A good tip when considering Mieles, look at the cost of the bags, and the size of the bags too, cos they're pretty small and pretty expensive, and small bags fill quickly and need replacing often, which gets expensive, even when using generics, an upright like a Sanitaire has huge bags which last a long time with frequent use, and cannisters like Sebo C or K series models have pretty decent size bags too, and of course bigger bags means better filtration, and better filtration is better efficiency...
Cost on the day of purchase is not really the best thing to be considering, you need to look at the cost of operating a vac over a period of time, say a year, I've used a set of 5 bags in my miele in less than a year, but I haven't gotten through a pack of Tristar bags since I first got my CXL, and that's with double-bagging too (only got single-ply bags), and I use both about the same (though doing different tasks), so, yeah, think about your potential purchase wisely, and if you want to buy an American cannister, buy a Tristar CXL, even if it's used, it's still a damned fine vac, and an Upright (even if most are made in Mexico these days) would be a Sanitaire S677, both excellent quality vacs, readily available, off-the-shelf consumables and parts, and can't be beaten, unless it's with a Sebo, but they're a tad pricey...
