Negative Ad posted by Chemical Guys on Facebook

[termn8tr]

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New cars are telling owners to NOT take their cars to machine car washes. Machine car washes can cause swirls, scratches, and permanent damage. Always wash your car yourself for best results!!!

 

[I.B. Washincars]

And we all know that car dealers are always looking out for their customer's best interests. Car salespeople are the most knowledgeable and trustworthy individuals I can think of...

 

[Jeff_L]

Yep, they are completly against car washes. Their YouTube video even promotes bucket washing at a self serve bay. It's all about what they want to sell, their bucket with a grit grid, their soap, and a microfiber wash mit. Go figure, trying to sell off the backs of our business.

They wash by dipping their mit back into the same dirty water over and over again and ignore the fact that every second of a car wash there is fresh, clean soap and water coming out. Yes, they are biased.

 

[MEP001]

I haven't been on a new car dealer lot in a while, but the last time I was I saw a brand-new Corvette in the showroom absolutely covered in swirls and scratches. They would pull them off the trucks and immediately run them through a brush rollover to clean off the rail dust.

 

[rph9168]

Almost all dealers prep their vehicles with either a hand wax or in some cases buffing them and in other cases a hand wash. Rail dust cannot be removed in an automatic. Rail dust requires using a clay bar then buffing. The swirls you saw probably came from that prep work, not an automatic.

 

[MEP001]

You remember the field I'm in, right? We serviced their machine when I worked for a distributor. This is what the "prep" guys told me they did.

 

[rph9168]

You have a one time experience. I have seen prep work done all over the country for many years and believe me to just run a vehicle through an automatic is sloppy prep work. If the machine is causing swirl marks then it is not set up very well either.

 

[mac]

Most of the machines at car dealers are Broadway or N/S, or Nustar units. They were all designed in the 1960s or 70s. They have absolutely no method of sensing whether the brushes are in too hard. Their chemical delivery is sometimes nonexistent. Most of the drivers operate on the principle of getting through it as fast as they can. Rarely will you see a dealership wash turn out a clean, dry, and shiny car.

 

[rph9168]

Most of the machines at car dealers are Broadway or N/S, or Nustar units. They were all designed in the 1960s or 70s. They have absolutely no method of sensing whether the brushes are in too hard. Their chemical delivery is sometimes nonexistent. Most of the drivers operate on the principle of getting through it as fast as they can. Rarely will you see a dealership wash turn out a clean, dry, and shiny car.

Maybe that the the case in your area but I would have to disagree. When they have an automatic it is usually a touchfree model or a better friction unit. (Some still are afraid of friction even though manufacturers like Mercedes have friction units in their factories) I would say that usually only the high volume or high dollar dealers have automatics and they generally either take good care of them or have them under a service contract. Many have a wash bay equipped with a pressure washer and the work is done by a low level employee.

The company that put out that ad is obviously uninformed or feels that this is a good way to attract customers to his detail center. This reminds me of when there was competition between friction and touch free manufacturers and distributors in the 80's when unfounded claims were made by both sides in an attempt to attract business. Negative ads seldom achieve success and I suspect this one won't either.

 

[MEP001]

It's the same case here as mac has said. Their machine was an N/S, all counterweight, three brushes, I don't think they even used soap. It was the only new-car dealership that we serviced, but we also serviced a lot of rental car places and it was operated pretty much the same. All they cared about was fast and cheap.

 

[Waxman]

The new car dealers also try and sell $500-750 wax jobs, telling the customer it's guaranteed for life. Read the fine print and see they suggest you reapply at regular intervals; GASP!

I have to have faith that customers have a shred of common sense left, and so I don't get too concerned with negative posts / opinions of others regarding car care.

Look just below the surface and see that these 'opinions' are influenced by money.