Can you assist me with connect a new four wire cooktop to my existing breaker panel? I have a 40 amp 2 pole breaker in my panel, but I have four wires coming from the new cooktop. I am installing a new Kenmore Elite model #44089. Do the black and red go to the breaker? The green to ground? What about the white wire?
For the older 3 wire appliances this was never a problem; black & white to breaker and bare or green to ground, but now everything comes with 4 wires?

The black and red does connect directly to the two pole breaker, the white is the neutral, and green is ground. If you cable is metal BX then the metal sheathing is the ground, connect the green to the box and use a BX connector with a locknut and the cooktop should be grounded. If for some reason your cable does not have a ground, then at the cooktop the white from the cable can connect to the cooktop white and green. This is only allowed for certain appliances.