Don't Do LG Topload Washer Recall Unless You Want Wet Clothes

[dj-gabriele]

LG has 457,000 machines affected in the recall. 343 (0.075%)

LG has 457,000 machines affected in the recall. 343 (0.075%) reported excessive vibration and 187 (0.04%) reports of minor property damage.

That's A LOT! When here in Europe Candy Group had 5 faulty machines among the high capacity 1600 rpm models, with the drums shattering the machine cabinet if the weld came loose a HUGE revolt from the German and British press happened! I mean HUGE! For really NOTHING! 5 machines on a production run of over 2,4 millions!
And those were 5 machines spread over in A CONTINENT over a production run of 2,4 millions! And people were in HATE! If you call 187 "minor" on a less then half a million run, there are some serious concerns of what is safe and what not in my opinion...
Here numbers were in the 10^-6 range... if LG had something like that over there I'm sure all the machines of theirs would be banned from shops for a couple decades! (What a dream!)

 

[qualin]

To Gansky1

Well, Gansky1, that certainly puts it into perspective, doesn't it?

I would certainly agree that putting in an "Out of Balance" buzzer or sounder would be considerably better than producing a cryptic "UE" code and then just giving up.

My mothers Filter-Flo out of balance alarm sounded like someone on Methamphetamines beating a garage door with a baseball bat. "BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!"

My GE washer would just make "KABLAMITYBLAMITYBLAMITYblamity...... blam..." noises..

Fortunately, a bit of a re-balance and both washers just carried on like nothing happened.

I have to give GE credit for one thing.. they certainly learned how to fix the whole issue with the washer walking around...

 

[logixx]

I, too, wonder why there's no off-balance sensor on these. Didn't Fisher & Paykel once have sensors to register cabinet hits? The only extra sensor in there seems to the an overflow sensor:

 

[powrbruh]

Another Bull**** Excuse

The same LG technician from last week came today to "repair" the stator and rotor. He said LG engineer said I was the only consumer complaining about the new recall software. I told him to check the internet and he would see differently.

He performed some test and found out my washer final spin is only 700rpms. He called LG and was told that 700rpms was normal for the new software. He stated to me that I would have to take up my issues with LG because there was nothing else he could do.

I called LG and told them that I HAVE HAD ENOUGH. Fix the damn washing machine or replace it. The rep, Jessi, infomred me that LG is sending yet another technician out in 3 to 5 business days and he/she would determine if a replacement is possible. I told her that I would continue to write, call, or email whomever until this matter is resolved because I will not accept otherwise.

 

[arbilab]

Not to diminish your disgruntlement, but 700rpm is not the end of the world. My 1998 FL ElectroFrigiWhite is 800rpm and while that's pale compared to my 1973 Panasonic twintub at 1700rpm it's not sopping wet either and takes barely over a half hour in my 120V Kenmore compact dryer.

By all means get the best settlement you can negotiate. As said times before, it is NOT the product you purchased and we all think you are entitled to compensation for that. But even if you are totally stonewalled, it is still usable. At least until something worse goes wrong. Eh?

 

[mrb627]

Optional

It sure seems like the consumer should have been given a choice in the matter. Perhaps opting to pass on the update if they chose, but forfeiting the balance of the warranty. Imagine if the last major dishwasher recall due to fires resulted in disconnecting the heating element...

Malcolm

 

[mrb627]

Harmony

It's also interesting that the Harmony machine has been out longer than the LG and I never heard of them exploding like the LG and they weren't included in the recall.

Malcolm

 

[dj-gabriele]

700rpm is not the end of the world

Are you sure?! To me 1200 rpm is a SLOW spin! But even if it was a small decrease (say from 1100 to 1000 rpm) I wouldn't have accepted it!
And as said why stick with an under-performing machine?! People at LG have always been crap at dealing with post sale service but this is ridiculous!
To me powrbruh is being too much patient, I would have sent something to a consumer association already and ask for a full refund to be able to purchase a new machine from a different manufacturer!

 

[powrbruh]

I Agree

I do agree that I have been too patient. I have already filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Comission. I plan to do alot more than that. I think the problem with consumers in America is we accept what these big companies say and do to us without putting up a fight. The machine is ADVERTISED to do a 1100rpm final spin; not a 700rpm final spin. It was doing that before the recall work was done. For me, this is the "end of the world" when I purchased an appliance to provide me with energy savings. This is like someone buy a hybrid car that is supposed to 48mpg but it only gets 10mpg. Is one to accept that and say "it's not the end of the world"? Just something to think about.

 

[mrb627]

Website

Does LG's website still advertise the 1100rpm spin?

Malcolm

 

[powrbruh]

Malcolm,

Yes it does states the 5101HW spins at 1100rpms. I have printed a copy of it also. The newer generation of my washer states a final spin of 1100rpms as well. But I am told 700rpms is now the final spin speed. Bullsh*t!!!!

 

[frigilux]

I checked the LG website a couple of times to see if spin speeds had been altered, but they remain at full-on explosion speeds. I would venture a guess that the website hasn't been updated, but that all those machines have been reprogrammed to spin at 700---unless they've swapped out the problematic plastic parts. Which I doubt.

