POLL: Had your car washed by the mobile car cleaners??

[bizzaboy]

Hi guys,

How many people have allowed these mobile Car Washing services to wash their car?

You know, the mobile car cleaning people that have appeared in your local shopping centre car park. Also recently I noticed they have set-up camp in my local B&Q car park too!!

To start off - I havent, and wouldnt...

Just could never pluck up the courage to let them get their hands on my pride and joy (especially un-supervised with the keys, while i went off shopping)!

 

[CHR15B]

I got mines done at one last week... only cause I'm selling the car though.

If I'm honest they done an OK job, can't see any problems but I wouldn't use them on a regular basis - I normally enjoy washing the car myself.

 

[mattbeef]

im proud to say that id rather leave it dirty than let one of these outfits to clean mine

 

[Daffy]

Have seen them climb on and then stand on the bonnet of an X5 to wash the roof with the same sponge he had just dropped on the floor after cleaning the wheels. Hope that answers your question.
Would rather save the fiver, leave it dirty and even if I lost both arms lick it clean than let some kosovan car washer near my car to do their worst.

 

[WeeJase]

i saw a gang of these guys in shrewsbury tesco on monday.pulled up in my van across 3 of the parking bays they were using ,got out and started lifting covers in the car park.i think i annoyed them, as they never even offered to wash my hire van

 

[truCido]

have a look at the sponge they clean your car with, if they think there even touching my 23 year old golf with that sponge...............

 

[bizzaboy]

WOW - Alot of observations above - Think that concludes that you should only allow these 'cowboys' to valet your car AT YOUR OWN RISK !!!

.....Or as CHR15B says - get them to do it just befoer you sell on your car!

Cheers for all the feedback, it confirms my previous judgement.

Also agree - It just cant get any better than spending the time to wash and valet your own ride, then standing back and looking at your gleaming car! Defo worth all the effort !

 

[andycupra]

never.
i particularly like the bucket thats been used to wash every other can in the place before yours...

There was a thread on here a while ago (big place in hatfield were very little doesnt help) at which a seat was damaged by the carpark valeter, who refused to admit liablily. The forum member then started to inform others waiting for car to be cleaned...
The valeter then showed how he didnt appreciate this by hitting him.
The store refused to get involved.

 

[bizzaboy]

Hi Andy ! Thats a shocking story !
If that was me, I'd be round there every weekend there-after, trying to disrupt their business until they admitted liability and paid for the damage!

The regulations regarding these setupss is probably "word of mouth".
I'm sure these setups never have any form of Disclaimer written up anywhere?

Therefore, going on the responses so far.....

Would/Have you taken your car to a 'car park' Valeter:
YES: 1 (only cos he was selling the car) NO: 6 (including myself)

 

[Mckellar]

Every sunday i have a couple of "customers" i have an agreement with to wash/wax/hoover their cars, now i know these people personally and i asked them how they would feel if i were to stop doing it and recomend these tesco car park washers.

All 4 said not a chance.

So they are spending £10/£15 for what i do, yet they refuse to spend a fiver getting it done by these ignorant car washers.

I think most people are wise to them, and plain daft folk use them as a lazy mans means to having a clean car.

 

[__B3NNY__]

I`d rather use a car wash. And thats never going to happen. Like others have said i`d rather leave it dirty until i have a spare few hours to do it myself.

 

[Ad Lav]

Ditto - I know my wash mitt is clean and I use 2 buckets with clean (warm if its cold - lol) water!

The only other people I would get to wash my car is TnS detailing - I trust them as they detail my car.

 

[josh263uk]

its the ones that state thet they dont need to use water....

have them in my local sainsburys!!!

no way, washed by hand all the time

 

[bizzaboy]

I think most people are wise to them, and plain daft folk use them as a lazy mans means to having a clean car.

I agree with what you say.

However it really gets me when I drive to a particular Homebase (DIY) store locally to pickup a few things, and find that there's almost always a queue to use the mobile car cleaning setup there!
As you say, people see it as a lazy way to get their car cleaned. Perhaps by having someone do it by hand they think their car is getting washed with more attention than a car wash (not understanding the fact there's no fresh running water being used, and the same old brush and sponge are being used for EVERY car, all day long)! lol.

 

[Tartanbeef]

I used them yesterday and to be fair they done a damn good job,they spent a bit of time on it and made sure they had it shining.I would use them again,but not all the time.Its like everything else though,you get some good one's,and some bad one's

 

[Knigh]

These guys have 3 chances of cleaning my car - slim chance. no chance and fat chance!!

 

[Adam R]

never in a million years, even if the car i was driving was not mine!

last time i was in tesco's i saw a guy cleaning a chrysler 300 (this big thing)or what ever they are.. and the guy started off by:
cleaning the wheels, then washing the lower half of the car using hardly any water, then proceeded to work his way up the car, using the same sponge! also i counted 11 times he dropped the sponge on the floor and carried on washing the car .

i spoke to the guy who owned the car and he said... "its paint mate, it only gets damaged by stone chips"

i promtly turned my back and got back in my shiney red car

 

[bizzaboy]

never in a million years, even if the car i was driving was not mine!

last time i was in tesco's i saw a guy cleaning a chrysler 300 (this big thing)or what ever they are.. and the guy started off by:
cleaning the wheels, then washing the lower half of the car using hardly any water, then proceeded to work his way up the car, using the same sponge! also i counted 11 times he dropped the sponge on the floor and carried on washing the car .

i spoke to the guy who owned the car and he said... "its paint mate, it only gets damaged by stone chips"

i promtly turned my back and got back in my shiney red car

Hmm, that sounds a shocker! You'd have thought the guys cleaning the cars would at least know the fundamentals if cleaning a car - From the roof down!

It's funny, you try to 'educate' people on the hazards involved in something and usually the good advice falls upon deaf ears, as they feel offended and just arent interested.

There's another outfit I've spotted in the far corner of a Pub carpark!
Note the pub is permanently closed down now, so dawd knows where the guy is sourcing the water.... perhaps the nearby stream?!

 

[bizzaboy]

At this point in this Thread I would just like to state that I AM aware that there are a large number of "professional" car valeters out there. Not trying to tar the whole industry with the same brush...

But there will always be a minority that give the 'good guys' a bad name.

 

[Tom B]

My boss takes his 350z to the immigrant car washes around the town. It's only a year old and its covered with swirl marks. He tried polishing them out but it needs a detail.

I wash my car rarely and in almost 4 years its only got a few little ones. I've never polished it either, so when I do I bet they'll all come out.