The short answer
A new noise from a Panda washer is most often the load gathered on one side rather than a mechanical failure — a light machine amplifies everything the load and the floor do. This is a portable automatic machine: one tub, a faucet adapter at the tap and a drain hose into a sink, and that is what sets the order below. Work down it in order and stop where the procedure tells you to. These are set up beside a kitchen sink in an apartment, connected for each wash and put away again afterwards.
What you observe
- Heavy knocking during the spin — The load or the floor, far more often than the machine.
- The machine moving across the floor — A light machine on a slick floor walks, and then hits things.
- A metallic rattle at speed — Something trapped, and it is worth finding.
- Noise only while it drains — Timing points straight at the pump.
- NEAR MISS — a squeal at the start of agitation only — That is usually a belt, and it is a different and much cheaper repair.
Causes, most likely first on this platform
- The load gathered on one side — First, and on a light machine it is most of the list: a towel or a sheet collects against one wall of the basket, the machine tries to spin it, and the whole cabinet knocks. Redistribute the load and the noise is gone — which is the test as well as the fix. Anything handled that often wears out first, which is why this heads a list that would look different on a plumbed machine.
- The machine walking on a slick or uneven floor — Ranked high for a portable because it is light and it is usually standing on tile or vinyl beside a sink. It walks a little on every spin, then knocks against whatever it reaches, and the noise gets attributed to the machine rather than to the floor.
- The drive belt or coupling — A belt that has glazed squeals at the start of agitation; a coupling that is breaking up clicks under load. Both are behind a panel and both are cheap parts.
Check in this order, and why
- First: stop the machine, redistribute the load and restart the spin — It tests the top cause and fixes it in the same move. On a machine connected and disconnected for every wash, start with what gets handled most.
- Second: rock each corner and check the floor under the machine — A light machine on tile walks, and the noise is often the wall it reaches.
- Third: note whether the noise is a squeal at the start of movement — That character separates a belt from a bearing.
What an owner can safely check
- Stop the machine, redistribute the load and restart the spin — It tests the most likely cause and fixes it in the same move.
About 10 min
- Rock each corner and check the floor under the machine — A light machine on tile walks a little every spin and then knocks against whatever it reaches.
Tools: spirit levelAbout 15 min
- Turn the empty basket by hand and listen — A metallic rattle with nothing in it names a trapped object.
About 10 min
- STOP HERE before removing a panel — Belts, couplings and bearings all sit beside mains wiring in a wet cabinet.
Before you open anything
Safety
Unplug the machine before you open any cover — mains wiring and standing water share the inside of this cabinet. Bail the tub out before you tip or move it, both because the water will go over the floor and because a full machine is far heavier than it looks. Never run it with a cover off to watch what happens, and keep the drain hose secured before every spin rather than after the first flood.
When to call a technician
Call when the load is balanced, the machine is level and clear of everything it touches, and the noise is still there. A squeal or a thump is a belt or a coupling and is a routine repair; a roar during spin that has grown over months is a bearing, and on a machine this size that is usually the point at which replacing beats repairing.
Nearest pages of this class
What this page does not cover
Read this as the class-level answer. It stops short of anything that changes model to model — connector pinouts, electrical test values, the sequence for pulling a panel and all part numbers — because getting those wrong is expensive. A family or model page, where one exists, is linked among the siblings and takes precedence over this page.
Lead Appliance Repair Technician · 12 years experience
Experienced technician with 12 years specializing in washing machine and dryer repairs across all major brands.
