Inferior products and no Back-up

We bought a Karcher MV 4 Premium 1600W Vacuum cleaner for domestic use on the 28th Dec 2015, the unit stopped working 5 weeks later and was taken in to Cape Gate Makro on the 5th Feb 2016. After two weeks we had to follow up on progress of the repair and were told by Makro that we would have to contact Karcher as there would be a charge to repair the unit. Debbie Bold at Karcher Milnerton informed me that their was a break in the electrical cord and the cord was not covered by the guarantee and was a wear and tear item????? After I explained that normal wear and tear could not cause a break in an electrical cord in 5 weeks, she agreed and said she would speak to management and come back to me. Three days later I had to contact her to be told that the repair was again rejected as a wear and tear item. The quote would be R547.00 to replace the 1.5m electrical cord, that's more than 25% of its value?? Karcher advertises that they stand by and pride themselves in the quality of their product. This just shows the true quality of their product and the back up service they offer. Avoid the hassle and disappointment, buy another brand, it will be cheaper and you will get more value.