KitchenAid quality spinning downward

[kevinpreston8]

Geez I am angry!

As some may remember, we redid all the appliances with KA last year with the exception of a Viking cooktop.

I have ranted on about how terrible a design I think the KA trash compactor is. I may have already mentioned that for a third time the vent on the microwave venting unit has just broke off and slammed down on the stove (Pacific Sales just keeps sending us new ones, of course, the package states Made in China).

The last piece we added, just a few months ago, is a brand new KA fridge.

When I "super cleaned" it for use I remember thinking to myself, gee, these pull out drawers are kind of flimsy.

Sure enough, just now my wife went to get lettuce out of the crisper and snap, the whole front of the crisper bin broke off. Just cheap garbage. There is not even a way to "kind of use it" while we figure out what to do, without leaving it part way open so we can pull it out. If you close it, there is nothing to grab onto and you kind of have to pry it open. Stupid engineering, bad quality.

I have really had it. Even though the bins in my 1963 GE are steel (like they should be) they don't even have any paint scratches on them. Most of the plastic parts in that unit are just fine too. This is after 43 years of use. This is really angering me.

I don't mind paying a premium for quality, but I expect quality. Failures like this within a few months are telling me that this company is starting to lose its way.

 

[mixfinder]

Kitcheaid Quality

When Kitchenaid first introduced it's refrigerator, the salesmen would demonstrate it's quality by pulling out a crisper drawer and standing on it. They were all steel.

I can understand cheapening appliances to meet the demands of the public and meet the perceived price point.

I am bewildered at the lack of quality in the premium appliance lines, where the costs soar into the thousands.

I share in your agony and frustration, knowing what you are experiencing is the new "normal" in appliance quality.

I am not sure if there is an upgrade or if drawers from an older model might fit into yours. Perhaps a parts store would have a replacement of older, better quality, in their inventory.

Then, the curse of function without form or beauty.

Kelly

 

[panthera]

KevIn,

I am sorry to hear of your problems. You cared enough about the brand to invest the time and, together with your wife, equip your house with what should be perfect products.
Apart from the excellent suggestion you look for older, better made crisper drawers, there are two things I suggest you do:
1) Write a letter - with photos - to Consumer's Union, the California Chamber of Commerce, Underwriter's Laboratories and everyone else who has anything to do with product quality and safety. Broken crispers are a big pain in the ass. Vent hoods falling, potentially causing very hot oil to spill and start a fire, are a safety risk and worthy of governmental intervention.
2) Write to KA and tell them what steps you are taking and why. Let them know how disapointed you are and make perfectly clear that you are going to let the entire world find out just how dangerous and poorly made their expensive products are. You might just want to have a lawyer working for a consumer's group do it for you.
I know people always say it does no good to complain - and usually it doesn't. But every so often someone does sit up and pay attention.
Personally, I wouldn't use that range hood, I would take it down before it does fall down again and perhaps do some serious harm.
Good luck - what a bummer!
KevEn

 

[knitwits1975]

Well KevIn, it pisses me off too. The three words "Made in China" usually mean junk. Free trade isn't free, it's costing us jobs, quality and the peace of mind we used to embrace whenever we bought a product. If you ever look at the product recall information, (at least this has been my observation) most of the time, it is a product imported from China. So what is Kitchenaid really saving? I also think manufacturers are deliberately turning out inferior quality products beacuse they are expecting higher profits and more sales this way.

 

[kevinpreston8]

And you know what Knitwits....

This plays right into the foreign companies hands.

Remember when Toyota and Honda gave the consumer better made cars for less money? While the US car companies caught up, they slyly raised their prices to often times MORE than the domestic equivalent. They can continue to do this and capture their market share even when their cars are debatebly no better than domestics.

All foreign manufacturers have to do is let the domestics keep churning out crap, and actually help them to, then as consumers look to foreign brands for better quality, they can charge more for them and capture the whole market.

This is exactly my problem with "quarterly results" oriented US corporations. Do some g-damned long range planning like everyone else in the world is doing!

 

[kevinpreston8]

Panthera...good suggestions, and I'll

add,

what I will do is write a complete letter to one of their VPs, with pictures and complete documentation. Capture everything.

On a consumer level, I am going to see what they will do for me at the 800 number.

I will post results and a copy of the letter if interested.

 

[knitwits1975]

You are talking about the Japanese automotive industry. This is a whole different realm from the products once produced here in the states, and then outsourced to China to be made cheaper. By the way, you will get no argument from me that the Japanese and German Automakers have made a better vehicle for decades.

 

[panthera]

Hey Kevin,

Please do post your letter - and good luck. KA products look good, so obviously somebody in the company understands design. It should not be that difficult to produce quality at the prices they demand.
Keven
(Ever noticed how many spellings our names have?)

 

[kevinpreston8]

Update....

My wife contacted KA on the two problems. They began to give her "sorry out of warranty" BS on the vent cover, until she told them this is the third one. They said they would keep extending the warranty on that for one year after we last replaced it. I wonder how many of these I will go through. As cheesey as it is I will see if I can cable tie this in an inconspicuous manner to keep it from falling all the way off.

So they are sending us ANOTHER new one. We are also getting a new drawer for the fridge.

That said, I am going to photo document ALL the problems and send it to their main customer service address. I will post that Word document on my website with a link for your review when I get it done.

Cooling off but still irritated.

 

[rinso]

I was hoping that Whirlpool would do a better job of their stewardship of the KitchenAid brand. One would expect WP to use KA as their flagship line for more than just cosmetic purposes.

 

[toggleswitch]

This is exactly my problem with "quarterly results" oriented US corporations. Do some g-damned long range planning like everyone else in the world is doing!


G-d bless you! Perfectly stated.

I suppose if EVERY company is pulling the same BS there is nowhere to turn. Doesn't ANYONE want a repeat customer?

I have no desire to buy foreign; especially major appliances but at this point why should I not?

 

[kevinpreston8]

I agree Toggle

I am simply not going to just say, screw American products I will buy foreign (I may buy foreign anyways, but I mean this in the general sense).

I am starting with KA and Rival, and I will write letters until my keyboard wears out. I will demand that they fix these issues. I won't let it go without a fight. If everyone does this, you bet they will get the idea.

It takes time and it will usually get you hot under the collar when you are doing it, but I am doing it anyways.

Like I said, I will post results.

 

[johnb300m]

You guys would be so proud of me

Take a look at what i've been writing in KitchenAid's dishwasher forum. I think i got the moderator a little defensive

http://forum.kitchenaid.com/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=6533&whichpage=2

 

[toggleswitch]

You go boi!

 

[mixfinder]

Kitchenaid Defensiveness

I belong to WACEM, a yahoo group that collects mixers. There is a VP from Kitchenaid, named Vern, that lurks there. If anything too negative is said about Kitchenaid, he tries to discredit the poster.
Kelly

 

[peterh770]

John,

Your post over at KA needed to be forceful with specific examples of problems being reported and the number of them. Just posting a "rumor" with no fact and figures to back it up and claiming another brand is better will only get you a reply post that poo-poo's your posts.

 

[johnb300m]

yeah i knew that would probably happen. but i have no hard facts or evidence. Just "word of mouth" from some owners and repair men. my data is just "general consensus".....no hard fact. I didn't expect it to hold up too well, that's why I spun my posts as "constructive criticism" and things to keep in mind and all that jazz.

 

[mayken4now]

Well John, you did good anyway. I beleive you!

Then the kitchenaid guy, Oh Honey PLEASE, suck the corporate A**.

Steve