We have a 22 year old car that has not been sold in North America in several years. It cost me over $200 and 3 months yo have the fan switch replaced. It is not a generic part, but specific to that model of car.
We were close to not being able to drive it during the winter as we could not defog the windows.
The same applies to sewing machines, some parts are generic and some specific to a model. The model specific ones eventually are no longer available.
How many years do you drive a car before trading it in or having major repairs? I have a 30 year old Kenmore that is still going strong, but any future repair is likely to be more than I paid for her, assuming parts are available.