I agree - thats the annoying thing about the S2 - it does clean well - but there's so many budget cut restrictions on it or with it - never had much go wrong with the old S4000 series.
I think Miele should re-release the S4000 again. I know there's a limited stock of blue ones at Currys in the UK and they've already re-released the heavier S700 range again.
Miele s5 is the better vacuum, it is newer and build with great quality. This does not mean s2 is useless still it is a miele vacuum . Here is a great review about the vacuum http://the-best-vacuum-cleaner.com/miele-s5-capricorn/ check it out!