Maytag Corporation Refrigerators Consumer Reviews

I purchased a MSD2559XEB04 side by side refrigerator in July 2011 new for $825 from a local big name home supply store. Recently, the front fascia (p/n 10286928), which is part of the User Interface, peeled off on its own. The front fascia consists of two pieces, a thicker plastic backing plate that snaps into the UI and a laminated "sticker" that is stuck to the backing plate. The "sticker" portion is the piece that fell off on its own. Since the unit is out of warranty, I decided to replace the item at my cost, however soon learned that the part was discontinued and no longer available.

I contacted Maytag directly and was told that the part was discontinued and no longer available. As an alternative, I was offered a new equivalent refrigerator at a discount as a replacement. The replacement unit was offered at $832 + $70 shipping + $46 water connection fee + tax. I insisted that they provide a better resolution, especially considering that the refrigerator was only 4 years old and that they failed to stock replacement parts. I was told there was nothing better they could offer.

Be warned, when purchasing a Maytag unit, that parts may not be available for parts that fail nor will they provide a reasonable alternative. I will certainly never purchase another Maytag product again given their potential to not stock replacement parts nor provide reasonable alternatives to alleviate a clear manufacturing quality issue. Regardless of whether the unit is in warranty, a reasonable expectation would be that parts would be available for a number of years after a new purchase. This is clearly not the case with Maytag. In summary, Maytag does not stand behind its products nor is it willing to provide reasonable resolutions for product-related quality control issues.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA -- 1 yr old Maytag fridge compressor failed. Sears said they would honor the warranty and could send repairman in 3-5 business days to look at it. He could then order the compressor, then the part should arrive at my house in another 3-5 business days. Once received I need to let them know when it arrived so I could wait another 3-5 business days for the installation. That is their warranty policy for refrig repair and there was nothing I could do to speed it up so my families' food would not spoil. Rotten food was not an option with a family of 5 so I called a local repairman who knew of crappy compressors in this model and fixed it the next morning.

So much for fridge warranties. The whole time I have had this fridge there's been a freezing problem. At least once a month the fridge freezes up! None of this should happen with a quality appliance. Shame on you Maytag. I will never buy anything with the Maytag name on it again. Total piece of junk!!!

BENTON HARBOR, MICHIGAN -- Purchased as a group of 6 MAYTAG appliances from Home Depot delivered 13 December 2004. NOVEMBER 30 2009 the Sol/Start RELAY shorted out--replace at a cost to me of $206.25. Maytag repairman said I was lucky a fire didn't start he also said that there could be other problems requiring a compressor system replacement.

February 2010--while I was not at home the DEFROST BOARD shorted out and so did the NEW RELAY causing the DEFROST to HEAT UP the inside of the FREEZER to the point that there was a PARTIAL COOKING of some of the meat I had. The kitchen was full of smoke and smelled like burning wiring. WHEN I checked the Refrig. THE inside of the freezer--side walls were SO HOT I could not hold my hand on them for a long time. I unplugged the unit and called the same repairman who came out and found that the entire system was junk.

AT first ONLY a parts replacement was authorized BUT that was later changed to a PARTS AND LABOR--100% whatever it took to FIX the unit--this came from YOUR PRODUCT SAFETY people in Washington State.

When the repairman came to fix this pile of junk. He spent 10.5 hours in my home. WE had a working unit. ONLY for about a half hour then IT stopped working. His idea is that the HEAT EXCHANGE/CAP TUBE needs to be replaced along with the EVAP unitTHIS CANNOT BE DONE as MAYTAG NEVER MADE these KEY REPAIR COMPONENTS-- in other words MAYTAG built for 6 months only and sold it for only one year a REFRIGERATOR knowing that it was defective. That's right the same components that are involved with the other recalls were used in this model too.

As has been suggested by your product safety department, "WE will PRO-RATE and REPLACE your REFRIG." This means an ADDITIONAL COST to me. TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE. NO consideration has been taken for the OUT OF POCKET DOLLARS at my end. Cost of prior repair, FOOD LOST --TWICEand the fact that it took almost a month and a half to get to the point that I will have to replace this refrigerator at my expense.

DOLLARS I have invested as of NOW$1500.00 WITHOUT BUYING another REFRIGERATOR at a cost of about $1500.00--for a total out of pocket of over $3000.00. UNACCEPTABLE!!!

