After 2+ years of ownership now I will say I would easily buy this machine again... That said I have had 2 service calls... the first time the pump stopped... it was replaced and it's run great ever since...until I washed a rubber backed bath rug and the backing fell apart into crumbs and plugged the line... service cleaned that out for me and it's been great ever since... now that second time was entirely my fault... I knew the backing was old and delicate... but I was trying to push one last wash and a month or so out of the rug... dumb move... Personally the only 'guts' I've gotten near is to open the round 'access' on the bottom front which allows you to open the clean out prior to the pump... when I've checked there (other than with the rug incident) there is never anything of consequence... and it's solely been an 'execrise' in how to do it... That said... be aware that a small item (kids socks, small panties, etc) will occassionally end up in the gasket by the door, and then you have to decide if you're going to hold onto it for another load, or give it a good squeeze out and toss it into the dryer... I have found if I put this type of item in the washer first when loading the problem does not occur as often... maybe once per month or two... not great, but not a deal breaker in my mind. From comments some have posted here is seems that some bosch models do not have a spin option on the dial any longer, so I'd watch for that as IF you end up unbalanced you can get a 'soggy' load at the end and then you just need to re-spin the load after rearranging it... again, not frequent maybe I've done this 3-4 times in 2+ years??? but if you don't have the option to select only a spin, you'd have to rewash needlessly. If you don't currently have a fl machine, be aware, cycles are longer... I find my typical normal regular wash time is about 1 hour per load, unless I select the 'quick' wash of ~25 minutes. good luck with whatever you end up with.

Hi Guvnah, You will be pleased with how clean your clothes get in the new Bosch. Especially whites. We use the cotton temp-boost setting for all our whites except when we use the XXsanitary cycle for bedsheets and pillow cases. The only thing is the new machines rinse out the detergent so well that we don't get that detergent aroma that we always associated with freshly cleaned clothes. Now they just smell more 'pure' (if that makes sense). The clothes also come out softer and I think that's because all the detergent is getting rinsed out. -Bill

hmmm....very interesting thread. I have knocking problems that have just started with my new 7 1/2 week old Bosch 500 Nexxt also. But I'm not to sure if it was caused by a uneducated repair guy or what. I had vibration problems, when I first got it and waited 5 1/2 weeks for the ding dong repair guy to order the right amount of legs (I guess he can't count) when he put them on he used a 5" block of wood to tilt the the machine back then forward to install the new legs. I should mention that the repair guy called Bosch tech who told him to order & install the new feet that that should solve the problem. After he left the vibrations seemed worse and the knocking started. The knocking noise happens when it's ramping up and braking to slow down. Also seemed to me it was having more troubles than usual balancing before spinning. So, I called Bosch asked them if these issues could have happened from the repair guy titling the machine without re-installing the shipping bolts. Bosch said, yes it could be possible and suggested I called a different repair shop. So, I call another repair shop, this guy knows what he's doing finally, he discovers that one of the struts is worn out, bad and needs replaced. The machine is only 6 weeks old!!!!! I wait another 1 1/2 weeks for the new struts he put them on yesterday and it is still knocking, the struts didn't fix the problem. The repair guy says that he isn't to sure what it would be but it is definetly not normal. He did call Bosch later and Bosch told him that the knocking is probably due to the rubber feet, which Bosch originally said would take care of the vibration problems. I have a hard time believing it is because of the feet, I called Lowes told them the whole story, they ordered me a new machine which will be delivered next week. I have had this machine for 7 1/2 weeks it has never operated properly. It does concern me that the struts went out within 6 weeks, there are only 2 of us so I don't do much laundry so there is no way I could have worn those out that soon. I haven't given up hope yet, before the struts going out and the knocking noise, even if I was having vibrations issues, I really do like the machine. I'm just hoping that it is a "lemon" and the new machine will be fine. Oh, I forgot to mention that the first repair guy noticed when he was putting on the new feet that the back legs weren't tighten down by the Lowes delivery guys. Maybe that was the cause of the vibration problem to begin with. Wonder if vibration could do enough damage shaking to make the struts go out and the knocking since a few of us have experienced the same problems? I don't want to make it sound like Bosch is bad, there are many many people on this forum that are very happy Bosch owners, thats why I choose Bosch in the first place. I'm still hoping that I can be a happy Bosch owner also. Maybe the new 500 had a few kinks in them that didn't get worked out?

Thanks for the replies. I like the Bosch, but I spent about $2K for the washer/dryer, and really don't like the idea of spending more money to pour concrete pads and jacks. I tried plywood, I took two 3/4 pieces of plywood and glued and screwed them together, then primed and painted. I made it big enough to go under the dryer also so they would both be the same height. This actually made the problem worse. One end of the plywood was about an 1/8 from the tile (slightly warped). The washer was not heavy enough to hold it down, so it caused more severe vibration. I then purchased anti-vibration pads made specifically for front loaders, they helped a little. So I've spent about $150.00 and have not made much of a difference. The vibration is not very bad, and the machine does not shake, but the floor in the near-by kitchen vibrates enough to make the dishes in the cabinets rattle. My concern is long term damage - weakened floor - more deflection? I may be paraniod and over thinking this, but Lowes has offered to take the units back and let pick out something else. So that's why I considering the F&P or Cabrio with or without agitator. I just don't know which one will use less water and be more reliable. Thanks again and happy holidays.