I have never had an issue with mine, and reading your story, I wanted to cry for what you've been through. This is a totally ridiculous circumstance. Have your talked to your appliance dealer? Have you talked the to the service techs who won't come out? Sometimes, you do have to be the squeaky wheel. Take them to small claims court if you can't get an adequate response any other way.

Our appliance dealer special-ordered the Gaggenau outside their regular product line, so has no real experience or influence. It's our only Gaggenau appliance. They've also said that since Gaggenau replaced my original oven, my dealings need to be with them directly. I've tried to call the service people they've given me the names of, but when I do they say they have no record of me, or my oven, and the request will have to come from Gaggenau.

One example of how ignored I have been by Gaggenau. After the last service call in May 2015 failed to repair my oven, I exchanged 3 emails with Gaggenau employees: one each in June, July and August. Then, nothing. Between August 10 2015 and October 9, 2015 I sent 16 emails, to various contacts I'd made previously as well as their general email address, and made six phones calls before I got a response that took three months. That response stated simply, "A supervisor will contact you". On November 17, I still hadn't heard anything from a supervisor, or anyone else at Gaggenau, after another half dozen, at least, attempts at contact in the intervening four weeks, after giving them roughly another two weeks following the "supervisor" reply to get in touch with me. On November 18, I was told they'd assigned a new repair company to come out, gave me the name, phone number and an official looking confirmation number. By January 15 of this year, I'd heard nothing more from Gagganeu, and neither had the supposed service company.

Sue, what is the model number of your oven? I'd like to get a feel on perhaps new model vs. older model to see if perhaps they've improved or fix a design issue.

I don't have the model number handy, but it's the previous one to what they've just released, which they told me was new this year, or maybe late last year. The main differences I see when I looked, are that I have a door handle and don't have the fully automatic cleaning system, just a clean cycle that loosens food and then you clean if off inside.

I don't know if there are, or were, systemic problems with the units. I think the first one we got was a lemon, for whatever reason. Or maybe not. Because I suspect that the one I have now just wasn't repaired correctly, mostly because the person they sent out had never seen one other than mine. I still feel like there's just something they didn't catch/repair, and it all relates back to the original failure. Maybe you could say the same about first one; that just no one knew how to repair it. That was a different company than this last time, selected by my dealer, and not sure if mine was their first, but know they were also pretty unfamiliar with Gaggenau.

I think you're right about the lemon. They do happen, even with Gaggenau. There's no amount of testing that will account for shipping and installation issues, including things that shouldn't do so but break during transit. Does yours have the stainless surround to the screen? That's the model I have that has been nothing but joy. When I called about the fourth year descaling because I totally didn't understand what to do, the rep was extremely helpful, called me back several times and sent pictures. Sounds like a totally different company!

I'm sorry your dealer has let you down. It doesn't matter if it was a special order, they should be advocating for you.

Did you talk to Gaggenau Massachusetts or California? The latter is general BSH. If you haven't tried them, they might be more helpful.

You might also try Purcell Murray. They're California distributors, and also do a lot of consumer education, etc. They've also been very kind to forum members from outside if their distribution region, so they might be able to at least refer you to a good rep, or help you get your tech visit.

Worse comes to worst, you can make the appointment with the Gaggenau tech, pay for it yourself, and send them the bill. You should have a working oven and not have to go on this runaround. While you're at it, you might consider having an electrician check the wiring, and maybe put a surge suppressor on that circuit, just to make sure you've done all you can to protect the oven once it's fixed.

Best of luck to you.

I am dealing with Gaggenau out of Irvine, California. The address of the hard copy "offer letter" I received yesterday, matches that in the link you have.

Everything on mine is stainless under glass, including right around the touch screen.

Sigh. Irvine are the more responsive ones, usually. :( Keep after it. You should have an oven that works.

Well this just completely cools my ardor for a Gagg combi steam. I am so sorry for you.

Gaggenau's position is they tried to fix the oven -- the four service calls in 2014/15 from the single servicer who had never seen a combi-steam before -- and have now deemed it unfixable and, as it's now out of warranty, though it was not when the problem was first reported, the option of buying a replacement at the discount offered above ($4549.35 plus tax; they will not install and have not responded to my question about whether the until would have a full warranty) or their so-called "pro-rated buyback" of $315 (which I mistakenly listed as $350 originally) are my only options. They will not have anyone else look at it and I have been told multiple times that this has gone to the highest level and no other options will be offered. I have two weeks left to decide or they will they withdraw all offers. Advice?

