flatfoot

Any big negatives on bringing the car occassionaly into an automatic car wash?

Thanks

NFLblitze1

lol, wow flatfoot...many questions today...j/p

if your worried about your paint....then you would want to go through brushless carwash which uses a cloth type of spinner. but that still won't prevent scratches on your car...i use to bring my car through car washes but now i wash it myself as its more satisfying and no chance of machines or other people scratching the car.

if you have a body kit and a drop...then you DEFAINATLY want to watch out for car washes...it won't kill your car...but its not recommended to do so because if your body kit gets caught on the guidance rails and rip it off and most car washes have disclaimers against that so you'd pretty much be at fault and put a hole in your pocket aswell.

but the occasional run through the carwash especially during the winter time won't really hurt your car....just don't let them put armor all on your car because it sucks the moisture out of ur leather and exterior and will soon lead to chipping and cracking.

bluenoise

Swirl marks, scratches, damaged mirrors from aggressive brushes, etc. Occasionally may not be a problem, but it only takes one bad pass through one to mess things up.

Some believe "touchless" are OK, but I saw something bad happen in one I was about to use. I was waiting my turn while a Lexus was getting washed in front of me. This car wash used high-pressure nozzles to blast the car. While blasting away, one of the brass nozzles shot off and hit the back window of the car loudly enough for me to hear the "crack!" sound. It didn't appear to break the glass, but it certainly would've dented the sheet metal if it had hit it. After that, the resulting jet of water made the sheet metal roar. I backed out and went into the office to get a refund since I wasn't going to put my car in there. The guy behind the counter just said, "Yeah, that happens sometimes."

NFLblitze1

LOL!!!

"that happens sometimes?" pleaseeeee tell me your joking...and i hope that wasn't the manager of the establishment....cause thats TERRIBLE buisness and i hope places like this go out of buisness

bluenoise

No, I don't think he was the manager. He was just the punk kid working in the convenience mart (This is a Chevron station).

NFLblitze1

aha...so its one of "THOSE" car wash's when i do go to a car wash...i make sure its NOT one of "THOSE" kinds of gas station/car wash huts where they have the "buy 30 dollars worth of gas, get a free car wash" coupon type things. i go to a brushless car wash where everyone speaks english (not to profile) but ive been to some pretty bad car washes (not with my car wash)...there is this one car wash on route 10 called LUBE EXPRESS...none of the workers speak english and they can't reach on top of the car. so they open the door and they sit on the crevise of the door where it connects, basically they sit on the hinges of the door while cleaning your windshield and the top of your car....AHHH!

afici0nad0

hmm...

~ no, that wouldn't piss owners off... ~

i would kill them if they did that to mine...

Batman-JGII

I take both my TL and MDX to a car wash every week and I’ve never had a problem. Of course there’s a possibility that some unfortunate event could take place but that’s a risk I am willing to accept.

I was reading something some where that stated hand washes were actually bad for the paint because you are actually rubbing the dirt around the surface while washing it. Not sure how true this is. Has anyone else heard this?

KJSmitty

I've read many state that their rims were badly damaged/scratched from the wheel guides in many drive-through car washes. Check that system out thoroughly before driving through.....

When it comes to washing your car, you're always at risk of having "debris" between the washing device and paint. Drive through washers are known to be the worst for this due to the amount of vehicles and possible lack of maintenance. I let the wife run the Sub through every once and awhile at a local "pure" touchless drive-through and it does fine. But I also admit the paint on our Sub is the best factory paint I have ever encountered in regards to it's resilience to scratches etc. And when it does get one they easily buff out.

tzakiel

Car enthusiasts will tell you never go to auto washes. However I think they are fine, and realistically save you a TON of time over the months and years. How much is your time worth?

Then again if you have nice rims that are a little wide, or a severe body drop, you'd best not try it. Other than that I say go ahead and use a wash... find a decent one where they dry by hand.

You DO have to wax your car every few months.... there just isn't a good way to protect it otherwise. Clay once a year is easy and helps the paint a lot, too.

mark 3M bra man

I oftentimes get worse service from those places then from the ones where nobody speaks English. Sad to say (or proude to say not sure which), but some of the hardworking immigrants provide better service and are willing to work harder for the same amount of money then the punk American kids.

You knew that comment was coming your way.

