Monday, September 01, 2008
Consumer alert: I am unhappy with Thermador
I have only occasionally used this blog to hammer on consumer products, but this is going to be an exception. I am extremely unhappy with our expensive Thermador range and oven.
First, a guest at our house bumped the range with his hip and knocked off one of the knobs. I have never, in my entire life, seen a stove knob come off like that. We reattached it, but it no longer functions properly (that is, it is uncalibrated with the actual level of flame).
Second, the griddle has never heated properly. I love griddles. Having an actual installed griddle was the thing that I liked about the range. It warms up, but barely, and cannot be used for cooking.
Finally, after only three months of operation, the oven -- and entirely separate device -- stopped working yesterday. I have never, in my entire life, had an oven literally stop working. It tells us to call customer service at 800-656-9226. When you call that number you get a message that says that Thermador customer service is unavailable over "the Independence Day" holiday, and will be back on "July 5".
Smooth.
Because I am nothing if not fair, I will, of course, amend this post if Thermador actually arranges to fix all this stuff. Until then, my advice is to avoid Thermador at all costs.
20 Comments:
By 
, at
Mon Sep 01, 10:38:00 AM:
Electric or gas? Electric ovens stop working completely when internal fusing blows, breakers trip, or one leg of the 240V power cord comes lose.
With stuff like this, the cost is in the cosmetics. The guts aren't going to be much better than a cheap Korean unit.
By 
Mark, at
Mon Sep 01, 11:27:00 AM:
Thermadors are in our experience over-priced and very poor performers. We too have a Thermador range, and it conveniently quit working on Christmas eve, shortly after we moved in. This happened to be a Christmas dinner that you didn't attend, having fled to New Jersey some years earlier, but it was a real pain nonetheless. Eating cold ham instead of warm ham is not good.
I would advise strongly against ever buying anything made by Thermador.
By CW, at
Mon Sep 01, 11:36:00 AM:
We've been waiting several months for replacement knobs for our gas range. Same problem.
CW/chsw
By , at
Mon Sep 01, 11:45:00 AM:
I have to agree. We have a Thermador cooktop and oven. While the cooktop has been pretty good, we had the oven start acting up literally 5 days after the warranty ran out. Fortunately, we have a great local vendor - Abt Appliance and Electronics in the Chicago suburbs - who treated us extremely well. They sent people out time and again over a two year period to try to fix it - charging us nothing for labor after the first visit. Finally, they argued on our behalf with Thermador and got them to offer us a new oven at wholesale and got us reimbursed for most of what we'd spent on parts. When we hesitated getting a new Thermador, they offered to sell us any oven that they carry for cost. That's customer service.
By Nomenklatura, at
Mon Sep 01, 12:02:00 PM:
Ha! You may not even know to what extent your troubles are just beginning.
Our Thermador cooktop is still not right after a recent repair, for which the agent's repair guy had to return twice. We also just gave up and replaced our (out of warranty) Thermador double oven, after a year of repairs and new problems. The service guys were fine, but the equipment was hopeless.
People in the business, as we met them during the process, seemed unsurprised.
By , at
Mon Sep 01, 12:07:00 PM:
Dump the oven. Sunk cost.
Check with my sister-in-law on what to get. I'll give you the email or the like. She's like the cooking maven.
And you should invite me to Princeton for something like the Iowa-Michigan game, or perhaps another Iowa game since they don't play this year, for a weekend, or vice versa. Life is not long. Unfortunately, I'm guessing both Iowa and Michigan will likely suck this year. We ran for 1.4 yards a rush on Saturday.
By , at
Mon Sep 01, 12:32:00 PM:
I know how you feel about Thermador. I have an expensive Viking that had similar problems from day one. I don't think Wolf is any better. Best to just by a GE Profile or Amana for under a thousand; I think they're much more reliable than those over-priced, over-weight boat anchors.
By , at
Mon Sep 01, 02:17:00 PM:
An innocent explanation for the voicemail message: someone picked the last holiday message. Oops.
By , at
Mon Sep 01, 02:45:00 PM:
I could offer a similar list of complaints for a Viking oven. Mine has 6 gas burners and a griddle, and two ovens. It's a 2006 model. I've had it repaired on four seperate occasions in two years.
By , at
Mon Sep 01, 03:45:00 PM:
You should check out the Consumer Reports website. A thermador model got 2 "excellent" and 4 "poor" reviews by customers. The last review mentions being solicited by an attorney to join in a class action.
Here's three of the "poor" reviews. Sound familiar?
