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Bosch Nexxt 500 Series

by brenna
(Lowell,IN,USA)

I have had the Bosch Nexxt 500 model washing machine for about a month now. I do not recommend this washer. I bought this model because it is supposed to be extremely energy efficient and eco friendly, along with many washing and spinning options that the traditional top loading washing machine doesn’t have.

The Eco-e function reduces water temperature and increases wash time. I don’t understand the point to this when one has a choice in water temperatures. Why not just select cold water wash with heavy duty wash instead of using the Eco-e button. Its seems a pointless function that sounded good at the store marketing level but was not what I expected for real life use.

My BIGGEST complaint with this machine is the cycle time. I have used other high end front loading washers at friends’ houses before and owned one of the first generation models and in comparison, this one takes forever. If you select the “XX sanitizing” feature , which washes towels and linens in extra hot water to make sure they are as clean as can be, expect an extra hour for the cycle! The cycle time is displayed right on the machine, and imagine my shock when I realized it was going to take 2 hours and 7 minutes to wash my towels! The only way you can wash anything for less than 57 minutes is by using the quick 25 minute wash feature which only uses cold water.

This is fine for my lightly soiled clothing I have worn only once but I wash a lot of towels and linens and work clothes and waiting at least an hour for each load really takes a lot of time. I also find that the spin cycle does not get as much water out of the clothes as other models and so far I have seen no reduction in drying time with the matching Bosch dryer.

I am really disappointed with this machine because I bought a front loader around 8 years ago and had expected that a machine this expensive and of a newer generation would perform better but it does not. The only difference with this machine and the older generation of front loaders is the cycle selections. There are many more choices regarding spin time, wash time and temperature but they all add more minutes to each cycle.

While I want to use less water and energy to clean my laundry, I also expect the new line of machines to be quicker and spin better than their previous counterparts. The one thing I do give Bosch credit for with this line is the nice array of colors.

Comments for
Bosch Nexxt 500 Series

Average Rating starstarstar

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Nov 05, 2009
Rating
star 		Bosch Nexxt 500 Washer
by: Cecelia

Don't buy this machine. Mine is 1.5 years old and has been a problem from the first month I had it. Wire spring around gasket keeps coming off and twisting up in the clothes. Three times in first year! Now it won't go through a full cycle. Just decides to fill and drain, maybe turn a couple of minutes on the XXXSanitary cycle. Piece of crap. Course it's out of warranty! Bosch says could be soap clog, to flush out, and to only actually use 1-2 Tablespoons of HE detergent. I have ALWAYS used HE detergent in lesser amounts than advised on the machine and in the manual (YES, I actually read it before using!). Have the mold in the gasket too, clothes stink, whole laundry room reeks of mildew. I hate this machine, I will NEVER buy another one of Bosch's products and will tell the world on every complaint site about this piece of crap, sorry excuse for a washing machine!! I paid wayyyy too much money for this to be happening 1.5 years into ownership. Can't someone help us recoup our losses from this company? I would gladly sign onto class action lawsuit. This product is obviously defective and needs a full recall! Well, I'd like to write more, but I am off to the local laundromat! Thanks Bosch. You stink!
Oct 29, 2009
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Ughhhhhh!!!
by: Anonymous

Wish I had found this site sooner. Our 500 front loader is a little over 1 year old, of course out of warranty. I stupidly tried to was a rug by itself and all hell has broke loose. Granted I can accept some responsibility for washing the rug by itself, but the fact that I've waited 2 weeks for the only Bosch repairman in the entire state of GA is just ridiculous. I never would have purchased a product that is unserviceable. Buyer beware. Even the guys who advertise "WE WORK ON ALL BRANDS" won't touch this thing with a 10 foot pole. SEARS - repair man laughed and said "Good Luck!". GE - customer service said, "all brands but that!". Go pound sand basically. BOSCH customer support, should be renamed customer no support. Even had appliance sales reps contact repairmen that work on the side for extra cash and all said the same thing. I've never seen anything like it.
I'll be making a copy of all these complaints. I smell a class action in the making!
Oct 26, 2009
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Dials & Knobs Rule
by: Anonymous

Bosch WFMC3200UC. Piece of junk. Avoid. Mildew towels and clothes. For an entire year I thought I smelled and it was the damn machine. Replaced a motor after having one month. Now the door is locked and the clothes are stuck at the end of the rinse cycle. My suggestion, given all our appliances, is to avoid electronics by all means. Get appliances with mechanical knobs and dials. My mother's stove and refrigerator still work at 50 years! If the dial breaks, you spend $5 and get a new dial. If the electronics break, you get a repair person and a $250 electronic control panel.
Oct 22, 2009
Rating
star 		Bosch 500 Series Plus Washer
by: Karen

