Yes, I think some people tweak things to make them work. Of course, none of this should be necessary, IMO, as machines should do what the owners want them to do. HE and other “green” technologies should always be one of the options, but it should always be an option. All too often, the “green” technologies end up doing far more harm than good, like when these machines give out after 5 years instead of 20, or when people have to double or triple-wash their clothes (or dishes, in the case of dishwashers…or flush 2, 3, or more times in the case of toilets, etc.) in order to get the same performance as the “non-green” goods and appliances.

Agreed – but only coupled with higher energy taxes in order to provide economic incentive to adopt more efficient tech when possible. I’d much rather have that sort of thing “enforced” by high taxes so that people would WANT more efficient hardware, as opposed to outright regulatory mandates.