Maytag Centenial - Won't spin unless I lift and lower the lid.

Check agitator splines where agitator fits into transmission shaft. They may be stripped.

1. Unplug the washer for 1 minute from the electrical outlet.
2. Plug the washer back in and lift and lower the lid 6 times within a 12 second period (you have 30 seconds to start lifting and lowering the lid).

1. Unplug the washer for 1 minute from the electrical outlet.
2. Plug the washer back in and lift and lower the lid 6 times within a 12 second period. You have 30 seconds to start lifting and lowering the lid.

Just put in wash cycle and wait for the water entering to stop them pop the lid. Naturally you did not have any clothes in there while the water was filling up the tub.

I'm not sure what you mean by "activate it." Are you are manually pressing down on the lid switch or are you saying that lifting the lid starts the spin cycle? You may just need to adjust it. For whatever reason the actuator on the lid isn't pushing the switch far enough to activate it. It is possible that the actuator broke in some weird way that makes it contact the switch when the lid is opened. Regardless the spin cycle should cease when the lid is opened. The actuator is the wire hinge on the left side of of the lid. They always break where the screws connect them to the lid so you should be able to see it by lifting the lid. You can go here for manuals and exploded views of your machine. The hidden lid switch and actuator are clearly visible if you click the "Top and Cabinet" diagram.

Now i want to say something about your machine. First to be fair i don't know what the reviews of this machine might have been and I've never owned one, but if it serves you well hold on to it. Maytag doesn't make them like that anymore. In fact Maytag doesn't really make them anymore. That repairman died years ago and was never replaced. I'd take a machine like yours (with manual controls and no brain) over every smart h.e. machine i've ever had the misfortune to work on or operate. Sure they save water and they are quiet now but the drain pumps are junk fixing to bust and in my opinion the reason people experience mold and odor problems. They oversuds chronically and then have to sit while the machine decides when and how you can proceed. Doors lock shut at the most inopportune times. Control boards cost hundreds of dollars to replace and diagnosing problems on a "smart machine" can sometimes be more than a little baffling. So treasure it. Just sayin.

would say it would be the timer if it was the lid switch it wouldnt vspin or agiatate

Re arrange clothes and re start to drain and spin.

your machine needs a new lid switch assembly!

The cheaper thing to check first is is your lid bent? The lid switch is in the center of the lid. If it "droops" or has been bent, it shaft on the back of the lid cant hit the switch. Open the lid and apply pressure in the bottom, center of the lid. This usually corrects the problem without replacing the switch.

Sounds like the brake liner could be broken. When the machine starts to spin, the motor turns in the opposite direction to the wash cycle and causes the bowl to lift off the brake liner and the bowl then spins freely. Either the riser cam is worn/broken or the brake liner is broken. This is quite involved and you may have to call in a tech.