Miele vacuum cleaners are excellent in my book, powerful, quiet and light to carry around - a view supported by our cleaner and she should know!...It's also robust and well made and despite being knocked around the accessories, tubes and body showed no signs of wear.
However I have had to replace them twice since the last two failed after about five years. In the case of the one I've just replaced the motor seized - a new motor alone (without paying for a technician to fit it) would cost £179 from Miele Parts...whereas a brand new one on special offer from Curry's cost us £139 - no contest!
Mind you Curry's asked me if I wanted to buy a 4 year guarantee plan - if they would have made it six years I would have gone for it!...However since you pay for parts I would still have been £40 out of pocket against buying a new one!
We also bought a Miele washing machine replacing a Bosch - six years on it's still performing like new...touch wood...
Also I believe that Miele is an independent company proud of it's engineers and designers who design products up to a quality standard rather than down to a price whereas Bosch-Siemens-AEG are one giant conglomerate sharing parts...building for the mass market so the quality is much less than Miele.