I'd keep it. Have the plumbing connections checked out because those are usually the leakers. Maybe get a water alarm stuck beneath it (not sure how good they are).

When my last DW died, it just stopped draining well. Could have had it fixed, but didn't like it much. I think they usually fail without leaking, but maybe run it by the appliance board before you believe me!

I've never had one fail by leaking. We kept our old dishwasher. We had thought about replacing it but found that the new KitchenAids aren't made as well as the old ones (change in who owns KitchenAid with industry consolidation - I think that applies to Maytag as well). To get something comparable we would have had to go to Miele.

Our GC had a local metal fabrication place make a stainless steel panel (just a flat piece of stainless cut to the right size - it should be pretty cheap) to replace the black front on our old dishwasher. A pretty cheap way to get it to match the new kitchen (of course the old control panel still shows but lots of the stainless steel appliances have black control panels. Putting it on just required taking off the metal trim piece on the door, slipping out the old black face, put the new one in and the trim piece back on.

You can find out how old your DW is by checking the serial number with the manufacturer. There's no reason not to keep it, but you should make sure that if you have to change it out sooner than a new one, it won't screw up your floor or counter.

We had the same issue and decided to go ahead and replace the DW - we had no clue how old ours was, I hated it as it didn't clean that well (worked fine) and was starting to yellow (we have new white appliances). Just check all the hoses and consider replacing them with the remodel and they do make plastic pans if you are worried about the floor (I'd rather the water go into the basement than sit near the cabinets which is why we didn't use a pan.)

it didn't clean that well (worked fine)

how can it "work fine" if it doesn't clean well?

I personally wouldn't worry that much about leaks. I think I'd keep it if it truly cleaned well. Any smallish thing I could do to make it visually fit in (the stainless panel, for example) would be worth putting off the expense.

Because DW's are generally the same size.

(though if you have any interest in a European dishwasher, you might investigate that. And of course you'd want to install the flooring, or plywood, under cabinets so that swapping out is easy)

and then I'd save up and REALLY splurge later.

Thanks! All of these are reasons that I felt justified keeping it a while- thanks for the input. I may look into a new SS panel. Not a bad idea. It is a black DW, and the range is SS and black, so even if I leave it, it wont be horrible. I'd love to save a little money right now!!

:)

We also decided to keep our DW, even though we purchased all the other appliances new. The DW (KitchenAid) is only about 5 years old and works great, so I couldn't justify a new one. Our DW is black, new appliances SS. I found a place online called Frigo Design that makes custom panels specifically for your model of DW. They have a regular or fingerprint-less SS and will send out free samples and great customer service. I just received the panels (top/bottom for my DW) and they are beautiful! The control panel will remain black, but will blend in wonderfully with the new range which is SS with a black control panel also.

I also did something similar with our compactor which is white. I was able to order replacement parts in black/SS and will paint the sides SS which will not really be seen once it is installed under the counter.

I saved a lot of $$ rather than buying a new DW & compactor so that all the appliances would match.

Here is a link that might be useful: Frigo Design

What Talley Sue mentions was one factor in our decision - almost all dishwashers fit into a standard 24" wide spot in the cabinets so they are easier to swap out than ovens, microwaves and cooktops which come in quirky sizes.

Here are before and after pictures of the dishwasher (and trash compactor which got the same panel transformation):

I'd probably keep it as well if it's only 4 years old (the production year may also be on the DW with the model #, ours was).

However, contrary to the experience that others have had, our GE Profile DW we purchased 12-1/2 years ago when we built this house failed twice before we replaced...both times it leaked and spread water under the cabinets on either side of the DW. The first time we fixed it, the second time we got rid of it. We replaced it with a Maytag that has lasted almost twice as long with no problems whatsoever. However, we did decide to replace it since it was over 8 years old. We actually went round & round on the keep/replace decision until we found someone who has a fairly large family that could not afford a DW...so we donated it to them and are getting a new one...a KitchenAid.