(1999) Hoover Windtunnel Self Propelled Premium U6445-900

[amtraksebo1997]

Merry late Christmas and Happy New Years to you guys! I hope yours was pretty good. Anyways, one of my Christmas gifts was something really awesome (at least to me), a 1999 Hoover Windtunnel Self-Propelled Premium! I've been wanting a SP Windtunnel ever since my previous one broke. That was a SP Ultra (the version that didn't have the turbo brush, and was in the same color as this one), and that kicked the bucket quite a while ago. It was a pretty nice machine IMO, however, it had all of the classic issues with these machines. The idler arm was cracked, it had a bad case of the Hoover lean (and I mean really bad!) and the SP cable was broken. Anyways, I got this a while ago on eBay with some money I had saved up. It's overall in ok shape, although, it has it's fair share of problems, those being:

1. The headlight bulb is burnt out.
2.The V belt has a tendency to slip and stall out (I'm pretty certain it's not the idler arm).
3.It needs a fresh set of bags, belts, and filters.
4.The self propel wheels still move, even when I shut the SP off.
5. The motor sounds a bit rough, and when I went to blow it out, I saw tiny sparks coming from the inside of the exhaust port.
6.The self-propel is pretty janky on mine, like the second you put any sort of pull or push on the handle, the wheels just suddenly shift in the direction of the handle. It's not as smooth as the Tech-Drive on my Kirby Ultimate G.

Anyways, I did the best I could to get all of the dust and stuff that was inside the head, and bag chamber of the vacuum. I also recently ordered some HEPA bags for my Windtunnel Supreme that will fit this, so that's nice, but now I gotta worry about all the other things it'll need. Oh well, one thing at a time, I guess. Here it is, as well as my Windtunnel Supreme, too

 

[joevacman1]

1999) Hoover Windtunnel Self Propelled Premium U6445-900

Vacuum may not be worth fixing. Sounds like the sparking in the motor is probably the commutator bad or going bad. The V Belt slipping needs both belts changed . By the picture the brush is worn out. The Power Drive needs service and adjustment .

 

[amtraksebo1997]

joevacman1

I plan on taking this to a vacuum store to see if they can diagnose the motor and power drive issues, and I do plan on getting new belts for it. As for the brushroll, it spins pretty freely, and the bristles are still pretty stiff, so for now it stays in there. I really don't want to give up on this vacuum, because it's one of my favorites, and it's kind of nostalgic to me. So yeah, I'll try to do as much as I can to get it back up in working order.

 

[huskyvacs]

You got a good vacuum that will last a lifetime. This is all common maintenance on a vacuum thats 25 years old. There is no reason not to fix it.

The propulsion problems with either staying engaged, or not responding at all is mainly from people picking the vacuum up by the handle which stretches out the drive cable from the handle to the transmission and pulls it out of whack. It was a design flaw ever since the first Power Drive Hoovers. They somewhat rectified this problem on these Windtunnel models by making the handle lock in place with the switch off to keep you from pulling on it when carrying the vacuum, but it's not totally foolproof.

The belts slipping off are going to be worn belts that have lost their tension and gone slack due to age rot and wear, or cheap non-OEM belts (weaker softer rubber).

The motor just needs its commutator cleaned, fresh grease and oil on the bearings, put in new carbon brushes if need be, check the brushroll bristles, and it will be good to go.

 

[amtraksebo1997]

huskyvacs

Thanks for the advice! I'm not really that good with motor servicing, I've never done it before. Also, my Windtunnel Supreme has the exact same problem, as well as my Kirby G7 (the sparks are visible from the clear part on where the handle connects into the machine). I told my dad about the Kirby sparking, and he said that was normal (I forgot what he explained to me about it), and I haven't attempted servicing them because I'm worried that I'll electrocute myself. If anyone has any sort of instructions on how to service the motors on these machines, I'd love to hear it. If not, I plan on taking a few machines to a vacuum shop, so maybe they can. Also, nothing seemed broken on SP cable parts or the cable itself, so maybe the T25 screw at the base where that cable connects into the machines needs to be tightened? I could be wrong though.

