Dyson long term durability vs. other brands

[blakaeg]

Gheen,

I think you will find that not the whole of the Dyson machine is made from ABS. They use Polypropylene for some of the parts. As I've already posted before, my DC24 has broken twice in exactly the same place and the handle just slips out of the body (this is supposed to be made of ABS!!)

The plastic tubes just look and feel nasty and tacky. It's a shame as I really used to like Dysons. When my DC24 fails, I won't be buying another Dyson.

I really dislike the plastic tube on the cylinder machines. They do not ooze quality like the older metal ones found on the DC02 and DC05's!!

Numatic International has its manufacturing in the UK. I do not believe that Dyson did it all over the government. They did what any sensible company would do. Make a product in a low cost country and charge twice the amount for the product!! Their air multiplier fans are example of ripping people off. They are noisy and way over priced. I managed to purchase a Chinese equivalent for only £35 in Dubai and it does the same thing. I would have been very depressed if I had paid £200 for it. Dyson have been producing machines in Malaysia since 2001. Before the major move in 2002, I recalled seeing a select few DC03s and DC05s saying 'Made In Malaysia' in around August 2001.

Dyson marketing has always been very spectacular. I also heard that the bladeless fan idea was thought out by an Japanese company (so maybe Dyson didn't invent this as with the handriers, I recall Mitsubishi have their Jet Towels on the market before Dyson brought out their Airblades.

Dyson certainly have had the right idea as they are doing so well now. I'm not a fan of Vax products but well done to TTI for creating a range of affordable products that cater for everyone.

 

[parwaz786]

Get a DC14, its best made, amd powerful, you loved the DC04 and you will with the DC14 too. it is not a small vac like the dc24 but it is a powerful vac, better than the dc04 in every way

 

[madabouthoovers]

Parwaz -  I am wondering how you mean that the DC14 is better than the DC04 in every way?


The DC14 is an OK vac, and ironed out the few flaws the DC07 had, in that it was quieter to use due to the cyclones now being inverted and muffled inside the cyclone housing, and not subject to clogging like the earlier DC07, but it was in fact less powerful than the DC07 in that it employed the use of a large debris channel in the front of the head and therefore lost some of the powerful "cling" to the carpet that the DC07 had.


 


The DC04 was a very reliable vac that was built well and also lasted my parents over 10 years (They had the grey and green clutchless model). What made them get rid in the end was that simply the floor head developed a broken sole plate assembly that I could have repaired for them, but they bought a Hoover Turbo-power4 at my recommendation which is just as good as a DC14, but for a third the price. My father also agreed that latest Dysons are now grossly overpriced machines in comparison to similar specced models made by other companies.


Dyson is rapidly losing his old customer bas because he has simply become to expensive.


In the early days, up to 2007, people had more money - they bought everything on credit and felt good about life, but after the US credit crash in 2008 which had a knock on effect on the UK and most of the rest of the developed world, people had a financial shock, and now many just cannot afford to pay what Dyson demands for his poor quality vacs.


Gimmicks still appeal to some, who must have the latest in technology, but people are now a little more careful about spending so much money on a product which is generally no more long lasting or reliable than a £150 Vax, or HooverCandy machine of the similar spec (ie, Multi-Cyclonic such as the Airvolution or Turbopower 4, or the Mach Air range).


 


With Vax offering a 6 year warranty on their higher spec vacs and selling them often at much reduced prices (through Argos) its clear who sells more vacs nowadays by looking at the amount of sales Vax achieves compared to those of Dysons.


 


Dyson's bubble has burst I'm afraid and he is just not helping his company by charging the prices that he does.


If he still made his vacs in the UK, it may well be different.


 


Imaging the uproar if Kirby decided to move production of the next Kirby model to China or Malaysia? How would the Americans feel about that? How many Americans would still feel like paying the very high price for a Kirby then?


 

 

[eurekaprince]

According to the results of consumer surveys done by the American Consumers Union, Dyson is a relatively reliable brand of vacuum cleaner. Here is a quote from the preamble to their "Vacuum Brand Reliability" Webpage:

"Kirby was among the least repair-prone brands of upright vacuums while Simplicity and Riccar were among the more repair-prone. Among canister brands, Dyson and Kenmore were among the least repair-prone and Electrolux was most repair-prone. That's what we found when we asked almost 96,000 readers who bought a vacuum between 2007 and 2011 about their experiences. The graph shows the percentage of models for each brand that were repaired or had a serious problem. Differences of less than 4 points aren't meaningful, and we've adjusted the data to eliminate differences linked solely to age and usage. Models within a brand may vary, and design or manufacture changes might affect future reliability. Still, choosing a brand with a good repair history can improve your odds of getting a reliable model."

For uprights, Dyson is in the top five for brand reliability (Kirby 3%, Kenmore 6%, Dirt Devil 6%, Dyson 7%, Bissel 7%), and for canisters, Dyson is right up there with Rainbow (Rainbow 6%, Dyson 8%, Kenmore 8%, Miele 11%).

 

[man114]

If Kirby or Rainbow moved production overseas I'm pretty sure you'd see the comparative drop in quality. Companies like Kirby and Rainbow have been around for so long because the vacuums have a reputation for quality.

I use a circa 1960s Kirby to vacuum my garage carpet and it works perfectly. If they started shipping production to China would that next Kirby last 50+ years?

