And here is the service manual which will show you how to open up the machine and do it. It can be a one person job, but a second person to talk with and hold things will be very helpful.

http://www.servicematters.com/m...ary/docs/RS3200005R2.pdf

A service call plus parts will probably be about $100 - $125, which is still far better than $350-$400 for a basic dryer. If a dryer is otherwise acceptable, repair will almost always be more economical then replacement, even given the cost of your time and the inconvenience. If you get a new one you still have to shop, compare and then coordinate delivery and removal so your time will be consumed no matter what. If you repair it yourself you can do it at your convenience, not someone else's.

As far as efficiency is concerned, your old one is about as good as a new one (I don't think they even give energy star ratings to dryers). The critical thing for efficiency is whether you do the work or you have it done is to thoroughly clean out the dryer when you have it open. Do that and it will last indefinitely.

Confession of Bias: One of my motivations for volunteering to reply on this Forum is that in the U. S. we discard far too many items when a simple repair is all that is needed to indefinitely extend the life of the item. So others may have a different point of view. Anyway, if you do decide to replace, try the $15.00 repair first, you have nothing to lose but a little time and you will gain a nice understanding of how a dryer is put together and how simple they are to repair (don't tell anyone, we like to keep that simplicity thing a secret).

Good luck