AS I have informed your "PRODUCT SAFETY PERSON" I intend to post all of my information on every blog on the internet starting with FACEBOOK, MYSPACE, SODAHEAD and MSNBC. I intend to contact the local news stations--CBS and FOX both have a CONSUMER HOT LINE and will amend my complaint to the CONSUMER SAFETY COMMISSION and supply them with the components I have.

And contact a PRODUCT LAWYER for possible lawsuitsin addition to joining ANY CLASS ACTION SUITS I can find. CAN MAYTAG-WHIRLPOOL SURVIVE ANY MORE BAD PRESS? WE WILL SEE!!!

I may even place this junk MAYTAG REFRIGERATOR on my lawn with a 4x8 foot sign stating-- BUY MAYTAG-WHIRLPOOL AT YOUR OWN RISK--You could have your house burn down and family hurt. DEFECTIVE AND THE NAME WENT ON.

The only way MAYTAG can make this go away is to REPLACE FREE TO ME THIS JUNK. MAYTAG went out of business due to its laundry products. These defective refrigerators might just put WHIRLPOOL OUT OF BUSINESS! I'm on Social Security disability and am a DISABLED VETERAN--Vietnam--I can NOT afford this type of LOSS.

And another point I should make. I'm not a stupid person I hold an EPA FREON LIC. as I used to own AUTO REPAIR shops. I am VERY familiar with REFRIGERATION systems as your repairman found out. I also am very well versed in electronics. I also in February filed a complaint with the CONSUMER PROTECTION AGENCY about this.

MICHIGAN -- After reading many of the complaints concerning Maytag I had to join the discussion. I don't usually join sites but we have had nothing but trouble with our Maytag refrigerator for the 6 1/2 years we have had it and I want one more voice warning people about Maytag's lack of reliability. We have had multiple problems with our refrigerator starting from just a few months after purchasing it.

In the first year alone we had 3 service calls just on the ice maker. The problem was finally resolved when a repairman bent the wire that stops the ice from being made when the bin is full. He said it was a faulty design. After his "fix" we had no more problems with ice overflowing and messing up the maker.

Over the 2 3-year extended warranty periods with Maytag Dependability Plus (we have been informed that they are not a subsidiary of Maytag) we have had an average of 3 -4 calls per year, generally concerning the defrost mechanism which caused 3 or 4 food loss claims and repairs that could only be made after the refrigerator failed to keep food cold, not when we first noticed the ice build up occurring each time.

Finally, we discovered that the defrost problem was the direct cause of water damage to our bathroom downstairs, below the refrigerator and dishwasher. It also ruined the wall beside the refrigerator, the floor in front and beneath the refrigerator (it now has the only squeak in our 12 year old home which we built), the ceiling and walls in the downstairs bathroom, caused carpenter ants because of wet wood which incurred drilling of holes in our entire house and multiple other problems.

The runaround we experienced between Maytag and Maytag Dependability Plus telling us to let the other company know of our dissatisfaction has been long and tedious. The repairmen have generally been very helpful, even telling us how to get Maytag to respond, ie, tell them you are contacting the Attorney General (that caused the company to discontinue the conversation).

One repairman told us that they lose money servicing Maytag products as they are one of the worst companies to have to service products for. An employee for the dealer we purchased our refrigerator just told us that we should not buy Maytag if we want good service. Our G.E. and Fisher & Paykel appliances have given us very few problems and we have had excellent service. A lawyer friend told us to write to the companies with a detailed list of our grievances.

Maytag called and left a number for my husband to call back (with our son) even though I was home and could have spoken with them. It took my husband (who was at work) almost 15 minutes to find out that no one knew who he should talk to. I then called them and spent 45 minutes talking to a rep who finally offered to give us a 10% discount on our next purchase of a Maytag refrigerator if we bought it before the end of Jan. 2008.

I asked her if she felt $200.00 would be just compensation for the problems our refrigerator had caused. She said it wasn't compensation but a goodwill offer. I told her we would continue to let everyone we know what a lousy company Maytag was and what lousy products and services they provided. Our next step is contacting our representatives, attorney general, and newspapers with our story. Hopefully, we will get some compensation for the multiple problems this Maytag refrigerator has caused.

LAKES REGION, NEW HAMPSHIRE -- We bought a Maytag Model MZD2666KEB side-by-side fridge/freezer, with water and ice on the door, last November 2006. Our nightmare started in July 2007. Here we are in the middle of October and I am still have the SAME problem that started in JULY. At first the refrigerator side, of our side-by-side, started freezing all the food. We made the call to have a service call made and was told 1-1/2 weeks. We had to throw away all the frozen spoiled food and buy the minimum food that would not be ruined by the freezing for the week and a half, try that with 3 growing kids. We dealt with it.