 

[amtraksebo1997]

One more thing, you probably remember me panicking over the recall involving the 1998-99 SP Windtunnels, where the switch could pose a fire hazard. Well, mine came with a black switch ON/OFF labeled on both ends of it in white. Is that the original switch that would've came with one of these back when they were brand new back in 1998-99?

 

[amtraksebo1997]

Update:

So I should have specified about the belt issues, because it wasn't like that when I first got it. When I disassembled it, I took off both belts so that I could wipe the head down with a disinfecting wipe, and I had a really hard time getting the flat belt back on. When I did, the idler pully made a horrible creaking noise every time you reclined the handle (don't worry, it's still ok I think). So today I fixed that by taking off, and putting back on the belts. However, in the process, I broke the brush roll on/off switch (yay ), so that's another thing to add to the list of parts I need to get for this thing (and that's on top of getting parts for my Hoover Windtunnel Supreme). I also gave it a another test run in my room. Again, the motor sounds like it needs some work, and the power drive is still pretty janky, especially in reverse.

 

[amtraksebo1997]

Update (again)

Hey guys, I know it's been literal months since I last gave an update about this machine (or anything for that matter). Oh well, better late then never. Anyways a lot has happened since my last post (both related to this machine and not), so I'll just get to the developments.

1.i got one of my dream machines, a Hoover Windtunnel Dual V (as well as a red Bosch Formula Duo Canister in red, both from the same purchase).
2.I got those HEPA bags for the Windtunnels that I talked about earlier (and t only took months, thanks USA Vacuum ).
3. I went to my "local" vacuum store and got the Windtunnel SP check out. According to them, there was nothing wrong with it. I guess should take their word for it, since they've probably serviced tens of hundreds of these machines over the years. I also got more HEPA bags and a HEPA filter for it, too.


I'm not really worried about things like the broken brushroll switch, since I never really plan on using this thing for bare floors anyways, not to mention I don't have a ton of bare floors to begin with. However, I still am kind of worried about the motor, because it still doesn't sound like all the other ones I've heard on YouTube, and I'm also a little worried about the aforementioned self propel issues. Other than those things, it seems to be suitable for use again, which I've been doing this past week.

 

[kirbyklekter]

My two cents

I think you should get a second opinion, it never hurts. Either take it to another shop or how about making a little you tube video. Zero in on the motor running and if possible get in close and show the armature sparking. Ask if this amount of sparking is considered normal or does it seem excessive enough to be concerned.

Maybe you could send an email to someone who has posted a video on your model that also works on these and similar models if he wouldn't mind checking your video and see what he thinks. Send the link. Also in your video at some point, turn the motor on with the brushroll not running. Let the motor rev up and then turn it off and record it coasting to a stop. Don't talk while it's coming to a stop, lol.

This is often one of the methods used as part of diagnosing a motor,listening for certain sounds during the spin down. If the motor is ok you might have a brushroll that is the culprit. Have you checked the bearings on each end of the roller. My WindTunnel Deluxe was really loud and I thought motor is bad, but it turned out the bearings were totally shot and where they press in on the roller ,the holders were all chewed up.Replacing the roller totally transformed the way the machine sounds. It's like a new machine. WindTunnels are loud right out of the box, but this was the fix mine needed. You may be comparing your machine with others who have already replaced the roller or they were low mileage machines. Good luck, it's worth it!

 

[amtraksebo1997]

KirbyKelekter

That seems like a good idea. I actually took a video of it to see if maybe it would sound different when the sound came through the microphone on my phone (it didn't). Unfortunately, I do not post videos to my YouTube account, I don't know when or if I ever will. Maybe I'll be able to post it up on here, idk. Also maybe I'll take it into a different vac shop and see what they say. However, I'm also inclined to believe what those guys said, since they've probably worked on hundreds of these machines over the years (for example, I spotted three SP Windtunnels in their shop).