AEG bearing gone after 15 months! Repair under warranty but now concerned...

[ChrisP]

We have an AEG L7WEG851R washer/dryer that was delivered 6th August 2017.

In the last week, the machine has become extremely noisy when spinning, and the drum feels very rough when turning by hand.

We called AEG and a repairer came out this afternoon.  One feel of the drum and he said it's the bearing that will need replacing - a two hour job that they will do under warranty.  We're now waiting for them to order the part and book in a day to come and replace it.

My concern is, why on earth has the bearing gone on this machine after little over a year?  We forked out extra for an AEG, hoping that it would serve us for a bit longer than our previous budget Hotpoint that lasted about six years.  If the lifetime of the bearing is only 15 months, it will become a very expensive and useless appliance when it fails again after the warranty has expired.

I guess my questions are:

• Is this normal?
• Do we have to accept the repair or do we have other options?
• If we complain to AEG might they agree to extend the warranty free of charge?

I would appreciate any advice that anyone can offer.

Thanks!

[Whitegoodshelp (Andy)]

Yes it is ludicrous that the main drum bearings would fail after so short a time. Unfortunately it's not that uncommon now. My article how long should a washing machine last? discusses the topic. The poll I have at the bottom of the article shows that many washing machines don't last very long at all these days. The main cause of drum bearing failure is when water gets into them from a failed drum bearing seal. At that age it should be impossible for it to have worn out so it must have let water into the bearings. That may be classed as an inherent  fault. It certainly should never happen after such a short time.

Sadly AEG are no longer a "quality" brand like they used to be back in the 70s and 80s. They should still be much better than that though. It may be that the replacement parts last much longer. It's highly unlikely that this is "normal". It's worth expressing your concerns and disappointment in case you can get some extra guarantee.

[ChrisP]

Thanks for your very useful reply, Andy.

The engineers are changing the bearings today.  I am also composing an email to AEG regarding extending the guarantee.

I'll report back on here when I get a response from them!

[Timi]

Hi,

The same happened with me recenly.. just waiting for the engineer. I bought my AEG lavamat 7000 series (L7FBE841R) washing machine in sept/2017 and around a week ago became very noisy - a handymen checked and he said its the bearing.. 

Im pretty much disappointed.. less than 2 years and the bearing gone?!?! On an AEG machine with a very average usage ? At least i have 5 years guarnatee.. but in didnt expect this from an aeg machine :(

[KaraJ]

I have an 7000 series dualsense kombi. Purchased in 2017 and replaced BY AEG in 2018 after multiple probs it was all but a refurbished machine.  Now in 2020 machine wasn't performing (took all day to wash & dry a 2kg load) it won't drain. Fills with water when set on dry & now won't drain but no error message.  Called AEG who state it is out of warranty, despite me having registered new machine in 2018; they state warranty goes from date of 1st machine.  Apparently these are only good for one year despite having been one of the more expensive machines on the market at the time!

[Whitegoodshelp (Andy)]

Yes that’s how they always do it. Unless they agree to extend a guarantee it always runs for the original period and never extends. You would hope they would extend it a bit after all the problems. However, make sure the pump filter isn’t blocked if it isn’t draining as a blockage is by far the most likely cause.