It's been 4 years since my last update and 8 years since we installed our Viking Professional appliance package, all purchased under the new at the time Middleby. I am happy to report that aside from some of the minor problems reported above, all of which were taken care of under warranty, we have not experienced any issues with our gas range, exhaust hood, dishwasher, and combi oven. All have performed flawlessly. The only other issue that we experienced was earlier this year with the freezer of our Viking Professional built-in refrigerator accumulating ice at the bottom of the freezer and eventually that ice would melt and leak out. Being out of warranty, I personally replaced the thermostat, very easy, as well as hung a copper wire off the defroster down into the drain hole which leads to the drain pan underneath and we have not had a problem since. After further research, this is not an uncommon problem across various brands and in particular with bottom freezers of similar design. I can honestly say, we have been very happy with our Viking Professional appliances to include the service received over the last 8 yrs. I said we would be the guinea pig buying this appliance package shortly after Middleby acquired Viking and I am glad we did. Middleby promised to improve the quality and customer service experience and based on our experience I can attest that they delivered on that promise. I will continue to update this thread throughout our ownership experience to better document the long-term reliability of our Viking appliances.

I just thought I'd post a follow up. I had an email about this (but couldn't reply to it) so I thought I'd update everyone in case someone else finds this and wonders. On the front burner low simmer problems it turned out that I had a problem with 2 burners and another owner on this web site had a problem with only 1. So I knew before I called that it wasn't a consistent design flaw but probably was something that could be fixed. The repairman came and he noticed (that I hadn't) that you could hear the problem too - that on the front burners on simmer it wasn't kicking in and out like on the back (there is a faint hum when it kicks on -- the front was steady hum it wasn't cycling in and out the heat to get the nice low temp). Clearly something broken. They replaced (warranty) both the main control board and temperature sensors for those burners. It works great now - nice low simmer (very low need to turn up to med low to cook rice -- the simmer is even lower a nice barely keep warm). So that was a defect and was solved. However, the repairman did say my fan noise was normal. I might call Viking about it and see what they say. The cooling fans are quite loud (to me) and continue for a while after turning it off. I finally feel relaxed after cleaning up dinner when the sound stops... I'd say 15 minutes to cook french fries and the cooling off fan runs for 30 after I turn it off. My little Miele speed oven is much quieter when the fan runs. I don't know how this oven sound wise would compare to other current full sized ovens. The oven works great -- but it is noisy.

Call Salon Blue Ridge in North Carolina and see if they are still importing De Dietrich's. I'm sure if they carry them still the price has risen due to the dollar dropping like a stone. At one time in 2007 they had the top of the line DTI 309x at under 2K and in early 2008 it was at $2,300. I think they are very good, but am uneasy with the fact that they aren't UL certified because they aren'tmeant to be marketted in the US or Canada. It would also likely wipe out your fire insurance if they should be the cause. I would give GE's tech department a call. With any induction cooktop, whether they say 2" or 12" I would opt for putting cabinets under them with slide-out metal mesh drawers for p[ots, pans, and other metallic objects that are within 12". Heat is the enemy of all electronics so I would give most every induction cooktop more than adequate breathing room, unless they have special ductwork "heat dissipation system" that allows them good "breathing and cooling. Maybe many of the induction units that say 2" or so are only interested in making them last just past the warranty:-) Greg

Well, for what it's worth, I would definately go with the gas. I have had both and currently have the Viking induction (no gas available in current house)while I like the induction a bazillion times better than the old electric cooktop I had it still isn't the same as a gas flame. It does have the benefits of being very responsive like gas and does boil water even faster than gas. However there are certain things I miss like using my double grill pan. It just doesn't heat the whole thing, only where the burners are and putting my roasting pan right on the stove to make gravy instead of transferring the juices to another pan (roasting pan not induction cabable) and using open flame to flambe or burn off alcohol when cooking. Also you have to take into consideration the expense of new cookware if your old stuff isn't induction capable. I have had no problems with my Viking induction at all so can't help with warranty question. hope that helps.