We bought a Thermador range 5 years ago. Five burners, just under six thousand dollars. It's the kind of thing you buy once. For a while, it was great.
Then it started breaking. In December the right cooling fan failed, and a Thermador technician replaced it under warranty. In February the broiler ignitor went and had to be replaced too. I figured that was the worst of it.
It wasn't. In April the same cooling fan failed again, same error code. Three repairs in five months on a range that's supposed to last twenty years.
The timeline
December
Thermador's technician replaces the right cooling fan under warranty. The range works again.
February
The broiler ignitor fails and has to be replaced. The second repair in three months.
April 27
The same fan fails. An independent technician diagnoses an F6100 cooling fan error. Four months after the last repair.
The wait
The replacement part is backordered until August. That's more than three months with no working oven.
May 5
I email Thermador with the receipts, the photos, and the proof of purchase. I tell them I have a baby and a toddler at home and no way to cook, and ask what they can do.
May 11 to 13
A couple of calls. A request for a "proposal." Then a note that the case is "currently being reviewed" and someone will call.
The offer
Pay $2,800 for the same range. No installation. They don't haul the old one away either.
The repair itself is covered. Thermador agreed to fix it. The holdup is the part, and it's backordered until August.
So the $2,800 isn't really paying for a repair. It's paying to skip the wait. And the wait exists because of their backorder, not anything I did. I don't think I should have to pay them to solve that.
What I asked for
I didn't ask for much. One of two things:
- Find the part somewhere and do the repair they already agreed to cover.
- Or replace the range on fair terms, with installation, the old one hauled away, and a fresh warranty.
That's it. I want a stove that works, in a reasonable amount of time.
To be fair
I get their side. The range is 5 years old, and it's past the two-year warranty. Strictly speaking, they don't owe me a thing.
But you spend six thousand dollars on a range for a reason. You're paying for the name, and the idea that it'll last. When it doesn't, backing the product should count for something, somewhere. I'm not asking them to cover it forever. What's a brand even supposed to stand for?
Why I put this up
I'm not angry, and I'm not asking anyone reading this for anything. I have two small kids and a kitchen I can't cook in, and I wrote the whole thing down so the next person has the full picture before they spend six thousand dollars on a range.
If anything changes, I'll update this page. And if someone at Thermador reads this, I'd rather settle it directly. This is case ending 8070. I have faith you'll do the right thing.
Regards,
Steve
For Thermador
If you're with Thermador and want to sort this out, I'm easy to reach. This is case ending 8070.