No Pre-wash
These machines don't have a pre-wash, most normal people in the UK don't choose pre-wash.
I dont see why this should determine whether or not you need a new machine though, you've had it 6 years without pre-wash, why all of sudden is it really needed?
I manually pre-wash on my Hotpoint HE7L492 by choosing prog 11 (cottons standard 20), let it wash for about 20 minutes, then select a slow spin - before choosing the main wash.
New Machines:
Quote: "I'm also in two minds about buying another Hotpoint as I really get the hump with the final spin as they all seem to struggle so much with trying to balance out.
But in saying that i'd even consider buying a 2nd hand Hotpoint WT960 as they had really good features & wish I never gave it away to my sister now. " Surely thats cancelling each other out, no? The WT & WF range were the worst at balancing the load, so surely going back to a WT is a step backwards.
I own a HE7L492 - one from the very latest hotpoint range (a square door design, but made with the round door machines, features all the updated programmes, programming, quality build etc), and can confirm the balancing system is very good now, theres no longer just a jump into distribution, its slowly builds up like the older WM/95 series. Also thanks to Indesit improving the build (in My opinion) the machine doesnt faff around balancing, and usually spins balanced or not, and if it does do balance trash, a few attempts it spins anyway.
You also mention rinses are important factor, well I can confirm the latest Hotpoint range (all machines, round or square door) feature a deep rinse pattern (shown in the video below of my machine from around 18:46). Deep rinses are standard on cottons 40, Cottons 20, and Baby, with all other cycles providing a deep rinse if suds are detected, especially noticeable on prog 2 - Whites which does 32second very fast tumbles, and holds temperature for 1hr meaning a build up of suds.
Finally You mention wash time is a factor - well Cottons 40, and cottons 60 can be very long (3hrs), however with Time Saver the wash cycles are reduced to around just over 1hr.
For the money the latest range from Hotpoint is personally my favourite.
The Futura, in my opinion, is top of line, as has more features than the Ultima. (WMFG1053 Currys exclusive is probably best). The Style are Ok, and my Experience is feature wise Ok too.
You'll also notice in my video is the main wash tumbles, are a massive improvement over the WT, WMD etc models, faster tumbles, short pauses deliver very good results, even with Time saver.
Bosch/Siemens are also a very good brand. They are either made in Germany, or tested in Germany before being sold, a cheaper alternative to Miele, yet quite reliable, and often priced competitively with some lower brand Candy/Hoover machines, which aren't as reliable.
Its all your choice, but think going for a WT, is personally step backwards.
Link to WMFG1053:
