There is no contest. SZ builds them like a tank. SKS cannot even build a standard refrigerator well. Much less a luxury one. Also look at Thermador.

Adama Engineering, can you provide more info to support your statement about SKS? Do you own one or know someone who does? Can you share any data? I'm finding it difficult to find customer reviews on SKS products. I think people have ideas about certain brands, but I'm interested in some facts, please.

It's just LG with a fancy badge. Look at all the terrible reviews for LG.

DeWayne, that's like saying a Lexus is the same as a Toyota with a fancy label. I've owned both and they truly are apples and oranges... not the same. Have you owned either product in order to make this statement?

@Mary G - I don't have an SKS, and you are right that people have ideas about certain brands. But those ideas come from somewhere. What has been reported many, many times on this forum over many years about LG is that their refrigerators are good, with good features and layout. The issue is when something breaks on an LG, then parts are hard to find taking weeks or months to obtain, and customer service is non-existent. To me, the bottom line is that if I have $12k to spend on a refrigerator, I am not going to spend the $12k on an LG fridge that looks high-end but has LG behind it, which means the potential for the problems I described.

Edited to add: I just saw your analogy to Lexus and Toyota. You cannot compare a company known for decades for its cars' longevity, and for its customer service, to make it the highest selling auto manufacturer in the world, to LG.

M Miller, thanks for your thoughts and substance to support it. So many people make sweeping generalizations without anything to back it up. Just not helpful at all!

According to consumer reports the reliability of LG and Subzero are about the same. Sub-zero's claim to fame is quick repairs so people are extra happy with them. If you want to buy only on reliability, go with Thermador or Bosch. If you want to buy the current highest rated luxury frig then look at Dacor (samsung). I really like the looks and technology in the Dacor but the Thermador is a nice looking frig as well. Some here say women hate stainless steel interior refrigerators... haha. What do you think about that?

Thermador makes a very good built in french door refrigerator. I've owned both Bosch and Thermador. Thermador has the dual compressors (like SZ) but not the price. Very well made, very reliable, repairs/maintenance were easy and fast.

@Paul F. I love Thermador and Bosch. For dishwashers, would never own anything but a Bosch again, so quiet and reliable. I had a huge built in Thermador in my previous home, only replacing filters etc. And a strange issue with the hinges (they're big heavy doors). Thermador sent folks out and replaced the hinges immediately. Now I own a Bosch w/french doors (slide in countertop depth), with freezer on the bottom with dual compressors, and crisper drawer. Have to say it's a great fridge; we're in agreement.

@Dawn Martinez What about this complaint here about stainless interiors being too dark or susceptible to damage or scratches? Is that real in your opinion or just SZ fan girl non-issues?

Agree with Dawn about Bosch and Thermador. I'd also take a look at Monogram for a professional style fridge at a lower price point than SZ. I did a kitchen for a professional recipe tester with all Monogram appliances, and she loves it:

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less than twenty years ago a guy in the industry ( employee of wolf owned by subzero) told me Amana( now owned by whirlpool) had the patent on bottom freezer fridges and thus all, including the luxury brands, were just rebranded amana‘s essentially. The two models in the OP are both similar bottom fridges and 15 years ago would both be the from the same manufacturer. I do not know if this still applies but very interesting when considering how the price attatched to items improves customer satisfaction.

I was told by a long time appliance salesperson that SZ being a small company allows them to respond quickly to customer problems which is reflected in consumer reports customer satisfaction... that is what they cash in on despite the lower reliability ranking. Although, I do like their patented vacuum technology that removes the air from the chamber upon closing the door and the constant cycling ethylene gas removal to keep food fresher longer. One demo shows that food is kept fresh for a month in a sub-zero. It occurs to me to be a more commercial consideration since I don't store refrigerated food for very long.... but I could.

Interesting that Miele is second in satisfaction consider its relatively poor reliability ranking.

SKS appeals to high income technophiles who do not care about reliability and service. When something breaks, they move on to the next latest and greatest. Witness this thread. I refuse to ever work with a paneled Monogram again. Terrible specs, and actively unfriendly tech support. SZ is a dream to work with, and they last forever. That is exactly what you want in a 12K purchase.

@Paul F. I had to go downstairs and look inside my Bosch to see if it was stainless, frankly I didn't ever notice. The back is stainless the sides are the typical white. My Thermador had literally zero stainless inside. The stainless thing about making it dark inside feels like nonsense; as for scratchs I suppose I might consider that IF I really cared about the inside that much. I care about reliability, of course look, functionality and price point (bang for the buck). I never went with SZ because I got everything I wanted and needed with a built in Thermador at half the price of SZ.

A really helpful discussion! Thank you all for substantive feedback!

@Mary G So surprised there were none of the SZ fan girls trolling this thread. I wonder if they missed it maybe? @palimpsest @cpartist @darbuka @chispa Come discuss your suspicions that Consumer reports is corrupt or that the reliability questionnaire was biased against Sub-Zero and your claim that women hate stainless steel interior refrigerators... so much so that one of you said "I'll take white plastic over stainless any day." Haha. Hilarious.

Paul F I have an integrated Bosch that has been wonderful for almost 5 years. No stainless interior either.

@cpartist Nice. Now, you were saying in the other thread that buying a Dacor refrigerator you'd have a problem with warranty... was that just a 'feeling' or do you have experience with that?