What's new
By:
Car Wash Forum

This is a sample guest message. Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

Am I crazy ?

G

getnbusy

Active member
So Im a Laserwash 4000 guy. I have 2. They are great machines and we are old friends. They are workhorses and usually easy to work on. However, I "think" its time to reload. A more modern machine that i can reset on my phone would be great.

I have spent a quite a bit of time researching the Razor and feel like its the best option. Reading about it and watching videos and studying everything to the nth degree. I like some alot of the features and what its capabilities are. I have pretty well committed to buying 2 new ones. The problem is when I went to watch them in person, I couldnt get excited. This is not a diss on Razor, I just dont see the wow factor. Admittedly the chemical being applied was lackluster to what I run. The machine is well built and I like where it comes from. The truth is I like my Lasers so much that I cant get excited about buying the new machines. The ones I have produce a heck of a wash. This is not the norm but one time I got 167 cars thru after a snow day. The new razor i looked at was slow. noticeably slow. Even after maxing out the speed it wont go around the car as fast as a 4000. Not the ones I looked at anyway. The flex passs does speed it up, i get it.

Maybe i am just resistant to change. What am I missing ? Am i crazy for liking the old technology ? Somebody please tell me why i should be excited. Im scratching my head
 
The razor has a speaker that directs the customer what to do entering the bay and announces what chemical is being applied etc. That is very helpful and increases throughput quite a bit. The light show is nice on the razor and it's attractive to the customer. The production arch aids in speeding up the process. You can apply triple foam from front to back and then rinse right afterwards from back to front. The computer screen interface on the main control cabinet is very useful. It tells you if there are any faults with the sensors in the bay and you can diagnose the problem pretty quickly. The computer screen is handy for keeping track of your maintenance intervals as they come up .

With the new machine you could justify a significant price increase. My top package with my old outdated automatic was $15. Once I reloaded with the razor and freshened up the bay I am charging $22 for the top package.
 
Waxman i agree with everything you said and they are the things i liked about it.

Maybe ive looked so much there isnt any wow left. Maybe the programming just wasnt to my liking. Maybe it was the chemical. But dang my machines are nice and wash great. Ive got customers telling me not to take them out

Thomas i came to the same conclusion. Ain but 1 way to find out.

I just dont want to spend almost 400k and be disappointed when im pretty satisfied now. Except for i cant reset on my phone. But i came along before the smart phone
 
hey Coach. I didnt like the hyperflex that comes with the edge because when I looked at one it was leaving a bunch of suds behind to drip on the car and there was yet another weep system. . I thought the notmal flex pass did all i need it to do. I added all the edge lights to my quotes If there is a particular reason or application that makes you like the hyperflex please post it.

Does the edge package include more than the lights and hyperflex ?
 
getnbusy said:
So Im a Laserwash 4000 guy. I have 2. They are great machines and we are old friends. They are workhorses and usually easy to work on. However, I "think" its time to reload. A more modern machine that i can reset on my phone would be great.

I have spent a quite a bit of time researching the Razor and feel like its the best option. Reading about it and watching videos and studying everything to the nth degree. I like some alot of the features and what its capabilities are. I have pretty well committed to buying 2 new ones. The problem is when I went to watch them in person, I couldnt get excited. This is not a diss on Razor, I just dont see the wow factor. Admittedly the chemical being applied was lackluster to what I run. The machine is well built and I like where it comes from. The truth is I like my Lasers so much that I cant get excited about buying the new machines. The ones I have produce a heck of a wash. This is not the norm but one time I got 167 cars thru after a snow day. The new razor i looked at was slow. noticeably slow. Even after maxing out the speed it wont go around the car as fast as a 4000. Not the ones I looked at anyway. The flex passs does speed it up, i get it.

Maybe i am just resistant to change. What am I missing ? Am i crazy for liking the old technology ? Somebody please tell me why i should be excited. Im scratching my head
Click to expand...
Part of it might be the fact that they are both inverted L machines on an overhead bridge. The Razor is light years ahead of your 4000, but on the surface they mechanically look very similar, and you might be subconsciously thinking you need something different looking for $400k. A gantry machine or some dual arm machine or multi arm like and Oasis. I’m not saying you should do that- you did the research and the Razors are great but it might just be all the years you have seen your 4000’s and the general look is very similar to what you plan to reload with. Good luck and congratulations on the upgrade!
 
getnbusy said:
hey Coach. I didnt like the hyperflex that comes with the edge because when I looked at one it was leaving a bunch of suds behind to drip on the car and there was yet another weep system. . I thought the notmal flex pass did all i need it to do. I added all the edge lights to my quotes If there is a particular reason or application that makes you like the hyperflex please post it.

Does the edge package include more than the lights and hyperflex ?
Click to expand...
Just off hand, i can't think of anything. I removed Foam N Flow, & went with RainBar for my Ceramic. VERY glad i did. FnF is the curtain of wax. Wasteful,& operators say they couldn't ever keep it uniform over the cars + 9mph wind & it's screwed.
I know a guy who installed an Edge @ end of '21. I'll see if he wants to sell... maybe save 50--100k over new. I don't know how much a new Razor Edge is out there...?
 
I ll chime in since I just got my quote last week for a new Razor.
First- I agree with all above statements!
I am replacing a Razor 3 - or considering it.
I had my quote arranged with the base unit and everything else was options.
Tri foam as an option- hyperflex as an option etc.
I did not quote a F & F option
Dont use it on my 3 anymore- wont use it in the future either.
Fyi- I am already a ceramic and graphene applier.
I cant imagine that they are going to discover anything new any time soon that can beat those two items on a car.

