New washing machine

[mike]

ours is a 3240, i think. 6 or 7 years old and still as good as new.

[Mrs Pingu]

Hmm, the machine was in the flat when we bought it, which was mmmm...5 yrs ago, so it's at least that old.

[JT]

If you're not dead set on a Miele, I can personally recommend the Hotpoint Aqualtis models and also get you one cheap (staff rates) and delivered (free) in two working days (unless you live in the middle of nowhere and it might be three days).

For example: an AQ9F492U (9kg load, 1400 spin, steam cycles) for £340

http://www.hotpoint.co.uk/hotpoint/productsheet.do?productId=69433UK

[citoyen]

So my question to the Miele owners is....what's the most cost effective option?

Build quality of all Mieles is essentially the same - they all use the same cast iron frame construction. So, the simple answer to your question is to get the most basic model. It will still be a damn good washing machine that will last a long time.

The more you spend, the more extra features and functions you'll get, but it's up to you to choose which features and functions you think are worth paying for.

Open the thing up and check that one of the drum suspending springs has not broken. (which is kind of what the symptoms suggest) Washing machines are fairly simple to repair with an average technogeek competence.

Going by Mrs P's description, it sounds very similar to when our last washing machine died. I agree that in Mrs P's case it could be something as simple to fix as a spring, but in our case it was because one of the concrete ballast blocks had disintegrated, which is a non-repairable breakdown.

This is one of the reasons we got a Miele to replace it - because it has a heavy cast iron frame, it doesn't need concrete ballast blocks, so this type of failure will never happen.

d.

[Mrs Pingu]

Ah drat, a combination of DM's use of 'average technogeek competence' and Eco guilt has got to me in my sleep. If I can strip down an HPLC pump without cocking it up I ought to be able to at least look at the washer..

[Ham]

In the Miele my-machine-is-older-than-your-machine one upmanship stakes, I can declare one that I bought in 1983, still going strong. The thermostat went a few years ago (5?) and Miele still had parts but as it was £70 and it could still be controlled by turning down the temperature dial we went with that option.  That does mean the inadvertent occasional boil wash, but as it is now a secondary machine alongside a new Miele, that doesn't matter that much.

I'd also recommend the lower end, unless the features on the top end machines are something you couldn't live without.

[Mrs Pingu]

Hmm, so I've got in at the giblets. The teeny springs at the top front and back appear to be in one piece, as does the concrete block.
Couldn't at first work out how you decide if the shocks are knackered until I looked at this video <a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/3-jitvn3et0&rel=1" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/3-jitvn3et0&rel=1</a>. Then I realised that my shocks moved easily like the bit in the video at 3m41!
I was also impressed at the how utilitarian the build is at the end of the video compared to how it looks in my washer

[redshift]

Our Miele is a young whippersnapper in comparison, at only five years old.  Our old Hotpoint was dying in the winter, but we nursed it until the sales and bought the Miele then, which brought the price down quite a bit.  I might suggest that if you can make your current one last until January, you could take advantage the same way.  DO make sure you let them deliver it, as they are damnably heavy.

Our model is in the old 500 series which were basic machines, and from the current range, I suspect the W3204 is the nearest machine.  Simple dial control with a few button options for variation (spin speed, prewash, etc).  They just seem to work.

[Mrs Pingu]

OK, I've ascertained that it's 8 yrs old, and that to buy the replacement suspension legs & rods would be £70. Assuming that is the problem.
That's 1/10th the price of the W3204.....

[pumpkin]

If it hasn't been mentioned there is a website by a washer repair man (do a google) and he talks about different models. His opinion is Miele are the best he has worked on but you pay a premium. the advice about John Lewis was good as a further year on my Zanussi is £75. So a 3 year warranty + 2 extra sounds OK. Avoid loads of programmes and complex timers. We have need for hot (60 deg), warm (40 + 30) and cold plus spin/drain/delay settings. But depends if you have anything tricky to wash.

It's Washing Machine Help and Advice - Washer Help UK

[Mrs Pingu]

After some grovelling about on the floor and some reflection on age of the machine and such things, I haz bitten the bullet and sprung £lots on a new one. It's coming on Thursday.....

[hellymedic]

After some grovelling about on the floor and some reflection on age of the machine and such things, I haz bitten the bullet and sprung £lots on a new one. It's coming on Thursday.....

Enjoy! 

[Cudzoziemiec]

Will a Miele washing machine last over twice as long as a cheap one? Well, I can't say for certain, but it should do, (Miele themselves expect their washing machines to last 20 years) and it'll be a lot quieter, more sophisticated and more reliable too.

Well, my mother's old Hoover lasted 25 years at least, and certainly wasn't as expensive as a Miele. However, she bought that sometime in the mid-70s - perhaps they really were better made back then, or perhaps she was just lucky.

[TimO]

...  perhaps they really were better made back then ...

This I'm afraid.  Modern manufacturing allows stuff to be designed to last for a relatively short period of time, which essentially makes sure that manufacturers can sell you another one in a few years time, and also allows them to undercut any manufacturer who doesn't subscribe to this sort of policy.

[Cudzoziemiec]

Washing machines can be made glamourous.
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/5-mIgz6v-tc&rel=1" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/5-mIgz6v-tc&rel=1</a>

[Mrs Pingu]

It came yesterday and it's very quiet. Shame we don't have a concrete floor though.

[Biggsy]

Don't get your hopes up too high because washing machines can be whisper-quiet when brand new, then soon noisier later as the bearings or whatever wear in/out.

[hellymedic]

My Miele is still quiet after 10 years.
Giraffe put it on a nice solid piece of wood and plumbed it in for me.