Car wash machines

[signalman]

I generally wash/wax my car myself every two weeks.  I like a clean car.  In brutally cold weather I go to a place locally that does hand washing.  They do a great job and it's not too expensive.  They do a great job getting the salt washed out of under carriage too, which is very important in the winter to help slow oxidation. 

[J N Winkler]

I also dislike using the DIY wash bays because I dislike getting my clothes wet.  If they would let me wash the car naked, I would be more inclined to use them.  Well, OK, only in the summer.

I have used the DIY bays (at Little Joe's--there is one at 21st and Tyler which I use reasonably regularly, and another at Douglas and West which I use less often) and never had a problem with getting wet unless the wind is blowing a gale through the bay.  I don't even bother with a raincoat unless it is unusually cold out.  The secret is to spray away, downwind of any air currents.  My usual approach is to do a once-over spray from relatively far away to get the paint and glass wet and to give the loose grit and dirt a chance to blow off before I start nuking sheet-metal panels from less than six inches away.

[Sanctimoniously]

Rain.

This.

But soap never falls from the sky.

You're right about this.

[kphoger]

I start nuking sheet-metal panels

[Crazy Volvo Guy]

I have a black car, so I have to wash it every other day.  Touchless washes are ineffective, I've found.  They'll get the loose dirt off but the grime film remains.

With my 102" CB whip on the roof, this means I either do it myself or use self-serv car wash bays that have an RV bay.