Tunnel wash rant - Free speech thread

[Eric7810]

It could be said that tunnel washes are the reason my business exists, but it just blows me away every time I get a gloss black GM truck in for correction the sheer damage these car washes do to these vehicles.

They’re the ‘microwave’ of car care. You take your $95k Denali through it and in 60 secs you have what appears to be a clean vehicle.

“Oh no, the farm truck ahead of me in line is covered in sand.. what’s that going to mean for my gloss black paint when those spinning brushes contact me?”

Wrecked.

I can run a flex 3401 with foam interface wool pad tilted on edge using 3d One and STILL not get all the tunnel scratches out.

It’s just insane to me that people use these disgusting car washes.

Then again, I’m a detailer and am cursed with having the eye for it.

I make a lot of money doing these jobs, but it’s painful to see just how destructive these microwave car washes are.

Todays job…

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[Bill D]

I vomit a little in my mouth at every thought of one of these car washes

 

[Optimus Grime]

I can run a flex 3401 with foam interface wool pad tilted on edge using 3d One and STILL not get all the tunnel scratches out.



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This is pretty much how the last coating I did went. I used 3D One with with Urofiber pads and while it made a hell of a difference it was far from perfect. It passed the 10 foot test and exceeded the customer's expectations but there were still some deep scratches left over. The sad part is that the truck was only a 2022 and the customer had only had it for 6 days when he booked the job. The original owner must have had a subscription to the tunnel wash based on the damage.


It still amazes me how many people inquire about getting a coating and want to know if they can still go to a tunnel wash afterwards. Even after seeing the damage, they still want to take the easy way out.

 

[Bill D]

The clearcoats of today's vehicles are thinner than ever. I hope customers will eventually realize there's a limited amount that can be polished before permanent paint failure

 

[Optimus Grime]

The clearcoats of today's vehicles are thinner than ever. I hope customers will eventually realize there's a limited amount that can be polished before permanent paint failure

Add to that the fact that a ceramic coating is not in any way, shape, or form a replacement for a healthy clear coat.

 

[chilly]

What gets me is around here the brush tunnel washes cost considerably more than the touchless tunnel wash, yet people plunk down $25 a pop or pay a hefty subscription fee and are lined up out to the street

I get a $50 monthly for the cheapest wash that includes an undercarriage blast off at the touchless place closest to me and I never wait to get into a bay

I recently had a 2023 Lexus NX250 in a black color for a week and a half as a loaner from the dealer

The dealer has, of all things, a brush tunnel wash

The car looked like it had been scrubbed with a Scotchbrite green pad

When I picked up my car they were so proud to point out the coupon for a free wash on the receipt

I keep a sheet of computer paper with "do not wash and do not wipe down interior" all in bold caps in my glove box and I stick it on the nav screen when I go to the dealer

 

[chilly]

Add to that the fact that a ceramic coating is not in any way, shape, or form a replacement for a healthy clear coat.

You mean the dealer lied to us about the many benefits of ceramic coating and how it deflects ballistic missiles and shopping carts?

(looking for sarcasm font)

 

[Setec Astronomy]

The clearcoats of today's vehicles are thinner than ever. I hope customers will eventually realize there's a limited amount that can be polished before permanent paint failure

Yeah, but...most people lease and they are going to have the car 2, 3, 4 years and then it will be on to a new one, like a new cell phone. And they will likely be in an accident sometime in there--so new paint!

As far as the astonishment over people not washing their own car, even forgetting that us forum members are the crazy 1%, what percentage of the population ever was "hands on" who would be doing anything like washing their car or, thought it was something worth doing themselves? And with the loss of manufacturing over the last 50 years, we have a reduced culture of people who are even exposed to that kind of thing (the DIY home-improvement boom perhaps being a counterpoint).

 

[Thunderchicken]

The problem is finding a touchless wash, around here anyway. I managed to get my new buggy through it's first "winter" with only rinseless washes. Then last week it was at the dealer for service, at the conclusion of which they ran it through a brushed wash. :doh: I should anticipated better I guess

 

[chilly]

The problem is finding a touchless wash, around here anyway. I managed to get my new buggy through it's first "winter" with only rinseless washes. Then last week it was at the dealer for service, at the conclusion of which they ran it through a brushed wash. :doh: I should anticipated better I guess

There was a long article in the Anchorage newspaper this last winter about how few car washes per capita Anchorage has and how several companies are jumping to fill the need

I was amazed that the talking heads who were interviewed actually acknowledged the difference in brush vs brushless and how they were building to suit both preferences


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[Don M]

The problem is that the "normal" 99% of the population that don't have a detailer's eye, is that they honestly CAN'T SEE the wet-sanding-like-results of brush washes.

I did a major correction on a friend's 2013 BLACK Dodge Challenger last fall. It took me over 17 hours just compounding and polishing for it to reach 70% correction, which included using a rotary and heavy-cut wool pad - NOTHING else would make a dent in the damage! It should be noted that the car had never been waxed, let alone received a correction or even enhancement before.

To ME, there was a clearly defined difference between my black Camaro and the Challenger, but my friend simply couldn't see, or wrap his head around the fact that there was still a lot of room for improvement on his car (If I only had another 4 - 6 hours, I could have gotten to 85 - 90% correction).

Even with the HUGE difference in the "Before Don and After Don" correcting session, he STILL thought tunnel, brush washes would be OK :wowwow:

 

[JDGolden]

People just don’t care. As Don said, they see dirt or they see clean paint. That’s it.


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[chilly]

The problem is that the "normal" 99% of the population that don't have a detailer's eye, is that they honestly CAN'T SEE the wet-sanding-like-results of brush washes.

