I rarely, rarrrrrrrrrrrrely go through a car wash as I hand wash
my TLS, and why not. But ONCE in a blue-moon I'm in a bind and I need
a quick cleaning so I hit this brand new touchless car wash (Esso)
that's pretty good. I have my micro-fibre towels etc for the finishing touches as well.

Today was a different story, as I'm going through all of a sudden the *&^%$@ brushes come swirling down and start attacking my car. I hammer my horn but the attendant keeps them going. When I got through I ripped over to the entrance where the on duty manager had already walked over cause of the commotion. I jump outta my car and the mgr says, "So sorry about that, he forgot it to make it touchless." The worse part is that the guy who put me through remembered my car from last month (the last time I went through).

Now I have spider webs (aka:swirl marks) all over my 2 month old car!! The manager is getting the owner of that station to call me tomorrow. I told him the last thing I want is a couple of free carwashes.

What would you guys do/ask for ? He's calling me in the morning.........

Thx for your imput.

 

well i work for Sunoco here in toronto and gas station managers are loaded, so if i were you i would ask him for couple of free washes PLUS ask him to pay for all the expenses to get your car waxed and polished by acura, and trust me he can afford it easily

 

i would want at least 2 free details to remove the scratches and swirls and the 0ther ones for the mistake.

 

anyone in Toronto know a top-notch detailing place? Or should I just get my Acura dealership to detail it?

Ya, that was my first idea, them to pay for a complete detailing to get that off.

 

1. definitely get them to pay to have it "fixed" and 2. get some sort of compensation, couple free details etc

 

I would be FCKN Pissed BIG TIME. Good luck getting rid of swirl marks!!! OH SHIT. DON'T ever go through one again. NEVER trust ANY auto piece of SHIT!

Find a hand wash indoor. Where I live I can get my car bucket hose hand washed, wheels, dried and all mirrors etc blown out with air for $9.00 Great job, no high pressure at all.

 

I didn't know you can switch off touchless.
I thought all touchless car wash are all touchless.....

 

Nothing you can do about it now - it's done............ just hope you are able to get it cleaned up

 

the attendant has to be your butler for a week

 

Sorry to say........you knew better, but you did it anyway. Live with your mistake.

 

Gotta love Seinfeld! !!

 

try using Sunoco's Touchfree Ecowash, the one here in toronto are actually touchfree, nothing will touch your car but water pressure and soap

 

K, this makes so sense whats so ever but thans anyway.......

 

I believe that was Mr Costanza's idea as well lol (fav show)

 

Ya, a G Costanza suggested that to me too lol (fav show)

 

Now you know why I only go to places that do Hand Jobs.

 

I cant believe they make car washes that arent touchless any more.

 

I think you will be ok with just the 2 details. I really wouldn't want them touching my car again after that as far as washing it in their "auto" wash, so skip the car washes. Just get the two details to ensure the swirls are "covered", because I thought someone told me before that they are never truthfully "gone". You just always have to wax so you don't see them. Anybody else know if this is true?

So don't have a fit (tho, I understand why), just get the details and you'll eventually feel like you made out instead of being victimized!

BTW, I think LKLD was trying to say that you knew better than to go thru an auto wash and RISK what happened in the first place. I understand that you requested touchless, but that by going thru the wash, you put yourself in the POSITION for the mistake to happen. Which, I happen to agree with. Doesn't make it your fault, but you know better than to do it now right? Your car is tight man, looks good! Keep it that way by staying away from those places!

Hahaha...trying to ease the pain of our NBP curse huh? Nah, you know we have to be soldiers and get our hands dirty man! Our cars deserve "hand jobs" just like DMZ said!

 

LOL, ya, was laughing at that "hand job" thing too

Thanks for all your input guys, the guy is putting the claim through his insurance
cause I found the best detailer in TO. This guy is going to do this 6 stage process over 4 days to remove the scratches and swirls (mostly pissed about the scratches, swirls you'll always get back).

He does the detailing for all the high end car shows (ferrari, lambo's) here so word is he's pretty good. Met with him yesterday and I think he lives in his shop----a little too obsessive about his work ......but I like that!

Total cost: $880 + my rental for those days !!

That'll be all for any car wash place for my TLS......

 

yea Sunoco touchless car washes are pretty decent.

The bad thing is that there may be a few spots here or there that wasn't completely washed off but i'd take that trade-off anyday over going into a car wash with brushes etc...

 

First off you knew better .. even touchless is harsh on the paint because of the soaps used.

Don't take it to Acura for thier $8 / hour kid to correct damage caused by another $8/hour kid.

