clutch.. it had to be... so I called the repair man and canceled the appointment I had made then ordered the clutch assembly. Showed up very quickly. Now to the repair. I realized that I did not have to take apart the cabinet section of the washer.. I only needed access to the bottom. My washer - a 5 year old Whirlpool Gold Ultimate Care II had just a piece of foam blocking off the bottom of the washer... Easy access... I disconnected the hot and cold water and the drain tube. I removed the hot and cold water tubes from the back of the washer also so they would not get crushed when I laid the machine on its back. I unplugged the washer also. The drain tube I left connected to the washer.. I was afaid of it getting crushed while on its back, so I bunched up a large towel put it on the floor and tilted the washer slowly back onto it... the towel was enough of a spacer to keep the drain hose from getting crushed. I used a couple pieces of Duct Tape to hold the lid shut while on its back. I then removed the foam insert on the bottom. Then I unplugged the wiring harness. and a single wire that had a spade connector in the same area. I then removed the clips from the plastic water pump and slid it off the motor (I used Duct Tape again to suspend the water pump up and out of my way while I proceeded) I did NOT have to remove the motor from the gearbox. I used a socket wrench and unbolted the 3 gearbox bolts. I was able to take the whole unit, gearbox and motor out in one piece.. it slid right out (you will have to unscrew the the bolt in the top of the agitator/dispenser shaft - then the gearbox unit with the shaft will slide right out, I did this before I put the washer on it's back) Once it was slid out, I removed the clutch then reinstalled the same way I took it off. The only hard part was the circular wire retainer install for the clutch. It CAN all be done .. I ended up using 2 screwdrivers to put the new retaining ring into the new clutch assembly.. One screwdriver would hold down part of the retaining ring and the other I used to continue pushing the ring into place.. don't give up! You will get it in.. even with normal tools (This was the hardest part of the whole install) It took me 5 minutes with some force and fiddling. I also swapped in the new plastic piece that came with the clutch assembly... you will see where it goes... the old plastic piece looked fine, but I changed it out anyways - it hooks the clutch to the brake system it looks like. After the new clutch assembly was installed I just put it all back together the way I took it apart. One thing I will add was I was not sure if the clutch had to be lined up when I slid the shaft back into the washer.. It does not have to be.. It will align itself automatically. You know when you hear that click/pop when the washer is about to spin?.. well that is that plastic piece engaging with the clutch... there was a piece or two that fell off the shaft when I had removed it.. While sliding the shaft back into the washer I had to just put the pieces back on the shaft before I put the bolt back into the top of the agitator/shaft...

Summary:
Get the washer on its back - unplugged!
remove wire(s) Harness from motor
remove water pump
unbolt 3 bolts holding the gearbox
slide gearbox and motor out as one piece ( a bit heavy)
remove and replace clutch assembly (pay attention to how things are removed)

Done! put it all back together... hope that helps. It worked perfect for me.. and m

I have to admit that before attempting to replace the clutch, I had no clue how to do it. With the help of the diagram of the parts, I was able to access from the internet at PartSelect.com. I felt comfortable enough to attempt the repair because the diagram was easy to read and accurate.

Everything had to be accessed from the bottom of the machine. I tipped the machine backwards enough get under it. To replace the clutch, I had to remove the motor drive. To do so, I disconnected the electrial to the drive motor by simply unconnecting the quick connect harness. I then removed two screws from the two retainer brackets located one on top and one on the bottom. Once this was done the motor drive simply dropped down. I then removed the three bolts holding the gear case to the tub. I had to remove one bolt from inside the tub underneath the fabric softner dispenser. Once this was done the gear case slid out. The clutch sit on top of the gear case. I then simply removed the old clutch and installed the new clutch by reversing the process. The only real difficulty that I had was with the retainer ring. Once done, I reinstalled the gear case and motor drive. I would suggest replacing the direct-drive coupling at this time. I had earlier replaced the coupling hoping to solve the problem. The coupling was redesigned and is more likely to last longer than the orginal coupling.