The decision for us is to add the tri foam or go with the hyperflex and just apply one color of foam

Looking at our wash packages and products we apply. I cant see or figure out how the hyperflex speeds me up except for 1 pass on my very top wash.
And I have no idea what I will use the extra four lp injectors for.
And that option is 6000.+
So we will most likely stick with the lower cost tri foam.
And the normal flex pass is part of the base unit which I do use now.
I have talked with others that are not in love with the hyperflex as well.

(Plus - thinking I might trade up again in 8 yrs - might be harder to sell a unit without tri foam)
Before I make that decision though, I am going to find one near me that I can go play with on a rainy day!!!!!
We are spending more time evaluating the under body and tire cleaning options at the moment.

Gonna make a decision after we go to Vegas!
Have fun shopping!
 
i have 2 razor edges. my $18 top package with tri foam, hot wax, and ceramic is 3:45. my $12 basic package is 2:45. i would definitely cosider looking into the double barrel as i think the better impingement with the hp nozzles might greatly improve the eye brow issues
 
On my razor I use one of the LP injectors for salt neutralizer in the winter and bug remover in the summer. Applying two high pH presoak passes as well as a bug/salt pass really gets the cars nice and clean.

I can't remember the last time I got a complaint about "not clean enough".

i'm thinking about the graphene option for a super premium package and maybe even adding another presoak or high-pressure pass at a $25 price point. I think the people with the big pick up trucks still feel $25 is a decent value especially when you compare how much time and money they would spend to wash in self serve.
 
getnbusy said:
So Im a Laserwash 4000 guy. I have 2. They are great machines and we are old friends. They are workhorses and usually easy to work on. However, I "think" its time to reload. A more modern machine that i can reset on my phone would be great.

I have spent a quite a bit of time researching the Razor and feel like its the best option. Reading about it and watching videos and studying everything to the nth degree. I like some alot of the features and what its capabilities are. I have pretty well committed to buying 2 new ones. The problem is when I went to watch them in person, I couldnt get excited. This is not a diss on Razor, I just dont see the wow factor. Admittedly the chemical being applied was lackluster to what I run. The machine is well built and I like where it comes from. The truth is I like my Lasers so much that I cant get excited about buying the new machines. The ones I have produce a heck of a wash. This is not the norm but one time I got 167 cars thru after a snow day. The new razor i looked at was slow. noticeably slow. Even after maxing out the speed it wont go around the car as fast as a 4000. Not the ones I looked at anyway. The flex passs does speed it up, i get it.

Maybe i am just resistant to change. What am I missing ? Am i crazy for liking the old technology ? Somebody please tell me why i should be excited. Im scratching my head
Click to expand...
Well, you are in the car wash business, so some level of insanity is required

It not a matter of if, but when you'll have to replace the 4000. Great machines but PDQ has end of life cycled them.
 
The Wow factor for the customer comes in the show and performance. Because you viewed one running different chemistry it can be hard to actually see the improvement in show. Since you really like your current setup, the biggest Wow factor for you may come in the simple ability of the Razor to set the air pressure for each product at a different psi. This allows you to dial in your chemical show, coverage, and cleaning. From the customers perspective the low pressure passes always have perfect coverage with no gaps or streaks. It also can generate some savings in chemical usage with no loss in cleaning performance.
 
PEI said:
The Wow factor for the customer comes in the show and performance. Because you viewed one running different chemistry it can be hard to actually see the improvement in show. Since you really like your current setup, the biggest Wow factor for you may come in the simple ability of the Razor to set the air pressure for each product at a different psi. This allows you to dial in your chemical show, coverage, and cleaning. From the customers perspective the low pressure passes always have perfect coverage with no gaps or streaks. It also can generate some savings in chemical usage with no loss in cleaning performance.
Click to expand...
You touched on several reasons for me looking to upgrade from my 3.
The air pressure setting factor being a big one with ceramic and graphene now.
Plus the other program updates!
 
Washnshine you make a good point. I think you're right.

SHinepro it sound like we built the same machine. I added tri foam as i dont run that now. I too will likely run only 1 color. I will play with the 3 colors tho, What did you do for dryers ?

Jack954, i looked at the double barrel and i agreee with what you are saying. I chose not to get that because of the cost to change the nozzles. at roughly 125 a piece its over a thousand dollars to change the nozzles. I do like the way it washes tho. One of my sites is particularly high water cost and my water bill is very high so i change nozzles more often than most. Not sure how necessary that is but it makes me feel better about it.

Dan you're absolutely right about that. Im so overloaded with new parts. I can build a new one. Thats part of my problem too. Hopefully somebody will want all my 4000 stuff one day.

PEI the adjustable air is one of the main reasons Im switching out. There are other reasons but that is a big one for sure. I know i can make it look better than what i have and better than what i saw. The flex and tri foam adders will help me too. Also the extra low pressure pass. I know i can add an extra air reg and the tri foam to what i have but i aint doin all that.

Cowboy i agree.

Does anybody care to list their wash package lists and prices ? If you have already posted those somewhere else on the forum please point to that.
I have always had 4 packages with a $2 split. With 3 snows this year and the cost of water I switched already from
$6, $8, $10, and $12 to
$8, $10 and $12 and then again to
$10, $12, and $14
Both changes in the last 45 days. no complaint. a couple questions, but no complaints.

I looking to go to 3 packages priced at $10, $15, and $20. Anybody have any thought on what im planning to do ?

I guess at the end of the day my hesitation is that i really like what i have, and they both look so similar. I know the WW has lots of improvements. I think the chemical and setup on the ones i looked at are what is holding me back. Im gon do it so i can get em in this summer
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top