Why does Maytag quality become so pitiful?

When I saw the Maytag commercial many years - two service men are so bored because they have nothing to do, I gave my consent from heart. The quality of Maytag washer and dryer are just great. Period. I bought my first pair in 1990 and they ran for 14 years without ANY problem. I retired them in 2005 because the dryer started making noise so loud that we think it is time to get a new one. The washer was still good but we don't think it would run much longer than the dryer. I know many people used their Maytag appliances for more than 20 years. I was really impressed with their quality.

I bought my second pair of Maytag washer and dryer in June, 2004. Boy, the quality is so pitiful. On the first day, the noise level of the dryer is similar to my first dryer after 10 years. The washer works fine except with some minor shakes that the first dryer never had. Since I didn't buy the top line - Neptune, I think this is normal for what I paid for.

Before the first anniversary of these two appliances, the washer shook so much that I scheduled a Maytag service for examination. However, due to a schedule conflict and the washer still works fine except shaking, I cancelled the appointment. It turned out to be a costly mistake.

The washer continues to shake and only get worse. It started chaning position after each use. I looked up Maytag web site to see if there is any help. I found two FAQ that describe exactly what I am experiencing:

Why does my washer shake and vibrate? Why is my washer shaking/moving across the floor?

Clearly I am not alone. The web site suggested the problem is caused by imbalanced load. But I did a test by running the washer without any load, the washer still shook and moved. Last week, the washer span 90 degrees and pulled the drain hose out from the drain pipe and spilled water all over the laundry room.

I called Maytag and asked them if the problem can be covered by warranty which expired in June, 2005. I pointed out the problem exists before warranty expires and it is actually a very common problem to many customers. They said no and would make no concession. I asked if there is anything they can do to make an unsatisfactory customer happy, they said there is NOTHING they can do.

I asked a local Maytag service person to look at the problem and he said some parts need to be replaced. Fortunately the parts are still covered under warranty. But the labor would cost me $220. I paid $420 for the washer just 18 months ago. I called Maytag again and they still refused to cover a penny of the repair.

Here is my advice to readers:

1) Think twice before buying Maytag washer and dryer. I am told Whirlpool is making better washer and dryer now. The good quality days of Maytag is over. 2) Buy extended warranty. Two service people I talked to made the same suggestion. 3) If there is any issue, no matter how minor it is, have the service staff examine it before the warranty expires.

I don't understand why the quality of Maytag becomes so pitiful. The confidence I have on Maytag for 14 years was completely wiped out in 14 months. Sigh!

Reply to
consumer
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Thats interesting you have had those problems with your set of Maytag machines. I too have owned their products since the 60's. I moved in 2004 to a new place, gave away the old machines (left them behind) and purchased a set from "Home Depot". While they have the name "Admiral" on them they are MFG'D by Maytag. They are the bottom of the line units costing below $400 each. In the year I have owned them now, we have had ZERO trouble with them, they do the job well. I do however agree with you on the unbalance problem, they dont handle it as well as the older machines did. My old Maytag would deal with it better, then stop and buzz if it got out of hand. The new machine wont stop or buzz, but rather thrash around the entire cycle. Other than that, they have been a good investment.

Reply to
Mortimer Schnurd

Reliability is a statistical issue and you can't draw any conclusions from your one experience, or from a handful of people you know. In the past, many Maytag products have shown poor reliability in Consumer Reports annual surveys, a fact I noted with interest due to the conflict with Maytag's marketing propaganda. I believe there has been some recent improvement. Still Consumer Reports shows that some Maytag products are still among the most error prone.

Reply to
gesres

I had the same problems with my Maytag washer - I thought it was level and seated properly on my tile floor - when I actually put a level on the machine, it was off, just a bit - I balanced the machine (shims, adjustments to the legs, etc.) using a level, and now it doesn't dance any more - but the noise is STILL terrible - much louder than I'd expect - on some of the wash cycles, it sounds like it's handling a bag of rocks, and it sounds like the bag broke! When it was still in warranty, I had a warranty repair guy come out - he listened and said that it was working as it should - "they all make that noise".

Different machine (and different price point), but I was amazed at my sister's Bosch diswasher - literally, we had to open the door to see if it was running - with my ear on the machine, I couldn't tell!

My matching Maytag (electric) dryer seems fine.

Reply to
Texas Yankee

No comment on Maytag but #2. A really good deal is to maintain your home warranty after you buy the house. They often cost less than an extended warranty for any one appliance and it protects your entire home and all appliances in it even the old ones. Making a claim is also easier as all you do is make a call and pay a small deductable. These warranties can be extended yearly and indefinately.

Reply to
PipeDown

Do they really pay out that easily? There must be a million and one loopholes -- or do they actually pay out to the point of replacing appliances that have legitimately worn out or reached the end of their service life? And if they do, have you put more money into the plan than you've actually gotten out of it?

We have the service plan from the local gas company -- covers hot water heater, dryer, furnace, stove and we added the central AC as an add-on.

We got our burners all rebuilt on the stove -- but getting parts took 3 months. Two dryer repairs, a new heating element and the drum unit "skid pads" replaced. The water heater got "red tagged" -- they wouldn't replace it, but would give us 10% towards a new one.

Up to this point we're at best break even and more than likely 25% in the hole. I'm holding on until the spring (AC needs work then, and repair plan customers get priority response for furnace problems in the winter) and then dropping it in favor of just dumping $50 a month into savings. I figure for $600 a year I can replace all my appliances every 7 years or at least pay for repairs if they become necessary.