To replace the inlet solenoid valve/thermistor assembly:
Unplug the washer.
Turn the water off and unscrew the hoses from the inlet.
Unsnap the end caps from the top control panel.
Remove the exposed screws from each end of the panel (#2 Phillips).
Pull the panel out of the way and pop out the two retaining clips that hold the back of the machine to the cabinet. They are located under the control panel.
Remove the mounting screw from the valve assembly (1/4-inch driver).
Pull the back away from the cabinet far enough to remove the valve, but don't let the wires get cut.
Disconnect the wires. To unplug the solenoid connectors, lift the long tab with a screwdriver.
Disconnect the water outlet hose.
Connect the wires and hose to the new valve assembly. The red connector goes to the hot water valve. The thermistor wires (the two individual connectors) can be connected to either terminal. It does not matter if they are reversed.
Put the valve back in place and install the screw.
Hook up and turn the water on.
Plug in the machine and test the valve.
Unplug the power and reinstall the back and the control panel. The back-to-cabinet clips can be snapped back in place easily.

Remove the washing machine cabinet. Use a large flat head screwdriver to pry/wedge the tub suspension apart and gain access to the pad locations one at a time. My old pads were completely gone, so there was no need to remove them. Clip the new pads into place and re-install the cabinet.

This completely solved the violent chaking problem. There was no need to replace springs.

Unplug washing machine from electrical outlet. Remove two screws that go at a 45 degree angle into the top of washer from behind control panel. Pull panel console towards you and then up. unplug lid switch from wire harness. It's in upper left corner of the washer. A little awkward but lid must be open. pull switch up from top of washer. insert new one, it just clips in, then plug back into harness. Re mount control console and you are done.

Frist I disconnected the water lines and power cord. Then I leaned the washer back against the wall. Removed the 2 pump retainers and then the pump. Next removed the 2 screws from the motor retainers and pulled off the retainers and motor. Then removed the 3 bolts from the Gear case. Then removed the cap from the top of the agitator with a flat screw driver. Then removed the bolt from the top of the gear shaft. and removed the auger and agitator assembly. Then removed the gear case from the washer. Next removed the slip ring and then the clutch from the top of the gear case. Next removed the 1/4" screws from cover of gear case and removed the cover. Found the top gear bad. Ordered the new gear and pinion kit. Couldn't find any part #'s to match what PartSelect had. Ordered the gear that they should that fit most washers. The pics they had up looked the same as the one that was bad. Had the new gear in 3 days put it back together and it still wouldn't work right. Took it apart again and looked at it and found a small clip on the bottom side of the gear was upside down. Fliped it over put the gear back in and ran the washer with the gear case out and it worked. Put it back together again. And learned a good lesson always watch how you take things apart for when it's time to put it back together!

Part Select provided the problem determination information and the video on how to install the replacement parts. I ran into one problem, I could not remove the lock nut to remove the inter and outer tub. I should have bought the special wrench for $14, no local DYI or hardware store had the wrench. So, after examination I used a large screwdriver and wood block to lift the tubs up just enough to remove the old pads and replace with the new. The old pads showed only a wear, but was enough to spin the tubs off balance. The new tabs made the washing machine work like new. New washer $500, repair man $150, parts and information from Part Select $20 bucks, priceless.

Removed the washing machine from the wall and found a broken spring on the floor. Began disassembling the unit before accessing your sight. (Later I viewed your video of the more simple dis assembly).Used your parts breakdown to identify the 6 parts I needed (3 springs and 3 retainers),and ordered them. They arrived on time and as per the video, installed them with ease and reassembled the unit. My wife is very happy. Thank you, Rusty

This product comes in a bottle with a brush like Liquid Paper. It goes on incredibly easy. A second coat might be needed. I wanted to prevent rust from setting in so I covered the scratches and dings. The paint is a little brighter since my washer is 10 years old but it still looks great.