I'm had my Bosch 500 Series washer for 8 months now. I went back to Sears after the first week begging them to take it back and offering to pay more for another washer - anything, just to get rid of this machine. Alas, I still own it. My biggest complaint is after the l-o-n-g wash cycle, I often find my clothes sopping wet. I was told that this series of washers works best with large loads and will not operate properly if the load is small to medium. They told me that I should have read the manual before purchasing the product. I've also washed a flat sheet, fitted sheet and 2 pillow cases in a load to find that it also didn't spin the water out. When I questioned Sears I was again referred to the manual, which states, "Always load the drum with large and small items together". Now I run around the house trying to figure out what I can throw in the machine to get "small" and "large" items in each load. If it doesn't spin, I have to run the whole cycle again - you can't just select a spin cycle. I really do hate this machine. Guess I'll start reading manuals before I make a purchase - who really does that??
Oct 12, 2009
Rating
starstarstarstar 		Bosch washer and dryer mostly good.
by: Anonymous

My Bosch 300 series front loader has been a very good washer for the one and one half years we have owned it. It is quiet and seems to do a good job on getting clothes clean. There have been two or three incidents in which the spin cycle didn't function properly. This seems to occur with very heavy objects. I think they are too unbalanced and the washer senses this. I placed them on the manual spin cycle and they were O.K. I have not noticed any moldy smell with our washer. One annoying feature of the washer is the alarm beeper at the end of the cycle. There is no way to shut it off other than opening the door. The dryer's(NXXT 500) circuit board blew after the first 6 months of use. We waited for just about a month for the repair. Other than that, it has done a wonderful job.
Oct 07, 2009
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Nexxt washer
by: Anonymous

the Nexxt washer sucks !!! it has been acting up when it needs to spin for a year now.lately , it does not want at spin at all , maybe 2 out of 10 tries. took it apart , all the connections are tight. the problem must be with the firmware in the controller.
I spend $ 800 for a washer that lasted 3 years.
and the service guy ( recomended by Bosch ) wants $99 to show up and $12 per 6 MINUTES. Plus parts !!

I said F***K that and got me an LG
Oct 06, 2009
Rating
starstarstarstar 		SPIN CYCLE
by: Anonymous

I have had my washer/dryer for 16 months. My first front load washer.
I am hot a back flip happy camper but I'm not ready to shoot the washer YET. I do not have the moldy smell or vibrating and the cycles seem to work as the manual says it should. My problem has been the SPIN CYCLE, I get the beep that the cycle has completed and I find dripping wet clothes. Maybe if I buy a top load washer that will do only the spin cycle.
I have no hair left to pull out!!!!!
Sep 17, 2009
Rating
star 		Very dissapointed
by: Dave

We bought this washer also on the recommendation that it was well built and reliable. They replaced the whole computer once and it is going out again. Now that it is off warranty the cost of trying to repair this again would be about half the cost of a new top of the line top loader. Thank goodness the top loader is coming on Saturday as we are in an error mode tonight. The repair person also showed us how to open the door if the washer broke - I suspect he knew how well the Bosch was engineered.

We also have fought the mold issue as mentioned by others. Each of our other washers has lasted well over 10 years.
Sep 15, 2009
Rating
star 		Don't Purchase a Bosch
by: Anonymous

I have a Bosch Nexxt for four years now. I agree with everything negative said about this clothes washer. My fabric softner doesn't dispense, there is mold on the door seal, it gives error messages regularly (either E02 or E04), and I have to restart the whole load again because you can't start from where the error message started. I was talked into buying a Bosch too and at the time consumer reports didn't have much bad to say.
Sep 09, 2009
Rating
star 		BOSCH Washer wfmc3200uc
by: Aleandr

I have BOSCH Washer wfmc3200uc over 3 years and now it is not spin. Called to BOSCH company customer service and they do not want to help and send you to a local dealer. Dealer prices are too high as to buy new Washer, also dealers does not know BOSCH (how it is working? Why it is braking? Completely are illiterate people). BOSCH USA customer’s service is not helping.
I do not recommend to purchase BOSCH products made in the USA or Canada or Mexico. If you want to have a quality your BOSCH should be made in Germany (Europe).
Aug 24, 2009
Rating
star 		Bosch Nexxt 500
by: Arlene

This washer sucks. Mildew stench, doesn't clean, long cycles. I could hand wash clothes better than this machine can wash them.
Aug 14, 2009
Rating
star 		Don't buy
by: Davis

I have had my washer and dryer for a year and I hate it. The dryer is doing ok, but notice yesterday it is squeaking when it turns. Now, the washer is awful I do not recommend it to no one.

It goes off through out the wash cycle and you have to steady push the button to keep it going. Before you wash begin washing any clothes you have to run a clorox cycle (recommended by Lowes Staff)so as the mildew smell won't take over your clothes.