If you still want a steam oven I think I would switch to the Miele or Wolf. My local dealers are offering the 5 year Miele extended warranty at no additional cost through the end of May (United States).

We do still want a combi-steam. I'm concerned with the Wolf being unplumbed and perhaps less versatile than my Gaggenau is, when it was working, which it feels like I barely remember. It works out that the price of the replacement, new model Gaggenau is almost identical to the unplumbed Wolf, so I'm extremely torn.

Also, would the existing plumbing be an issue if we weren't using it? (Down the road issues, etc.)

On the one hand, I'm not very happy with Gaggenau now, to say the least. On the other, I'm still looking at overall quality of product, and trying not to let emotion cloud my decision. There's also the, 'Third times the charm' hope that the new model they're offering solves the repeated issues I had with the earlier one.

I hadn't looked at the Miele, but from what I see the look, at least, definitely wouldn't fit in with anything else in the kitchen. The Gaggenau is already my most "modern" looking appliance; the Wolf would definitely be more aesthetically pleasing, but, again, I want function over form.

Mostly, I just don't want to make another very expensive mistake.

I see several avenues. If the appliance was purchased with a credit card, a charge back is one possibility.

Another avenue would be to contact Gaggenau in Germany. I suspect this would be taken far more seriously there and they would be unhappy to learn of this.

The buyback amount is unacceptable. I had a Viking oven bought back for what I paid for it (through the dealer) and I paid the difference for my Miele which has been trouble free.

What's more, Viking paid for the oven to be uninstalled and taken to their warehouse.

This is just bare minimum courtesy. If you are unable to negotiate that type of deal then Facebook posts, posts here, perhaps an attorney's letter, a filing with the state attorney general or other remedies under the lemon law might be pursued. It's a huge pain but it can be done. There also may be some type of small claims (unclear about limits) in the area where Gaggenau is headquartered here.

Even though they replaced the oven, the new oven should be under waranty. And an expensive oven that doesn't operate properly -- for the second time -- after repairs is not acceptable. You've had two of their expensive products. Two products with multiple repairs and two products that did not work properly. That's a clear pattern. Their issue.

Usually, a buyback goes through the dealer. But in this case, with the replacement, it is direct. That may be a good thing.

The result will depend on persistence. If it means calling them every single week for however many weeks it takes to get the result you want then that's what it takes. I had to stay on the oven case for more nearly two years.

But upthread where you mention that the communication dropped off, I would caution not to let that happen again. It's important to be persistent, let them know you will be, not apologize, just keep checking. If you don't like their answer they need to know in writing that it's unacceptable and what you want. I would ask for full original price plus cost of removal with someone they provide. Otherwise you will need to explore other remedies to resolve this.

That's horrible! Unbelievable that they delayed responding until you were out of warranty. I'm going to look up my warranties right now! I installed a Gaggenau speed oven along with a regular convection oven, and a Gaggenau gas cooktop. The ovens have worked great so far for us. The cooktop, on the other hand, started making a buzzing noise, then in the middle of making dinner one night it wouldn't light, then shot out some flames and shut down. A tech came out (a week's wait to get him to come) and confirmed what part was needed. The part was on back order, he said he would be in touch. After a week I called and was told the part wasn't available for 6 more weeks. I said I can't go without a working cooktop for 6 weeks for a part that is the size of my hand and could be shipped overnight for less than $20. They said they would get back to me. I've been calling and emailing daily since then, and they just keep telling me that management is going to make a decision. Honestly I think they should just replace my unit since it's only been installed for 2 months.

I'm at my wits end with these high priced appliance brands with their flawed engineering and slow customer service. We are busy people who need to cook our food! I'm about to install a cheap mini kitchenette in our studio space so at least we can reliably cook and eat our food while waiting on repairs for our very expensive kitchen.

I genuinely believed that if I paid top dollar I was buying peace of mind that I wouldn't have to worry about these products reliability. I also think the look of the appliances are much better. I'm coming to the conclusion that all these over the top pricey appliances are truly designed for people who want the status and look but don't actually use them to cook food.

@rococogurl Thanks for your response. I do feel like I've already pursued all those options, other than credit card chargeback which I can't imagine being an option five years after the initial purchase.

