That my last trip to the automatic car wash...

high pressure wands in the manual bays is all I use, when i dont do it by had that is

my local car wash puts out hot water from the high pressure wands, and i have an option to turn a detergent on as well (which i do, then just hot water)

i do the same thing in the summer, then go home and hand wash it, since the wands get the big stuff off great

 

I have no choice but to use the local "touchless" car wash. My well water at home leaves spots from hell on the truck. I cringe every time I go through, watching the blower go over the truck. I am not afraid to get it dirty, so I just keep it waxed and hope for the best. If we ever move back into the city I will welcome the ability to wash it myself.

 

Those work well. We have one here. Except they leave a film on your paint if it was recently waxed. Not all the dirt comes off. But I like using them with our BMW.

I found that Washman car washes work well here. They do not use brushes and they even specialize in detailing. They use synthetic wax and do a super long list of things (your choice add or drop) and they do it pretty damn well. It is worth it. Especially when you are a student like me .

 

My bed mats fly off some times but other then that it stays together. I only use them on my way home from an offroad trip to get the dust out and prevent corrosion...

 

i went to an automatic car wash with my truck 1988 K5 Blazer... i actually caused $2000-$3000 worth of damage. the little grabber thing pushed from my rear tire but for some reason the front tire (37s) jumped out of the track and the rear thing kept pushing my truck through the whole wash... i ran over the wheel cleaners and my front bumper took out one of the rotating brush arms and it crushed the big blowers. They took my info down and told me that i wasnt responsible since they have on video that my tire climbed the side rail and that they could clearly see that i didnt touch the steering wheel. I was amazed that the stupid thing never stopped and nobody noticed it just kept pushing my truck through... They closed for the rest of the week to do the repairs and forbid me from taking my truck through ever again... no damage to my truck

my tacoma wound up with a piece of one of the blue brushes stuck in my highlift... i guess im on the other side and cost the car wash time, money and aggravation

 

I had to kiss the luxury of auto car washes away when I put my snorkel on.

 

That's why I love washing & waxing my truck. lol

 

Yeah same here i only hand wash, scared of what might happen especially after reading OP`s problem!

 

Does the snorkel present a problem if you turn the engine off in the car wash?

 

I had a couple of small chips in my paint one time, when I came out the car wash I had this...





I got them re-painted but the guy did such a bad job, I should have known when he offered to do it for $150 (for the fenders and a tailgate for my other truck)

 

ouch :$

 

You guys quit being lazy and hand wash your trucks. This is truck abuse!

 

took a 1978 ford truck through a carwash with the rotating brushes. have to sit in the vehicle,while it gets pulled through. heard this scraping,grinding noise as truck was being pulled through. can't get out,or stop the process,till completely through. when clear of the wash bay,I got out and checked the passenger side. sure enough,scratched down the whole side. apparently the brush came in too far,and the part the brush is attached to was rubbing the truck. the owner happened to be there,and when I told him that the unit just scratched the shit out of my truck,his reply was-QUOTE(that didn't happen here!)

 

i guess self service bays r the only reasonable option during the winter..

 

going to go back to back on this one. had my "66" chevy all cleaned up,prior to a car show. got a little dusty,and took it to a local car wash.the type with the wand and foaming brush. only used the high pressure rinse to get dust off. when I went to dry off the car,there was like an oil film all over the car. needless to say I wasn't too happy. when I got to see the owner,and told him about it,his reply was, I don't see how that could happen,we use all fresh water(not recycled),but he did give me a few free washes. still occasionaly use the wand type,mostly in winter,but handwash as much as possible. haven't used a drive through in probablly close to 30 yrs. might have something to do with the ford incident.

 

So, 36 posts later and I'm the only one on TW 'fessing up to using an automatic carwash? ; )

 

I've used them for years and have never had an issue.If I can't go thru a car wash I better sell the POS.

 

travelingman has a set of testies! +1 for you!

 

I wash mostly by hand, but in the cold winter I do use the car wash. I just don't put the nozzle to close to truck. Never had paint blow off. I think in the pictures above it was repainted and the body shop didn't use proper adherent for the plastic?

 

To be completely honest, ive owned my truck for 2 years and its only been washed twice...