The reading in two sentences
Read F43 as this: there may be a problem with the cooktop power control board, or with the wiring associated with it. Treat the cooktop as out of use: the board this reading names is the one that switches power to the zones. You can settle whether this is a one-off or a real fault yourself; naming the failed part is not owner work.
Error codes
Reference| Code | Meaning |
|---|---|
| F43 | There may be a problem with the Cooktop Power Control Board, or the associated wiring. |
What else is happening when this shows
- A zone cuts out under load rather than refusing from cold — A connection that fails as current rises behaves exactly like that.
- Everything else on the appliance behaves normally — A single function out with the rest sound is what separates this from a control or supply fault.
- NEAR MISS — several unrelated functions are out at once — That is upstream of the cooktop power control board — a supply or a control fault — and it is not this code.
What triggers F43, most likely first
- A high-current connection running hot at the board — It goes first because these are the heaviest connections in the appliance and the reading covers them: one that has loosened heats under load, and heat makes it worse, which is why it is found before the board is judged.
- A chafed or broken conductor in the harness to the cooktop power control board — The run passes edges and hinges, and a conductor broken where it flexes gives the control the same silence a failed part gives it.
The order to work through
- Ask whether anything smells hot after use — A hot smell near a high-current connection is a reason to stop using the appliance now rather than later.
- Record which zones fail and whether they fail cold or under load — Cold refusal and dropping out under load point at different halves of this reading.
- Confirm which single function is actually out — Naming the symptom precisely is what turns this code from a list of parts into one circuit to test.
The reset and the checks that follow it
- Cut power at the breaker for a full minute and restore it — This clears a stored fault. A code that returns on the next cycle is live and needs the panel off.
About 5 min
- Switch off at the breaker, then note which zones failed and whether anything smelled hot — If there is any smell of heat or burning, leave the appliance isolated until it has been looked at.
About 10 min
- Use the appliance the same way again and note the exact moment the code lands — The trigger point is the most useful thing you can hand a technician, and it costs one session to get.
About 45 min
- STOP HERE — the cooktop power control board and its wiring are behind a panel — Everything past this point is work next to live terminals, which is where an owner check ends.
Before a panel comes off
Safety
Isolate the cooktop at its circuit breaker before any panel comes off — a capacitor can hold a charge after the power is off, and this is a fixed high-current appliance rather than one you unplug. Put nothing cold or wet on hot glass. On a gas model, if you smell gas, leave the building and call the gas utility from outside.
Where an owner check ends
Call straight away if the appliance behaves unpredictably rather than simply missing one function, or if you can see or smell heat damage at a connector.
Other codes on a KitchenAid cooktop
What is deliberately not here
Treat this as the general KitchenAid cooktop reading. It stops short of anything model-specific — part numbers, harness colours, connector layouts and service-mode entry — because those differ by family and a technician takes them from the rating plate rather than from a code. A family- or model-specific page, where one exists, is linked from the code index below and is the closer answer.
Links: - [KitchenAid cooktop error codes](/blog/kitchenaid-cooktop-error-codes)
Next steps
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
