At my local "liquidators" discount store, I was surprised to see front loaders lined up for sale!
They were smaller "Haier" machines, priced to move at $339!
If I could have fit one into the trusty Saturn, I probably would have made another one of my "impulse" purchases!
It has a VERY small door opening, and very lightweight.
The build quality was definitely not high, but, on the other hand, neither was it on most of the FLs I scrutinized at Sears afterward.
Interestingly, I noticed at Sears that really examining washers in depth for extended periods of time is no longer considered unusual. There were half a dozen guys and one girl there doing the same thing, and we weren't getting the same curious stares I remember getting just a few years ago.