sol, the front loaders we had were Frigidaire.

We ended up going separate gas cooktop and oven, so we are not using a rear control range anymore.

The washer is available from Lowes, it is a Whirlpool 5.3 cu/ft top load, about $600-700 depending on region. P/N WTW8040DW

If you find it cheaper in another region they will price match them.. And I've fixed so many more front loaders then I have fixed top loaders and the top loaders are usually something simple like a belt replacement or a sock stuck in the pump, but the front loader's are always expensive, even though I did find about $50 worth of change in one, with washers it's not so much how much energy you use its how much you pay for water, if you have a high water rate / gallon or liter they will save you money, if you have a well and it costs next to nothing and you use the gray water to water the grass why not go top loader...

I've seen Speed Queen and Maytag machines used here in Australia for more industrial purposes as well as in laundromats. They look to be very solid and reliable compared to the junk you get in most electrical stores here. The Speed Queen machines look like they could be dropped from a skyscraper and still work afterwards.

I believe here in North America, Maytag was sold to some other company and their washing machines are the same quality as other common brands. Speed Queen, however, has retained their quality.

My parents had a Maytag that lasted about 24 years of heavy use. It was new in 1976.

My father had a Miele front loading washing machine which lasted very long time, however since the loud noise of it during spinning, when the belt of the drum weakened, my father simply bought its current Bosch washing machine, which is also front loader.
His Siemens cloths dryer, lasted even longer, until it began to trip the RCD for unknown reasons. My father tried without any success to repair it (Including heating element, fan motor, etc...), so he bought his current Bosch sensor cloths dryer.
My mother Crystal top loading horizontal drum washing machine, also lasted long, at some time, the drum bearing broken. Since repairing was costly compared to buying a new machine, she replaced it.

My father had a Miele front loading washing machine which lasted very long time, however since the loud noise of it during spinning, when the belt of the drum weakened, my father simply bought its current Bosch washing machine, which is also front loader.
His Siemens cloths dryer, lasted even longer, until it began to trip the RCD for unknown reasons. My father tried without any success to repair it (Including heating element, fan motor, etc...), so he bought his current Bosch sensor cloths dryer.
My mother Crystal top loading horizontal drum washing machine, also lasted long, at some time, the drum bearing broken. Since repairing was costly compared to buying a new machine, she replaced it.

Dor123, I don't want to be the barer of bad news but if he bought a Bosch washer you might want to check it for mold, they lost a class action lawsuit in the USA over that and offered up to $500 to repair the issue by paying for part of a new washer, there design allows it to grow in the machine and for biofilms to accumulate, and make sure it's in a location where water won't damage the floor because they are the only ones I've seen able to drain the entire drum on the floor on a regular basis (check the pipe going to the drain pump to make sure the clamp is tight and consider adding a second clamp and then check the drain pump itself for cracks.) And it's not hard to build a small water leak alarm to place under the machine with nothing more then some wire a beeper and a few nine volt batteries... While it might sound silly to place a water leak alarm under the machine, the day it starts to leak he will thank you....

My personal observation on placement of controls seems to be dictated by overall design and use.  Most electric ranges have them in the back, since that's where the power comes in, and places the controls between the incoming power and the burners.  Gas stoves usually have them on the front, so the valves are located close (pipe wise) to the burners.  "Drop-in" style ranges don't have the back part, so the controls must be in the front.  For top loading washers (and their matching dryers) the controls in the back places them above the water bearing components, and means you're not leaning against them while loading or unloading the washer.  Front loading washers put them in the front because they can often times be stacked.  I've also noticed that in the UK, it's common practice to have the washing machine and dryer in the kitchen, so a front loader with front mounted controls would allow them to be installed under the counter top.

To my point of view rear control panels on stoves sounds like a recipe for disaster, even if there no fire, still the risk of burning your arm etc.

From what I've seen, cheaper electric stoves tend to have the controls on the front for some reason, while fancier models tend to have them at the rear. Not sure why that is. As someone else mentioned slide in stoves always have them at the front since there's no back panel.

But all gas ranges I ever seen have them at the front, other than for the oven.

It seems that ALL commercial restaurant ranges have front controls, whether they are gas or electric.

But all gas ranges I ever seen have them at the front, other than for the oven.

This is done for practical reasons rather than safety (which comes as a bonus). Gas burners have a valve instead of another type of control. That means the knob must be close to the valve, which is close to the burner. Making a back panel knob would necessitate a complicated array of levers etc to make it work (it is possible [see mechanical pipe organ keyboard action], but expensive and subject to adjustment problems). Any electric control can be wired up anywhere on the appliance with varying lengths of wire, so manufacturers can choose where to put them.

Electrically controlled valves for gas would be an option, however it adds to the complication (see my comments in paragraph above) and prevents the burners from operating in power outages, which is one of the many reasons why some people prefer gas cooktops.

Dudes, the reason American appliances have controls in the rear is because, well, we can. We do lots of stuff, because we can. We use standard/imperial instead of metric, we drive on the correct side of the road, and we own guns. What else is there to do? Put the controls in weird places!!