Waxing or general detailing won't take it out .. it will just cover and hide it for a while. Then it's all back. You beed to find a high end detail shop that will "polish" it out not use a glaze on it.


Sounds like you have found your detailer .. good luck ..

 

I'll get flamed for this, but...
It's your daily driver and not a show car, right?
If true, it's gonna get wear and tear consistent with everyday use, like the car wash stuff.
Get used to it, save your blood pressure a lot of wear and tear.
You're 37 and haven't figured this out yet?
Sorry, but I had to.

 

not to be offensive, but if someone damaged you car, wouln't you want it the condition that it was in before or would you just let it go, such has someone denting the car. Dents will always happen, so why should i get it removed (same logic, just on larger scale)

 

My assumption was that the carwash was operating as designed, and the car wasn't 'damaged', except in the opinion of someone who was expecting to keep a show car finish on his daily driver (an unreasonable expectation). It's the 'get over the first tiny door ding' thing.

 

Thanks csmeance, glad someone else appreciates their vehicle as much as I do, and some just give a $hit.
Ya, I'm sure it will eventually get a nick or two here and there, MAYBE, but when someone else does it then no, you don't let it go. If I do something to f**k it up, so be it.

X2

 

negatory my friend. It's a dual car wash, touchless AND the use of brushes, you just tell the $8/hr attendant which one you want when you pull up......read my original post on this man

 

First off, I'm not trying to start a fight, just provide a different point of view...

I think you may be missing my point.
The brushes are designed to wash cars, which is what they did. That's what I meant by operating as designed.
You want your car to look like a museum piece, but if it's not parked in the garage with a cotton cover on it 99% of the time, that is an unreasonable expectation. You will save yourself a lot of stress if you realize the car can't be perfect forever. How much energy have you spent on this so far? Do you think it is justified? How pissed are you going to be when it comes back from the pro with worse swirls? Is it worth it?
You're really 37? Wow.
I'm assuming they are really minor swirls that are very hard to see. If the car before you was a 4WD that the brushes pulled a lot of mud off of, and then scratched your car, then you are justified.

 

so you knew about this before you wash there again?
I wouldn't go to a car wash with dual options at all. Accident do happen.

black cars in Toronto are really hard to maintain due to the winter and summer weather. I've lived there for more than 15 years and I know a very good detail place.

He works from home though and he really takes his time to do his job.

 

YOUR THE PRICK WHO OWNS THE ESSO AREN'T YA.....now it makes sense.

Here's a thought-> ..i..

 

.............and for the 10th time, I never asked for a regular wash, I asked for a touchless, which means NO BRUSHES - capiche' ?

Go harass someone elses a thread kid.

 

Yup used to have a black car and the swirl marks would only go away if it was waxed...sucked big time. I used Zaino products and it made it better each time I waxed it....but they will always be there unless you redo your clear coat I think....

 

Actually they are really easy to see, I see tons of cars with swirl marks on them just by driving by me...thats all it takes. But then again its my opinion and

 

Brushless doesn't guarantee damageless, either. I, too, have a rule to not go through auto car washes at all. But, like you, I was in a pinch and went through a Shell car wash on the west side of Columbus, Ohio a few months ago. The guide rail gouged two grooves into my stock wheels. When I complained to Shell, they forwarded me to this bitch at Travelers Insurance, who handles shit like this. Ultimately, she decided that the equipment "was working properly upon inspection", and denied any claim.
Now these are stock factory wheels, not aftermarket, which means it could happen to anybody.
I ended up writing a letter to Shell (cc to 'da bitch), stating that I guess I can use another brand from here on. I figure 40,000 miles a year at 30 mpg, using premium gas means it cost them $4,000 in the long run, instead of $400 for a new set of wheels.
TAKE THAT, M_________ERS!.

'05 6MT NBP
K&N Typhoon Intake
A-spec suspension
DeBadged rear
V1 on the lookout

 

Zaino covers nothing .. just get shinyer swirls ... swirls can be taken out by a good good detailer with a buffer as long as they aren't too deep .. I do it all the time ...

 

I used to detail and Nu Finish is a good product to use for polishing your car. You dont have to have a buffer with this product to remove swirls but it makes it less work. Oh and once swirl markes are on your car they will be there forever just need to keep them hiding with polish so you never see them.

 

It's a car, not a museum piece, and being overly anal about it will only cause you bad juju in your life.
I'm done with this thread.

 

Ya well anyway ^thats what she said^...Zaino works...period. At any rate yes swirls marks are forever

 

tell them to detail the car and free gass for a month

 

more like a year.