Zodiac MX8 Elite Suction Pool Cleaner with Zodiac Cyclonic Leaf Canister

After reading some of negative reviews, I was very skeptical. After further investigating the reviews good/bad I've come to the conclusion on few things.1. Folks that complained about it never mentioned anything about purchasing an extended WARRANTY. I told myself, I will try it out. If I like it, then I'll come back online and purchase a warranty.I received it yesterday and it did a great job cleaning my pool today. I didn't take before and after pics, but this machine did a great job. It never got stuck anywhere. If it did get stuck, it eventually reversed itself out of the jam. I have a raised drain, it got stuck there. Backed it self up and took an alternate route, love it! It approached the steps, again reversed and kept moving. There is a slight delay when getting it self out of a jam. It's not immediate, give it a few moments and it'll figure it out. After watching it for the first 30 minutes, I left for two 1/2 to three hours. When I got back, my pool was clean and Zodiac was still on the move!It climbs walls really well. It'll even climb walls at an angle. I thought it was going to slip off wall, but this machine obviously had a tight grip. :)2. I just bought a 3 year extended warranty which will kick in after 1 year manufacture warrant for $76. Price is not bad for full replace for mechanical issues within 4 years! You have to protect your investments folks! :)3. Before I let the Zodiac go to work. I used my manual pool vacuum to clean up a little grass at bottom of pool. It literally took my less than 5 min to do. I left the dirt for Zodiac.After reading negative reviews, I've come to the conclusion that this machine will do very well at picking up dirt and maybe SMALL particles. I am in hot Phoenix, AZ and I really appreciate what Zodiac did for me today.4. I DID NOT leave Zodiac in the pool. I unhooked all the hoses & parts, placed the hoses & parts back into the box it came in, and lay the hoses out straight. Don't keep the hoses bent or leave them in the hot sun, they'll get damaged. I promise you they will. That's what happened to my Kreepy Krauly hoses. (Lack of proper care, left them in sun).As far as Zodiac it self, I placed it back into plastic bag it came in and put in my shed. Hopefully, I will get a lot of years out of it by doing a very simple thing such as putting it away, storing it safely, and keeping dust off of it.Honestly, I am concerned because the storage can get hot and I am wondering if the heat can still damage it. I'm speaking about the parts such as wheels. It's not direct heat from sun, but still. I'm thinking about putting Zodiac inside the house to keep it cool. Maybe I'm over thinking this part, but this damn thing cost $400+! I'd rather not have to spend this amount of $ on a pool cleaner anytime soon after 4 years.......Lastly, I honestly don't see how parts such as wheels or anything can get worn so quickly (according to some reviews) unless Zodiac is not being properly cared for. I would suggest you folks not do things like leave it in pool to allow chemicals to wear down the parts or by leaving it in the sun to take a beating.I am very impressed with Zodiac MX8.Oh forgot to mention. I really wanted MX8 Elite because of scrubbers. I did some research and found a scrubbing kit ($47) here on Amazon that fits MX8! I'm excited and will receive them in a few days. Folks who left reviews are saying that the scrubbers do a really good job on pool.

Update: July 2021Keeps spinning in circles. Not jammed. Nothing appears broken. Not sure what is wrong but I’m really upset because it is as good as garbage as it is right now. I will attempt to have the local pool shop repair it but we will see.——————————-I like that it is uncomplicated, comes with what seems to be a well-designed hose system, and does indeed work with a low horsepower motor, easily sucking up the dirt and climbing all the walls.I have a 3/4hp 110/115v Jandy that looks to be at least 15yrs old providing the suction. Don’t know the pressure as I don’t have a pressure gauge anywhere in my system.My pool is ~14,000 gallons.It is under a screened-in enclosure, so no leaves, but it did a great job of lifting a lot of dirt from the floor of the pool. It does climb all the way up the walls to the edge which is impressive but it does not climb stairs or clean them. I brushed the walls off before starting the vacuum so not sure if it did a good job cleaning them or if I did :)...The before picture is very dirty, and the after picture is after about 8hrs-9hrs of cleaning. Looks good, eh?!The pool is NOT maintained by a salt system. It’s basic old chlorine and city water.Overall, I’m very happy with the purchase as it is today. I don’t like manual labor and always opt for anything that makes my life more maintenance-free.If it continues to work without repair for at least 1 year I will be happy with the purchase. If it can go 2yrs or more, though, that would make me feel truly great.My thoughts on price to value is that I’m not thrilled on the purchase price - but it IS sucking up the dirt and climbing the walls. I think it should be $300 or less. As of today, I’d say it’s a 6 out of 10 just because it’s very expensive for what it is... all plastic except the tracks.... lots of people saying repairs are imminent....If it continues for 3yrs or more with no issues, I’ll give it a 9 out of 10 for value, but we will have to wait and see.I was hesitating on which model to buy - I’m happy that I have this product.

Best pool vac / sweeper ever. Proud owner of the original MX8 and now the elite. You must know what you're doing but it is VERY EASY to disassemble and reassemble. YES it does get stuck and sometimes appears to be broken upon being new or replacing tracks. My go to fix is the breakdown the new one (if it gets stuck) and rebuild to ensure working. It will be tight and sticky around the tracks...move it and get it going. Increase the vac/sweeper suction vs the skimmer for the first week and then readjust by slowly testing it while shifting back...motion is loation for first few weeks. Never fails - I have had two, helped neighbors fix several and we all input to our success. This is the best cleaner ever...and super easy to clean out bigger wax-ish leaves or palms strings. Should be able to last 3 to 4 years easy...last one over 6. Good luck and enjoy your pool without suffering it.

Overall, I like it. I'm still glad I have it. The leaf canister was vital for me. Unfortunately, it can get defeated by as little as one oak leaf. It binds the internal moving parts and stops it from moving. If you have small soft leaves, it should work great. Its great at sucking dirt off the bottom and scrubbing. The random motion is not as efficient as you hope but I just leave it hooked up all day while the filer is on and take it out when we swim.