Maytag MAVT446AWW does not spin.

[DIY-Repair]

I have a Maytag MAVT446AWW Washing Machine.  I have been reading a lot on your posts about issues folks have been having that are similar to mine.  The unit will agitate and actually when it hits the spin cycle the agitator will turn and if I puch on the agitator top I can get the unit to begin to spin.  It will however stop from time to time and then sometimes restart, especially if I push on the agitator again.  I tried rotating the drum pulley in both directions and the center agitator shaft turns in both directions.  I do not see the four bolt flange which the drum mounts to turning in either direction (forgot to say I have the drum out currently).  Any thoughts?  Is it the dreaded thrust bearing setup?  Hoping not a transmission or motor.

[Repair-man]

You sure it's not just a lid switch problem?

We approach this by replacing the thrust bearing kit first, since it is less than $31. Why would you think the thrust bearing is difficult? It is a 10-minute job (unless you are JW)

The kit is shown below and has the correct instructions in the package. If it does not work, then you can throw a tranny in there and make it a new machine again.

Thrust bearing- click

[JWWebster]

Drive Pulley and Cam Removal

The Drive Pulley and Cam are located below the Brake
assembly on the drive shaft. A Washer and Retaining
Ring secure the Pulley and Cam on the drive shaft.
A plastic Dust Cap snaps to the underside of the Pulley to
keep the Cam surfaces clean. These components can
be removed by tipping the Washer back to access
bottom side of unit.
1. Disconnect power supply to unit.
2. Remove (pry off) Dust Cap from under side of pulley.
3. Remove Retaining Ring and Washer from end of
drive shaft.
4. Firmly pull Lower Cam off of the drive shaft splines,
then slide the other parts off of the shaft.
Models
Models are equipped with a plastic Drive Pulley which has
the upper Cam molded onto the bottom of the Hub. The
purpose of the Pulley and Cam arrangement is to drive the
Clutch assembly during the agitate and spin cycle, and to
disengage the Brake assembly during the spin cycle.
The Drive Pulley slips over the drive shaft and rests
against a series of Washers, a Thrust Bearing, and a
large washer type Spacer. The Spacer locates against
the bottom of the Brake Rotor and Lining assembly. The
Lower Cam slips over the end of the drive shaft where
splines formed in the Cam engage with mating splines
on the drive shaft end. This imparts a direct drive from
the Cam to the drive shaft. A shoulder molded on the
bottom of the Pulley hub engages "dogs" formed on the
sides of the Lower Cam, and will drive it and the drive
shaft in either direction.
Installing Thrust Bearing
1. Thrust Bearing and Spacer are to be assembled first with the humped side towards the pulley.
2. Apply a thin layer of grease between the contacting
surfaces of the Lower Cam and the Drive Pulley.
To Check Brake Disengagement
1. Manually rotate the Drive Pulley in a slow counterclockwise
direction until the Brake starts to release
and the Transmission begins to turn.
2. Position the “Reference Cam Arrow” midway between
the “Min Pulley Hub Reference” and the “Max
Pulley Hub Reference” markers located on the
Pulley.
If the position of the Cam Arrow to the Pulley Hub is not
within these parameters adjustment is required.

To Adjust Brake Disengagement
1. If the position of the Cam Reference Arrow is less
than the Min Pulley Hub reference mark, remove
the standard (.062 thickness) Thrust Washer and
replace it with a thinner (.032 thickness) Thrust
Washer. Recheck disengagement 3 times to verify
proper adjustment.
2. If the position of the Cam Reference Arrow is more
than the Max Pulley Hub reference mark, add a
(.032 thickness) Thrust Washer to the standard
Thrust Washer. Recheck disengagement 3 times to
verify proper adjustment.

TIP: About excessive vibrations:
 Grab the washer on the diagonals and give it a shake,
any movement at all and a maytag top loader will
 shake, shimmy, and dance across the floor.

[DIY-Repair]

Repair-man,

Now you've got me asking questions.  Wouldn't a lid switch issue cause the unit not to work at all?  When the drum stops rotating when I do get it to spin by pushing on the agitator, the motor and agitator continues to run.  Or would lid switch cause the motor to turn one direction and not the other?  I am going to check again, but I am not sure the motor is turning different directions during different phases of the cycles (ie. wash, rinse, spin).  However, I did try turning the drive pulley on the transmission both directions and the agitator shaft turned both directions, but the four bolt flange the drum mounts to did not turn at all.  I am assuming the brake is not releasing, but maybe something else is causing the issue?  Thoughts?  I am not really wanting to change parts for change sake, but just trying to understand the mechanics of it all.  The drum is tough to turn by hand from the topside, but again I assume that is due to the brake.  I also assume that the agitator turns one direction during the wash cycle and then the agitator should not turn the same direction during the spin cycle, but maybe that is not correct?  Thoughts?  Again any assistance is appreciated.  Could it be the upper seal too tight on the shaft?  Again I can not see the four bolt flange turn at all when I operate in wash or spin cycle.  Thougths?

[niobrara]

The guy knows his stuff,install the thrust kit.

[DIY-Repair]

Took advice and not sure I got everything right.  Installed the new bearing, pulley, cam, took endplay out of the drive shaft using a screwdriver.  Originally installed the .032 washer and the indicator arrow on the cam was below the minimum indicator line on the pulley when the agitator was moving.  Took the .032 washer out and the indicator on the cam was between the indicator lines on the pulley.  There was a lot of play in the pulley assembly so feared it is not correct.  Tested the washer and in the spin cycle it agitated and tub did not spin.  Any thoughts on next steps?

[JWWebster]

Add a washer if it won't spin take away a washer if the tub turns freely

[JWWebster]

Here is a nice pictoral from Sir Sammy's Fixit now

Maytag washer notes

[DIY-Repair]

Finally was able to figure out a method to get the E-clip on with the thrust washers.  Thanks for the great photo layout.  Tried all combinations and decided on the .062 washer.  However, with the .062 washer and turning the pulley counterclockwise I could never get the indicator arrow to go between the indicator lines on the pulley.  I could not get the indicator arrow to move to between the indicator lines with any combination.  Seems like the transmission is so easy that it moves and there is too much resistance for the tub to move.  When I tried both the .062 and .032 washers the drum would move freely, but the indicator arrow still never moved to between the indicator lines on the pulley.  The arrow was always outside the lines on the minimum side.  Took it for a test ride and acts the same way as it was.  The agitator moves and the drum does not consistently move.  I did see it spin on one drain cycle, but then it did not spin on the actually final spin cycle in that sequence.  Any thoughts are appreciated?

[JWWebster]

Add another washer. It has been my experience if that eclip is easy to go on you ain't got it right. It is a booger bear to get on there. I use a claw tool to gently release the brake so I can get the clip back on with the right number of washers. Like I said. Too many and the tub turns freely not enough and it won't spin.

[Repair-man]

You are now ready for the hi-torque transmission kit if you want this machine to work properly. You have tried the thrust kit to little avail (the tolerances of those washers, indicators, etc. are NOT that crucial). It should have spun strongly right off the bat if it was anything but a tranny problem.

21001867 Hi Torque Transmission- click