[X]
Write ReviewJump to 
1
Helpful
Votes
Votes
What Happened to Maytag Quailty?
Maytag Centennial Washing Machine - Complaint
Review by Rannd1981 on 2013-01-01
Rating: 
ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS -- I have been a faithful Maytag buyer for many many years, but when my old Maytag washing machine started making some noise, I decided to buy a new Maytag. The first one I purchased was a water saver version which I did not intentionally buy, but when I began using it it took so long to wash a load that my wife hated it and it cost me an extra $150.00 (restocking fee) to return the machine and purchase the Centennial non water saving version, but this machine still sucks. It takes way too long to wash, it is very touchy when it spins and the lid lock has already went out and the machine is only a year old. My wife hates this machine too, but I am not replacing it yet. As I said earlier, I always purchase nothing but Maytag appliances since my wife and I bought our house 26 years ago, but after buying this washing machine I will not be buying Maytag anymore and I do not recommend the brand to anyone who is in the market for new appliances.
Comments:
Posted by DebtorBasher on 2013-01-02:
They seemed to have gone downhill ever since our loving 'Maytag Repair Man' passed away...I think from boredom.
Posted by At Your Service on 2013-01-02:
I liked reading your review Rannd, but should take some time to explain a few things.
I've got a great deal of background in appliances. As such, I wouldn't say Maytag is any better or worse then most other companies and appliances. Can their products break? Absolutely. But so can any other brand on the market.
The issue with water usage is a change in energy conservation over the last ten years or so. The government only allows a certain percent of any one companies products to not match an energy matching requirement. Maytag is now a member of the Whirlpool family of products and the entire Whirlpool family only has a very few washers which are not considered high efficient. This is partially due to the previously spoken of government regulations, but also because the older traditional designs are just not as much in demand.
As far as their overall quality, there was a day when the average appliance would last twenty plus years. Now you're lucky if they see half that time. Why the change? In part it's because of cost. There was a time, some fifty years ago, when families were very brand loyal. It didn't matter what brand X costs, that's what the family would buy. But then we had high inflation set in during the late 70s and early 80s. Now the market became persuaded because, as a whole, one could save a few bucks buying brand Y. Unfortunately, the companies who could survive were those who kept their costs down and their prices with it. Think about buying most appliances today compared to what they were twenty or thirty years ago. Is there a great deal of difference in the price? The Centennial line of washers are a good example. You can purchase one within the $500 range. You know what you paid for a good washer about 30 years ago? Yep, now you're getting the idea. Compare that to what you paid for a vehicle that long ago compared to now. Considerable difference, isn't there?
The point is that appliances throughout the industry haven't seen a giant amount of price increase over the years, but their longevity has decreased. In many cases, where costs could be cut, they were. One of my pet peeves is warranty coverage. At one time, manufacturers use to provide reasonably lengthy warranties with their products. Now, one is lucky to get a year when they make a purchase. Some consumer advocates have persuaded the customer to not be so concerned about the length of warranty coverage and never, ever, think about paying more for warranty coverage. Guess what? The market is sure willing to oblige. If no one is going to hold their feet to the coals, so to speak, then why produce something that will last long. Make it cheap and sell it. If it breaks down, it's only the customer that's out the money. They'll buy again and they'll buy the same stuff because it's the price they want it to be. Buying brand X or brand Y doesn't make a difference. They're both guaranteed for the same price.
Look, the only way you win the game is to hold the retailer and the manufacturer responsible for their products. And the way you do that is shop with the concern of warranty coverage before you buy. Purchase from the local retailers that offer well backed warranties and at a very reasonable price.
I've got a great deal of background in appliances. As such, I wouldn't say Maytag is any better or worse then most other companies and appliances. Can their products break? Absolutely. But so can any other brand on the market.
The issue with water usage is a change in energy conservation over the last ten years or so. The government only allows a certain percent of any one companies products to not match an energy matching requirement. Maytag is now a member of the Whirlpool family of products and the entire Whirlpool family only has a very few washers which are not considered high efficient. This is partially due to the previously spoken of government regulations, but also because the older traditional designs are just not as much in demand.
As far as their overall quality, there was a day when the average appliance would last twenty plus years. Now you're lucky if they see half that time. Why the change? In part it's because of cost. There was a time, some fifty years ago, when families were very brand loyal. It didn't matter what brand X costs, that's what the family would buy. But then we had high inflation set in during the late 70s and early 80s. Now the market became persuaded because, as a whole, one could save a few bucks buying brand Y. Unfortunately, the companies who could survive were those who kept their costs down and their prices with it. Think about buying most appliances today compared to what they were twenty or thirty years ago. Is there a great deal of difference in the price? The Centennial line of washers are a good example. You can purchase one within the $500 range. You know what you paid for a good washer about 30 years ago? Yep, now you're getting the idea. Compare that to what you paid for a vehicle that long ago compared to now. Considerable difference, isn't there?
