Miele WWI860

Overly complex and difficult to Operate - Misses the mark – Very Disappointing, my old Miele failed after 21 yrs of service, so I purchased a new one. Three days in and I have what appears to be fault which turned out to be it throwing up misdirecting messages of which there were many. Such as the Door was Open when it wasn't. I can only assume the English wasn't that good in the programming. Miele approach is to now have controls similar to a PC which makes it more complex to operate than necessary leading to confusing messages and difficulty in operating it. The TwinDos is a scam having to buy Miele detergent, but fortunately it can be turned off requiring an extra step when you set the washing each time. This is because Miele machines are designed for Hard Water when in Sydney and Melbourne, the water is naturally Soft. There is no option to turn it off permanently. It does wash very well as expected and is economical in that sense, but requires extensive knowledge which is I think is an unreasonable expectation. Examination of the 22 available "Programs" reveals that all but 4 are set to the maximum spin speed, and all but 2 is set at the maximum weight, most are 2-4 kgs. Which means that I could have bought a much less expensive Miele to achieve the same result. There is no option to change the weight or the spin speed for a program so as a result, where there is a low spin speed, you will be required to to spend another 20 min spin drying the clothes. This makes the machine non-economical and more expensive to operate than stated. Overall, is this a good buy? No. Would I buy another Miele, only a lower end machine and give the middle to higher end Miele machines a miss. Would I consider a Chinese substitute, No due to the number of fires recorded and very very short life of 2-3 yrs recorded. A low end Miele would be a better choice.

Another home run for Miele – We recently purchased the Miele WWI860 WCS and matching Miele TWL780 WP to replace 12 year old W5873WPS and T8861WP which gave me well over the 20 years worth of use. The PCB Board failed on the washer, and being an almost $1K fix we decided to just order a new set, being extremely happy with our first set that lasted as long as they did and without any major issues.

The WWI860 WCS is amazing. Its a 9kg machine which seems quite a lot larger than my previous 8kg machine. Quiet, well made and oodles of features and programmes. Anything from cottons, to silks, woollens, sportswear, towels and bed linen. It has many of the same programmes that our old washer had and then some. One particular addition is a “pre-ironing” setting which steams whatever is being washed. This has come in quite handy when washing my partners work dress shirts. Its quite unique in how this works. Most of the water is spin out at the end of the cycle and a small amount is then added where the heating element has been turned on and the water hits the element and turns to steam, therefore it assists in relaxing the fabric causing less wrinkles before either you hand iron or put in the dryer (which also has a steaming function as well, in that review).

It also features the Miele’s Twin Dos system which is just a fancy way of saying it has auto dispensing detergents, one for coloured clothing and one for whites. You can set the maximum amount of detergent used per wash in the settings, and it dispenses the detergent at the optimal moment in the cycle. The coloured detergent seems like it will last 2 months at average use and the white detergent 3 months of average use. Miele sells these separately but you do get one bottle of each to get you started, You can also purchase seperate empty containers that fit inside the Twin Dos compartment so that you can use your own choice of detergent and/or fabric softener and you can set up the in settings to tell the machine you are using your own and that you are using fabric softener in the number 2 slot, so as to dispense at the appropriate time in the rinse cycle. I cant comment on how the “use your own bottles” work as of yet, as I received a year supply of Miele’s Twin Dos detergent with the machine as a promo. I also suggest buying Miele’s “Twin Dos Care” which is just another bottle that allows you to clean out the Twin Dos system from time to time. I have read that some people use this each time the change out the detergent for a new bottle, with the machine walking you through the steps to clean the system. Maintenance is often overlooked, and down the road can cause issues. I did read several people were upset that they had to purchase the empty bottles to fill with water to clean the system out, but this is not a requirement by any means, you can just buy the pre mixed cleaner for the system, which seems to be a lot less work and easier. I will be using the Twin Dos Care before each bottle of detergent is replaced.

So far the only difference I have noticed is that clothes seem to come out cleaner than previous, but this could be down to being brand new. The cycles also seem to be longer but it does have a special PowerWash cycle where in gets a load of laundry clean in under an hour, which I can attest works great. Each cycle also tells you the max load you can put in for each cycle, Cotton 9kg, Automatic Plus 6kg and so on. A very handy feature instead of needing to guess the load size for each of the dozens of cycles.

It washes with the same gentleness I have come to expect from Miele and this new washer doesn’t disappoint. Build quality is excellent, weighing nearly 100kgs, you know its made solidly. If you are used to the old steel door, this new door is easy to close and to open, no longer that gentle, but firm push to lock the door closed. I was unsure about going with this model, the only one without a touchscreen that has a 1600rpm spin (a quiet and smooth, vibration free spin), which is what I wanted. It is missing the drum light, the WPS (it was a finicky system in my previous machine, with a few false alarms), and the ability to customise cycles and save them as favourites. But in the end I liked being able to see what cycle the dial is turned to and the idea of an all touch screen seemed like an unnecessary risk, so I am happy I went with this model which was $3199.

Very few cons for the machine overall. I often forget to put fabric softener as the auto dispensing Twin Dos does the detergent for you, you often forget at the start to add some. Also the finish cycle alert is either on or off, and on is indefinitely until the machine turns itself off, unlike the dryer which you can program for an hour after, unlimited or off. And save for that, I have to give the machine 5 stars because off the sheer number of programmes, options, build quality, 10 year warranty (was a promo in September 2024), reliability, previous Miele owner, quietness, gentleness and overall look of this amazing machine.

As with all my reviews, unless otherwise stated, I bought and paid for the machine on my own, $3199, with no compensation from Miele or elsewhere. Remaining unbiased is what I strive for in my reviews.

Leaks after 18 months – Bought this washer to replace 10 years old Bosch machine. All was going well until it started leaking a month ago. Contacting Miele service is hopeless as you are directed to the Website to make an on line booking. Then you wait two weeks for a service call. Service Technician came on the 28th March and advised it was a loose pipe into the Twin Dos system. Within a week of the service visit the machine is now leaking again, damaging a wooden floor underneath. No answer at the Miele Service booking 1300 number and so back on line to book a service visit that won't be possible until the 19th of April. Do not purchase Miele as Product and Service not up to standard or price.