Why don't they make products to last anymore...?

Question

...my fridge has broken down just after a month. Is this some kind of ploy to get people to spend more money to either replace or repair the dodgy product?

Answer 1

Appliance manufactures are forced to make changes to meet energy saving guidelines set by the government,at the cost of longevity,also manufactures try not to price themselves out of competition so cheaper plastic parts replace expensive metal parts, A general motors Frigidaire refrigerator built in 1960 had an average life span of 25 to 40 years and some are still going strong today! but they use 3 times the electric & would cost three times as much as the new ones to build. It's not unusual to have 1 service call in the first year thats what your 1 year warranty is for. final note : mong is right when it comes to appliances you do get what you pay for.

Answer 2

Electronic bits like many other components are made by machines to a very high degree of reliability. In 1952 My parents bought a television it was 14" screen one channel and stood in a cabinet with doors 3 ft high and cost £ 120 the aerial cost another 22 guinea's (for those that don't know that was £ 22 and 22 shillings ) they weren't daft even in those days. That was 55 years ago and petrol was 2 shillings and 2pence a full gallon in today's money 11 new pence a GALLON. A new car was less than £400 . Its only in the last few (5) years that TVs have really increased in price. but I think you could still find a 14 " colour portable with X number of channel's for under £ 100 even today.
Your fridge
Well all I can say is your unlucky, if every part was made by hand, that fridge (if just a basic fridge) that you bought for around £100 would in real terms have cost in comparison to say a Gallon of petrol 50 times greater that is £ 5,000 and in comparison to say the average car costing around £ 10,000 it should have been £ 2,500 and in comparison to say houses it would have been £ 16,000 Frighting isn't it. So really technology has helped and the odd failure in components we must accept.

Hope you get it fixed soon and its good to have a warranty that you can fall back on.

Answer 3

I Agree! From cars, appliances, computers, clothes...etc.. The best way to combate this problem is to become thrifty & familiar with the machanics of what products you invest your money in. Example: I love clothes, I can sew, when the seam rips I don't throw it away, I hem it back up, when a zipper is stuck I buy a new one. I like cars, when something has gone out, I don't go to the manufacturer, I go to the junk yard and I will have a "shade-tree-mechanic" to put the part in for less than 50-bucks. My mother has more fridge problems than anyone I know, she always hires some local joker to come in and fix on it for less than or about $40 and the cost of the part, which she usually gets from hustling an appliance repair shop.

Being thrifty does not mean your cheap, but that you are smart. Would you rather pay 1800 dollars for a new fridge, or less than $100 to get a fridge in good condition repaired.

Answer 4

Fridges are one of the most reliable appliances so I think you just got a duff one but there is good reasons why things don't last as long anymore
We have become a throw away consumer society. We buy something and often will replace it before it breaks completely.
Don't blame the manufacturers for making what we want
Profit margins and durability don't go together and the makers don't get money from second hand sales. So why make something to last?

Answer 5

Manufacturers buid their products with cheapish material and parts, thats on the bog standard stuff, if they made them to last they would be out of buisness. They all make things to last approx 7 years, but if you pay good money and buy top range goods then the items last a lot longer. Usually branded names are better quality and are suppose to last longer, but in this day and age thats not the case, I buy branded makes and have some problems, where my other relatives and neighbours buy cheap and cheerful makes and krikey they have lasted ages.

Regarding your fridge, you were unlucky but it will be covered under warranty, but one thing I will say, friges and freezers are one of the most reliable pieces of home appliances, they run 24/7 and switch on and off god knows how many times, and it doesnt matter what make they are, they just keep going on and on, you just were unlucky, but once fixed it should be fine but if it continues to play up, ask the supplier to change it for you.

Ref older products 1950's and 60's they were built like a sherman tank, but nowadays it's the throwaway age.

Good luck, hope all goes well for you.

Answer 6

One month should still be in warranty. The store or manufacturer should pick up the tab for the repair. It is when the warranty expires after a year or so that they have you over a barrel.

I think the makers are more focused on putting as little effort and parts cost into their products to increase their profits on the sale. I don't think they are looking ahead to the replacement issue.

Plastic parts glued on are the cheapest way to make something and that is their bottom line

Answer 7

I believe it is a combination of marketing tactics and accomodating the fickle materialism of the typical consumer these days.

The manufacturers are in the business of producing and selling a product - appliances, for example. It therefore behooves them to make a product that will last just long enough as to provide what is now considered reasonable value or usefulness.

At the end of that "reasonably" useful life, we consumers are more than happy to replace the old relic with a new appliance possessing the latest technology or sleekest finish, and the manufacturers are more than happy to provide it for us.

I'm with you, though. I like my things to last and last. I don't care so much for the latest craze. I work hard for my money and I want to get the best value I can with it.

Answer 8

The moral of this story is .. spend a few pounds and buy a decent fridge to start with. You get what you pay for!. It's a false economy buying a Matsui or a Schneider. Think about it

Answer 9

Most modern stuff is very reliable. My current car hardly ever breaks down compared with 1960's & 70's cars. Fridges TVs & Washers last for years. You just caught a bad one. get it fixed or replaced under warranty.

Answer 10

Marketing tactics.....products go out of fashion so quickly they aren't meant to last more than a few years at most.
Also keeps service engineers in a job and keeps production lines rolling producing spares as well as new units.
Most electronic parts aren't repairable....just replaceable.