Electrolux Oxygen EL6988D

Bought this a year ago. Tends to pull to the left, which is especially annoying when vacuuming with your left hand. I kept the unit because it has great suction. However, after a year of light use (I… only own a few area rugs), a plastic tab broke from the connection to the motor head. This rendered the entire motor head unusable since the tube pulls right out when I vacuum. Since I never disconnect the motor head, the fact that the tab broke indicates that it was made really poorly. I brought it to two repair places (the first one doesn't do warranty work). They both said that these units are always breaking, though the motor is strong.

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When this vacuum is working it is an excellent performer. But ours has burned out twice in dramatic fashion. The electronics in the handle that control the power head fry themselves by spitting sparks and… smoke into the room. The result is a completely scorched, melted and disintegrated electrical connector point when you detach the handle to further investigate. The first time this happened I counted it as a fluke after 12 months of use. Customer service politely sent us a new hose and we were back in business then exactly 12 months later it happened again. One week after the warranty expiration. This time customer service was not too keen to help even after the potential fire hazard. Luckily we bought this from a large chain buying club store who were happy to take the unit back and refund me. It appears the gauge of the electrical connections is not robust enough to handle the current going through the system. Not properly engineered and a fire hazard as well. Beware!

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This vacuum is shoddily made from cheap plastic. After only two months with it (using it only once a week) it is already being duct-taped. The extender is connected to the handle with a flimsy little… piece of plastic, meaning that it disconnects during the push and pull of normal vacuuming. Air rushes around the buttons on the handle, which means that the hose is not sealed off, while the powerful carpet attachment spews debris back at your feet. While there is no such thing as an ergonomically correct vacuum, this is one of the worst. The canister rolls fine on hardwood and tile floors, but is too heavy and ponderous for carpet or rugs (no matter how thin). The unit does not turn well and then lags behind you, meaning that it gets jerked along as you vacuum (not a unit for apartments or smaller spaces) running into your legs, scarring furniture, and knocking things over. The rolly-polly design of the canister unit causes it to tip over quite often, while the carpet attachment is FAR too heavy and bulky to be of any use--and the 'power control' mechanism drags you across the floor. This leaves only the lighter, brush attachments, which means that the vacuum picks up NOTHING. Lastly, the power cord retracts itself while you vacuum--without you pushing the retract button--meaning that the plug gets jerked out of the wall every five feet. And I have just learned that this is NOT an American Electrolux. Instead, it is manufactured by a foreign company with no customer service to speak of. I strongly recommend that customers AVOID this product.

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Before this purchase, I had a canister Electrolux for years. Bought it at a garage sale for $100 and it lasted forever. I debated whether or not to give the new Electrolux maker a try. And, I couldn't… decide which reviews to believe, the bad ones or good ones. After looking at the reviews and features of other vacuums, I decided to go for it. I've only used it a few times, but it is great. Edge feature is nice and it has lots of power; sucks up all the dirt and more. It is easy to use and my house cleaner loved it compared to the old one. As any canister, it has its mobility issues, but not like some people claimed (they probably never had a canister vac). The head was a tiny bit higher than my old one, but it still fit nicely under things. The attachments seem fine and store easily. My only complaint was the cord from the head to the upright handle. It crosses the foot pedal, and so you have to be careful not to step on it while depressing the pedal to lower the handle. Not really a big deal though. This vacuum has some features just like cars do that some people may prefer over others, but in terms of its main function....works great. Definitely not sorry I bought it.

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