Whirlpool WED4900XW.

It is the current iteration of a basic Whirlpool model that has been in production since the mind of man runneth not to the contrary. Parts are readily available. but the dryer has been so thoroughly debugged over its production cycle, it is unlikely that you ever will need anything except, perhaps, a drive belt (wear item).

Here is a link that might be useful: Sears listing of Whirlpool WED4900XW

Thanks for the response. I spent some time looking at dryer reviews here, and I will now consider two dryers:

1. The Whirlpool above
2. Speed Queen ADE3LR

I hadn't considered Whirlpool previously, but this does look like it gets generally positive reviews. Thanks

8 years is not too old to justify repair, depending on what is the problem. Dryers are mechanically-simple machines.

A friend gave to me a 35-years-old Kenmore dryer (along with a 10-years-old washer) that they were going to toss out. The dryer was drying slow, they figured the heating element was going bad. The washer was making a unhealthy noise and not agitating or spinning, a heavy rug had been run through it, they figured the "bearings were damaged."

The dryer was simply clogged with lint accumulation because the handle had broken off the filter and it wasn't pushed fully down the chute, allowing airflow (and lint) to bypass the screen. I cleaned it up, replaced the broken filter and a slightly worn rear drum seal, sold it for $80.

The washer had a broken motor coupler, $15 part. I fixed it, did some additional clean-up/refurb on it, and my parents took it.