4842 and 9802 were delivered today. 1st impressions: First - we loved our Asko's and hated to see them go. Install was simple stuff - the crew was in and out in about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. They assembled the washer / dryer on the stands while in the truck. Getting the washer downstairs was a chore for two big guys. Installer said the washer (on stand) weighs nearly 350. The pair is a beast on the stands. Coming from our little Asko's - this pair is huge. Fit and finish is excellent. The stands are very nice - soft close doors, a place to set a basket on - well made (ought to be for the $$). The washer is almost silent until it spins up - and then it is not nearly as loud as the 1200rpm Asko it replaced. It does shake at full spin - did not walk or anything, but a clear shake. We did not consider the dryer to be noisy - but it clearly moves moves more air than any dryer we have had before. We did not install the solid aluminum vent pipe as recommended by sales person and folks on this forum. I bought it and installer encouraged us to try the flex aluminum vent pipe he brought with him. We agreed to try it and it was fine - returned the solid vent material today. The wife is very pleased - thought her first load of whites came out cleaner than the Asko - which is saying something. I talked her into these - would have been trouble if they did not perform at least as well as what she had. Quick wash (on cold) was about 30 minutes - Normal wash about an hour. More later after we get some experience.

I've run the entire gamut on the hinge and finished with my own modification. The hinge is made of the wrong alloy composition and eventually sags owed to the weight of the door assembly. Its second design flaw is that there is no hinge adjustment. Miele's final solution was a roller latch guide receiver. My solution was to remove the front panel (very heavy); remove the door assembly; there are two holes that the hinge pins engage that are located in the front panel under the hinge, using the lower hinge pin hole scribe an arc at the center of the top hinge pin hole outwards; use a rotary tool or a Dremel to grind the arc along the scribe mark the size of the hinge pin. This will allow you to move the hinge over thereby moving the door latch upwards (compensating for the sagging and stretching of the alloy hinge). Use the proper thread-lock on the two bolts and I also used cyanoacrylate on the inside hinge backing plate to help ensure no moment. You are restricted as to how far you can move the hinge as it hits where the depression of the door stamping indentation meets the bevel and this only allows so much adjustment. I did this modification about nine months into ownership as Miele simply could not fix the issue without it recurring. It's going on five years now, and I've encountered about 1mm sag over that period, but the latch and its receiver are still well within tolerances to where there are no issues. If it again becomes a problem, I am simply going to repeat the arc modification on the lower hinge pin hole or grind away stock from the hinge to allow further adjustment and repaint the hinge. I was going to do a photo essay with instructions, but this is not something that I would encourage people to try. And I was royally pissed-off with Miele at the time.

I am not going to tell anyone what to buy. We all have different situations. Many on this forum are having good success with the 4840. It seems like if you need the jumbo capacity then it would be OK and you can get the heater to work just not on normal. I think older Whirlpools don't use their heater on normal either. I don't need a washer the size of a house. I separate clothes by fabric and color especially since higher temps can remove dyes faster, and will also cause anything with spandex to quickly deteriorate. I do wash comforters in my 6K with no problem but that depends on the bulkiness of comforters. So in the future if I need a new comforter I won't buy a bulky one. The 5 and 6k machines have been in use for many years in the U.S.A and all over the world, but it is only here in the U.S.A that we feel that things must be big to get things done. I understand the idea that 20 sets of jeans can be washed at one time. I also understand that folks want to wash comforters, but I also find that I can wash larger loads in my 6K machine than I could in my super capacity top loader and they get cleaner. So I guess it depends on what your needs are. If you sort your laundry are you going to wash the equivalent of 20 pairs of jeans in each load? Here's my trick. If I have a particularly large load, one with heavy soil, I will use the extended cycle which washes and rinses longer. Otherwise I don't need extended; things get clean with the regular shorter cycle. If the load is large and dirty and can take higher heat I use the regular short cycle and increase the temperature. if the load is small the machine reduces the cycle times and everything still gets clean. so there are a lot of variable you can play around with the achieve the result you want. The new 5.5K washers are 120V so that it will be easier for folks to install them..but they don't heat to 200F either. Will the older 220V models continue to be sold or phased out? I paid $75 to have the 220V line run from the electric box to the machine. Do you already have 220V? Are you willing to pay for it to be installed? I have not needed to use LCB since having my FL. Are you willing to LCB for heavy stains? Regular use of LCB is not recommended (or needed for cleaning) for the smaller ones because I think they contain a SS outer drum while the newer units do not. Does this matter to you? This is a new model only released to the U.S.A. I am sure Miele does a good job of production and testing but do you want to buy version one of anything or would be be better to wait for release two? Sure incremental changes have been made to the smaller units but the basics and footprint have not changed that much so they must be on version 150. The smaller previous miele models contain some of the same cycles the 4840 does, difference is they are smaller, use 220V and can heat the water hotter and faster. So like I mentioned every ones situation will be different. For me - I have had my washer(W1986) wince 2003 and there is nothing wrong with it. So I don't need a washer and plan to keep this one and have it repaired as needed for as long as possible. I do like having the option of higher temps, higher rinse levels and water consumption if I want it. This is a minor thing but I like the heavy SS door and lock on my machine too. Situations will vary. Do what is right for you.

Larsi, I love LOVE LOVE the mounted wicker baskets. I'm so copying that in some fashion. @Enduring - I grew up and nearly all my family is in Clinton County, then I did my undergrad in northeast Iowa. So other than some time in France and the last ten years here, I'm an Iowa boy :) You mention university town so I'm guessing you're central -- either IC or DSM. Given you have a Miele, you must not be too far out in the boonies. Haha.