On my GE Dryer, when I set the timer to Cottons or Easy Care, the timer does not advance. When I set it to timed dry, however, it does advance. There is no humidity sensor in this unit. I have checked that the venting is ok, and the heating element does turn on - I can see its hot glow behind the steel plate. Could my thermostat be at fault or is this a timer issue - is it possible for the timed dry to work and the Cotton/EasyCare settings not to work?

I have heard that this could also be caused by a faulty thermostat. If so, how do I check and see which of the 3 thermostats in this unit could be faulty? Could a faulty thermostat be the cause of the timer not advancing on the Cotton and Easy Care settings?

Is the whole timer going to die soon, and should I replace it, or can I live with just timed dry indefinitely?

I have provisionally ordered the timer - part number WE4M284 - from you; it is on back order but I could still change if you think the problem is the thermostat (I guy I spoke to around here said that GE timers rarely go bad and that it could be heating element, vent problem, or thermostat)

Thank you for your best advice and judgment - I understand that no definitive statement is possible without actually looking into the machine
Manfred

Here are your parts
Replacement parts for General Electric DJXR433EC1CC Electric dryer | AppliancePartsPros.com

Here is a good site with some dryer info
http://www.applianceaid.com/dryers.html

Take a look in the GE section, sample wiring diagrams, Newer electric GE.
I think this is probably close to yours as you also have a 4 wire cycling thermostat.
GE likes to keep all tech info a secret so I cannot be sure.
Take a look at the back of the unit in case the wiring diagram is there. Also they like to store them in the control console.

Now on to your problem.

In timed dry modes the timer motor gets power directly from one side of the line through the TT/TX timer contacts.
In an Auto mode it gets power though the outer heating coil when the coil is shut off. The 4,500 ohm resistor drops this 240 volt power down to the 120 volts required by the timer motor.

Perhaps the resistor is open.
If the heater does not shut off then the timer will not advance.
This could be the cycling thermostat, could also be a grounded element, perhaps the timer.