My Whirlpool washing machine won't spin in final cylcle. It does spin in the first cycles but there is a smell like the motor is getting hot. How do I remove the agitator to see if some clothing is tangled under it causing resistance ?( I do know that it is not the motor coupling.)

Jeff Stark, January 2006

If it spins in the first cycles, but not the last ones, then it certainly is not a clothing tangle. It sounds like a timer issue - the timer is not sending the motor the correct electrical signal to reverse and spin. Testing the timer is tedious - you have to check the timer diagram to see which switches in that cycle are closed, then, using a voltmeter, check that the timer is sending current out through the correct wires. This would verify that it's a timer issue, not something else.

Jack, January 2007