My 10 year old Rainbow E Series works like new, but will that $50 Chinese one from your major retailer still be working in 10 years?

The DC07 to DC33 quality difference to me was an eye opener. I agree with the technology but not the cheapening of the product. Euro-Pro would do better to re-release the Fantom Thunder with Chinese production. If Fantom could sell it at $200 with North American production, no reaosn Euro-Pro couldn't build it in China for less. If they could maintain the original quality that would be a true game changer.

Dyson seems to be playing middle ground with pricing, it is like high end department store mid to low range vac shop pricing. I don't think the quality is there to play that range.

 

[adamthemieleman]

Totally agree with what is said. The quality has dropped ever since the move to Malaysia. The newer machines feel very plasticky (no metal) and aren't worth their price, not when a Miele and Sebo are exactly the same price (if not slightly cheaper), yet 100 times better.
Also, Dyson, moved to Malaysia nog because they could not get planning permission, they did not apply for it in the first place, Dyson now outsource to VSI, a large Malaysian electronics firm.

It makes me laugh when my customers try to justify why they are buying a Dyson, the fact they have paid so much for a piece of tat!

 

[parwaz786]

I mean the DC14 is more durable than a DC04 sorry, I love the DC04 though

 

[davetranter]

Dyson (and others) marketing

At risk of weighing into a discussion which is technically 'over my head'.....

I largely agree with MadaboutHoovers' comments (reply#27) regarding the gullibility of the 'general public', and their willingness to be persuaded that something they have been using happily for the last 10 years is suddenly 'inadequate', and that investment of a large (and frankly obscene) amount of cash in a new machine is the only solution.

We are (almost) all fans of 'older' appliances here (and on AW.org), and I think I am correct in thinking that most of us see the current trend to cut quality and manufacturing costs in order to maximise profit as being nothing new. :-(

All best

Dave T

P.S. For what it's worth, I have never been a fan of Dyson machines, I usually sum up my opinions as "100% of not much suction, 100% of the time"... Feel free to quote me... ;-)

 

[madabouthoovers]

I didn't mean that all the general public are gullible lol. There are however, many previous Dyson owners who will never buy anything else, now they have been "conditioned" into thinking that Dysons are the muts nuts, no matter how poorly made they become, and no matter how expensive they become in comparison to other brands.


However, this is changing, and people ARE leaving the Dyson "clan" as they see sense and realise that Dysons are no longer "the best".


There will always be the really die hard Dyson converts who will keep making Dyson richer as he sits back and sniggers at them, thinking of all the profit they are swelling his huge bank account with, but Dyson now has serious competition in the multi-cyclone market, and other manufacturers are no longer just producing cheap and nasty bagless vacs that use central cone filters, that were hopelessly inadequate compared to the earlier Dysons they were in competition with.


 


I agree with DaveTranter totally, and I find that it seems to be the 1980's that ushered in the culture of corporate greed and excess and this is the decade that quality started to fall, with plastic replacing metal and items now starting to incorporate "built in obsolescence", ie they were designed to fail within a certain timeframe to necessitate the consumer having to go out and buy a new item - thus making these companies richer and richer, and paying out bigger and bigger dividends to executives and shareholders. There were however, some companies like Miele and Kirby that always tried to produce a quality product and to a large extent they still do today, but even Miele products just don't last the 20 odd years they did in the past, and plastic has crept on more-so on Kirby vacs.


James Dyson is now an obscenely rich man thanks to his clever conning of the public in the last 20 years, but as I said earlier, people are noticing now that Dysons are just not what they used to be, as Dyson has now prioritised his own greed for immense wealth and riches beyond the dreams of avarice, over customer satisfaction.

 

[beko1987]

Dyson Longetivity

is, in my opinion not good.

They don't break physically as much anymore, although saying that I got a DC15 the other night with a snapped chassis, but compared to the DC01 they are alot better, certainly above that of the cheaper vacs.

However, they simply screw themselves up over time. I strip, clean and service dysons as a little sideline to help the months go by financially, and every single one has been choked with dust. Every rubber seal is rendered useless due to being covered in crap and letting air fly through. Get to a clogged or blocked cyclone and it gets even worse, as I'm sure lots of you know.

You may say the £5 DC07 I picked up may have had a hard life, well my Aunt had a DC07 Animal, and used it daily for about 7 years. She changed the filters every year, and called dyson out once when the wand broke. She gave it to me when she upgraded. I stripped it down, and it wasnt blocked as such, but all the rubber seals were rubbish. Put back together again, its like a different vac. They are always like different vacs. But as I use them after the stripdown, impressed as I am I know that in 5-6 years (less if used for DIY), they will be consigned to the scrap pile again due to the dust leakage, unless someone else refurbs them...

I've conversed with a friend on this (the same friend who I'm giving the above DC07 to when he gets the keys to his new house), and he asked my if I would ever be happy to buy a new dyson. I said no, due to the above, I just wouldnt consider it a sound investment.

However, when getting machines like the DC25, which Dyson still sell for £299.99 for free due to the reasons shown in my rebuild thread, its not too bad! But long term, no chance. Not without a rebuild or two along the way to reset their lives.

 

[rdwdcp]

Cool I have a dc07 all floors