Save your money. Save your money. Save your money.
The Subzero refrigerator is grossly overpriced. It's a product for people with more money than sense. People who want a kitchen that looks like a chef's kitchen but never cook in it.
So why did we buy it? We bought a home with a Subzero. We had a four foot space to fill. Hindsight is 20-20. What we will do next time is install a 36" Whirlpool for $750 and 12" cabinets to fill the remaining space.
You can buy two 36" Whirlpool refrigerators for about 10% the cost of a Subzero refrigerator. That gives you 2 compressors and more cooling and freezing capacity for a fraction of the cost of the Subzero.
The Whirlpool has the same freezer that does not defrost or ruin foods. It has LED lights. It's nonodorous. All at a fraction of the cost of a Subzero. It does the same things as a Subzero for a lot less $$$.
If you have to have a 48" refrigerator, try Bosch. It's thousand of dollars less. And, it's made in the USA. As is the Whirlpool. GE makes a model for $8500.
Subzero is a good reminder of why consumers stopped buying goods made in America. You get ripped off. That's the only way to describe it. Poor service. Poor value in view of the exorbitant price. Subzero touts its service as "concierge" service. Yeah.
Despite our initial reservations about the price and value, we finally decided to buy a Subzero. Buy American. Keep jobs in America. Silly, isn't it?
From the school of "No good deed goes unpunished," here's what happened.
First, we were promised that the Subzero would be delivered in 14-20 days. We ordered a standard model. No bells and whistles. The delivery occurred two months later. It only did because we threatened to cancel the order. The irony is that our unit was sitting in a warehouse when we ordered the refrigerator.
Installation involves plugging the unit into the wall and moving a couple of brackets. Then, the installers add the panels to the freezer and refrigerator doors. That's it.
The top grill did not ship with the door panels, however. So, we wait another 2-3 weeks for it to arrive. This company does not have its act together. These are not custom components. In fact, we thought we ordered door covers with a cabinet finish and ended up getting something completely different. We were ripped off. Plain and simple.
The top grill finally arrived almost three weeks later. A deliveryman drops if off. He tells us the installation team will arrive. We wait and wait. Finally, my wife looks at me and says, "You know no one is coming to install this." She's right. So, we install it.
A word about bells and whistles. Buying a Subzero is like buying an American made car. Not much comes standard. You start with a base price of about $10,000. If you want stainless steel doors, that's another $2000. If you want a water dispenser, that's another $500. Handles are extra. Pretty soon, they'll be selling the doors and compressors separately.
Everyone's in on the upsell. When you try to order a refrigerator from an "authorized" dealer, they make an appointment with you. That way, a "design specialist" can assist you in deciding what type of refrigerator and features you want.
We skip the upsell and order directly from another dealer. After all, we want a standard model. They don't like it when you skip the upsell. So, they schedule a pre-delivery inspection of our home even though we already have a Subzero in the kitchen. No need to change anything.
The team arrives and proceeds to inspect the old unit. Then, they advise us that we should buy more features on our unit. We need stainless steel doors. We need a water dispenser. We explain that the water dispenser on the existing unit leaks all over the floor. It's one reason we are replacing the unit.
In case you're wondering if we are people who are never pleased with anything. No, we are not those people. We have a second refrigerator. It's a Whirlpool for $750. We ordered it from Lowe's online. They delivered it within one week. The team is prompt and courteous. The refrigerator works great. It does all the things the Subzero does but for a whole lot less $$$.
The Subzero does one thing the Whirlpool doesn't do. It makes funny noises already. We shall see how that goes. I will call their customer service but they seem to have experience with consumer complaints about the quality of their products. Lots of experience.
The moral of the story: If you need something in your kitchen that screams that you have money, buy good china, silver, or crystal. Hang expensive art work. But, don't buy a Subzero. read more