I've written hard copy letters to all the headquarters letting them know I didn't feel their solutions were fair, and calmly stating what I thought I should receive, and gave three options I felt were reasonable 1) repair, 2) a less expensive replacement, with me paying the cost difference between my model and the new one (~$2k) or 3) a prorated buyback for 1/3 my original purchase price. All were rejected. I was told the offers I've shared here are my only options. Their position, I believe, is that the replacement oven was still under the original oven's warranty, which was replaced after just over a year, and therefore it was NOT still in warranty when this began. I say "I believe" because that has never been confirmed in so many words, but Gaggenau has stated at least once they considered my oven "out of warranty," and that could only be true if they're talking about from the time the original oven was installed, as the replacement was less than two years old when the trouble was first reported. Two years later it too, is, of course, now out of warranty; so that could also be what they mean and I'm just overthinking it.

I never let communication lapse. I would call and/or email bi-weekly, then weekly, then daily, until I got a response. It was Gaggenau that would let months and months of that go by before I'd hear from them again. They'd tell me a supervisor or a manager or whomever was reviewing my case and I'd hear something "soon," then another couple weeks or a month would go by without response and I'd start trying to get in touch again. It was just a long frustrating process and, trust me, they know I'm not happy with their offered solutions. I've made that very clear. And they've made it just as clear that they are not going to do ANYTHING else for me. I don't think it's right, but this seems to be where we are.

I was informed this morning that a new unit, should I chose to purchase it at their offered discount, WOULD have a full two-year warranty. I also asked if it were possible to get the $315 "buyback" and keep the oven and try to have it repaired myself by a different service person, since I still have the nagging feeling that it could be fixed and that the person they sent just wasn't experienced enough to do so. Gaggenau did not respond to that question.

Basically, I don't know if I have the stomach to take this fight any farther than I already have. Hiring a lawyer seems really drastic, and expensive, and I was somewhat hesitant even to make this post, as I've seen others be attacked for online complaints. So, if these really are the only options, what would other Houzz users do?

Buy the expensive replacement and hope the third time is the charm and the new models are better? Because it does still seem like Gaggenau is the combi-steam leader from all I've read. <<<<----- Please tell me if this is untrue.

Take the almost insulting $315 and apply it towards a Wolf combi-steam for the same price as the replacement Gaggenau? We've had very good service record with our other Wolf-Sub-Zero appliances and the Wolf would even fit into our kitchen's overall look better than the more modern-looking Gaggenau. My concern is the Wolf's more limited modes. The fact that it's non-plumbed and how to safely shut off the existing plumbing we already have in our cabinetry, plus how much all of that will cost to do.

Or, lastly, do nothing with Gaggenau and attempt to have our current oven repaired on our own dime. If we fail, I'm told the buyback nor the replacement would be an option, so it's a definite risk with no guarantees of success. And even if it works, it could just break again another year now down the road and we're right back where we started without even the option of a discounted replacement.

This is a long thread, which I've forgotten a lot of the details. Do you have other Gagg appliances? If not, I'd consider a switch of companies. If you have a Gagg oven that the steam oven matched, then I'd consider a replacement Gagg unit. It would seem you've really had your fill of the Gagg people and their responses to your problems. What if there is a hiccup in the new replacement Gagg - where will you start on a repair issue? It sounds like you should look for another brand for your own health. Doesn't Miele have a plumbed unit now? That might be your next option in finding something that comes close to the Gagg in cooking modes and service.

I'm not sure where you live, but I'd try my own repair person if there is someone reliable. If you are in Chicago area, I can share the name of someone who has done Gagg service for out of warranty appliances for years and knows his stuff. The $315 buy back is an offensive joke and do you really want to double down and get another Gagg? And how would they know if you received a 2nd opinion. If you get it fixed - great. If other guy confirms that it is a lemon, I'd do the buy back and move over to Miele or Wolf. Just my 2 cents. And, though I was seriously considering buying a Gagg myself, your experience has changed my mind.

Could you possibly file a lawsuit in small claims court? It's not as difficult as people think and it sure does get the company's attention.

Sue NA - I've read through this entire thread twice and kept saying to myself this is so unlike Gaggenau. Then I read again and realized that you have never mentioned how old your product is or the model number.

You did mention that is was a previous generation oven but those came out around 1999. Are you talking about a 15 -16 year old product? The $315 dollars only make sense if it is already a very old product.

I do service for BSH/Gaggenau and have always found them very active in helping their Gaggenau customers even out of warranty. If you have the model number and serial number could you post it here? I can decipher the serial number to tell you the age of the oven.

I think some of the other posters are assuming that your oven is only 1 or 2 years old but the current generation steam oven has already been available for around 5 or 6 years and as you state yours is the previous generation .

