The Homely Lux Model T

[charles~richard]

Right. Good point, Rob.

But if you look at the advertisement for the Automatic E, it says something along the line of "OWN AN ELECTROLUX FOR THE LOW PRICE OF $49.75 ... then in tiny print ... "thrift model"

(I have a large-format (12" x 18") high-quality litho print of the AE ad. It's a flyer to be left at people's homes when the Electrolux man came by and no one was there. It also refers to the Thrift Model.)

So, customers coming into the Electrolux branch office -- or having a salesman stop by -- and wanting to see the "$49.75 Electrolux" would have to be shown the Model T first unless they were guilty of bait-and-switch.

What the salesman could have said was something along the line of, "Yes, Mrs. Prospect, this budget model is a fine vacuum cleaner that will give you many years of service. But if you want the most remarkable machine available, may I recommend the deluxe, new Automatic Model."

I am not at home and don't have access to the AE ad. When I get home I'll post it.

 

[danemodsandy]

What About Today?

All this talk of Lux salespeople gone by makes me wonder: Has anyone been to an Aerus dealership and observed today's ambience and sales tactics?

 

[vacjwt]

yes

thay are very very swift at selling you a $500 pice of crap very sly I ask for trade ins and I have a frend that works as a dealer any thing over 12 years old they toss out so the pepole that come in can only buy the new crap and my frend takes the old stuff home and gives it to me the stuff they sell is not as good as the stuff that was sold 20 years ago

 

[danemodsandy]

$500?

I understand that the BOL Lux Classic is around $800, with the Lux Guardian (the TOL machine) going for around two grand.

That's a bunch of money for plastic machines! I really think Aerus would do well to come up with some new, metal machines, if it wants its product to be well-differentiated from Eurekaluxes (or is it Electrorekas?) in the minds of consumers.

The only metal canister I can think of right now is the TriStar, though I don't know new machines very well, being completely disinterested in owning one. You literally could not give me a new plastic vacuum, no matter how fancy or expensive.

 

[vacjwt]

it is the crap model

Im talking about not the high end model Im talking about it is very sad the way things are made today Im 17 and I hate things that are made today our water heater is 78 years old we have never had 1 probem with it my frend had one put in 7 years ago it was the high end model a month ago it came apart water water evry whare but not a drop to drink they had to put a new floor in to the room it burst very sad

 

[danemodsandy]

vacjwt:

I'm not talking about the high-end model either- the Lux Classic is the BOTTOM of the line. That's the one that lists for $800!

The mid-line canister is the Lux Legacy, which lists for around $1300. Then comes the Big Kahuna, the Lux Guardian, at about $2000.

Isn't it crazy? The Classic is basically the old Canadian Electrolux E, from the early 1980s.

 

[vacjwt]

thay are all crap

BTW they are cheeper by me I think the probem is that they cant sell much they may be going out of business soon most pepole can not more like will not spend 800 bucks on a vacuum they go to good will and get a oldie but a goodie

 

[danemodsandy]

Easy Enough To Save the Company...

I've heard before that they're in trouble, and I can see why.

Their list prices are very high- not even Miele gets that kind of money for their product. The Guardian was not well-rated by Consumer Reports, and even though I don't trust that magazine the way I used to, a lot of well-off consumers saw that report.

If I had it to do, I'd come off those list prices by at least 25%. I'd also do something about the sheer ugliness of the Legacy and the Guardian- that two-tone blue is ugly and cheap-looking.

I'd also work on something to replace the Guardian, preferably a metal machine, to have something different to sell, and justify a price of around $1,500 or so. I'd also make sure it outperformed other machines in the price class.

As a short-term fix, I'd turn Aerus stores into Aerus-TriStar stores (the same company owns both brands), and can the "home demonstration" sales model for TriStar, which has generated more consumer complaints online than you can shake a stick at. TriStar is a very nice machine, worth the money charged for it (except for those awful plastic wands!), and it doesn't need its reputation damaged by "Mr. Haney" sales tactics.

 

[williamr1248]

homely model t Electrolux

Charlie,
I remember when we went into a house that had a beater bar or stiff brush machine we demonstrated by putting dirt we pulled up from a test cloth on the rug and then used the wands to tap the rug and let the customer watch the dirt just "vanish" into the rug. After membership in the vac club we all know no vacuum gets "all" the dirt. The Electrolux was very easy to sell back in 1968. We also would always turn up a corner of the rug to show the customer the dirt and grit that had shifted to the bottom and their upright had missed. We all know in the club that how often the customer cleaned,how fast they vacuumed and the condition of the cleaner had a lot more to do with what we found in the home (not the brand of cleaner they were using). It was fun to see their faces when they had just told me that they had a certain make and there was NO WAY the Electrolux would pull sand out of their rug!It was a fun summer for me.

 

[rexairman]

I had a Thrift Model T, which I got in a bunch of trade-ins, for several years. Then I learned how much Electroluxes meant to club member, and fellow board member, Rick Benedikt, and how he wanted a Thrift Model T. So I put it in a box, and sent it to him. People do nice things for me like this also. This is one of the wonderful things about our club. R. J. and Ms. Pletcher, please note. You both have Model 3 Rexairs, my Holy Grail, which you won't part with. <G>

 

[timborow]

golden j/super j

Charles,
You mentioned once that the super j and golden j lux had different attachments. Do you have a picture of these machines with their attachments? If not, can you describe them for me? Tim

 

[electrolux-dude]

Older Model Electrolux Vacuums

I totally agree, the older metal model of Electrolux's are built a lot better. At Cain's Carpet Care, my place of employment, I use my old tan Lux model G, to vacuum the front offices 3 days a week. I must say that old dude is still going strong! I clean a lot of the expensive oriental wool rugs, as well as upholstery, and just this last week we got in some denim couches (I call them Blue-Jeans Couches), that had white cat hair all over them! I hooked up my old model Tan Lux G with the power head and it removed all the cat hair! Needless to say I was pretty impressed, as was my boss. Quite often we get rugs that have dog or cat hair all over them, and that old Electrolux does an excellent job of removing the cat or dog hair!

 

[floor-a-matic]

The models G, L & 1205 are great Electrolux vacs. Even the 1956 Thrift model T is nice lookin too.

Why did the 1205s have problems with the cordwinder "terminal block" contacts? Were the Golden Jubilee cordwinders improved?

 

[kenkart]

SuperJ and Golden J

The power nozzle was the only difference I know of, the Golden J as well as the late 1205 had the PN2 which is my all time favorite, the SuperJ had the pn3 which is the one with 2 wheels at the rear, I dont care for it,the 1205 cordwinder issue was fixed sometime in the middle of the 1205 production, Charles or Alex would know the dates, the problem was the contacts were supposed to "plug in" the problem was they would vibrate and arc, creating heat, then the plastic block they are mounted on would melt, the later ones had leads that plugged into proper connectors.