Can we talk about how a 1998 washer purge valve costs $6 and the 2023 model costs $89 for the same part

Terry Knight · 2026-09-20T01:05:05.256853+00:00

I was flipping through a parts catalog at the shop on Tuesday and noticed something that bugged me. A drain pump for a basic top loader from the late 90s runs about $28, but the same style pump for a newer model with the plastic housing and sensor wire is $112. Same motor, same impeller, same three screws. I called my supplier in Springfield and he said the manufacturers started putting chips in everything around 2015 so they can lock you into their parts network. The old stuff you could cross reference at any hardware store, now half the time the board talks to the pump and won't spin if the resistance is off by 2 ohms. I've started telling customers with machines older than 12 years to just fix them, because the new ones are built to be tossed. Anyone else notice parts pricing going sideways like this or is it just my supplier?

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Can we talk about how a 1998 washer purge valve costs $6 and the 2023 model costs $89 for the same part | Appliance Repairers - Rigidtalk