I wish there was some way to make this better, because I truly dislike it.
Final thought: DO NOT BUY NO MATTER WHAT JD POWER SAYS.
Aug 12, 2009
Rating
star 		A wasteful investment
by: Anonymous

I do not want this washer on the market. Bosch is screwing people over by continuing to sell this product. I have had this junk for 14 months. It has broken down four times. The first two repairs were due to the drum not spinning. The detergent dispensers are constantly full of water that smells like mildew, which is not surprising since my clothes smell like moldy rags. This last breakdown was due to the entire drum of water leaking out of the bottom of the machine onto our basement floor. Bosch refuses to replace the machine, as well as repair it, with each of my requests. I was told, "It doesn't sound like that big of a deal." Thankfully, Lowe's refunded all of my money because I purchased the extended warranty and no one in my area was approved by Bosch to repair it. I find that extremely odd since I live in a large metropolitan area. Without the extended warranty I would have to pay over $750.00 to get this repaired, which is 3/4 of what I paid for this. I am grateful that I can get rid of this thing. I will definately never by Bosch again.
Aug 01, 2009
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Never again!
by: Anonymous

I assumed that since no one goes to work each day with the intention of doing a lousy job, I should give Bosch another chance; silly me! They’re still making, and SELLING this piece of junk and give me nothing but excuses.

Apparently Bosch was so busy trying to save water with their design they forgot it also had to clean clothes. Basically the problem I've had (and which is exacerbated when the washer is more fully loaded) is the excessive and hyper-sensitive
interrupts that keep the thing from going into full spin. I've found I have to physically monitor the ostensibly automatic operation to make
sure proper extraction takes place after each cycle. I've actually found soaking wet clothes in the washer after it had supposedly 'finished'. I've even found clothes that still smelled of body odor and mold after coming out of the dryer! It seems to waste a lot of time, poorly clean my clothes, unnecessarily wear out my clothes, waste energy, and waste my personal time watching it fiddle around rather than just cranking up into a full spin.

Also, there is no standalone "RINSE" cycle
on the cycle selector. How hard would that have been to provide?

Date of purchase: November 2004
Retailer: Standard TV and Appliance, Portland, OR
97266
Jul 08, 2009
Rating
starstar 		Hate This Machine!
by: Anonymous

I have had my 500 series Bosch front loader
for 3 years now and can pretty much ditto what
others have said. This machine seemingly decides on its own how long the cycle is going to take.
Anywhere from 1-2 hours or more. The repair guy
had to come out within the first month to fix the door which never seems to close right.
Very limited choices in cycles too.
Also, the mold odor coming from this
machine stinks up the whole house.
I would never recommend this machine!
Jul 01, 2009
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		dddddd
by: Anonymous

rrrrrrrrrrrrrr
Jun 23, 2009
Rating
starstarstarstar 		my new baby bosch washer/dryer
by: jamars

i did my home work on the front load machine so i know just what to expect .. so far i love the bosch 500 plus series .. every thing come out a lot cleaner . i do not need to baby sit the washer or dryer. i would never go back to a top load .. my top load washer had to have me baby sitting it ..things would get tangled up in the top loader
Jun 21, 2009
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Hate Mine, Too!
by: Anonymous

I had an LG that I loved and wanted to buy another....but the salesperson talked me out of it saying that if the LG needs repair, I'd be w/o my machine for weeks cuz it's so hard to get parts. Silly me for believing him...I'm sure he was just trying to get me to buy a Bosch because he was probably in an incentive program from Bosch. We had the repairman here within weeks of getting it and the door still doesn't lock unless you push it half a dozen times. The clothes are soaking wet after the spin cycle and neither the dryer light nor the one on the washer go off automatically. You have to go turn it off manually. And they call it energy efficient?!!!

We are selling the house that has the LG in it, and I want to keep those machines and get rid of my almost new Bosch... I guess I'll just have to hope the LG lasts longer. I find them to be much more enjoyable to use and the clothes are cleaner much faster!
Jun 04, 2009
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Angry
by: Anonymous

I bought this set after careful research into energy savings and consumer reports. Wow! What a disappointment to say the least having spent so much money. The washer takes what ever amount of time it wants up to 3.5 hrs sometimes. I am using less than 1/4 C of HE detergent because of their "sensors" and I do not think that it is getting the clothes clean and rinsed now. At what point are we running the machines for their satisfaction as opposed to doing what they were invented for.......washing clothes. The dryer leaves wet spots in the clothes so that I have to sort through each piece to see what has to be thrown back in and dried again. They told me the sensors develope a film from the dryer sheets and that is what causes that. Since I do not use dryer sheets and had only done 12 loads at that point they could not come up with a better answer. Also the washer does not always spin out leaving me with soaking wet clothes that have to be respun. Love having to babysit the wash. Might as well have the old wringer back. Have asked Bosch to have them take my washer/dryer back but they have refused claiming it is all my fault??? Baloney, I have been washing clothes for too many years and I know a bad product when I see one. Yes, and mine is starting to stink too even though I leave the door open.
May 25, 2009
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Bosh Washer/Dryer 500 Plus Series
by: Shirley Edge

I am returning my Bosh Washer/Dryer to the store and getting another brand. The washer has mildew around the seal although I leave the door open and dry after using. I have been told that eventually the mildew will be on the inner plastic tub and can't be gotten off. The washer has actually leaked water. The dryer makes loud noises and the Steam cycle is unsatisfactory. I also, have a Bosh dishwasher ShX57C model and the tines and racks are constantly coming off - I am very unhappy with Bosch appliances. On the positive side, the dishwasher is very quiet and cleans well.

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