Service guy comes and informs us that he has to order a part and it will be another 2 weeks, because of backorder, to get the part. What are you going to do? We wait the 2 weeks and no service guy. WE have to call THEM to find out, we are told, the part is backordered and it MAY be in, in a couple more weeks.

I first called the service center on July 20th, 2007, with the problem of the refrigerator freezing food. Service technician came on August 7th with the technician not repairing the problem but ordering a thermostat part. The technician returned on September 6th, 43 days from the first call, replacing the thermostat. In the 43-day period the problem of freezing was intermittent causing additional food to be spoiled.

In the meantime the fridge side is working correctly on and off. The only way we knew the problem was starting to come back again was when the water on the door would stop working. Now, we are freezing ice to put into a cooler to keep some food around (milk, eggs, mayo, etc.) By the way, have you ever seen mayonnaise or eggs after they have been frozen and thawed??

It turns out the repair guy for our area was on vacation and they didn't have anyone covering his calls. After some heated phone calls they sent out another guy who installed the part and left. Everything seams fine. A couple of weeks go by, the fridge is well stocked again and the nightmare reaches a new low. The water on the door stops working one evening, the sign of bad things coming. I go to bed with the intention of calling service in the morning. 30 days from replacing the thermostat, on Saturday, October 6th, a major problem occurred.

Next morning I go to the kitchen to make some coffee. (I don't do well without coffee in the morning.) I hear a strange sound coming from the fridge and open the door to the fridge. When I open the door to the fridge a FLOOD of water, the kind you see in cartoons, comes streaming out of the fridge flooding the kitchen, into our living room, a bedroom and into the basement. I'm talking LOTS and LOTS of water. It seems the plastic around the water filter froze and broke, so water was pouring into the inside of the appliance!

The wood flooring in the living room is buckled and popping, carpet in the bedroom is molding and the basement has an INCH of water in it with the ceiling stained and ready to fall. The strange noise I heard was water spraying into the INSIDE of the fridge. The food and water filter in the refrigerator froze, cracking the water filter and streaming water into the inside of the appliance and flooding the interior of our house. The food and water filter in the refrigerator froze, cracking the water filter and streaming water into the inside of the appliance and flooding the interior of our house. It was happening most of the night.

Of course all this happens on Saturday morning with the Service Department closed on the LONG Columbus Day weekend, so the Service Department (oxymoron) is not in until TUESDAY. The technician doesn't get here until THURSDAY orders parts and won't be back for A WEEK AND A HALF!!! Partly because parts had to be ordered and because HE WAS GOING TO BE ON VACATION FOR A WEEK. If you can top that it would make ME feel better that someone else is worse off.

I never had a Maytag refrigerator before and with all the problems would really have to be forced to buy one again. If I hadn't spent so much money on this fridge I would take it outside and set it on fire. The saga goes on.

UPDATE 10/23/07-- As the story goes... I called with Maytag directly today and spoke to a great Customer Service person and told my saga. She was very helpful and heard my story. She extended my warranty for a year and submitted my name to another department for a damage report, we'll see where that goes. As I was talking with her the service tech was here replacing about every part on the refrigerator. It seems the water problem was caused by the water filter that froze and cracked, spraying water inside the fridge causing the flood. I'm crossing my fingers to see if this repair lasts. The story goes on...

NEW YORK, NEW YORK -- This is my third Maytag refrigerator. I had the first one for 18 years without any problems until it died. I had the second one for 9 years and had no problems, replacing it with a larger model. (My parents had an "International Harvester" that was working fine after 40 years, when they passed away and it went to the junk heap in excellent shape inside and out). This one, Model MTB1956GEW, is three years old and has been a problem practically from the first day.

The freezer door opens whenever you close the bottom door. (The company told us that was "normal". Since when?) The drawer fronts fell off because they never did fit properly and I now hold them on with strapping tape. It leaks on the floor, especially in the summer. It freezes things on the back part of all the shelves in the main refrigerator, no matter how you adjust the temperature.

Last summer, the main shelves, which are split into two sides, starting drooping toward the middle. When it got really bad my husband and I removed all the items to discover that the bracket in the back holding up all the shelves had come away from the back wall. The screws holding up the bracket were only into the wall by about 1/16", so they were much too short to do any good. It was a wonder that the shelves stayed up as long as they did.