I did a major correction on a friend's 2013 BLACK Dodge Challenger last fall. It took me over 17 hours just compounding and polishing for it to reach 70% correction, which included using a rotary and heavy-cut wool pad - NOTHING else would make a dent in the damage! It should be noted that the car had never been waxed, let alone received a correction or even enhancement before.

To ME, there was a clearly defined difference between my black Camaro and the Challenger, but my friend simply couldn't see, or wrap his head around the fact that there was still a lot of room for improvement on his car (If I only had another 4 - 6 hours, I could have gotten to 85 - 90% correction).

Even with the HUGE difference in the "Before Don and After Don" correcting session, he STILL thought tunnel, brush washes would be OK :wowwow:

This is why I almost completely quit doing work for co-workers before I retired

They wanted their car to look like mine and even saw their's and mine side by side and couldn't "SEE" what they were asking me to start with and why I needed the car for an entire weekend and why it would cost so much

They thought the difference in our cars was a coat of wax that I could somehow magically apply to their car during my lunch hour

For the few people that "got it" I was usually happy to do the work for them

 

[Eric7810]

Whenever someone comes to me with a completely destroyed gloss black GM truck and wants ceramic coating, first I gauge by way of conversation how fussy this person is. Then I will assure them it will look amazing, but tell them to keep a ‘ten foot perspective’ on the results.

I did an all day correction on an obliterated black suburban last month and the customer was blown away by the result. She then told me how bummed she was that it won’t last, knowing she will be going back to the car wash.

I got paid. The rest doesn’t matter. I can’t worry about how people maintain their vehicles, I’d go insane.


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[Bill D]

She’s a fool to blow all that money and to expect the results to not last too long. IMO she should’ve inquired about you doing maintenance washes, it would be win-win,she’d be happier longer and you’d get paid more.

 

[opie2]

Whenever someone comes to me with a completely destroyed gloss black GM truck and wants ceramic coating, first I gauge by way of conversation how fussy this person is. Then I will assure them it will look amazing, but tell them to keep a ‘ten foot perspective’ on the results.

I did an all day correction on an obliterated black suburban last month and the customer was blown away by the result. She then told me how bummed she was that it won’t last, knowing she will be going back to the car wash.

I got paid. The rest doesn’t matter. I can’t worry about how people maintain their vehicles, I’d go insane.


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This is fact, and hard to get over. Ive had a couple people i know that had inquired about a ceramic coating. Decide against a coating after I told them flat out that, "hey ill take your money but if you are not going to maintain it and hand wash it on a somewhat regular basis, then its not going to last and will be in the end a waste of your money". They appriciated the honesty. I could have taken the money but its just not me.

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[Optimus Grime]

It’s a frame of mind. I remember growing up seeing my dad always working with his hands. He was cutting the grass, changing the brakes on our cars, reloading his bullets or working with his garage full of man tools. I don’t see that anymore.

I live in one of the most affluent areas of my city. With current house prices, thank God I bought my house before this current pricing boom, you can’t get anything around me for less than half a million. I’ll see my neighbors buy these overpriced homes and let the exterior go to hell, just like they do with cars. They’ll pay thousands to have someone build these brick retaining walls around their flower and tree beds and it looks great, for a month. Then they totally neglect their lawns, let the grass grow for weeks on end and are full of weeds. It’s the same mentality with their cars. They’ll buy a luxury car and never dream of hand washing it. They’ll complain about how automatic washes never get their cars truly clean but keep going back because it’s cheap and convenient. I’ve even offered to show people how to do a quick rinseless wash and it’s like there’s some kind of aversion to doing manual labor. And the worst part is when they realize something needs correcting, the want to haggle on price because they don’t value their property and in return don’t value your time or expertise.

 

[Bill D]

OMG. I could never live there. I simply can’t stand a neglected lawn and I truly thank God those who live on my cul-de-sac maintain their’s because just around the corner from me, they go to hell quickly. I do my exterior maintenance myself. Mowing the lawn, trimming bushes, and very soon,laying down mulch. Now no one, far and wide, washes or vacuums their cars,except me. No one knows the extent I go to doing it because I do it in the garage. All of this is a lot of work, but it’s good for you. No sitting around getting obese like too many people do these days. I’m proud of my work,wouldn’t have it any other way.

 

[Optimus Grime]

OMG. I could never live there. I simply can’t stand a neglected lawn and I truly thank God those who live on my cul-de-sac maintain their’s because just around the corner from me, they go to hell quickly. I do my exterior maintenance myself. Mowing the lawn, trimming bushes, and very soon,laying down mulch. Now no one, far and wide, washes or vacuums their cars,except me. No one knows the extent I go to doing it because I do it in the garage. All of this is a lot of work, but it’s good for you. No sitting around getting obese like too many people do these days. I’m proud of my work,wouldn’t have it any other way.

Amen brother. One of the reasons I like to do all of the manual labor within my capability is my desire to not get fatter as I get older.

A guy just started renting a house down the street from me. He stopped by and wanted to know how to detail his truck since he sees me working on cars all the time. While we were talking it shifted to lawn care and his lawn looks like crap. He mentioned it to the owner, mind you this is a 500k+ house, and offered to cover half the cost or resurrecting the lawn and the owner passed on the offer. If it cost money or labor, they just won’t do it.

I grew up poor and maybe that’s why I maintain what buy, be it my house or my cars. Let me get away from this keyboard and get back to getting my lawn ready for the big spring green up.

 

[Bill D]

This morning I used 30 Seconds Outdoor Cleaner on my patio again with satisfying results. This time of year concrete surfaces can get green if not attended to but all you have to do is spray and scrub and then hose down. Surfaces look good again. Household chores are starting up again.