Hey Thomas,
They are still Swiss made and generally last a lifetime. I have my grandmothers that was bought new in 1978 and last year I had it serviced and they replaced the shaft that contains the bearings and seals plus the capacitor for the total amount of $45. I have a newer more powerful Swissline model that I use in a 5 gal stock pot and it runs for 5-10 mins without issue. My newer one runs at 18,000rpm, the 1970's model is 10,000rpm. You cant run something that fast and have fully sealed bearings that are dishwasher safe. I've always assumed that the Dishwasher safe models have a much slower Rotational speed.
They dont go in the dishwasher, but if you have some soapy water in the sink from washing up, you just plug it in and run it in the sink. Shake it dry and put it away. It doesnt need intensive washing. I wash the shaft and the head that way and then put the blade in the dishwasher.
Every 6 months, you unscrew the bottom cover, lift the shaft seal up and put 1 drop of sewing machine oil in the shaft and then screw the base back on.
There's no plastic to crack or discolor and that seems to be what makes the big difference.
Cheers
Nathan