BSH Home Appliances

We were renovating our kitchen and upon the recommendation of the appliance salesman decided to purchase a stainless steel Bosch dishwasher and downdraft on 4/8/11. The rest of our new appliances we purchased was GE Profile and included a refrigerator, cooktop, oven and microwave oven - all stainless steel finish. All items were purchased at the same time and installed at the same time by professional installers. To date, we have had no rusting on any of our appliances except for our Bosch dishwasher. In fact, the GE refrigerator is always getting wet from my daughter's dripping water down the freezer door from the water dispense, yet there is no rust there.

While I noticed the rust back in September 2011, I did not call for warranty service until December and on 1/10/11, Russ of Appliance Service Center in Honolulu came to our home and replaced the front door panel with a brand new stainless steel panel. We were told to clean the unit with stainless steel cleaner only and to treat it with WD-40. We did not even have a chance to clean it, within a month's time, it has already started to rust again. While I'm sure the door is stainless steel, it is clearly manufactured using an extremely low/inexpensive grade of stainless steel.

My concern is that this problem will continue and once the warranty period is over, I will have no recourse and will be stuck with a rusty/ugly dishwasher in a beautiful new kitchen. Again, I chose Bosch very specifically because I was told it was the best dishwasher. I even spent more money doing so. I called, emailed and wrote to BSH Home Appliances, as instructed by Bosch customer service, asking for help to no avail. Please help me resolve this issue. Thank you for your time and consideration.

As you are aware from the many conversations and emails we have exchanged over this past summer, I currently own a not inexpensive Bosch electric double wall oven Model HBL 7. This oven was installed new when we purchased our newly built house in July, 2003. Since that time, we have twice had oven door hinges fail through no apparent misuse.

The first time we were able to replace the hinge, but when a hinge failed in March, 2010, our local Bosch authorized repair service informed us that no replacement hinges were available. They also mentioned that they had several other customers in the same situation a broken oven door hinge on the same model and no replacement available. I was advised to contact Bosch, which I did.

A Bosch customer service representative confirmed that no replacement hinges were available, but advised me to order one so that I would be on the list when a hinge did become available. Thus, I placed an order for a replacement hinge on April 12, 2010. I contacted Bosch customer service over the next several months as no hinge arrived, and each time was told it was not at all certain when a hinge might become available. I was told the hinge manufacturer had gone out of business, but that Bosch was searching for and then had found a new manufacturer. On one of my calls, I was put in touch with you.

During our calls and emails, several things became clear. One was that there was no guarantee I would ever receive a replacement hinge. Another was that there had to be hundreds, if not thousands, of people in my position having a useless oven with no hope of getting it fixed. Apparently, some replacement hinges were coming in to the USA, but even my order in April put me so low on the list it was pretty clear there had to be a huge backorder for this part.

Finally, you mentioned that Bosch was willing to offer me some kind of deal to replace my oven since it was not certain when, or if, I would get a replacement hinge. The initial offer was a replacement oven, essentially the current version of my oven, for $1,674.27. Because I thought the offer totally unsatisfactory, I decided to wait a bit longer for a possible replacement hinge. Now comes your attached letter with an offer to replace my oven for $1,800.00. You refer to this as a discounted price. Beyond the fact that the cost to me has gone up, in actuality, your offer is not a discounted price at all. It is essentially a dealer price, what Bosch would receive from a dealer. It might seem discounted to me, a consumer, but the reality is that this offer would not cost Bosch a single penny. Bosch, which has caused me considerable inconvenience (I have not had use of my main oven since March), would in effect walk away scoot free, suffering itself absolutely no negative consequence.

The reality of the situation is that Bosch produced a poorly designed, engineered, and made product. For whatever reason a replacement hinge is not available, it is both unacceptable and unconscionable that my oven is totally useless after only less than seven years and should have to be replaced. And the offer of a replacement for $1,800.00 should be an embarrassment for Bosch. It is presumptuous of Bosch to assume I would ever consider replacing a poorly designed Bosch product with another Bosch product. I have, in fact, purchased a new oven, which will be installed this Friday. It is of course a much more reliable brand than Bosch. And yes, I will have to pay not only for the oven, but for the installation and removal of my Bosch unit. Since all oven manufacturers have decided to increase the size of double wall ovens (how consumer friendly! ), I will have to pay to have my cabinet cut to fit the new oven.

If Bosch were truly interested in making any kind of genuine offer to consumers like me stuck with a defective product, then you would offer perhaps the amount you were discounting from your own oven toward my purchase of a new oven. As it is, the offer presented to me is not just unacceptable, it is an insult. Speaking of insults, the last sentence of your letter I take as a direct insult on my intelligence. From our exchanges over the summer, you should well realize how unhappy I am with Bosch. To thank me for my continued interest in the Bosch brand can only show your own inability to understand your customers or your blind loyalty to your employer, or both. I did once admire the Bosch brand. No more.

I purchased a Bosch Washer and Dryer in 2007 plus extended warranty. The Bosch Washer WFMC1001UC motor plus motor control broke on 2010. Bosch cannot furnish parts. Factory that makes parts went out of business. They will not repair and/or replace for no charge. They want me to purchase new discontinued model for $.

I cannot dish out more money for a bad product. I was told a company has to supply repair parts for 7 years. This is illegal practice to force someone to buy product they do not want.

For the fourth time, technicians (three of them now) have come to my home to repair a known issue on a Thermado 36 inch gas range. On not one occasion have they brought the parts with them. Each time they arrive, they try to charge me a service fee, though they never do anything but waste my time. Thermado has manufactured a product with a known defect. The ignition module continues to fire after the burner is turned off. This is a safety issue and they know it. Adding injury to insult, each time, the technician is hours late to their appointment. Then they don't come back for weeks. This problem has gone on for several months with no resolution.

On February 4, 2010, I asked them where in the manual does it state to leave the washer door open because of mold? No response cause it doesn't state this. As a result, all my clothes smell like mold and I have asthma. When I purchased this machine, model WFMC2100UC101 serial number 856120083934001434 in May 2006 at Lowe's, no one ever told me to keep the door open because of mold or wipe the seal down every time you use the machine because of mold.

I signed the agreement with the understanding that I was getting the SAME SIZE MODEL. It was my understanding that I was responsible if the cabinets were damaged upon installation, which was not the case. The installer could not use the oven that was sent to me. This company admitted not mentioning the different size and said there was nothing more they would do. I'm stuck with an oven that will not fit. BSH has acted in a fraudulent manner. Buyers beware, all details may not be disclosed!