Automated car wash issue

[DBravo]

I refuse to use automated car washes. I just won't do it. I manually use a wand if I go to a commercial wash, or I do it at home.

If they INSIST on those washes, at least do what Gregj suggests - then it can't move on its own. There, that was a simple solution!

And I will NEVER EVER EVER use a wash that TOUCHES my vehicle with anything other than water.

Agreed - touchless wash only and only the kind you pull into yourself. I don't want the matted dirt on those brushes ground into my paint. If there's paint damage to be done, I wanna do it myself!

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[Hoda]

Express conveyor car wash owner here. What OP is describing sounds like user error. Conveyors operate at a constant speed of 60-120 cars per hour. They are not adjusted on a car by car basis. Setup of the wash prevents cars from freely “rolling” faster than others (imagine the insurance claims of playing bumper cars in a tunnel). I’d be more inclined to think that she thinks it’s going too fast and is tapping the brakes - which obviously stops/slows the entire conveyor and would be why the employees ask if she’s neutral.

As to the comments on damage - that’s a comment about equipment that’s ~ 10-15 years old (what we call “scratch-o-matics) that the industry has largely moved away from. Newer synthetic wraps - combined with proper preventative maintenance and wet downs - prevent swirls and scratches. But … there’s a lot of old equipment out there.

 

[Gregj]

What I experience in my Gladiator is the roller bumps the tire and it rolls forward but does not hit the roller in front of it, then it stops and waits for the roller to catch up, gets bumped and the cycle repeats. By LIGHTLY setting the E-Brake it prevents the free roll and stop and insures an even wash. I have Bridgestone tires on it (highway tires not Off Road tires), I do not experience this in my Wrangler with BFG All Terrain tires.
Gregj

 

[DailyMoparGuy]

lol 23800 miles and I haven’t washed mine yet. On the plus side it eliminates swirl marks.

That’s actually impressive.

 

[Radio Guy]

I refuse to use automated car washes. I just won't do it. I manually use a wand if I go to a commercial wash, or I do it at home.

If they INSIST on those washes, at least do what Gregj suggests - then it can't move on its own. There, that was a simple solution!

And I will NEVER EVER EVER use a wash that TOUCHES my vehicle with anything other than water.

A good friend of mine had an $8k paint job on his '85 4-Runner and he's run it through many of the local conveyor belt car washes about twice a week for the last 15yrs and never had a problem.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

A good friend of mine had an $8k paint job on his '85 4-Runner and he's run it through many of the local conveyor belt car washes about twice a week for the last 15yrs and never had a problem.

So there's always success stories - and there's always epic fail stories. Modern ones are far better, but I still won't for multiple reasons. Finish is one of them. Getting the dirt in some places is another.
So the local car wash of your friend is fine - not the ones I've seen around here. I still see ruined finishes from time to time.

 

[Bucephalus]

For the love of all that is holy..Please don't use car washes! They're terrible. Ruin the rear qtr panel of my Mercedes the first time I washed it. Never Again!!!

 

[redrider]

Late last century I repaired C-Store electronics. Dispensers(erroneously referred to as pumps), Point of Sale, tank monitors, etc. Most locations had the drive in style wash stations. The fad was worthless humans would tie large hex nuts into the fabric strip roller brush.

 

[WXman]

Don’t use that type of car wash

Reminds me of that time my doctor told me that if playing disc golf hurt my shoulder, stop playing disc golf.

Sometimes the simple answer is the most illusive.

 

[futzin']

Apparently I missed the part where the OP asked whether or not they should use an automated car wash.

Happens every single time . . . car wash police: always active!

Have a good day.

 

[WXman]

lol 23800 miles and I haven’t washed mine yet. On the plus side it eliminates swirl marks.

Yeah who cares about swirl marks when the clearcoat is about to start peeling?

 

[Matt_Machine]

A friend of mine liked my Gladiator, and bought one. She is having a strange issue, and I was looking for feedback.

She takes her 2021 Sport S to local automated car wash. She said everytime she does it, it seems like he is going "faster" than other vehicles. She has even tapped the brakes a couple times because she felt like she was going to hit the vehicle in front.

Vehicle is in neutral as it goes thru the wash. This has happened everytime. She said it seems like it goes "too fast" through everytime. The carwash even has asked her repeatedly if she is putting the truck in neutral.

I've not noticed it the 1 or 2 times I've gone to my local automated wash (and automated, I mean the one where you roll in, and you put vehicle in neutral, foot off brake, and it has rollers that push you through the washing machinery.

My 2020 JT Overland always rolls forward on a conveyor-type car wash. I use the same one each time and the attendants yell at me thinking the Jeep is still in gear when it is rolling forward in neutral. Since I have added accessories, I now hand-wash in a wash bay.

 

[Terminus33]

That’s actually impressive.

Yeah who cares about swirl marks when the clearcoat is about to start peeling?

Well my billet silver metallic did seem to loose the metallic bit...

 

[Empty Pockets]

My dealer told me never to use an auto car wash. Said it would destroy the seals in the Freedom Panels.
Course, I have the Sunrider for Hardtop on it now. But saying......

 

[Gregj]

My dealer told me never to use an auto car wash. Said it would destroy the seals in the Freedom Panels.
Course, I have the Sunrider for Hardtop on it now. But saying......

That's funny because most of the Dealers around here have a car wash on site and will wash your car before they give it back to you after service.
Gregj

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