NFLblitze1

my intention wasn't racial...but from all the car washes ive been too....that seems the be the concensus, but i don't really think it has much to do with immigrants....its more with the fact that its a BING BANG BOOM buisness...they don't care about ur car...as long as it looks nice...they don't care how it gets done...i prefer to go to a carwash that has people that speak english for the sole reason that if theres a problem i can easily just tell them please do this or please do that because then you get the ones that clean stupid places or constantly wipe the same area so they can still be there when they call over to tell you your car is done..and expect a tip...cause thats where a good amoutn of there money comes from....(the tipping)

mark 3M bra man

I get your point. Yes, there is a good portion of the American population who was born in the States, raised in full blood American families and still does not speak English well enough that you would be able to communicate with them.....

ndx2

I agree with you. Whether it's because they'd rather not argue with you (tougher to argue when you're not so fluent), or because they know happy customers return, but most of 'em certainly do their best.

Anyway, for lighter color & mostly stock cars, I don't think it's so bad to go to auto-wash. I had a silver car before, and I had absolutely no swirl marks, etc.

But like people mentioned, find out if a particular place is decent or not... Tim Allen (Home Improvement, and a big car buff) built a auto-car wash place in Troy, MI (named Your Car Wash), with all pure lambs-wool brushes. This place was littler pricier, but well worth it.

I'm just paranoid to take my car through an auto-wash... I've been rear ended while inside once, and who knows if the prick who went before me just came back from a weekend of off-roading with chunks of mud still on the car?

NFLblitze1

i don't want this to form into an argument because i agree with you, but most reasons why there are so many immigrants at places like these is because of cheap labor. im not doubting their capabilities, but im saying with this kind of job...most don't care, because its constant car after car after car.... so there isn't much room for taking ur time and craftiness for them to show.

mark 3M bra man

No, I am all good.

SouthernBoy

Best to avoid brush or cloth type carwashes and only consider the pressure water types for your TL. Brush and cloth washes can and will leave scratches on your finish.

If, on the other hand, you don't care all that much (I'm not being facetious here) then by all means, take your car through the auto wash of your chosing.

TLTrance

Country Club Car Wash in Santa Clara, CA is excellent and almost all the workers there are non-American. I rather not bring my car to a bunch of punk ass English-speaking college near-drop outs that are working for booze/drug money.

Of course there are some car washes worked by some very honest and hardworking English speaking non-immigrants, but I find them far and few in between here. Maybe's its also cuz I live in probably the most diverse area in the US (Bay Area).

Xpditor

I have a black (NBP) TL. I will go a block out of my way to not pass in front of a car wash!

They use recycled water that has washed other cars and strong detergents even in the "no touch" washes. The high pressure forces this brew into places water isn't meant to go and hard to get out.

The swirling brushes or carpet things are carrying years of sharp particles in their fingers. The track your car rides in is steel and will chew up your rims since they are not protected by the tire width.

What ever mystery sauce they spay in the interior I am sure is not doing the leather any good.

So, in northern climes, where they put salt on the road, I suppose a touchless wash is better than the salt, but not much IMO.

Just my .

HEK

scratches, swirlmarks, scrappes on the rims ( did you read the disclaimer above the entrance to the bay:...not responsible for any damages done while your car is being washed)...
My wife a few Winters ago decided to do me a favor and brought my RSX-S thru a brushless carwash.. , when I got home I said wow the paint is so shiny I can see the reflection of those white lines all along the sides of the car... , funny thing was there were no white lines in my driveway...moral of the story...those plastic strips that spin while your car sits stationary do freeeze and act as needles scrapping your paint as if you were using sandpaper...
IMHO I'd prefer a dirty car over a scratched one, dirt comes off...scratches ...depends if you have a orbital buffer and the patience to do so like I did...anyways one word DON'T

Adobeman

Just one look at the stock rims and how they have NO protection from the tires tells me I'm never going through any car was that pulls the car via wheel guides. All it takes is once.

I mean, sh&t, I get scared just looking at curbs in this car so the last place I'd want to let rash up the rims is a car wash.

MR1

I guess I'm a different type of anal then some. My car goes through a touchless car wash 2-3 times a week. The worst thing that happens is that my rims are somewhat scratched.

In the end, it's just a nice car. I don't expect it to be showroom perfect and it isn't. It looks very nice for it's age and mileage, that is all I expect. For me, this eliminates an unnecessary source of stress. The TL gets the same type of attention as my other cars. One is 13 years old and people still ask if it's new.

neuronbob

Please continue the discussion in Wash and Wax. Thanks!

And for the record, I go through a touchless car wash during the winter because it's too damn cold to wash the car that time of year even in the garage.

https://acurazine.com/forums/wash-wax-23/