I could certainly be wrong but from the sound of your post you sound like someone who has "aspired" to have a SubZero fridge not necessarily for a functional reason but to have the brand. It sounds as if you're going all out - two Miele dishwashers, etc. - so why not just go for the SZ? If you think about all the people who have been keeping their food chilled without investing in SZ, there has to be something people "value" about SZ other than it's functional ability to keep food chilled or frozen that would make them pay the premimum price. Could be appearance, appeal of saying you have the brand, etc. In any case if you want one and want to spend the $ go for it. It seems you can count on repairs with any brand these days - kind of like luxury auto brands. Just because you spend alot doesn't mean it will be trouble free.

You want to apply wood panels directly to the sides of the refrigerator? First - the sides of the unit aren't finished at all, and aren't flat, either - so the amount of wood and pieces that you'd need would be pretty difficult to make look good. I think the biggest issue is that with Subzeros - they are very tall and *very* heavy. They can't be "free standing" - the way that they are installed is by attaching them at the front to the side panels on the left and right. If you don't have the filler to the left and the filler/return to the right and just tried to attach wood "panels" to the unit, not only would it be unsafe - it would most likely void your warranty. You could decrease the size of the filler/return on the right to 3/4" and make the filler against the wall wider and maybe more decorative? I actually think that with the panels on the front with the icebox hardware - you'll achieve the look you're going for, even if it's not totally "historically" correct.

You can adhere (glue) a wood veneer to magnet cloth and cover the fridge that way. A sign company might be able to help. You might even be able to apply veneer directly to the fridge in a way that won't come loose, but that's harder. You can get an artist to faux paint the fridge to match the cabinets. Best of all, Frigo Designs (http://www.frigodesign.com/custom-kitchens/appliance-frames-and-panels.html) has long made panels that you add to an existing refrigerator. They usually add some depth, however. It's definitely worth checking them out.

get the SZ, we got a SZ as part of our kitchen remodel, I do notice fruits and vegetables are staying fresher longer vs my ~10yr old fridge that the SZ replaced. I don't know if technology has improved so much now that all refrigerators will keep foods better or SZ fridges just preserve the foods better with the air filter, right temp and humidity. I come from the "a fridge is just fridge, no need to spend more for brand name one", but now I am a believer. Since foods last so much longer now, I might actually save money in a long run.