The point is that appliances throughout the industry haven't seen a giant amount of price increase over the years, but their longevity has decreased. In many cases, where costs could be cut, they were. One of my pet peeves is warranty coverage. At one time, manufacturers use to provide reasonably lengthy warranties with their products. Now, one is lucky to get a year when they make a purchase. Some consumer advocates have persuaded the customer to not be so concerned about the length of warranty coverage and never, ever, think about paying more for warranty coverage. Guess what? The market is sure willing to oblige. If no one is going to hold their feet to the coals, so to speak, then why produce something that will last long. Make it cheap and sell it. If it breaks down, it's only the customer that's out the money. They'll buy again and they'll buy the same stuff because it's the price they want it to be. Buying brand X or brand Y doesn't make a difference. They're both guaranteed for the same price.
Look, the only way you win the game is to hold the retailer and the manufacturer responsible for their products. And the way you do that is shop with the concern of warranty coverage before you buy. Purchase from the local retailers that offer well backed warranties and at a very reasonable price.
Posted by ok4now on 2013-01-02:
Maytag, like Sears was once a quality trusted name. Sadly no more. Whirlpool now owns Maytag and they have cheapened the brand. Today you're lucky if an appliance lasts 5 years. They are now "disposable" and they want you to keep buying their junk.
Posted by January on 2013-01-02:
If you like the old Maytag quality, my recommendation would be to buy a new Speed Queen washing machine, as they're made like the old Maytag's were.
The Maytag repairman did not die, as he works for Speed Queen now.
The Maytag repairman did not die, as he works for Speed Queen now.
Posted by At Your Service on 2013-01-03:
I'm glad you like the Speed Queen January. They make a good quality product too, but if negative reviews mean anything...
(I'll paste the actual comments as I believe that is preferred by M3C staff compared to that of just linking)
1.0 out of 5 stars, February 16, 2012 By T. Carmichael
This review is for: Speed Queen: AWN542 Top Load Washer With 3.3 cu. ft. Stainless Steel Wash Tub
"Worst mistake buying this AWN542 washer. This thing will not fill all the way. I thought it was broken so I had my dealer replace it with a brand new replacement (not repair on the old one, not refurbish). Turns out, the AWN series top load washers are built by design to only fill about 70% of the way full. In other words, a whole bunch of stuff floats at the top, dry and uncleaned. The cold water rinse is another bad idea since our water here is about 40 degrees year round so the rinse does not do a good job pulling out the soap. Speedqueen used to have killer products and this machine is still built well frame wise, but the controls that regulate the water on this are very poor. I'm told this has something to do with federal water regulations. Well, if that's true they should at least have a simple method to circumvent this so we can get our clothes clean. I wasted $600 on a brand new washing machine that does a worse job than a free Estate by Whirlpool washer I picked up for free on a local bulletin board (not kidding)."
1.0 out of 5 stars, June 21, 2010 By Rennovation (Reno, NV)
This review is for: Speed Queen: AWN542 Top Load Washer With 3.3 cu. ft. Stainless Steel Wash Tub
"Well, I tried to make sure the washing machine I purchased would do one thing well: not break and create a major hassle. I read up on all types of machines looking for durability above all else. The Speed Queen seemed to offer this from what other people had written.
However, the machine was broken from day one. It has yet to work and we've had it for about a month. We have had three service calls and it still does not work. We have to go to the laundromat as a result--and when we are there we are, you guessed it, using Speed Queen machines and the irony doesn't help, either. We have wasted three half days waiting on the repairman. The repairman is stuck working with an ineffective and problematic repair system that cannot deliver the correct part. He is actually a pretty nice guy who seems to know what he is doing. I don't want him to look like the bad guy in all this.
I prefer to buy American whenever it makes sense. But, I'm afraid in this case with this manufacturer, it doesn't make sense. Look elsewhere.
