I suppose it depends on whom you ask. Maytag Bravos gets high ratings at CR and many excellent reviews from owners at the Sears and Home Depot websites. They are built with commercial-grade parts.

I don't think old-fashioned toploaders are being built anymore. I have a Maytag Bravos HE TL and it has been a great washer for me.

Maytag has been bought out by Whirlpool but the Maytag name is still in use. So Maytag's made today are using Whirlpool parts. (Yes it was true, they cheaped out but now things should be changing under Whirlpool management).

American front loaders water levels rarely if at all reach the bottom of the door seal. So that they can be opened at any point of the cycle.
I know for fact that Electrolux can unlock the door at any time (they have no "add clothes" indicator like some washer brands).

Top loaders are still being made but beware that may not offer true hot (water temp. your hot water supply is set at).
To meet Energy Star requirements they have "dumbed down" what was true hot with Auto. Temp. Control.
This mixes hot domestic hot water with cold to meet a determined temp. set by the manufacturer.

So if your hot water heater is set to say 130F the washer will mix cold with that to maintain a temp of say 120F.
(this is true of new front loaders too but most front loaders have a on board heater to boost or hold water temp. where most top loaders have too much water and therefore lack a on board heater...it would take way too long to raise or hold that much water with a 1000 watt heating element.)
Hope that helps a little.

The only top loader that is made in America that follows the old school rules is Speed Queen. I would recommend investigating Speed Queen.

I often get a chuckle out of this question since so often people just blurt out GET THE BINFORD 6100... I LOVE MINE!! and give no consideration to whether the inquirer's budget, needs and wants are the same as theirs. There's no way to give an intelligent suggestion without some basic information up front. First question I always ask is what's your budget? I'm amazed that few if any ever give that a consideration until they say "that's too much". Why even mention a $4k-$5k set if their budget is a small fraction of that. We've become so used to buying whatever is put in front of us instead of getting what we need.

Will the set be somewhere on display so for appearances purposes you want them to try to match? Especially on higher end machines you'll pay a lot more for the semi-match. Dryers are pretty basic machines and there's little difference between a $200 dryer and a $2000 dryer all things considered. Personally I seldom see machines that I truly can say match well. And I'm not into appearances - I believe form follows function so for me I want the performance and value to come before aesthetics. But again, it's important to know wants too.

Whirlpool bought out Maytag and has salvaged the name making it again respectable. I wouldn't worry about that but then again name can be misleading since you don't always know who makes what. Many people believe Kenmore makes appliances, which they don't. Maytag, Estate, Roper, Inglis, Amana, JennAir and others are all made by Whirlpool. Samsung makes a front loader for Amana. LG makes the GE Harmony. Frigidaire makes a front loader for Gibson and GE. And on and on.

You also need to consider your needs and wants. What cycles and capacity would be important to you?

AFAIK, Speed Queen still would qualify as an "old fashioned" top loader. It's still a solid unit.

As for adding clothes to a front loader and even some top loaders that have locks, it usually can be done except if the front loader is in a sanitary cycle. I won't agree that most front loaders have heaters. Some do. And they vary as to when the heater works so it's often very misleading. Though it may have a "heater" sometimes it only works on one or two cycles. Also, while some heaters will go over 200°, many now only heat to about 150° if that's a consideration of yours.

Obviously with your space considerations you need to check dimensions carefully. Don't forget to factor in space needs for outlets, water supply and venting and have you considered supply storage? There's also the option of a laundry center or stacked units if they would meet your needs.

Finding washers and dryers these days can be intimidating. But do some homework and look around. I'm sure you'll find something to meet your needs well.

I would recommend you purchase them in the LG brand,Frigidaire, or Kenmore brand. All 3 are machines that work really well! They are all really good quality machines that should last for a long time !

There are a couple of TL machines out there still. The GE and F&P come to mind.