I love Vikings and have had 3 and just bought another. None of them have had any problem. I have a D1 that I have had for years, but just bought a new Viking Emerald 183. Love it, needle threader, a 1/4 inch foot included and many stitches that you might use in quilting. It's light enough to take to classes and come with a 10 year warranty. My Viking dealer gives you free classes, that is really important for any machine because no instruction book will really show you how many things the machine can actually do. I'd go to the Viking dealer and see what their best price is. I've seen them on-line for $499 -$520. If your dealer won't go to that price, maybe you could ask how much they would charge for a class. None of my Vikings have ever had to be taken in for problems, just regular cleaning every couple of years. Hope this helps.