@busyparent, definitely take that Miele to a repairman/dealer before you give up on it. Those Mieles can go waaay past 10 years with a little maintenance now and then. If you otherwise like the machine, get a repair estimate. You might find that for $100 or so it could be good as new. @teriwtt, my old Miele had a retractable cord, but it didn’t retract while I was vacuuming. It only retracted when I stepped on the “cord retract” button when I was finished. Do the cords on the newer models extend and retract during the course of vacuuming?