Miele KDN12823S

Purchased this based on the reputation of Miele - seems brand reputation now stands for nothing. My KDN12823S experienced the same failure as the other reviews on here. Came home from work to find fridge temp alarm sounding. Decided to turn the fridge freezer off for 24 hours in the hope the fault would clear. Having given 24 hours turned the fridge freezer back on, after 8 hours both the fridge and freezer were warm. The rear of the freezer compartment where the evaporator is situated behind a plastic shroud was also warm. Pulled the fridge freezer out from the wall, the compressor was burning hot, and the condenser coils at the back of the fridge freezer were cold (during normal operation the condenser coils should be warm). It seems either all the refrigerant has leaked out from a small leak over time, or the compressor (was an Embraco type fitted to mine) had suffered an internal failure and was no longer functioning as should be despite appearing to be running. Looked at Partmaster website to see how much a replacement compressor is for this model, it is nearly £500 just for the compressor. Rather sickened by the fact I have paid nearly £600 for a fridge freezer that is now beyond economic repair. I really though Miele were better than this. Seemingly not.

I purchased the Miele fridge freezer in June 2011. After reading nothing but high praise for it and the fact it would last 20 years, I parted with £600 plus delivery costs.

About 3 weeks ago the temp alarm for the fridge started playing up. I put this down to the cold weather and just kept resetting it. On Sunday evening the fridge alarm went off and would not stop bleeping, after this the fridge stopped cooling all together. I have tried everything from turning it off for 12 hours, cleaning the compressor and giving it a tap or two. Nothing will get the fridge working. As I have read on other forums Miele call out charges are really expensive and no doubt so are the replacement parts. I have decided to buy a cheaper fridge freezer, as to repair the Miele will cost as much as the new appliance.

I feel let down by Miele as I believed this fridge freezer would last a good number of years. My mothers old Hotpoint, which was a manual defrost model, lasted for 15 years. Why can't I get an appliance in this day and age which will last as long as that?

Miele state on their website that this product 'has been tested to last up to 20 years, meaning you can buy with the confidence that it will perform reliably well, year after year'. NOT true of our one. After 2.5 years the fridge has frozen over and now completely stopped working. The alarm constantly goes off, the compressor overheats. Bought this brand as thought it was reliable but would never recommend. Now face expensive call out fees - will be asking a local appliance expert, not Miele as they are getting no more money from us. Other reviews online re other Miele modules suggest similar problems. Not worth the money, will stick the cheaper brands next time.

The compressor on my KFN12823SD died 18 months in to its 2 year (John Lewis Direct) warranty: it also tripped out the electric supply several times whilst dying. The only satisfactory response I've had under the 2 year warranty was from John Lewis: Miele did not respond. I've had no response to the additional so-called 12 month warranty that resulted from Miele's replacement of the compressor. The electric supply continues periodically to trip out, the only common denominator of assorted kitchen appliances "on" when this happens, being the Miele Fridge Freezer. Awaiting yet another visit from a Refrigeration Engineer, obtained only by John Lewis intervention. I wouldn't buy this brand again, currently.

I bought my Liebherr CUN3513, sorry Miele KDN12823S, to replace a 5 year old Samsung that would do nothing but freeze, even on the 'holiday' setting. First things first, Miele don't make fridge freezers, they get Liebherr to make them for them, which is probably why they are so inexpensive (compared to other Miele products). Speaking of which Liebherr looks like an unusual company - they make industrial construction machinary (cranes and big diggers) and domestic fridges - and that's it! The retailer we were buying from didn't have any Liebherr's in stock so we paid £30 more and got the Miele. The 'N' in the product number means that it's frost free. This feature adds about £100 to the price and knocks you down an energy rating (from A+ to A). The A+ rating on a non-frost free model isn't as good as it seems when you have to empty and defrost/re-freeze every three months.

The fridge is about 6 feet tall and 2 feet wide & deep. It should be ideal for a family of 4. We looked at bigger fridges with A energy ratings but settled on this (so I can keep my radio on the top!). We had toyed with the idea of one of those 'american' ones but they cost double to run - best way to save energy - buy the size you actually need!

The fridge is delightfully understated, no 6 inch high black letters proclaiming it's (pretend) manufacturer, simply raised white lettering. The handles are ugly but beautiful to use. They're also a doddle to swap over from left to right (Liebherr's instructions are marginally better than Miele's in this respect - a powered screwdriver is a good idea). One slight issue about the handles is that they're so big that if you're installing it next to a wall you've got to leave a gap so you can open the doors fully.

The door storage is particularly good. You can fit big cartons of milk in easily as well as cartons of fruit juice - and you've still got a couple of door pockets left for eggs and butter and things. The full width wine rack is a bit of overkill - unless you are particularly fond of wine - but you can store bottles of pop or cans in it. The open door alarm is revealing - it's surprising how long I am used to having the door open for - the new fridge encourages you to open it for shorter to try to 'beat the beep'!

Everything else is pretty standard but is well thought out. It's very quiet, no characteristic frost free whines or gurgles that I can make out. The build quality looks decent (looks like it had took a battering from the courier when it arrived!). Hopefully it's cheap to run and hopefully it'll last a while.