I have stated the timeline above several times. Our original oven, purchased new, was installed in 2011. It was replaced just over a year later with the same model. I believe it's a BS270, if I recall the numbering correctly, and the discounted replacement they are offering is, I believe, a BS470. The main differences, as far I can tell, is the new model lacks a handle, the controls are now at the top of the unit and the cleaning system. Otherwise, they physically look very similar, at least based on photos.

The problems with the replacement began in March 2014, and were reported to Gaggenau at that time, less than two years after it was installed, when it should have still been within the two-year warranty.

The mention of my current oven being "out of warranty" was only made recently by Gaggenau (within the last month), so I don't know if they mean it is NOW out of warranty, after two years of not being fixed, or if they considered it "out of warranty" in 2014 because the two years started when my original oven was installed in 2011.

Gaggenau informed me that the current model is new "in the last year" and is a "significant improvement," their words, not mine. I don't know if either is accurate, because I didn't start researching until the offer was made, so have no idea when new models were actually released and am just going based on what was said to me during a phone conversation, and I guess it's possible I misunderstood.

I'm not actually sure if any of the above is even relevant since no other offers are forthcoming and Gaggenau has all documentation on model, serial number, when it was installed, what I paid, etc. They seem very, very clear that they this is the end of the line, and have made clear they won't respond beyond what has already been offered.

My real dilemma is whether to give them a third chance for even more $$$, which I'm very reluctant to do, or jump ship and go with another maker, likely Wolf. Or attempt to find another servicer and repair on my own dime.

They did, today, respond to my question of if they'd offer the feeble buyback amount ($315) without taking the oven so I could attempt to get it repaired using a different service person. They refused that request, so my options are the three listed above.

Sue, I wish they would replace you unit with a new one for free. After all the headaches, you deserve it.

I spent a week calling and emailing Gaggenau about my defective gas cooktop, and they finally got back to me with a decision to replace the unit. Now waiting for that to be scheduled. I hope once it's installed that I never have another problem with my new Gaggenau appliances. My old ones lasted many years with no trouble.

I was all set to just throw in the towel and try to fix it on our own, or at least see if that's even possible, but did contact the German headquarters, as suggested here. They offered me another, roughly, $400 off the replacement cost, which has made me question again whether it's worth to it to just pull the trigger and get the replacement.

Again this seems so unlike any experience we've had working with Gaggenau.

I looked up the BS270 on their parts site and see that they originally started sales on them in 2007. Again if you could provide your serial number I could help identify the age of the oven. The serial numbers start out with an FD at the beginning. I can only think that if your oven was an older model when you purchased it, like 8 or 9 years old and maybe if there was some kind of steep discounted price you paid at the beginning that any offer to help would be so low. ( I realize you stated earlier that the price was 6900+)

In our experience these ovens don't really have much of a repair history so something weird must be going on for you to see 2 failures. Do you know what error codes were showing?

Well, perhaps stupidly, since it definitely feels like a dumb decision right now, we took the lower, final offer for a replacement combi-steam oven from Gaggenau only to discover the so-called "lower" offer actually excluded tax, which they did also charge us, so we've been going back and forth again on that, until they agreed to refund the ~$400. (So, in short, it wasn’t really a lower offer at all.)

Because of that outstanding issue the oven had been in our garage, untouched, since delivery. It arrived on a wood pallet, not in a box, wrapped in plastic, with the oven visible underneath. (There was Styrofoam on the top and bottom.)

We opened it today for the first time and discovered that it didn’t come with any of the accessories specified in the product spec sheet, including ...

4 x cleaning cartridge

1 x outlet hose 3m

1 x STS tray-GN2/3-punched-40

mm deep

1 x STS tray-GN2/3-unpunched-40 mm deep

1 x grid

1 x pluggable meat probe

1 x water inlet hose 3m

… So, none of the hoses needed for install and none of the accessories needed for use. I’m beginning to suspect they gave us a refurbished or returned oven, which was NEVER discussed.

I am so beyond upset at this point and have no idea how to proceed.

It sounds like the discount you received was for a refurb. If that is the case it should have been clearly disclosed to you in writing. How frustrating! Did you take pictures of the way it was packaged, and of the unit after you unwrapped it? You have my sympathy as I'm having my own issues with BSH customer service. I hope you can return the Gaggenau oven and get a new oven elsewhere.

