Thoughts on automatic car washes?

[FL-RAM]

So there are three new Ronny's carwashes in my area...all three on on my way too and from work so I bought a monthly pass for unlimited washes. Are there any concerns about over-doing it? Can the brushes damage paint over time? I usually go 2-3 times per week. Should I condition the pain? Are those ceramic coatings worth it?

 

[tidefan1967]

I only use the touchless kind myself, I would think those brushes would pick up dirt and other debris which might possibly damage the clear coat or the paint. Just my two cents worth of course.

 

[BOWERSFJ]

2012 in Ohio .... I never use them .... Hand wash only


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[shadowhawk]

anything that touches your car that you don't control can damage your paint. We had a "rocket wash" up here, and it's really rough on paint. Scratches galore. Touchless is always better than brushes, but a good old fashioned hand wash is always best.

 

[Sgambots91]

I bring my own bucket, soap and brush to the self wash station. I like the high pressure hose and the bay even closes and is heated in colder months.

those drive thru washes are fast, easy and convenient. But not the greatest for you paint.

 

[shadowhawk]

I bring my own bucket, soap and brush to the self wash station. I like the high pressure hose and the bay even closes and is heated in colder months.

those drive thru washes are fast, easy and convenient. But not the greatest for you paint.

I think our local washes have a no bucket policy. You can probably get away with it when there are no lines, but certainly not when there's 6 cars behind you.

 

[Hasek]

Studies done by the Technical University of Munich, Germany in association with Mercedes-Benz showed that automatic washing is far superior to hand washing—and these findings were confirmed in a study done by the University of Texas at Arlington a decade later.

http://www.cartoyzofhavasu.com/Texas-Study.pdf

now as far as all the add-ons...

 

[TheEnder]

I stopped hand washing my truck in the summer as it got too hot and the water spots were ruining the paint, and now i just go to the regular Mister car washes as i’m waiting to save up enough to get my truck fully fixed (dent work) and then getting it repainted.


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[Sgambots91]

I think our local washes have a no bucket policy. You can probably get away with it when there are no lines, but certainly not when there's 6 cars behind you.

my local car wash self station doesn’t get much use. At least when I’m there. People love the drive thru.

either way I don’t see how it adds much time, if at all. Even if I used their brush/soap, I would do 2 time cycles. Cost $4.50 to start it. I rinse really well and get a good base of soap all over the vehicle. Then scrub whole truck while time is expired. Then put another $4.50 in and rinse.

only difference is I use my clean/dirt free brush instead of theirs that’s basically like sand paper.

 

[tron67j]

The studies are interesting, but there is missing information. Do the vehicles that are hand washed get the equivalent wax applications in between? Washing a car 25 times without protecting the finish will certainly scratch it. And running through a car wash gets some type of treatment added. I read nothing about control of variables such as this. Also, 4 people hand washing is hardly enough of a sample to obtain any relevant data. If you read the Hawthorne study, you will find that people who know they are being tested will unknowingly skew the results, and so I would need more information on how that part of the test was controlled. And the dirt bring applied, how realistic is it? I find the grittier stuff is in the bottom so I naturally clean the bottom differently than the top. Another thing they spoke about is volume of water with hand washing. Running the water longer will provide the same volume as a shorter time in a car wash. Yes, pressure is different but that is not listed as good or bad in study. And the reference to using brushes on the end of a garden hose, of course that will probably scratch more. I could go on, my point is to critically question what is presented and see if the activities presented match what you do before accepting conclusions. I occasionally wash my truck in a touchless wash, but mostly hand wash. I have no scratches on my truck, still mirror finish a year in and way more than 25 hand washed.

 

[Eclipse Aries]

I've been using the Champion tunnel car wash for about a year now. I haven't noticed any ill effects from the brushes and soap they use. I go 1-2 times a week. At $30 a month it's about $5 a wash. I still have to do some touch up work. windows, heavy bugs off the front, and like that. The value to me is I can get keep my truck clean in 10 minutes after work at 1900. In the dark and the cold.

 

[RAMzes]

I find that when I handwash my vehicles, I also wax them more frequently. If I just go through a car wash I most likely wont wax because the wash itself wasnt "as good" (you gotta claybar, etc)

Even if you do wax your truck....handwashing with proper shampoo wont take the wax off as much as some generic/industrial soap & brush. So expect the pain to suffer quicker at the car wash in my opinion.

 

[Randy Grant]

Only problem I have had is that the rotating brush flips the mirrors forward, and screws up the folding mechanism and they don't stay in place. Strips out the plastic gears inside. Luckily replaced under warranty.

 

[BOWERSFJ]

Hand washing is your opportunity to inspect your vehicle, inch by inch .... It’s how you find dings, scratches, rust, and other things that require your attention .... There are really good professional gloss enhancing soaps that leave your 4 hr wax job in place .... Nothing better than a ****** Winter Ohio Sunday to fire up the heater, and detail your wagon ... What the hell else would I do, watch the Browns ?!?! Lol


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[Midnight Storm]

Never use brush car washes!!!!
Scratches galore.
If I just can’t get the time to do a proper wash at home with my foam cannon and two buckets, I will occasionally give into a touchless car wash but it definitely does not come out as clean as when I do it.

 

[HAL9001]

I never use an automatic car wash, only the manual bays, and only in the winter. Even then I bring my own sponge rather than using the dirt-laden brushes they provide. I've never been stopped by the management, they're not even ever around. No one in line has ever said anything either as it takes no longer than usual and most people understand.

For the rest of the year, I handwash at home. I've duplicated the manual bay of a car wash by using a safe, low powered electric pressure washer ($70), a foam cannon (came with the pressure washer), and a car washing brush ($30). It works great and I've never got a single scratch or swirl mark.

I have a friend with a black Volvo and he always uses automatic car washes. His car is covered in light scratches and swirl marks, but he doesn't care.

So, it all depends on whether or not you care a lot about the finish. Some people do, some don't.

 

[FL-RAM]

Is it worth it to get a professional ceramic coating applied?

 

[rule18]

So there are three new Ronny's carwashes in my area...all three on on my way too and from work so I bought a monthly pass for unlimited washes. Are there any concerns about over-doing it? Can the brushes damage paint over time? I usually go 2-3 times per week. Should I condition the pain? Are those ceramic coatings worth it?

Yes, a good ceramic coating is worth it. You'll get the same variety of opinions/experiences in that some guys prefer to do it themselves, others prefer to have it done.

 

[bigred90gt]

I use the automatic wash with brushes, but I also dont care about little swirl marks or micro-scratches. The automatic washes without brushes are completely worthless in my opinion. I've never been through one that did even a decent job of cleaning my truck.

I brush my truck against bushes and whatnot on a pretty regular basis, so it's going to have some micro-scratches anyway. It would all depend on what you expect out of your vehicle. If you want perfection, as in a show car look, mirror like finish, by all means, do it by hand. Otherwise, drive through. Of course, even with the brushes in the drive through, it will never get as clean as it would if you washed it by hand, but I just have better things to spend my time doing than spending hours washing my truck. If I lived somewhere where road salt was a problem, I might have a different opinion, but being in southeast Texas, we just don't have that issue.

 

[HAL9001]

Is it worth it to get a professional ceramic coating applied?

Ceramic coatings are great but don't spend a lot of money on them. When they first came out they were expensive and it was best to have them professionally applied, which could cost several hundreds of dollars. Some people still do this but the manufacturers have now developed them to be much less expensive and you can easily apply some of them yourself.

Watch this excellent video on ceramic spray coatings which make ceramics easier to apply then even wax: