Well, I have not worked at a laundry, nor have I had much experience with many brands of washing machines. So you will have to excuse me if there are any trace of biases in this review on Godrej’s Fully Automatic 5.5kg Smart Wash Washing Machine!
The title of my review, is borrowed from a commercial of Godrej’s products. It literally means ’’Yesterday, Today and Tomorroww’’ which means Godrej has and will always be there for you. I admire this company and am impressed with its products and how they change and adapt with time and changing market conditions.
Washing Machines:
I remember when I was in my teens...my family bought this GE washing machine from a cousin of mine, who came down with it from the Middle East. Oh God, those were the days when there was a huge import duty on such machines and local manufacturers were not allowed to tie-up with foreign brands. The result was you had these dingy, low power, ’’hand made’’ home appliances-- washing machines!
Godrej’s Fully Automatic 5.5kg Smart Wash
This is also known as Godrej Auto Delux. I must admit I was not around when my bhabi (sis-in-law) and mom bought this machine. But I have since seen this machine in action. They bought this in May 1999...till date, there has been very little problem. It’s a fully automatic machine, which means you switch it on...dump your stinking, sweaty, greasy clothes, add some detergent..and bleach if they are color safe and press On.
It will take it’s time...Wash..Tumble...Rinse..and then spin. Most washing machine models will claim that it washes..it rinses and it dries...I don’t think these fully automatic machines dry your clothes. They just spin and squeeze the water out. Drying is a function of a dryer which is based on heat energy.
Since there is not much that could be written (by non talented writers such as me) about a washing machine...obviously it washes!, allow me gentle, discerning readers to jump directly to support and after sales service. I guess in any appliance that one purchases, the most important factor...everything being equal, is how well the manufacturer responds to SOS calls!
This machine broke down twice. Once last year and again few weeks ago. Now, the first time it broke, the microprocessor control i.e. the part that controls the functions of the machine was busted! My bhabi called the Godrej Help Line Toll Free # and very promptly an engineer arrived with a set of tools and detected the problems. Within 48 hours he replaced the part and boom it became a workhorse again.
And hey, I have a pretty big family! And not to mention the load it takes when I have siblings and aunt and cousins visiting us quite often.
The second breakdown was a minor one...the pipe that connects to the faucet...I guess it wore off..Godrej’s engineer replaced it again.
I know Godrej is doing it’s best. They are certainly better than horror stories I have heard of other competitor’s products, but they need to speed up their after sales support turnaround time from 48 hrs to 12hours!
So my advice, go for Godrej. Go for the fully automatic if you have a load of 2-12 person in your household! Perhaps even more!