We called all over New York City to find someone to do the repair, but no one knew what to do. I contacted the store, but they were no help. I wrote directly to the President of Maytag, sent pictures of the shelves, the screws and explained the problem. I got a phone call about three weeks later from a woman who left a message on my machine but was never there when I called back. I finally wrote again, a nasty letter, and this same woman called and left another message. I kept calling at all hours until I spoke to her.

She told me, "You broke the refrigerator. You put too much weight on the shelves." I nearly laughed out loud. Who, in the middle of summer, doesn't have the shelves full of water, juice, tea and lemonade? (Besides, I am Italian, and my refrigerator shelves have been overloaded since I've had my own home, more than 30 years now.) I said, "It didn't come with instructions about weight limits." And she said "It's not our problem." My husband and I live alone, (no kids) and I take very good care of everything. I was outraged, but there was nothing I could do.

Nevertheless, we got resourceful, went to the hardware store and bought longer screws and, lo and behold, we fixed it our selves. This year the freezer stopped freezing and had to be fixed twice. The food still freezes and we still have the leaks on the floor.

Maytag has been bought by the same conglomerate that bought out Amana, Hot-Point, Jenn-Air and just about everyone else. The new headquarters was in the process of shutting down Maytag's main plant and administrative offices and everyone was losing their jobs. There is no bottom line about customer service or appliance quality, as might have been the case 20 years ago. Now, Maytag is just a little jiggle on some corporate ledger that either makes money or not. The cheaper they can make the goods, the more some big muckity muck gets 100 million dollars for being CEO of a profitable meg-corporation.

Remember, almost all the big "brands" are now owned by the same outfit. You can't easily go get a "better" appliance, because quality isn't a consideration. In "Consumer Magazine" even the high end sub-zero refrigerators and "professional stoves" that cost thousands of dollars get lousy reviews. Sometimes they are worse than the cheap ones.

People can try to stay away from these major brands, as they are all the same except in name, but at some point, individuals and families don't have much choice when need a refrigerator, stove, dishwasher or washer/dryer. All are likely manufactured abroad and all are made as cheaply as possible. Let the poor stupid buyer be miserable. What do they care?

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA -- On sept 15, 2006 my ice maker in my new refrigerator stopped making ice. By Sunday the food defrosted in the freezer and the refrigerator was registering about 60 degrees. We lost a substantial amount of food ($200) and started with the frustrating endeavor of dealing with Maytag Services and Home Depot. We contacted Maytag services on September 18th and were told they would come out on 9/21 which they did and informed us that the compressor was bad. They then told us that they would be back on Mon 10/2 to replace the compressor.

On 10/2 we got a voice message (which we have all voice messages on tape) the they were cancelling due to sickness of the repairman. They then stated that they would be out on Wed 10/4 for which they never showed up or called to say they could not make it. They back pedalled at that point trying to say we were not at home (we had someone here all day long) and they rescheduled for Mon 10/9. They showed up and replaced the compressor and refrigerator worked great for about 15 hours at which time the compressor went out again and we again lost food ($100).

We called Maytag services on 10/10 and they were nasty and gave us numbers to call, which were independent Maytag service centers and told us we had to call and make arrangements for them to come out and fix our refrigerator. We made arrangements with Check Appliance Co. here in Los Angeles to come out on 10/11 at which time they did not show up either. When we called they said they would be out that day 10/12 and showed up at 8 pm that night to tell us that the compressor was out. Funny, we already knew this. They said they would have to order a new compressor and would be in touch with us on 10/13 to possibly install a new one.

We did not hear from them and we called on 10/14 at which time we were told that they had to order the part and would possibly have it late on Mon 10/16. We are now going on our 5th week of having no refrigerator and out a lot of money for food that has gone bad. When we asked about reimbursement for the food they told us that they stopped doing that in Jan 2006. We purchased the refrigerator on 5/14/06 from Home Depot store #6611. It is an Admiral-model # LTF2112ARW.

We have a case number at Home Depot where we have reported everything also. We have repeatedly asked for them to take back this refrigerator to no avail. Maytag services has been nasty, uncooperative and unwilling to help us in any way nor do they care that we have been without a refrigerator going on 5 weeks.

When we talked to the manager, **, at the Home Depot store we asked to return the refrigerator at which time he informed us that we needed a return authorization from Maytag. We do know that he could authorize the return which he did not. We want to return this for a FULL REFUND, and not a replacement. Maytag services has been rude and does not really care that we have been without a refrigerator this long.

PEABODY, MASSACHUSETTS -- Here is a copy of the e-mail that went back and forth myself and the service rep from MAYTAG..

