$675 was just for the CCU part + labor. He told me there was no guarantee that would fix it, and if it didn't then it would be $200 more for the MCU part + labor. So that would be a grand total of $875! Ouch. Too much to spend to fix a $1100-$1200 washer.

Okay, so I will try one more thing and then I'll just give up and order the CCU.

I believe this is the part I need.

BTW thanks for the replies!

Based on other info I've found on the web, here's what I tried today.

I added a thin layer of solder to the connector pads on the top & bottom of the CCU board, just in case I was getting a bad connection from one of the plugs.

I de-soldered the two white relays (the only 2 on there) and popped their caps off. The leftmost one was clean, the rightmost one had darkened contacts on the inside. I cleaned it up with some very fine grit sandpaper, then swapped their positions and reinstalled them (so the cleaner one was in the rightmost door-locking spot). Then I touched up the soldering on the rightmost relay (next to the board edge) since some folks have had it's connections come loose with vibration. I looked around for any obviously bad solder joints but none caught my eye, but I do not have a magnifying glass..

I hooked it all up and started a "quick wash" cycle. The door locks fine and some water flowed in, but after about a minute I started getting the F11 error, same as before. Aargh.

I fired up the self test, and from C:00 I was able to skip everything up to C:05, at which time it gave me the F11 error.

Okay, I guess I will now give up & order the part. :mad:
I hope a new CCU solves my problem!

*sigh*

Well replacing the CCU didn't fix anything. I still get the F11 error code when I try to start a load.

So I started playing around with the diagnostic test, and tried skipping to each stage after turning off the washer and then restarting the diagnostic test mode (control on, drain/spin cycle, select NO SPIN, press prewash button 4 times). Here's what I found:

1) If I let it do it's thing, the door locks at stage C:00, then goes C:01 and fills some water. Then I get F-11
2) If I skip to C:02 stage (press prewash twice to skip a stage), the dispenser kicks in and I can see the little arm on the dispenser move a bit, then F-11
3) skip to C:03, water is turned on (I guess hot water), then it stops and F-11
4) Doesn't do anything, gives F-11 after a pause. This is supposed to rotate the basket.
5) C:05 looks like I didn't test this one.
6) C:06 Drain pump turns on and drains out my water, then F-11
7) C:07 & C:08 both do nothing and go straight to F-11. Both are supposed to rotate the basket.

So stage C:04, C:07 and C:08 say that I should check my "motor, mcu control" actuators. How do I do that? I guess this means I need either a new MCU or motor? And if so, how do I verify which one is the problem? There's not a hidden fuse down there that could have blown is there?

The MCU looks like it is difficult to get out - it has a shock absorber in the way and has the cables connected to it with what looks like a one-time-use cable tie. Any hints on checking it?

It makes me nervous that I get the F-11 after each successful diagnostic test completes. Does the CCU talk to the MCU in between each test? Or is this indicitive of some other problem in my wiring or another part?

Thanks!

I removed the "serial comm link" and "MCU power" connectors from both the CCU & MCU and verified continuity through them with my multimeter. Then I bent down the connectors in them a bit to ensure a tight clamp on the pads on the boards and reconnected them.

I unplugged the motor connector from the motor and checked the resistance of the motor windings (1 to 2, 1 to 3, 2 to 3) and they were all a correct 6 ohms. I'm hoping this means the motor is fine.

I hooked everything back up and reran the diagnostic tests. It still fails on C:04, C:07 and C:08, going directly to an F-11 error without any motor activity. I will try to remove the MCU tonight and take the board out for a visual inspection. I'm hoping to see a burst capacitor or something else that is obvious.

So are there any other checks I can make on the MCU/motor? Is there any way to force power to the motor to verify that it will run? Or should I just give up and order the MCU at this point?


Thanks,

Well I finally got the MCU out, and sure enough there's a bunch of resistors that apparently went kablooey. One looks like it exploded and a bunch of others are all charred looking on their tops. Whoops. I guess this is what can happen if the motor is engaged when the power goes out!

Here's a closeup pic of it

and here's a zoomed out shot of the same pic

and another shot

I wish I'd checked this before ordering the CCU (and taking my old one apart). So I guess I am in need of a new MCU, and I'll have to hope nothing else is broken on the washer that will cause the new one to blow up as well.