[ds968]

For a no-frills , basic wash ( courtesy vacuuming of the floor mats included ..) the average cost for this service at most car wash places in the Bay Area is now reaching the $ 30 mark !

I believe all these car wash places recycle their water, so it's not as if they're incurring a huge cost for wasting resources and need to soak ( no pun intended ) the customers with that expense .


And yet, every time I pass by a car wash they're packed ..long line of cars always waiting to get their turn of handing over $ 30 for a simple wash.


Yeah, I was one of those handing Sucky's ( ahem , I meant Ducky's ) $ 27.99 to wash the Jeep today because I'm too lazy to do it myself , so I'm guessing there's a lot of other lazy people around here ..

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[lbpesq]

Is $30 really all that much? Consider that, according to recently released figures, the poverty line in the Bay Area is $106K/year! And how much time and effort does it take to wash a car? Would you work that long and hard for $30? The older we get, the more we sound like our parents: "when I was young we went to dinner and a movie, with popcorn, on a five dollar bill and still had $3 change. And I walked five miles to school, through the snow, uphill in both directions!"

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[ds968]

Haha ( true about sounding like our parents ) . It seems the prices jumped sharply in a very quick timespan, from what I recall being around $ 11 or $ 12 no more than a couple of years ago ( and I do mean just about two years ) to a 150 % + increase now. But then again, rents have increased at least 100 % in much of this area in tne last few years as well so I suppose in that sense it's just trying to stay ahead of the cost of living..? I get the feeling it all goes into the pockets of the owners though, and the trickle down benefit to the folks that actually do the work itself is likely a small fraction of that . The minimum wage did not go up by that much, and I doubt those workers got a 100 % increase in their wages to match the new prices of getting your car washed .

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[Rap]

$7.00 for an exterior wash with recycled water. I use this place for my daily driver but wash the others at home. Being a sanctuary city should we east coast folks assume these car wash workers are illegal immigrants and the car wash a wash of God?

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[az968]

Shoot, my wife still only pays me a buck to wash her xar. I think I'll show her what Dan pays. Big raise in my future!

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[Kim]

Here in Nova Scotia a car wash in a "touchless" facility, which includes undercarriage, wash, wax, Rain-x and spot-free rinse followed by drying is $12.  I use them all the time, especially in winter.  In find that where I live the water is so hard that I cant get the vehicle spot-free at home.  Given that I drive a lot and get my vehicle dirty a lot (yes, even the mighty Cayenne - let the lightning split the sky for saying so) it's good enough for me.

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[az968]

A local car wash here in Prescott that has a "touchless" system with hand wash as well charges $10 unless I go on "senoris" day and save a buck. Perfect for my wife's car when she doesn't have me do it when it's cold.


I think people in the Bay area are just used to paying more. On the way home from the West Coast Gathering I paid $0.70 per gallon more for gas in Livermore than in Tehachapi and a Dollar (!) more than here in AZ!

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[flash]

lol - i haven't even been able to find a decent car wash here in ireland, let alone the kind of service i used to get, where the guy comes to your house.

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[az968]

I'll come to your house and wash your car for free, just cover my travel costs :-)

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[ds968]

I think the nature in Ireland provides sufficiently frequent car washes for your vehicle, pretty much throughout the year :-) :-)

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[Rap]

Irish Whiskey and a Statue of the Virgin Mary should attract all the help you need.

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[flash]

lol - at the cost of things here, it may actually be cheaper to fly somebody out here to wash the car.

 

ran it through a wash today.  not great.  hate those things.  may have found a hand wash place.  film at 11

 

it does seem futile though, as it rains as soon as you dry the car.  however, since the car is black, it gets pretty dirty.  won't be doing black again.  this one was just really cheap at $25k.  i just put it on a credit card, so as to get the best exchange rate, (which i promptly paid off) and called it done.  i don't plan on keeping it all that long, so it didn't matter as much.

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[ds968]

Irish Whiskey and a Statue of the Virgin Mary should attract all the help you need.

 

 

Clear indication of a speeding Catholic  :

 

   

 

and his dog in the back seat .

 

   

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[MCL968]

And what's in the car when you take it to the car wash can also impact the costs.

 

Here is an article co-authored by my colleague and friend Pat Kinkade at Texas Christian University. Pat and I went to grad school together and have published a bunch of stuff over the years. If you are a fan of commercial art, he is also known as the brother of the late Thom Kinkade.

 

http://www.npr.org/2012/11/14/164974490/...or-thieves

 

Take a look and think twice about those beer cans (or empty bottles of impetuous but entertaining merlots) under the seat of your 968 when you take it to the car wash.

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[az968]

Matt, you can stash a wine bottle under the seat of your 968?  I'd have to crush my wine bottles to make them fit, and then the clean-up would be a bitch...

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[MCL968]

Bob, you know my wine comes in boxes! Those glass bottles are for "Porsh" owners.

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[ds968]

I prefer to keep twist cap wine bottles in my car, particularly recommended if your car has a stick shift ; they're far easier to open while driving..

 

BTW, fun and interesting article !  

 

I always wondered how common stealing items from your car is at washes, or for that matter valet parking as well, considering that I usually leave fairly pricey items ( sunglasses, iPod, etc ) in the doors' side pockets, as well as in the glove compartment which I always forget to lock. Or the trunk, where there is always some designer bag or another containing equally pricey stuff ..     

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[MCL968]

And Dan just gave us another reason to love PDK cars. You can drive while uncorking that boisterous bottle of creamy and refined, yet opulent and intellectually satisfying chardonnay.

 

Just don't leave it in the Maser next to your latest Playboy when you take it to the car wash or all your change will have be vacuumed out of the ashtray.

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[az968]

I guess this should be moved to Dan's Manual vs auto thread. A solid reason to buy an auto. I am never able to get the cap back on.

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[Rap]

Traffic, no good twisting for miles expensive car washes and change theft, boy I'm glad where I live.

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