Kitchen Large Electric Appliances - Dishwasher not turning on!

I have a maytag (I believe) dishwasher. I do not have the model # unfortunately right now but it is approx. 6 yrs old. A few days ago, the door latch began to make the operation difficult. What i mean is, I had to close the door, hear the mechanism engage, and then very slightly open the engage mechanism to allow for the dishwasher to run. I had to shove an oxo brand soft rubber handle kitchen tool into the dishwasher handle to VERY slightly disengage the lock for it to run. NOW, it will not run at all. Am I needing to take apart the door and inspect the handle mechanism or where should I begin? Thanks : e3

Hey E3
you got it, behind that panel assembly is a door switch, , sounds as if a contact is burnt or broken even.

that the place to start

Thanks for the input. That is easy to get to. I took the cover off inside, and removed the metal piece and the snap on cover. I removed the handle assembly and it appears to have 2 switches that when the handle is engaged allows the current to flow and run the unit. I cleaned up the contacts but I had one small plastic finger tab broken and one switch was hard to engage (plunger did not slide easily). I put it back together and it still does not work. Now that I understand the mechanism, i was able to use an old steak knife to trigger the washer to at least washer the dishes but a knife now hangs off the face of the unit. Nice! Especially with a NOW walking 1 yr old. Anyways, does anyone have the parts scematic (blow up) of a:

Maytag model: MDB4040AWB

I will need the switches and the handle mechanism. And while I am at it, I want to price out ALL the front decorative parts needed to make it white instead of black to match all the other appliances which i bought new. Anyone have this? About a year ago, a real nice guy had sent them but my PC died since then. He had a price list of all the parts!

This has to be the last thing in this stupid house that can die. You name it, I replaced it, fixed, upgraded,....... it. Peace: e3

The switches look like micro switches but if you want the Maytag number it is 903086. If you want to change the front parts to white it is going cost a bunch. You will have to have a control panel, knob, front panel, and kick plates. Doc E