Wolf and SZ strictly control the pricing of their units, and you'll find that it will be almost identical to the dollar when you compare retailers in your area. Managers are not allowed to sell across sales districts or compete across state lines via online sales. For example, when we were shopping several years ago, I could have bought a SZ fridge for about $1000 less in Chicago than in Seattle where I live. However, I would have had to drive to Chicago, load up the unit, and drive it all the way back to Seattle. Juliet3 is correct...where you can save is through side discounts on peripheral services and other brands bought in a package with your Wolf/SZ. We only wanted the Wolf 4 burner/griddle rangetop, and we paired it with at least 3 other manufacturers (LG, Asko, and FP) for the rest of the appliances. I shopped that entire package around to 4 different dealers and the one that gave me the lowest total price with the best services got the sale. Where they could discount (LG and Asko) they did, plus the winning store threw in free delivery and no interest financing. For what it's worth, it's been 3 years since the renovation (time flies!), and out of all the appliances, the Wolf rangetop/hood and Asko DW have held up the best, with no problems. The FP double ovens were problematic at first, but they have great customer service. And the LG fridge was a disaster....we're now saving up to get a new fridge. Customer service with Wolf has been exemplary. The only issues were an igniter that needed repair after installation, and the gas/oxygen levels needed adjusting. They sent out a service tech free of charge, and this was after we kept the unit in the garage for over a year while the renovation went on, so the "warranty" was technically over. They couldn't have been nicer. You'll spend a bit more for the rangetop, but you'll be very happy with it. The griddle is particularly fantastic, with even and precise heat. And make sure you get the best hood you can afford...that rangetop can throw off a lot of steam and grease when cooking. I like the Wolf pro hood...it's noisy, but effective, and very easy to clean.

I also wanted a 48" range for my kitchen, having never had one, I really looked for a Wolf or Viking at a discount...but found nothing I felt comfortable shelling out the money for. Even on Craigslist/ebay....found some, but still, IMO the deals were very risky due to no warranty or fall back if something went wrong. We did purchase a 48" kitchen aid range...granted I have never had a wolf or Viking.....but I absolutely LOVE my Kitchen aid range. We purchased it at Sears outlet/discount for about 60% less than retail (small scuff mark at bottom) and we did get an extended warranty. I love the way this range cooks!!! I love the convection oven and the fact that I have a smaller oven to cook in most days. I am not sure if you have ever had the higher end appliances, I have not and so this is a total upgrade for me and I have a peace of mind knowing I have a warranty. Also, we purchased the Sharp microwave, 24" I was able to get this for 70% below retail from Sears outlet also (not sure what was wrong with it, it was still in original packaging) ...we love it.!!!..total space saver and my DH who is 6'4" can even use it with ease. The controls tilt up so NO bending over to use it. I highly recommend getting the Sharp microwave, everyone who comes into our kitchen raves about it! Also, don't rule of 48" kitchen aid range, you can find some good deals.

I am always curious why people feel so strongly about dual fuel. It just feels like something that is more prone to failure. The appeal of the traditional Bluestar is its very straight-forward and rugged design. It's a true workhorse, and personally I wouldn't pick any other brand; but everybody has different preferences. As for fuel source, it doesn't make a big difference in practice. Every oven needs some adjustments to your cooking technique anyway. And it's a much bigger deal adjusting to an oven that doesn't heat evenly (just to give a common example), than adjusting to a different fuel source. We have a Bluestar gas range, and two electric Miele wall ovens (SpeedOven and CSO). And you know what, fuel source never even is a consideration when I have to pick one or the other. Each one of these three ovens has its own strengths, and I love this particular combination, though. If you have the money and space, I can't recommend it highly enough. Technically, an electrically heated oven has the advantage of higher moisture, which can help with things like baking bread. But that's so easy to compensate for; it's why people love making bread in a Dutch oven. What else do you make where you prefer electric over gas? In full fairness, the Bluestar gas range does have a known downside. It takes a long time to preheat. The upside is that it heats very evenly, is very predictable, and has the most amazingly powerful broiler, second only to commercial salamanders.

