Hi,
Our 4 year-old Maytag Top-Loader is suddenly having an issue during the agitation cycle.
1) The agitator appears to be stuck. It twitches, but doesn't turn.
2) While it is doing this I hear a loud clacking noise under the bottom front of the washer.
3) I replaced the shifter about two months ago when is stopped working properly. The fix worked perfectly at that time. No other issues seen...
4) I suspect the loud clacking noise is the shift trying to engage when the agitation cycle is attempting to start.
5) I removed the agitator and basket...after fighting the retaining bolt which was partially frozen. Penetrating oil did the trick.
6) All parts above and below appear to be working correctly without any apparent damage.

Soooo, how do I effectively, manually test the transmission to ensure it is working properly?

I can turn the inner and outer shafts easily and separately in either the counterclockwise or clockwise directions. I was told that during counterclock-wise direction the agitator shaft is not supposed to be coupled to the basket and in the clockwise direction the agitator and basket are coupled during the spin cycle.

1) Do I have these actions right?
2) Am I doing something wrong during my manual test?
3) Should I being seeing something different during this test?
4) Is there a better way to test the tranny?

I will certainly replace the tranny if I can get an accurate test results.

Thanks, Beerski