You are certainly correct regarding the relative longevities of older and new appliances. I have been extremely disappointed with my 6-year-old Whirlpool Cabrio washer, with its designed-to-fail, irreplaceable main bearing. It replaced a 20-year-old Maytag that had finally started to rust out from our hard and aggressive water. During 20 years of Maytag ownership, I spent the princely sum of $7 on a new lid switch. In 6 years I have spent $120 on a Whirlpool gearbox (since the bearing itself cannot be replaced), $30 on a Whirlpool water pump, $40 on a set of Whirlpool suspension rods (because you can't replace just the Teflon sliders on the shock absorbers), plus $10 on a special spanner for removing the tub hub and $40 for two single-use hubs. If I hadn't made my own with an old car jack and a 2x4, I would have been out another $85 for a tub pulling tool. If I had paid someone to do the work, I would easily have exceeded the purchase price. This is the single worst appliance I have ever owned. It is mated with a 19-year-old GE dryer on which I have spent only about $7 last year for a new drive belt.