I only got a few more years out of the Spirit I had than I would have from a cheapo grill. To be fair, there wasn't as much markup on them when I bought mine, I got it through Amazon, and it was one of the few natural gas grills I could find anywhere (I have a hard line from the house supply). I was happy with it, but I did have to replace parts (not the burners--those were still good) in the 6 or 7 years I used it before the bottom rusted out and the doors fell off (pro tip: you can't keep the fire lit without those doors or something to block the draft). They're the cheap line of Webers. Get a Genesis if you're serious about Weber.
Obligatory: Charcoal is better and really doesn't take long to get going.