66516342301 Kenmore Dishwasher - Instructions

When the top rack stopped cleaning, I tracked down the problem to the food shredder/chopping blade, and then to the impeller that drives the blade. The knob on the impeller had sheared/broken off. That meant removing the motor, and replacing the impeller. Four hours, a band-aid, and a trip to Home Depot later, here are my suggestions

1. Look for videos – this site is awesome, but they don’t have a video on this particular repair. I found 4 that got me close to knowing what I was doing.
2. Do all the “remove internal stuff” - you had to anyway to find the issue with the shredder/cutting blade
3. Take pictures as you move along, you’ll need them when you have to remember the placement of the water line, drainage hose, wired connections etc.
4. You need a 1/4 inch socket set. A 3/8 drive will NOT work (it won’t fit between the shroud and the base). Don’t start working on the repair, unless you have a 1/4 in socket with about a 6" extension
5. Someone at Kitchenaid should be shot for having the waterline connection facing the back of the unit. Use a short adjustable wrench
6. The order comes with a washer, but when you take the impeller off this model, you’ll see you don’t need it.
7. Placement is everything – there was zero clearance between the bottom of the unit and the floor. Placement of the water line, drain hose, and power line was critical – had to re-position the unit about 7 times to get it to “play nice”.
8. Hindsight – only needed to remove the wire harness for the motor (take pictures)
9. Hindsight – gloves are a great idea – sheet metal is unforgiving

I took out the old one and started in the lower left corner and threaded it all around the edge to make sure the placement and length was correct. Then I came back around with a plastic spatula to firmly seat the gasket into the groove. Worked perfectly and havent had any trouble since!

Removed drain hose to ensure no blockage in drain. No blockage, then removed drain pump cap (where drain hose attaches to drain pump) with allen wrench. Push tab in on drain pump and twist counterclockwise, drain pump came off. Reversed to attach new pump and it works.

A Mouse friend had seen fit to chew through the original drain line. I used my Model Number, and was able to order the correct part . It arrived the next day. The job itself is fairly straight forward. You will need to access the rear of the machine. This may include shutting off, and disconnecting the water supply line. (Adjustable wrench). Mine is under the sink, on the "Hot" side. You may also need to un-plug the unit. (recommended) . A pair of (Pliers) will be needed for the spring clamp.

pull out the dishwasher
lay it on its side
use a 1/4" drive socket with extension and a universal joint to undo the the hidden bolt,
twist the motor 1/4 turn. this is the hard part you have to pull fairly hard and rock the motor around a little to get the o-ring to let the motor slide out.
lube up the new motor with jet dry or soap and insert back it, turn it back 1/4 turn, install the bolt and plug the motor control wires back in, then reinstall it back under the counter

Just followed the YouTube video they sent with the receipt.

I pulled the unit away from the cabinet, unplugged the washer and water line(not long enough to reach) removed two nuts from the underside and replaced the heating unit.

The part snaps on using two plastic retainers (included). You have to pull down gently on the feed tube at the top of the dishwasher to set the top retainer. After that it's a piece of cake.

I turned off the power to the dishwasher, removed the kick plate, raised the front levelers, disconnected the electric to the appliance, turned off the water supply to the appliance, disconnected the water supply, disconnected the drain system from the garbage disposal, unscrew the appliance from the countertop, then I remove the appliance from underneath the counter. I then tilted the appliance back and then in screwed the plastic retainers that held the heater element in place, removed the old one, replaced it with the new one in reversed the whole process

I removed the dishwasher from under the counter. This took the bulk of the repair time along with disconnecting the water supply and electrical connection. I had enough slack in drain hoses that I could turn the dishwasher over to replace the motor. I was surprised that there was only one bolt that held the motor in place. I put the motor on, turned the dishwasher upright and slide it back unde the counter and began the long process ofreconnecting everything. I am sureit could have gone faster if I were younger and did not need glasses for close work. Start to finish took me four hours. This was the fourth time I have replaced motors in dishwashers of various makes.

First research then troubleshoot
Removed
1 Upper rack
2 Lower rack
3 Lower Wash Arm and Strainer Parts
4 Upper Wash and Rinse Parts
5 Accumulator assy.
6 Motor shield
7 Inlet protector (most difficult)
Noticed blade was broken off chopper assy.
Replaced chopper assy.
Runs and cleans like new.
Most difficult step was to remove Inlet protector
After removing two torx screws (#15) used small pry bar to lift inlet protector from position. Not easy to accomplish with hands alone. Inlet protector fits tightly into position.

Checked the house circuit breaker, verified AC to the box under the dishwasher, removed the screws around the inside door cover, and removed the cover. Removed the outer circuit board cover. Used a multi-meter to verify AC to the door latch, and to verify the latch switch was working. Verified AC to the thermal fuse above the circuit board when the door latch was closed. Verified no AC on the other side of the thermal fuse. Removed the thermal fuse connections with pliers. Used thin flat blade screw driver to unsnap the thermal fuse assembly. Used multi-meter to verify no continuity through the fuse. Ordered the fuse assembly and replaced. Reconnected the thermal fuse connections. Manually closed door switch and saw lights on the display panel, and dishwasher started. Replaced all covers and works great.

The repair was easy. Getting the unit to slide out from under the counter was more time consuming.
After water and power is disconnected, tip the unit over onto one side to gain access to bottom. Look for two white composite plastic posts (insulators) about 2" long each with a single wire inside. Remove the two wire connectors then unscrew the insulators from the old heating element using an adjustable wrench. Inside the box remove the two metal element supports and pull out the old element. Clean and dry the area in and around the openings where the new element will be re-inserted. Carefully place the new element into the holes with the included new rubber washers. Re-install the two metal element supports on the inside of box. On the bottom, re-install the two insulators to the ends of the element, do not to tighten too much to avoid over compressing the rubber washers which could cause premature cracking. Reconnect both wires and check continuity from the door mircro-switch (white-violet) lead to the (white-red) lead on Electronic Controller connector #1 (P6). The circuit thru the element should be good if the Multimeter reads 10-35 ohms. Put the unit securely back under the counter and run a test wash. Works fine now.
I do recommend, if don't know how to use a multimeter or are concerned about accessing the electronic control box; contact a professional.

Installed the new upper spray arm mount. First I installed it backwards which made the blades not turn freely (rub against top rack basket). Turned it around and was good to go. I found it helpful to remove the top basket in order to do this. Note that this clip is gray while your dishwasher tines are white. This does not cause any harm.

Replaced the switch, that did not fix it, but a new circuit card did