Yeah, I guess "planned obsolescence" is nothing new, the problem with this one is there is also that pesky safety issue attached (damn the NHTSA for pointing that out). On the point of longevity only, it was a bigger deal in the early 80's when manufacturers stopped galvanizing the cooling cores. Prior to that cooling cores typically lasted 20+ years no problem. I still have customers using refers from the 60's. The only real issue they face is the refers get rather cosmetically gross and disgusting over the years (who wants their food sitting on a rusted shelf). As long as they are not run off level, they just keep on going. Due to current manufacturing practices (the biggest one being no more galvanizing), the typical life span for a cooling core is only around 12 years. IMO This latest problem with these Dometic refers just represents one more step along the road we're on (the road to decreased quality and increased price). You can see the progression in almost every product we purchase and consume. Pretty soon they'll all be coming form China....Heck parts of them probably already are. Tim
