Speed Queen warranty is 5 years and price was 3x LG washer from Costco. Costco gives 4 year warranty with Costco credit card.
So I just buy appliances from Costco and assume I will have to replace sometime after 4 years.
As one data point, all of my LG Costco appliances from almost 4 years ago are still working fine, through very heavy use. We probably use washers/dryers 10+ cycles per week due to babies/toddlers. The LG inverter linear compressor fridge is still as silent as the day we got it.
If Speed Queen’s data showed them their machines lasted 40 years, then they would advertise them with a 40 year warranty to maximize sales.
Since they do not, it is safe to say that Speed Queen does not want to bet their machines will last 40 years. So why should I bet they will last longer than their stated warranty period?
It is possible that Speed Queens are worth more because they are more repairable, but I have no interest in spending my time repairing my washer/dryer. And calling a technician would be $100/hour plus parts, at which point I might as well buy a new machine.
You realize most so-called warranties are issued with the expectation that the overwhelming majority will never make a claim let alone collect on it right? To put it plainly I don’t care a whit about warranties, I just don’t want the hassle of an unnecessary repair job.
That is true, but I figure for higher value products, the warranty period gets closer to the product’s mean time before failure.
If the Speed Queen cost 50% more, I would be inclined to buy it. But at 3x the price, I feel like it’s just easier for me to replace, and since it is Costco, I trust that the process will be easy.
> You realize most so-called warranties are issued with the expectation that the overwhelming majority will never make a claim let alone collect on it right?
Wouldn't that mean they should have longer stated warranty than estimated lifetime?
the lack of a longer warranty does not decrease the likelihood of unnecessary repair jobs
in other words, if BrandX had products they believed would last 40 years, they would have a warranty that says so, and it would not decrease the reliability 1 iota
A product can last X years without being something you want to warranty for that time - because "last" can mean "keeps working with maintenance and repairs" vs "works without a hitch for the whole time.
Also, longer warranties can be a selling point (speed queen does this with the same exact internals being sold with a higher warranty on the 'fancier' ones which just add some more features to the board).
And, a company has to hold monies on the books for warranty service, so a defined warranty period that is not unreasonable can help with that.
But the "best" company in a given market only needs to warranty beyond the nearest competitor.
Speed Queen also is implicitly dealing with people who would buy the "lifetime" warranty residential unit and run it in a commercial setting, where the wear parts would wear out.
Have you ever tried to use your "warranty"? It's a "lifetime warranty", the lifetime being the core components of the washing machine. When it dies, that's it's lifetime.
There is little enforcement of warranties from the FTC. They cannot afford to do investigations, because they are civil litigation.
Yes, that is why I mentioned it. I was expecting mine to fail by now too, but so far, no problem. I think the design or quality may have improved after the initial batches.
So I just buy appliances from Costco and assume I will have to replace sometime after 4 years.
As one data point, all of my LG Costco appliances from almost 4 years ago are still working fine, through very heavy use. We probably use washers/dryers 10+ cycles per week due to babies/toddlers. The LG inverter linear compressor fridge is still as silent as the day we got it.