Amana SofSound II Door Latch Replacement

I’ve had such a great response to my West Bend slow cooker lid replacement post that when I found a bargain alternative part replacement for my Amana SofSound II dishwasher door latch, I thought I’d share this information as well.

We inherited this dishwasher when we purchased our house a few years ago.  The handle was always a little finicky and was probably broken from the onset, but our toddler seems to have finished it for good so we can no longer manipulate it in any way so that the relays in the handle will switch to allow current to the assembly.  I’m a DIY’er, so I turned to the Internet first using the machine model/manufacturer numbers, ADW350RAB and PADW350RAB0 respectively.  These turned up part numbers such as R0000430 and W10208084, which were pricey at around $100.  Further searching led to the Whirlpool AP4357962 and related, but these were still pretty pricey coming in north of $90 for a few pieces of plastic and a couple of relays.  Finally I ran across the Electrolux 5304442175 Latch Kit on Amazon for less than $27, and decided that was about the best I was going to do.  It worked fabulously!

I should advise that there are some subtle variations between the original part (in pictures below) and the replacement.  Probably the most notable of these is the tiny missing clip from the back of the latch body, shown in picture four.  I don’t think this will ever make much difference, and I’m relatively confident the two large screws (torx T25 if memory serves) will adequately hold it in place, and that the tab wouldn’t do much if they were to fail.

In the pictures below, you can see that the white “legs” on the left of the picture no longer contact the proper locations on the switches (small black rectangles near the spring).  The second picture shows the part number I used (154361203D) that got me closer to real results after removing the failed switch, and the last image shows the broken white plastic crossconnect that used to hold the switch legs parallel.

Please note, I explicitly disclaim any liability if you undertake such a replacement yourself.  This replacement takes place in immediate proximity to electrical current in an appliance that uses water, substitutes a factory part for one that does not appear to be specifically designed for the appliance, and has been performed and described by an individual who is decidedly not an expert in home appliance repair.  If you are not confident in your ability to safely perform such a replacement, please contact a competent appliance repair person.