#1
"I have used this oven maybe one time without trouble in 3 years. The oven is TOTALLY unreliable. It has broiled my bread in the oven set at 350 degrees, it has also broiled my cookies, and has taken one hour to bake cookies. The temperature fluctuates wildly.Thermador has been very nice. They even replaced the oven, but to no avail. I have been waiting SIX months for someone to come here to fix the oven that won't bake or clean. I use my [...]oven for all my baking."
#2
"We've had multiple problems with the range during the first 6 months. They included a leaky burner valve, a very leaky broiler valve, a warped grate, and a bent door - which Thermador tried twice to replace with other doors that were bent worse than the original. SPEND YOUR MONEY ELSEWHERE. Their parts delivery is very slow, and customer service is awful, with a "cannot talk to the service manager" policy. After lots of back and forth, they finally agreed to grant us dealer credit and take back the beast. We are waiting for the pickup."
#3
"This expensive range has fundamental design flaws.I actually have an earlier model, but it technically looks identical. The company is completely unresponsive to my endless reliability problems. Here are a few:All ignitors keep firing even when the selected burner is on, which is annoying and may go on for 30 minutes. These ignitors are wedged in a hole but nothing holds them in place. They pop out and the burner no longer lights. Once poped out, won't stay wedged in again. Replacement cost for a small ignitor is [$] (part).The biggest problem is low-power simmer which is a feature of 2 of the burners. When the oven is on,these two burners will not even lightup. When the oven is off, they tend to quit after about 10 minutes and won't reignite. Thermador's low simmer technology is an on-off cycle of a high flame, set by a thermistor (resistor coil painted on a small circuit board that cost [$]). Each on-off cycle creates a spark on the thermistor contact, which ultimately kills it (you can see the blackened spot if you disassemble the unit)and the burner no longer works at all. In the last six years, each thermistor has consistently died every six month, despite only casual use of simmer. I have a dozen burned-out thermistors and their invoices to prove it. Thermador takes pride on this "patented design", but on-off instead of low flame is a fundamental design flaw for low heat cooking. I have given up on the Thermador Pro gas range despite the thousands of dollars in investment . You get much more reliability for [$]. Sadly, I bought it when I remodeled the kitchen.to replace an old Thermador electric range which never had a problem Buyer beware. If you dont' cook, it's OK to buy this Thermador range for looks and to impress visitors. My situation does not appear to be isolated. I have been contacted by lawyers about a class action law suit against Thermador."
By , at
Mon Sep 01, 03:50:00 PM:
You should check out the Consumer Reports website. A thermador model got 2 "excellent" and 4 "poor" reviews by customers. The last review mentions being solicited by an attorney to join in a class action.
Here's three of the "poor" reviews. Sound familiar?
#1
"I have used this oven maybe one time without trouble in 3 years. The oven is TOTALLY unreliable. It has broiled my bread in the oven set at 350 degrees, it has also broiled my cookies, and has taken one hour to bake cookies. The temperature fluctuates wildly.Thermador has been very nice. They even replaced the oven, but to no avail. I have been waiting SIX months for someone to come here to fix the oven that won't bake or clean. I use my [...]oven for all my baking."
#2
"We've had multiple problems with the range during the first 6 months. They included a leaky burner valve, a very leaky broiler valve, a warped grate, and a bent door - which Thermador tried twice to replace with other doors that were bent worse than the original. SPEND YOUR MONEY ELSEWHERE. Their parts delivery is very slow, and customer service is awful, with a "cannot talk to the service manager" policy. After lots of back and forth, they finally agreed to grant us dealer credit and take back the beast. We are waiting for the pickup."
#3
"This expensive range has fundamental design flaws.I actually have an earlier model, but it technically looks identical. The company is completely unresponsive to my endless reliability problems. Here are a few:All ignitors keep firing even when the selected burner is on, which is annoying and may go on for 30 minutes. These ignitors are wedged in a hole but nothing holds them in place. They pop out and the burner no longer lights. Once poped out, won't stay wedged in again. Replacement cost for a small ignitor is [$] (part).The biggest problem is low-power simmer which is a feature of 2 of the burners. When the oven is on,these two burners will not even lightup. When the oven is off, they tend to quit after about 10 minutes and won't reignite. Thermador's low simmer technology is an on-off cycle of a high flame, set by a thermistor (resistor coil painted on a small circuit board that cost [$]). Each on-off cycle creates a spark on the thermistor contact, which ultimately kills it (you can see the blackened spot if you disassemble the unit)and the burner no longer works at all. In the last six years, each thermistor has consistently died every six month, despite only casual use of simmer. I have a dozen burned-out thermistors and their invoices to prove it. Thermador takes pride on this "patented design", but on-off instead of low flame is a fundamental design flaw for low heat cooking. I have given up on the Thermador Pro gas range despite the thousands of dollars in investment . You get much more reliability for [$]. Sadly, I bought it when I remodeled the kitchen.to replace an old Thermador electric range which never had a problem Buyer beware. If you dont' cook, it's OK to buy this Thermador range for looks and to impress visitors. My situation does not appear to be isolated. I have been contacted by lawyers about a class action law suit against Thermador."
