So you are willing to put your cash into a bad bet that is Viking refrigeration as long as it is not "that bad?"

Most Viking refrigerator owners are ok,at least for the first few years. But their rate of repair seems much higher that everyone else in the segment. There is not alot of really solid statistical data because there are problems with sample size in this price range.

Yes,the smart shopper would run the other way.

Liebherr/Miele do not have ice/water in the door.

SZ is as reliable as any refrigerator EXCEPT the ice dispenser. That has lots of problems. Deals? On new there are no discounts. Floor models are 15% off with free delivery. Cheaper? You are looking at used and/or damaged units.If you can find a SZ dealer that is going out of business and does not care about losing their account for discounting you can find a good deal. That is more rare than a solar eclipse.

The Thermador with ice/water in the door is a rebadged Jenn-Air unit. You can find deals on those.JA has my favorite handles in refrigeratordom-- the pro diamond cut handles. Deals are hard to find on those.

I will 2nd deeagaux's suggestion to look at the Jenn-air's.
I bought the JA 48" SxS built in and panelled, back in 2006.

It has been trouble free, is very quiet, well lit inside, nice glass shelves, and 3 different temp zones in the fridge section--all individually temp controlled with digital readouts.

Back in 2006 JA was rated #1 for reliability by Consumer Reports, and their built in's are still rated #1.

Good luck with your choice!

Gary

Our viking 36" pro series bottom freezer built in is 9 years old. Did fine for 3 or so years, but since then I've had nothing but problems. Our repair man said they are no longer servicing viking. I am redoing my kitchen also. But this time, No Viking.

I have a 7 y.o. Viking bottom mount 36". Single compressor. In a weekend house used only part time. Of all their things it's been the best though it takes one of their people to adjust it properly and it is slow to recover. Freezer is just OK. It's always been fairly noisy but this week, when we arrived, the fan is sounding oddly loud. It doesn't get that much use and when it goes -- which I hope won't be very soon -- I'm going with either Liebherr, Miele or SZ, whichever fits best.

We have a Liebherr in our apartment. That was $1500 less 5 years later and I'd swap it in a hearbeat. That one is nearly silent, the freezer is amazing and we love the drawers and the little ice cubes.

Wish I could recommend the brand but the service has been problemmatic even though, after the fridge door recall, they could not have been nicer or more accomodating. Others have had better luck with it and there are some fans around.