Older washing machines are much easier to repair than newer ones. I'd much rather have fixed an old Hotpoint (when it was British) to a new Hotpoint (when it is Italian). British - rolled edges, simple mechanics - Italian - unrolled (dangerously sharp) edges, reliance on expensive electrickery to control things. While I'm on this subject, don't ever buy a cheap washing machine (or dishwasher), especially with an unknown or unpronouncable name. (Chinese manufacturer Haier - I'm looking at you. ) The cheap makes, Haier and Beko (Turkish last I looked) are after gaining a huge slice of european sales, inc. UK, to gain this slice they are selling the cheapest possible crap with little or no thought to after-care support. Even when working for an independant repair company officially as their (Haier, not Beko) agents just about every part of the appliances failed - although chiefly the circuit boards and wash motors - and very few spares were even on the continent, nevermind in the country! /rant
FWIW Bosch (and thus Siemens/Neff), Whirlpool, Zanussi (even though they are Italian!), and LG are all pretty good.
@Rob3rt - you've got a point, if you don't know how to use the basics of the machine how would you know how to get it to repeat fault or prove there's no fault.