First I turned off the water and unplugged the washer from the outlet. I took the two screws off the console and turned it up to undo the clips that hold the cabinet to the back. I took out the 2 phillips screws at the top corners of the back. I was then able to pull cabinet off and not have to remove the console, but carefully slid it to the side, as ther wires were still attached.
Pried off agitator cap & reached into agitator to pry out another cap to access 7/16 bolt. Checked over the agitator parts for wear (dogs) Took agitator, top outer (white) and inner (brown) tub rings off.
Sprayed lots of liqid wrench around spanner nut and drive block and gave it time to work. Used spanner tool to get spanner nut off. Hard work. Pounded and pounded and pounded and pounded with hammer. It gave a tiny bit. Then I got an idea: I pounded it back the other way, as you would to tighten. This helped. I then pounded back the other way and did this again. It worked amazingly well.
Got to drive block and it was rusted out along the bottom and also hard to get off. The diagram showed a "lock" (horseshoe shaped thing) on top of it, but mine was all in one piece but I couldn't tell that. I sprayed and pryed and pounded from the bottom and it split in half. It needed to be replaced anyway.
The inner tub was also hard to get out and I used some dish liquid. I pushed down, (using the rags here, the edges can cut you). I twisted, I pulled. I pushed, I pulled, I cussed, and begged. I then went to bed and then next day I pushed backwards and forwards and side to side & finally it came off. Then I undid the brackets on the bottom of the outer tub along the bottom and disconnected the clear hose in back. When loosening the black hose clamp in front to the pump, water started to come out of the hose so I grabbed a cool whip container to catch it. It smelled yucky. Once I had the outer tub off I put the new seal in, using some plumber's grease to help get ithe tub over the shaft..Then I hooked up the hoses & brackets on the bottom of the outer tub. I cleaned out the outer tub, as there was crud in the bottom. Then I poured about 5 gallons of water in it to see if the seal was set in right. Make sure the drain hose hasn't fallen out! (You can leave this water in the tub, you'll find out why) I cleaned up the rust on tube of the inner tub with steel wool and inspected everything else. Something didn't look quite right about the outer shaft that goes around the spin tube. It looked like something should go there. I discovered there SHOULD have been a seal there but one was never put in. So I put one in. I used a little grease to help put the new drive block on, and tightened the spanner nut with the spanner wrench. I put everything else back on EXCEPT for the cabinet-with the console attached. Ha Ha All the other directions I read wrote to take the console off first. If I had done that I wouldn't have been able to do the most important part of the job: testing the result. I finished filling the tub to the lowest water level to watch it go thru it's cycles and checked for leaks. If the console was "flopped over" the back how can you check? (I don't play with wiring)
I turned off the water & unplugged the washer and slid the cabinet on.. I tipped the console back to access the large gold squiggly brackets that hold the cabinet to the back and reattached them to the back, by removing them, hooking them onto the back, and snapping them into place. I double-DOUBLE checked to see if anything had come loose, then slid the console first on top of the back and put the two screws back in. The screws on my machine are not covered up by the end caps, but they are at a wierd angle, so I held the console up slighly and started the screws first. As they tightened down the console slid into the holes on the cabinet.
There is a small sppliance shop in my town & the guy loaned me the spanner wrench. It was very nice of him.I guess I will have to give his & his famil

Although your website mentioned removing 2 screws to open the control panel, it took a while to realize there were 2 screws and 2 hex nut screws to open it followed by 15 minutes of efforts to release the control panel from the top of the washer by sliding it forward. After that it took 2 minutes to replace the switch; the web comment of keeping the lid open was helpful.
Unfortunately, the lid switch was not the problem; replacing the timer did the trick, was very easy with the control panel already opened and required the purchase of 1/4 and 3/16 hex nut drivers.
Parts, shipping and tools cost $110 but the success of the repair with your parts and advice was priceless.

Unbalanced load was creating a knocking sound (as if the clothes load was unbalanced). Dismantled the washer to find that one brackets had rusted out. [FYI: 3 bracket at 120 degree apart (for the 360 degree circle)]. I found that the hole (on the bracket) where the spring holds was gone. Purchased parts. Replaced them (spring, bracket, screw). Reassembled washer then ran wash for a cycle. Successful fix.

First I removed the two screws holding the main controller located on the back. I then slide forward the hole controller and I pulled out. Disconnected switch located on your left. (remember to place down washing machine lid before installing the new switch.)