Since folks occasionally come across this thread, perhaps it's time for a 2023 update. Bosch Bosch has released a new "Pro" model in their 800 series line. The 800 Series Induction freestanding range (model number HIS8055U has front control knobs, but a rather small oven at 3.9 CuFt. While it does check my boxes for individual burner controls, preferably knobs, there's a few things to note: Oven size is rather small No bridge burner While Bosch themselves don't list out the wattage of each burner, it is a 40A circuit, so it may be a little less power than the Miele, Wolf or Fulgor Milano And this is a rumor and something I heard on a few appliance review videos, but unable to confirm: This product is the Smeg cooktop. If so, the burner power would be two burners at 3,000 W and two at 1,400 W. Which is indeed quite a bit less than the other top choices I had listed in the original post So overall it may look great, has front control knobs for each individual burner, but it may not have the power and/or reliability of the Bosch Benchmark slide-in induction range. Thermador They have been known for their "Freedom Induction Cooktop", especially in the 36" version. There are no truly dedicated burners, but a large "flex zone" on both the left and right side that are each powered by two separate inductors. You can use each zone as two individual burners or as one large cooking zone. You can slide pots and pans around over the entire zone and with several different programming options, it will remember your setting and transfer it to wherever you move the pan. Or you can set it to be in incrementally lower power settings front to back. So it can be on 9 at the front, 7 in the middle, 5 further back, etc.... Sear and just slide it back to lower the power setting. Extremely high tech and super impressive. So now Thermador has released this in a 30" induction range. The Thermador Liberty® Induction Professional Range 30'' Pro Harmony® (that's a mouthful) with model number PRI30LBHU is a sleek looking cooking range, with an impressively capable induction cooktop. What stood out to me: The Liberty or Freedom cooktop is phenomenally flexible, powerful and high tech. A little overwhelmingly high-tech even However, in a 30" range, it seems a little small. While the entire glass cooktop is 22 1/2" deep, a large section in the front is taken up by the controls. Based on some initial measurements, that means the flex zone cooking surface is only about 15 1/2" to 16" deep. I have to find one in person to confirm that, but based on images and scale, that's it came out to. Sounds awfully small to me And, for me, the biggest sticking point is the lack of individual burner control. On the 36" version there is a very sleek looking control panel that is very intuitive with a slider control. On the 30" version, it looks very much like the Bosch controls and hence not my personal favorite. But it may work for you All that being said, it's probably been the most exciting release in the 30" induction range world for the last year. The images attached are the size of the Thermador cooktop and the comparison the controls of the 30" Liberty range vs the 36" Freedom cooktop Other updates Dacor Has completely abandoned and discontinued the 30" induction range Fisher & Paykel Someone did point out that DCS sold the household appliance brand F&P to Haier. Which is a Chinese conglomerate that owns GE Appliances, Hoover, Hotpoint, Sanyo and a few other brands. I have not necessarily heard anything bad about F&P and know several folks have purchased F&P 9 series Classic models since they come in different colors to match your desired interior Fulgor Milano They seem to be more prevalent now than they were when I wrote the original article. And many people are quite impressed and happy with the quality. One re-occurring comment I see is that the oven seems to indicate that the preheat is complete, while the temperature is not fully distributed throughout the oven cavity yet. Especially in simple bake mode. The workaround seems to be to preheat with a convection mode to ensure the entire oven cavity is heated through and then switch back to the preferred baking mode. A bit of a workaround, but it that's the only complaint, I think it remains a strong top contender GE Cafe and Profile No major updates Miele Likewise no significant updates. The induction range is still on version 3 and remains equally impressive as it was when I posted the original article. Wolf Only has released a style update with a different oven door handle. Wait times seem to have gone down, but no feature or other technical updates As far as I know those are the updates I was able to find, so I hope this helps those continuing to shop around