I know I'd be mad if, say, I bought a dishwasher that was rated at 42 decibels, only to find it was closer to 50 decibels when installed. Go get 'em, powrbruh![this post was last edited: 3/12/2013-13:04]

 

[tomturbomatic]

The problem Gary is that a lot of people don't want to p

Actually, the problem is that major corporations don't want to pay living wages or historical benefits and don't want to deal with environmental laws so they let foreign countries deal with all of that. You can look at the European model or the Chinese model and most manufacturers in the US chose to go to the Chinese model. Just yesterday there was a story about river water killing fish place in a container of it in two hours and many young people in the town along the river coming down with lung cancer. That is what American corporations don't want to see or deal with. To top it off, China is a military and commercial threat to this nation, but that does not matter if the corporations that pay all of the money to the politicians make huge profits with cheap foreign labor. I know this is a Korean product, but just wait a little bit. China will steal the company's secrets and be able to make it cheaper and that is where the US companies will go to have it made.

 

[qualin]

A 700 RPM spin is fairly typical for most American-Style top loaders. It's been good enough for decades in North America from the late 40's straight through to the 1990's. I don't see how this is a problem.

While I do think that it sucks that your machine is now not really performing as advertised, I don't honestly think it is the end of the world.

Your clothes will still come out dry enough that they can be put into a dryer. It just means that your drying cycles will be a bit longer.

If you really want to spin dry your clothing, the Charming Spinner spins them faster than any washing machine on the market can, at 3200 RPM. Safely. Without exploding. Some items I've spun with it come out nearly dry, especially polyester/cotton blends.

Realistically, if you are so angry about your machine not living up to the expectations you wanted, sell the thing, get whatever you can get for it and buy something which does live up to its advertising.

IMHO, it just isn't worth fretting over.

Good luck.

 

[washer111]

Hmmm

I suppose the point Powrbruh is trying to make is that its Not his problem that LG couldn't make a washer that wouldn't pose a danger to the public when loaded incorrectly or when spinning at high speed (wear/tear on cheap components). 

 

Why should he have to deal with their sloppy design and manufacturer? Why should he have to put up with crappy software updates that might save the washer (for a while, at least), that leaves his clothes much wetter than he wants? Why should he have to put up with a machine that is not living up to expectations?

 

If you want my opinion, stick this out. FORCE LG (with lawsuits or something) to compensate you/refund you WHATEVER! Then sell the machine/return and get something better. SpeedQueen, Frigidaire, Miele, whatever works FOR YOU! 

If you cant' be bothered, sell it it someone, but list it as 700rpm spin. Simple! "Cheap Washer, Works Good" "Nearly new LG being sold because its too big for our laundry/needs. Lots of cycles, spins at 700rpm" (Maybe don't include that!)

 

[philr]

The technology from the 1940's allowed top-loading washers to spin at speed higher than 1100 RPM without self-destructing, I don't see why today's technology wouldn't allow it. I just finished two loads with my 56 years old Frigidaire this morning and it's still not self-destructing at 1140 RPM speed and I'm sure other posters in this thread do exactly the same!  Of course, it's jut a 9 pounds washer and it does get off-balance occasionally but it's still holding together fine!

 

I think that many new washers like the LG won't hold together so nicely as their plastic components age, even when correctly loaded...  But maybe they have a few other self-destructing parts like control boards that will go wrong and prevent a more dramatic failure before they get 20 or even just 10 years old (unless the faulty control board suddenly allows it to spin at extremely high uncontrolled speeds!). 

 

 

 

[powrbruh]

THANK YOU WASHER111

Thank you for realizing what I was trying to state. There is a big difference between 700rpms and 1100rpms when it comes to drying heavy load. Let's not forget, my washer does not spin at 700rpms during the final spin. It's more like 500(something)rpms. It's very slow. I have recordings to prove it.

If someone wants to think I am making a big deal over this, that's fine. It's not going to stop me from doing what I feel is right. I bought a HIGH EFFICIENCY machine. Most regular toploaders spin at 600 to 700rpms. High effieciency spin higher to save the consumer money and energy in drying costs. I am not buying a spinner. I am hoping LG will exchange my set for a set that works as advertised. If not, then I will have to pursue whatever avenues necessary to get them to rectify this issue.

 

[georgect]

Stick it to LG

Their (LG's) "work a round" fix of slowing the spin speed and making it longer is shotty service if I ever heard it.
I'm with you powrbruh, you didn't buy this machine you have now with the software change.

And with an HE machine, not only does it save on water but it's supposed to wring out almost all the water permissible, depending on fabric and cycle of course. Saving even more on drying resources.
That's why TOL washers have the highest spin speeds. More money spent up front is supposed to get you more/higher features (that's their selling point).

My current standard top loading 14 year old Whirlpool does a better job at wringing out water than your one year old LG HE machine.
My dryer, drying towels, underwear, sock and such takes 50 minutes and sheets take 30 minutes.

 

[logixx]

Max spin

I looked at a service manual (WT5070) thinking there's got to be a way for you to read out the spin speed as the drums spins. Usually, all LG washers will display things like drum speed, water level and temperature if one presses the right combination of buttons during the cycle. Couln't find it in the manual, though - just an overview for the test mode.

 

[washer111]

10 times pushing

Pushing the button (Start/Pause) 10 times will get you a spin (high speed), showing T8 and RPM. It says so on the sheet above