I too would love to hear some feedback on these. I have an "old" Bosch, and I gotta admit-it's been a workhorse. Have made a few repairs over the years, but it's still running after 10 but I think it's days are numbered.
We're about to begin a major home remodel that includes the kitchen (I will be torturing GardenWebbers with stove questions later), so I need to pick out appliances. I'd love to hear some feedback from KS ownerws of the third rack dishwasher too. I looked at Miele-they ARE the bombe! But they are super spendy. Staying tuned and hoping people post! Laura

Just remember that the 800 Plus series are a thing apart from most Bosch dishwashers. They were designed in Germany and constructed there to get rid of quality control problems that had recently plagued US made product lines. They had third racks and most had water softeners. And lastly, they cost a lot more. I don't think the lines you mentioned are equivalent, but I may be wrong.

SHX7ER55UC

Don't know if that's a "newer" model or not. Installed and using it since Labor Day. Everything is blazing hot after a cycle, probably better to leave it sitting for a bit after, but I just ran a cycle. Immediately thereafter, there was a drop or two on knife blades and inside ice cream dishers but otherwise cutlery tray was dry. Coffee mugs and mason jars had water in the dip. Plates and bowls were flawless. I don't know how this compares to current heated models as I've not had an American model in years. Not something I'd complain about, only noticed it because you asked.

The new units are using the same pump and water softening parts as the German built unit. The German unit is smaller however than the new US built product.
Not sure where the statement trouble plagued US product lines come from??? We find that these are the most reliable dishwasher we sell.

Just wanted to follow up since my prior post did not include plastic. Yesterday I ran a cycle which included a dozen or so thicker plastic cups that I collected at a ball game. It was probably an hour or so after the cycle finished that I unloaded the dishwasher. Everything was very reasonably dry. Even the indentations on the top of coffee mugs were dry for the most part. At this point I will say that for me, drying is a non-issue with my Bosch.

Editing to add - the factory setting for rinse aid seemed very high so I adjusted it down to the second lowest level. Still a few more bubbles than I'd like to see when pouring water in a glass so I will lower it down that last notch. I expect that will take care of it, but I'll report back after I run the next load.

This post was edited by foodonastump on Mon, Sep 30, 13 at 8:39

arich69,

I think we did the exact same research, I was in the exact spot as you. I got totally swayed by that 3rd rack! The Boschs seemed like such a good value when I researched, considering all the features, 3rd rack, and hype that Bosch is best for DWs (if you cant afford Miele, which I couldn't).

However, I read many negative reviews of bosch too, my SIL hates hers, and the thought of it not drying as well as I was used to (replacing cheap GE w/ heated dry) really made me nervous. I got the feeling Bosch is great, IF you take many precautions...make sure its got a high loop (? something I read here...!), check water hardness, must use salt & lots of jet dry (to which I found some posts about why would you want to use extra chemicals that basically stay on your glasses...)...yadda yadda. It made me wonder, but...with those KitchenAids in the $1500 range and all the bad reviews on them (alongside many good ones)...I ended up with a Bosch!

So..I literally just ran it last night for the first time.
I was disappointed this morning that all my plastics were quite wet. I cleaned probably more than average amount of plastics, I have little kids, and I know plastics are almost impossible to get dry, but Im pretty sure they were way wetter than they used to be in my old GE.

However, don't go looking at cheap GEs yet!

It was my first run & I don't think I ran it optimally.

I tested my water & it came out slightly hard so I should use salt but I don't have any yet so I didn't.

Theres an extra dry button or something you can choose but I didn't do it for this first time, I wanted to see how it did without it.

I also didn't press the sanitize button. Which is supposed to really help drying.

And I think I kept the rinse aid setting down as low as possible, because I really don't want to drink that stuff.

Sorry, I really just gave you tons of info that's not very useful until I run more loads, but I just read your post & its really timely for me!

I will get back to you with more results as I use it more & change the settings. I hope I made the right decision going with the Bosch. I got the SHX7PT55. Its close to top of the line (theres a SH8 & SH9 too). I got a really good price on it, make sure you ask about all rebates, I think I got 2 Dishwasher specific rebates, plus 10% off for buying 3 Bosch appliances.

Thanks homebuyer23! Looking forward to hearing if the "optimal" settings make a difference.

There is one rebate available right now for the dishwasher version I'm leaning toward - SHX68T55UC. Sames as yours except it won't show "time remaining", doesn't have Glass cycle, and doesn't have as many fold-down rungs in top or bottom. But those are all extras I feel I can live without. I will only be buying 1 or possibly 2 Bosch apps so the multi-rebate won't apply.

Fingers crossed that the sanitize setting helps a lot.

Out curiosity, what detergent are you using? My app salesman said that (and I think I've read this here too) that the Finish tabs are the best for cleaning and drying.

This is the kind of drying I get from my Bosch when I open the door immediately after cycle is done - without sani rinse or extra drying. Thin plastic items (top rack) will remain wet, as will Teflon-coated items. Leaving the door cracked open after cycle is done allows the dishes to cool down and also dry much better. Takes about 15 minutes.

Alex

Here is a link that might be useful: My Finish Quantum Test

I have ordered the Bosch SHX 68TL5UC, we are doing a total kitchen renovation! I also wanted a 3rd top rack, without spending over a thousand and that's what the salesman recommended! We have not recieved it yet, still doing the renovations! Anyone have this model??

Nope, but I have ordered the SHV68T53UC (V is the paneled model). We won't have them installed for about 2 months (which is when our cabinets will be ready).

You guys that just ordered the 800 DLX, why did you choose that model over the 800 or 800 Plus? When I use the compare feature on AJ Madison, they seem almost identical. I know there must be differences and I was hoping you could enlighten me.

I did? Honestly, there were so many different model numbers I could not tell the difference. I told the salesman I wanted an 800 series that could be paneled. He gave me a great price. I didn't ask any other questions.

SHV68T53UC

I think it's SHV68TL3UC, not T53UC.

We bought a Bosch SHX7PT55UC, which is close to the top of their line, for $1299. It has three features we especially wanted. (1) An internal water softener. Although the web site of our water company says our water is soft, several test strips told us otherwise. (2) An absolutely unblemished stainless steel front. There are no visible controls when the door is shut. (3) A digital timer light that displays the time remaining in the cycle on the floor. Because these washers take a generous amount of time and the controls are invisible, we wanted a quick way to see what it was doing and when it would finish.

The washer has worked well for the first month at least, with one curious exception. All the complicated settings for the machine must be entered by programming it. However, the manual does not correctly describe the sequence of buttons to control different feature settings. We had the Bosch/Thermador repairman out to verify the settings are are chosen by pressing a different sequence of buttons than those explained in the manual. Putting 2 and 2 together, we looked at the manual for a roughly equivalent Thermador unit. Although our machine says Bosch on the metal, it is actually a Thermador in so far as how the electronics work. Weird. At least they could confess and tell us where to get the correct manual. Of course, the Bosch/Thermador employee kept to his story, that he did not know what was going on.

jfgrcar,
Can you explain more about what you mean with the button sequences and settings? I am getting this exact model and I'd like to know what I'll need to do to program it correctly? What thermador unit manual did you reference?

What kinds of controls/settings are you talking about?

thanks!