Problems with AEG lavamat 507?

Every time i have turned on my AEG lavamat 507, by pulling the programme dial out it pops the household circuit breaker after a milli second, it does this after every wash position, except when a cold wash is selected on the temperature dial. when it will do a cycle , but with cold water. As I live in a hard water area, I thought maybe the heater element ws shorting out so I took the back off and found the connections for the heater element ( 2 blue fishtails and 1 grenn/yellow). I disconnected the wires and undid the central nut. However in spite of my best efforts I can't remove the element. Has anyone got any idea on how to remove the element in this machine to see if this is the problem ie shorting out ?) Or can anyone suggest any other cause of the problem

Many Thanks

Ashley