HI atct86, I have the performance 300 washer and drier since April and I am very happy with them. Nice solid machines that clean clothes very well. Did not go with the steam option so I can not help with that. Bought mine at Home Depot and they delivered and set up machines at no charge.

Washer is pretty quiet - it doesn't have the 'jet engine' noise during the spin cycle like some FL do. The control panel is very easy, and you can set up your favorites in the 'My Cycles' button to minimize the button pushing. The dryer is fantastic - it does make some noise, but nothing major. Our laundry room is between our kids' bedrooms, and haven't had a noise complaint from them in 18 months. It is also right above our dining room, and we haven't noticed the noise from below unless we're listening for it (to see if it's still running, or if we need to go up and move stuff to the dryer). Vibration is a non-issue, even on the second floor. On the connection between the washer and dryer, I could take it or leave it. We have it hooked up, and it is sometimes convenient (washer tells the dryer what settings to use), but if you've left stuff in the dryer too long and want to run a de-wrinkle cycle before moving the already-washed stuff in the washer, the dryer starts talking to the washer before you can get the de-wrinkle cycle started, and you have to wait for the 'conversation' to end before changing it back to 'de-wrinkle'. I've been too lazy to unscrew the connector to fix it, but now that I've ranted, I'll probably unhook it tonight.

The salesman is correct ... Maytag products that changed to Whirlpool production did so after the company purchase, of course. Why would such a change happen before the purchase? The Bravos line is a member of the Oasis/Cabrio family and was the last of that trio introduced to the market. Kenmore Oasis was first, then Whirlpool Cabrio, then Bravos. They're all of the same mechanical design, initially based on Fisher & Paykel's SmartDrive motor mechanism. Whirlpool recently introduced a new belt-drive mechanical design to replace their 25+ years-old direct-drive/transmission agitator mechanism. This new mechanism can also be used for HE-impeller machines ... which some low- and mid-line Cabrio and Bravos models are using it, while a couple high-end models (such as the Whirlpool Vantage) are still based on SmartDrive.

If it has a push to start switch, it is probably bad. The push to start sends 120 momentarily to the control board and motor control, when the unit starts, the 120 is rerouted by the main power relay, which activates and bypasses that push button, and 120 power comes back from the control board to where it needs to go. You might find half of the double pole/momentary contact switch is bad, the half that sends power for a moment to the main control board. If bad, the machine will make noise, fill, maybe give a pulse of drum rotation, all for about 10 seconds and then shut down. This same momentary 120V signal is sent to the control board when you press the on/off again, is what turns the machine off. The problem is finding a replacement switch. I had to take mine apart, using shim brass and a soldering iron to repair the broken leaf in mine, no parts were available. If you are savvy and have an ohm meter, you can disconnect the switch and check the 4 terminals for continuity when the switch is pressed. You will have to know how to read the machine schematic to locate the switch and the terminals in question. A competent service man can check that switch for you, but again, finding the part is the problem now.