By Cardinalpark, at
Mon Sep 01, 03:53:00 PM:
Our Thermador range and oven are actually good performers, andwe have been happy with it. However, their customer service is really poor. And we originally had ordered a Thermador fridge but dropped it in favor of a subzero due to their inability to deliver timely.
By , at
Mon Sep 01, 04:44:00 PM:
Inexpensive isn't always bad. I bought a Frigidaire stove that was the smallest stove I could find for convection heating. No Problems.
By , at
Mon Sep 01, 10:52:00 PM:
Once poped out, won't stay wedged in again.
Put a small dollop of furnace refractory cement on them and slamm'em home. Once it sets hard, they'll probably be fine.
By , at
Mon Sep 01, 11:02:00 PM:
If you want a professional range, why not buy a range used by professionals? Get a restaurant range made by Vulcan, Blodgett, or a few others. They cost less and even come with casters! Roll her out and hose her down!
My friends' propane fired Viking range craps out all the time. They mostly use the two electric built-ins they have. They are buyng a commercial Vulcan to replace the Viking.
FWIW, we have pair of Jenn-Air built in electric convection ovens side-by-side and a black/white glass five burner cook top. We bought them for the looks. Other than the electronic controls fading on the ovens, they are great. Last time one went out, I bought the replacement online and popped in in in about 20 minutes. Got to clean areas that don't normally get cleaned too. Yeah, I know, Jenn-Air went to crap when they were bought out. Mine are 7 years old.
By , at
Tue Sep 02, 12:00:00 PM:
I've had a soft spot for Garland since the time I was in the H&H Gas store over in Hightstown when the Garland Rep. was there. He opened the oven door of a four burner freestanding range and stood on it. Try that with your residential units. BTW do not just buty a commercial range, cooktop or oven. They have much less insulation than residential units and could be dangerous if not installed with proper clearances all around. Garland no longer makes residential units.
To be really cool, get an Aga cooker. I wouldn't have believed it but you can get them over at Mrs. G's on Rte. 1.
JLW III
By , at
Tue Oct 28, 11:38:00 AM:
you are not alone. check out http://www.danabushman.com/here_is_the_house/2007/04/letter_to_consu.html
i've had a thermador double oven for 12 months. from day one it didn't work. they replaced the oven a few months ago, and it has the same issues. we're pursuing a full refund as it simply does not work. it shuts down. it doesn't hold temp. it returns error codes.
By tyler, at
Fri Oct 31, 12:58:00 PM:
My Thermador ove is only 2 years old , and it is not working. I turn it on and it goes off within a minute. The same happens over and over again.I called Thermador, they asked me to call an authorized Thermador technician. I did!!. The oven still not working after 3 long months of thech support visits, parts changed at my expenses of course, and inumerous phone calls to Thermador and tech support. DO NOT BUY THERMADOR!. This is a high end oven with a very LOW END RELIABILITY. I just found out that my oven is on recall for service because it may catch on fire if I use the self clean mode. SWEET!!!!!.
By , at
Sat Jan 24, 12:28:00 PM:
We, too purchased a combo unit to the tune of $3200 + 9.25% tax.....it seems like every time we turn around, we are out of an oven or a microwave and cannot get any help from the company and continue to pay to have the thing fixed. So far, the microwave was out for 6 months, the control panel needed replacing, the seal on the warming drawer needed replacing, the convection element went out, the heating element has been out twice, and the door on the new microwave wouldn't open.....how is that for top end units. If there is a class action, we would love to be included havron68@yahoo.com. Thanks, Amanda
By abel, at
Thu Dec 02, 11:29:00 PM:
Have had oven problem with thermador gas range prg366eh/07: the top gas burners all work but the oven does not start. Our range is only 18 months old. Bought from Abt Chicago in April 2009. Not good for a range that costs $5K! The thermador service person (at 1-800-735-4328) was not helpful: focused on our range being out of warranty, mentioned that the gas pressure may be too low and would not troubleshoot the problem over the phone. The range worked for 18 months! Give me a break! Was not interested in details of my experience! When turning the main knob (bake/convection bake/off/light/broil) the blue lights (preheating/heating) turn on and off with sometimes a clicking sound; Or sometimes everything is silent. Sometimes these blue lights turn on on their own when not using the range. The range has electrical problems.
I am not impressed by Thermador. Wished I had bought a Viking.
Abel Jeuland in Chicago Dec. 2010