Bill,

Here is my response to your letter and all the INCONSTANCIES with the crap I been fed from your customer service people and service tech.....you people should get together once in a while and get your sorry stories straight...

MAYTAG C.S.R.(bill)
It is unfortunate rust is occurring on your refrigerator. All door and
cabinet metal is treated in an eight-stage process. This system creates a
surface to which paint will most effectively adhere. A tough polyester
paint finish is then applied electrostatically. The paint is then baked
to a hard finish. The advantages of this process include resistance to
moisture and chipping.

ME...
blah blah blah, I am not interested in your poor design and usage of inadequate materials.

C.S.R..(bill)
Rust formation is caused by extended exposure to moisture and/or adverse
conditions(.etc etc etc YAWN)

ME....
Thanks for the science lesson. I live in the suburbs and have central AIR CONDITIONING not on the beach.

C.S.R...(BILL)
If the rust is severe, parts may need to be replaced and/or the product
may need to be refinished. We suggest contacting a business that
specializes in painting metal, such as an auto body shop.

ME...
This is EXACTLY the information I asked your service man for on 2 separate visits and about 10 calls to your customer service (which is the rudest most condescend bunch of people I have ever dealt with) NOT ONE person could answer it or even had the decency to get back to me with ANY info about rust..seemed to be a big MAYTAG mystery..

C.S.R...
If you would like a servicer to look at more than one appliance, we
would recommend mentioning this when scheduling the service appointment,
not during the service appointment.

ME...
LMFAO I asked him when he was so busy with his hands in his pocket after he PROPPED UP the blowdryer AND WAS PACING AROUND MY KITCHEN for 15 minutes waiting for freezer to defrost. yes, I can see why taking 2 steps 2 the right and peeking at a door( THE DISHWASHER HANDLE WAS A DISATER AREA AND NEVER WORKED RIGHT) while he had 15 minutes to pick his ears was such an inconvenience..MYBAD

C.S.R...
. This additional time would require delaying service

ME...

Lets talk about time here, TIME, BOTH TIMES your man came to call he arrived well after 500 PM while I had an 8 hour waiting period, that's unheard of these days I CALLED ALL DAY BOTH TIMES TO GET SUM TIME FRAME NO ONE HELPED OR CARED...even when he was late, no courtesy call. no one did anything. AFTER 5 WAS NOT PART OF THE TIME FRAME!!!not to mention ALL THE TIME ON HOLD I SPENT WHEN I CALLED YOUR SORRY EXCUSE FOR A CUSTOMER SERVICE LINE...

C.S.R...
After reviewing your file, we found that you had service on 06-30-2006
during which the technician documented that he replaced the seal on
your

ME..
no seal was ever replaced, he ran out of here when I asked him about the rust he kept saying THERE WAS NOTHING he or anyone can do about and I wasn't satisfied with that answer so I called customer service while he was her (AS I DID THAT AFTERNOON TRYING TO OBTAIN INFO ON THE RUST) because that wasYOUR(CUSTMER SERVICE ADVICE WAS) directions if he didn't have answe to a technical question he is to call and find out info) he wouldn't call to ask so I called them WHILE HE WAS HERE because he refused to give me ANY info about the rust except that THEY ALL DO IT!

C.S.R.(BILL)
We also found that you previously discussed your rust situation with an............

ME...
WHO NEVER GOT BACK TO ME WITH ANY INFO

C.S.R..
Your situation has been documented in your file with us. Again, we
apologize, but we're unable to assist you at this time.

ME..
how does it feel to be part of the rudest most condescending customer service team of any appliance division in this country? I am so down with this run-around crap, you sold your soul to the devil working for them, hope your satisfied.

C.S.R..(BILL)
We suggest contacting a business that
specializes in painting metal, such as an auto body shop.

ME...lmfao
Is this a joke? What body shop is

it that YOU USE to repair your products...you really should think before you tell people such idiotic things..

Me

Bought an upscale refrigerator model # MFI2568AES with all the bells & whistles. When the temperature dropped the alarm never let me know until it was too late. Repairman said the best thing to do was buy a new refrigerator because of the possibility of not being able to fix the leak. Need a new refrigerator, GUESS WHO IS NOT GETTING ANOTHER MAYTAG?

NEW YORK -- We had our kitchen completely redone by Home Depot. The kitchen was gutted and all was replaced. The Maytag refrigerator stopped working after 7 years and could not be repaired. The old one was still working after 20 years.