OK, it's been about half a year since the machine showed up. After another service call it worked. The selection dial which sets the type of wash was bad so that was why it did not work when it first showed up. After that was replaced it did indeed work. For the first couple months and occasionally now it let's us know it is working by filling the room with that unique smell that we all know as "burning electrical component smell". You all may know it by a different name but we've all smelled it at some time. We were so desperate to have this thing work that we solved the problem by: keeping a fire extinguisher (rated for electrical fire use) nearby; leaving the door open to the outside and running the vent fan while using it and for some time after it had stopped to vent the room; feeling confident that the design and manufacturing team had done their level best to prevent a fire from killing us. How does it do cleaning the clothes? Pretty well, actually. Of course, the first few big jobs it had consisted of removing the smell of burning electrical components from all the laundry that had been in the room when it was first used. Somehow, that has the sound of a government make work project--one guy digs the ditch, the other guy fills it in, two guys supervise, and several administrators complete detailed project assessment forms. So, this has been an OK machine as far as washing goes but has been exemplary in stimulating the economy and we all know how important that is in today's economy. How? Well, some guys designed it, some people built it, the repairman (he really was a good guy, no kidding) got to make several service calls, the help center at Speed Queen kept busy, and my wife and I got to take a total of two whole days off work thus ensuring that our undone work was distributed to others who might have been unemployed if this unique opportunity had not occurred. Now that's stimulus. So, as a washing machine, still one star, but as a backdoor economic stimulus, five plus stars with platinum oak leaf cluster surround."
2.0 out of 5 stars, February 25, 2011 By loujetlag
This review is for: Speed Queen: AWN542 Top Load Washer With 3.3 cu. ft. Stainless Steel Wash Tub
"Much like the one reviewer, we were tired of fancy, computerized (mostly) foreign-made washers that would give us trouble. We had been there and done that. Also after much research, the machine of choice seemed to be a Speed Queen. We got the top-of-the-line AWN542 a week ago. Great wash for the first few days, then a burning electrical component smell. Now the clothes won't spin dry, at least not enough to put into the drier. So we have called both the dealer (Roger's Appliances in Flemington NJ), which seem like a stand-up dealer, as well as Speed Queen. We will see how this goes and will update after we have a verdict. It's troubling to think that top-rated, expensive products are failing early, almost irrespective of country of origin, manufacturer, or price paid. We'll see."
With respect, I again wouldn't disagree that Speed Queen make a decent product; as does Maytag. Unfortunately, there isn't a product manufactured that can't and doesn't have problems. Each manufacturer has both negative complaints and positive comments throughout the web. Purchasing an item based upon brand alone offers no assurance that the product won't fail, just as the previous three reviews attest to.
(I'll paste the actual comments as I believe that is preferred by M3C staff compared to that of just linking)
1.0 out of 5 stars, February 16, 2012 By T. Carmichael
This review is for: Speed Queen: AWN542 Top Load Washer With 3.3 cu. ft. Stainless Steel Wash Tub
"Worst mistake buying this AWN542 washer. This thing will not fill all the way. I thought it was broken so I had my dealer replace it with a brand new replacement (not repair on the old one, not refurbish). Turns out, the AWN series top load washers are built by design to only fill about 70% of the way full. In other words, a whole bunch of stuff floats at the top, dry and uncleaned. The cold water rinse is another bad idea since our water here is about 40 degrees year round so the rinse does not do a good job pulling out the soap. Speedqueen used to have killer products and this machine is still built well frame wise, but the controls that regulate the water on this are very poor. I'm told this has something to do with federal water regulations. Well, if that's true they should at least have a simple method to circumvent this so we can get our clothes clean. I wasted $600 on a brand new washing machine that does a worse job than a free Estate by Whirlpool washer I picked up for free on a local bulletin board (not kidding)."
1.0 out of 5 stars, June 21, 2010 By Rennovation (Reno, NV)
This review is for: Speed Queen: AWN542 Top Load Washer With 3.3 cu. ft. Stainless Steel Wash Tub
"Well, I tried to make sure the washing machine I purchased would do one thing well: not break and create a major hassle. I read up on all types of machines looking for durability above all else. The Speed Queen seemed to offer this from what other people had written.
However, the machine was broken from day one. It has yet to work and we've had it for about a month. We have had three service calls and it still does not work. We have to go to the laundromat as a result--and when we are there we are, you guessed it, using Speed Queen machines and the irony doesn't help, either. We have wasted three half days waiting on the repairman. The repairman is stuck working with an ineffective and problematic repair system that cannot deliver the correct part. He is actually a pretty nice guy who seems to know what he is doing. I don't want him to look like the bad guy in all this.
I prefer to buy American whenever it makes sense. But, I'm afraid in this case with this manufacturer, it doesn't make sense. Look elsewhere.