Just to update ... Gaggenau did contact me back promptly this morning and say they'll send the missing accessories. Also, they are trying to reassure me that they don't sell refurbished or returned ovens and the missing parts are just a, "packing error." I say "trying" only because at this point, after everything else, I am skeptical. They've said they'll extend the warranty on this unit, "for my trouble." I'm trying to be positive, because one of the reasons that we eventually decided to proceed with the replacement is because everyone I've talked to, including those folks here, have had nothing but nice things to say about Gaggenau, so I'm hoping my experiences to date have just been an anomaly. And I am really, REALLY hoping that we can get this oven up and running and I never need service, because I still think that's where all of this broke down -- with no competent service available to actually repair what I still feel is a fixable problem.

Sue N/A,

I would ask for a new unit or a refund at this point. I personally love Gaggenau ovens but at this point, I would ask for my money back.

This is the OP and I have an incredibly embarrassing confession to make, regarding my most recent post(s).

Gaggenau did send the accessories and yesterday we made a second attempt to install the replacement oven. We got the old oven out, and proceeded to carry in the new oven and install it. After we finished, which took several hours, I picked up the styrofoam and pallet the oven came on and I found the "missing" accessories, wrapped in more white styrofoam and totally concealed under the styrofoam the oven was sitting on. We didn’t see them until we physically moved the styro and it felt way too heavy. We had lifted the oven off the styrofoam previously, because my first thought about the missing pieces were “maybe they’re underneath," but we didn’t move the bottom piece and wood pallet, and none of us saw them because they were totally concealed/encased in the styrofoam. I am absolutely humiliated that we overlooked them and I made a fuss. In my defense, they were very hard to see — even three new sets of eyes didn’t catch them the second time we moved the oven, until we physically moved the styrofoam piece and it was weighted.

I have let Gaggenau know what happened, but also wanted to post here to avoid sharing misinformation.

We do have the new one in, and it seems to work. I tried it in refresh mode last night and was able to use that program on my oven for the first time in over two years without excess water pouring onto the food. It was pretty great, actually, given all the back and forth and hassle we’ve gone through.

I do have a couple questions I hope someone might be able to answer …

- What is the filter capacity, which needs to be entered into settings? It says "consult the filter instructions," but they are extremely unclear. (Giving only time in months based on water harness, and not even mentioning capacity, which is the measurement in the settings.) The range is something like 100-9000L … Which seems like a huge span. I don’t want to get this wrong, so any advice/help anyone can provide, beyond the filter manual, which is pretty dismissive, I would greatly appreciate. NOTE: Our water is, roughly, 15-18 grains of hardness,

- I also would like to know if I’m looking at this correctly: is “proof” no longer an option on the new model combi-steam? I’m not seeing it on the dial, or in the manual, but am wondering if I’m missing something. Ironically, it was one of the modes I missed being able to use most using most on our old oven since, previous to the excess water problem, it had been one of my most-used modes, as I am a frequent bread baker. The current combi manual does mention proofing dough on page 18 under “operations” saying, “when proofing dough” use such-and-such rack, but there is nothing about a proof mode, or what the equivalent settings on the current model would/should be to set yourself. Does 85 degrees and 30 percent humidity sound right? Can you set the temp that low manually?

Sue,

Glad it all worked out for you and you have a functioning oven again.

Sue, the filter capacity will depend on whether you have bought and installed a separate water filter when you hooked up your oven. If you did not, then you would program N/A in your settings. If you did hook up a water filter, take a look at the instructions that come with the filter. The filter will tell you how many liters capacity it has. (I didn't install a filter with mine).

The bread proofing is found on page 11 of my manual under the heading "Program Selection Positions", #4, and yes it is done manually. Temperature is 85-100 degrees and humidity is 60%.

OT: I'm just curious, when you connected the water hose to your hose bib, did you need to buy an adapter, or did the hose that they sent you fit the bib? I ask because mine did not fit (despite Gaggenau telling me that it should fit).

@sherri1058, yes our water hose fit without issue. It was different than the one on our old oven (that we took out), though. Thanks for the proofing settings, my manual only mentioned "proofing" in the rack positions on page 18 (did a search of the PDF since I no longer trust myself, ha!). On page 11, under "program selection positions" it mentions all of the modes and I do now see the word "dough" in the 60% description that I missed previously (since I was looking for "proof"). On my original oven it was its own setting, but that model didn't have the "grill"/broiler, or sous vide or slow cook settings.

Sue, I was wondering if you could give me the details of who you contacted at head quarters in Germany. I'm having issues with my steam oven that is less than a year old and my having zero joy with bsh USA so want to escalate. Would be grateful for your help.

@Sue N/A, is your latest replacement still working for you?