Reply to
Howard Beale

I totally disagree with this advice. My experience with a home warranty was that I never used it because the deductible was $90 alone, I couldn't pick my contractor, and the warranty had so many exclusions as to be unusable. Save the money you'd normally put toward a home warranty ($400 a year?), and you'll have the funds to cover repairs.

I think home warranties are a *HUGE* ripoff.

Reply to
KLS

Actually, they are made by "Admiral", a division of Magic Chef, which is a division of Maytag. People wouldn't buy an "Admiral" until the salespeople started telling customers that they were actually made by Maytag. And the last I heard, end of October, Maytag was being bought by Whirlpool but since I've been on vacation for 6 weeks and avoiding serious news, I don't know if that deal went through.

Tom.

Reply to
Tom

The service people will always advise an extended warranty because they make a commission selling them. I know, I used to sell them. The company also makes a profit on them so if you never buy an extended warranty or service contract on anything during your entire lifetime, you are insuring yourself and will realize the profit thereon instead of giving the profit to someone else. Of course, this means being able to save ahead for an occasional large repair job. If you choose to let a service person be your savings account, it'll cost you more.

Bob

Reply to
Robertm

Like many modern American businesses,

They'll squeeze every cent out of the product. Ignore the customers Burn up their "good will" and reputation Run the business into the ground then blame foreign competition.

Reply to
Anonymous

from

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excerpts [On August 22, 2005, Maytag and Whirlpool signed a definitive merger agreement in which Whirlpool will acquire all outstanding shares of Maytag in a cash and stock merger. A preliminary prospectus/proxy statement has been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and both parties are working closely with the Antitrust Division of the U. S. Department of Justice in its ongoing review of the proposed merger. Maytag and Whirlpool continue to expect the transaction to close as early as the first quarter of 2006, following approval from Maytag stockholders and regulatory clearance.

The Maytag Board of Directors has scheduled a special meeting of stockholders for December 16, 2005, to consider and vote on the adoption of the merger agreement. Stockholders of record of Maytag as of November 2, 2005, will be entitled to vote on the transaction.

Nine-Month Performance Maytag's net sales in the first nine months of

2005 were $3.66 billion, up 2.9 percent from net sales of $3.56 billion in the first nine months of 2004. Operating income was $43.2 million, down 7.4 percent from $46.6 million reported in the same year-earlier period. Last year, operating income was negatively impacted by an $18.5 million charge for front-load washer litigation and nearly $55 million of restructuring and related charges, compared to about $11 million in the current year.

Reported net loss for the first nine months of 2005 was $7.0 million, or 9 cents per share. In the first nine months of 2004, Maytag reported net income of $5.1 million, or 6 cents per share. Diluted earnings (loss) per share for the first nine months of 2005 and 2004 included the following items: ]

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I thought the merger was an already done deal. Back in August Haier of China made a bid and Whirlpool stepped in to block the deal. Haier withdrew. Given that Wirlpool has its own line of laundry appliances its hard to see how W will spend serious money to improve Maytag's product lines, especially when Maytag had been losing money for years, thus its sale. Elsewhere Wirlpool had stated that they will consolidate production facilities, aka close factories, to realise efficiencies. I have a feeling that the Maytag line will eventually disappear altogether within three years.

Reply to
PaPaPeng

Thanks for the update,

Tom.

Reply to
Tom

Because Maytag is no more! It is just a label and they are trading off its former glory. The Free Traitors are using the Venture Capitalists methods of stripping everything, including quality and service, out of products to gain maximum profits before the Brand collapses. Then they buy out or acquire the next hot Brand and repeat.

Reply to
tightwad

It's a race to the bottom in terms of consumer appliances. I wonder how LG quality is.

If you want top quality appliances, buy commercial machines, but be prepared to pay a lot, and they aren't sold at regular appliance stores or department stores you have to go to a distributor that sells to laundromats (they'll sell to anyone).

The commercial machines are much better constructed than consumer machines, and used in a residential environment they will last about forever. But the warranty is basically non-existent (no labor warranty) because laundromat owners generally fix their own machines. Also, these are usually no-frills machines, with a water temperature selection, and an agitation selection (normal/permanent press/gentle), no gazillion combinations of wash cycles. The dryers let you select temperature and that's it, even the time is not really selectable (a certain amount of time per button press).

Reply to
SMS

Yes and no. They contract with repair companies will basically do the minimum required to get the appliance working again, and "working" doesn't include problems like dryer drums squeaking. Often the repair company will try to sell you more than the minimum service required.

For many items in a home, the repair company will insist that any problem you have was there when you bought the house. We ran into this with a plumbing problem.

Reply to
SMS

Coincidentally, my bother-in-law got a 1 year warranty thrown in when he bought his townhouse, and his hot water heater just died.

It's costing him $100 for the deductable and $40 for disposal of the old unit Since he didn't pay for the warranty itself, he's making out pretty well.

Especially since the furnace was replaced prior to the installation of the hot water heater, and whoever installed the furnace didn't believe the hot water heater would ever need to be replaced -- there's some odd lifting and quite a bit of pipe cutting and re-soldering involved in just getting the unit into the mechanical closet.

Reply to
Howard Beale

Their 3 rack dishwasher sucks too. I tossed it into the dump after 4 failures in 2 years.

Reply to
Art

I have a Maytag Dishwasher, MDB9100, and it's been fine for about six years, other than the racks beginning to rust out. I performed surgery with some heat shrink tubing and some wire cutters.

Reply to
SMS

Reply to
nospambob

Their 2 rack dishwashers seem to have fewer problems.

Reply to
Art

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