OK, it's been about half a year since the machine showed up. After another service call it worked. The selection dial which sets the type of wash was bad so that was why it did not work when it first showed up. After that was replaced it did indeed work. For the first couple months and occasionally now it let's us know it is working by filling the room with that unique smell that we all know as "burning electrical component smell". You all may know it by a different name but we've all smelled it at some time. We were so desperate to have this thing work that we solved the problem by: keeping a fire extinguisher (rated for electrical fire use) nearby; leaving the door open to the outside and running the vent fan while using it and for some time after it had stopped to vent the room; feeling confident that the design and manufacturing team had done their level best to prevent a fire from killing us. How does it do cleaning the clothes? Pretty well, actually. Of course, the first few big jobs it had consisted of removing the smell of burning electrical components from all the laundry that had been in the room when it was first used. Somehow, that has the sound of a government make work project--one guy digs the ditch, the other guy fills it in, two guys supervise, and several administrators complete detailed project assessment forms. So, this has been an OK machine as far as washing goes but has been exemplary in stimulating the economy and we all know how important that is in today's economy. How? Well, some guys designed it, some people built it, the repairman (he really was a good guy, no kidding) got to make several service calls, the help center at Speed Queen kept busy, and my wife and I got to take a total of two whole days off work thus ensuring that our undone work was distributed to others who might have been unemployed if this unique opportunity had not occurred. Now that's stimulus. So, as a washing machine, still one star, but as a backdoor economic stimulus, five plus stars with platinum oak leaf cluster surround."
2.0 out of 5 stars, February 25, 2011 By loujetlag
This review is for: Speed Queen: AWN542 Top Load Washer With 3.3 cu. ft. Stainless Steel Wash Tub
"Much like the one reviewer, we were tired of fancy, computerized (mostly) foreign-made washers that would give us trouble. We had been there and done that. Also after much research, the machine of choice seemed to be a Speed Queen. We got the top-of-the-line AWN542 a week ago. Great wash for the first few days, then a burning electrical component smell. Now the clothes won't spin dry, at least not enough to put into the drier. So we have called both the dealer (Roger's Appliances in Flemington NJ), which seem like a stand-up dealer, as well as Speed Queen. We will see how this goes and will update after we have a verdict. It's troubling to think that top-rated, expensive products are failing early, almost irrespective of country of origin, manufacturer, or price paid. We'll see."
With respect, I again wouldn't disagree that Speed Queen make a decent product; as does Maytag. Unfortunately, there isn't a product manufactured that can't and doesn't have problems. Each manufacturer has both negative complaints and positive comments throughout the web. Purchasing an item based upon brand alone offers no assurance that the product won't fail, just as the previous three reviews attest to.
Posted by Honest Opinion on 2013-01-03:
I've seen the quality of washing machines go downhill over the last 35 years (Maytag being the worst) and gave up hope of ever again having a durable, long lasting washer. Then, right here on this site, a poster mentioned Speed Queen, a name I hadn't heard or thought about for decades, and my hope was renewed.
After researching the company and its products, I was so impressed that I went ahead and purchased a top loader from a local appliance store. The owner told me he sells a lot of SQ washers to beauty salons because Maytag/Whirlpool can't handle the loads of towels. It was a nice testimonial, but I was already sold on the washer based on the company's website, as well as the abundance of praise and lack of negative reviews I found while researching the brand. And the 3-year warranty was just icing on the cake! Not only wasn't I pressured into buying an extended warranty, but I wasn't even asked.
It took only one load to see that the washer was superior to Kenmore, Maytag and Whirlpool (brands I've previously owned). It is built differently from the other brands and is similar to the washing machine I had 35 years ago. So, if you are in the market for a washing machine built like your mother's Maytag, I highly recommend Speed Queen top loaders. I've had mine for about six months and have every reason to believe I will still be using it many years from now.
After researching the company and its products, I was so impressed that I went ahead and purchased a top loader from a local appliance store. The owner told me he sells a lot of SQ washers to beauty salons because Maytag/Whirlpool can't handle the loads of towels. It was a nice testimonial, but I was already sold on the washer based on the company's website, as well as the abundance of praise and lack of negative reviews I found while researching the brand. And the 3-year warranty was just icing on the cake! Not only wasn't I pressured into buying an extended warranty, but I wasn't even asked.
It took only one load to see that the washer was superior to Kenmore, Maytag and Whirlpool (brands I've previously owned). It is built differently from the other brands and is similar to the washing machine I had 35 years ago. So, if you are in the market for a washing machine built like your mother's Maytag, I highly recommend Speed Queen top loaders. I've had mine for about six months and have every reason to believe I will still be using it many years from now.
Note: All comments are reviewed by a moderator before being published. Please be sure to read our guidelines before commenting.
Company Reps: Post your company response!
