3 ms·

Automated ones are fine, but what I've really missed since I moved to New England have been the ones where a team vacuums the inside, hoses off your mats, wipes

by smeej 3y ago

Automated ones are fine, but what I've really missed since I moved to New England have been the ones where a team vacuums the inside, hoses off your mats, wipes your windows and dashboard inside, etc. Growing up in the West and Midwest, these things were absolutely normal for the first 30 years of my life. Some of them would even change the oil too. But I haven't found anywhere within 50 miles of me that will do it here. I'm not talking "detailing." This was $35 including the oil.

liquidpele 3y ago
One near us does this. It’s like $100 now though.
chrisco255 3y ago
I've lived in TX and FL and these types of services are everywhere. Even many of the automated carwashes where you vacuum your own car after the wash will usually charge an extra fee if you want the inside cleaned by staff.
subpixel 3y ago
These are still normal where undocumented workers are willing to hustle for low pay and tips. In Queens I got a hand wash and interior detail for less than $50. Where I live now $225.
mensetmanusman 3y ago
Labor costs arr too high for this to exist anymore.
- _heimdall 3y ago
  That may depend on region. These still exist in the suburbs outside Birmingham, AL. Last I saw the prices varied from $15-30 for a wash, wax, detail, and hand dry. They don't offer an oil change though, I've never seen a wash+detail+oil change in the area. At scale I'd assume they could do it for closer to $50, if $35 was a 2005 price that's on par with inflation and beating inflation for some industries like food.
  - smeej 3y ago
    My most recent reference was $35 in Indianapolis in 2017. It doesn't surprise me that it'd be up, but it surprises me that it doesn't exist in New England. $60 wouldn't seem out of line to me, given that a quick lube station will change my oil for $20 and an automated car wash is another $17.
throwitaway222 3y ago
This existed in CA too, haven't seen $30 prices - oil+wash+hand dry... but those prices ended around 2005ish.
michaelmrose 3y ago
Sounds fantastic sadly it's easy to see why it doesn't exist. Oil changes require following environmental regs, careful disposal, paying for same and it makes a 1000x more sense to integrate them with a business that actually works on cars and can capture additional dollars for other maintenance and repair. You also want a comparatively skilled and trustworthy individual not someone who moved up from vacuuming to oil changes and a business than can easily write a check if their employee does mess up your expensive asset rather than an owner who will have to decide between writing you that check and paying their rent and employees. This is also why you don't want to get your oil change at walmart. If you could have it the oil change would have to cost $50-$60 to justify its existence because there would be no chance of capturing additional revenue. If it had full service and 2 people spent 15 minutes we are talking about another $30. This is only true if you can actually keep relatively busy and aren't implicitly bearing the cost of labor while people are waiting for customers. Then there is competition from both auto repair who are offering 29.99 oil changes and 5-9.99 automated car washes.
- smeej 3y ago
  "Quick lube" stations are everywhere too though. $20 and out in 10 minutes. This was more like "quick lube plus car wash," not "oil change, free 97 point inspection, and upsell on six things that aren't even wrong with your car."
  - chasd00 3y ago
    Yeah some of the oil change places in my town don’t even require you to get out of the car. You just pull up, read the news for a few minutes and then pay and drive off.
mitthrowaway2 3y ago
There's one of these in Vancouver, on 4th ave. It's about CAD $32.
tacomonstrous 3y ago
Yes, I remember when I first moved to New England, and asked where I could get a hand carwash. No one had heard of such a thing.
- throwaway_62022 3y ago
  I can find them in Georgia (far and few in-between) and they are super useful, if I must say - if not for folks across the border, hand carwashes will entirely disappear from US.
ToucanLoucan 3y ago
PDQ!!! Still love that place, and they pay surprisingly well too. The wash is automated near me, but they do the hand-finish after, vacuum out, all the good stuff. I still get my car detailed once a year but PDQ is great between that.

by smeej 3y ago

liquidpele 3y ago

One near us does this. It’s like $100 now though.

chrisco255 3y ago

I've lived in TX and FL and these types of services are everywhere. Even many of the automated carwashes where you vacuum your own car after the wash will usually charge an extra fee if you want the inside cleaned by staff.

subpixel 3y ago

These are still normal where undocumented workers are willing to hustle for low pay and tips. In Queens I got a hand wash and interior detail for less than $50. Where I live now $225.

mensetmanusman 3y ago

Labor costs arr too high for this to exist anymore.

_heimdall 3y ago
That may depend on region. These still exist in the suburbs outside Birmingham, AL. Last I saw the prices varied from $15-30 for a wash, wax, detail, and hand dry. They don't offer an oil change though, I've never seen a wash+detail+oil change in the area. At scale I'd assume they could do it for closer to $50, if $35 was a 2005 price that's on par with inflation and beating inflation for some industries like food.
- smeej 3y ago
  My most recent reference was $35 in Indianapolis in 2017. It doesn't surprise me that it'd be up, but it surprises me that it doesn't exist in New England. $60 wouldn't seem out of line to me, given that a quick lube station will change my oil for $20 and an automated car wash is another $17.

throwitaway222 3y ago

This existed in CA too, haven't seen $30 prices - oil+wash+hand dry... but those prices ended around 2005ish.

michaelmrose 3y ago

Sounds fantastic sadly it's easy to see why it doesn't exist. Oil changes require following environmental regs, careful disposal, paying for same and it makes a 1000x more sense to integrate them with a business that actually works on cars and can capture additional dollars for other maintenance and repair. You also want a comparatively skilled and trustworthy individual not someone who moved up from vacuuming to oil changes and a business than can easily write a check if their employee does mess up your expensive asset rather than an owner who will have to decide between writing you that check and paying their rent and employees. This is also why you don't want to get your oil change at walmart. If you could have it the oil change would have to cost $50-$60 to justify its existence because there would be no chance of capturing additional revenue. If it had full service and 2 people spent 15 minutes we are talking about another $30. This is only true if you can actually keep relatively busy and aren't implicitly bearing the cost of labor while people are waiting for customers. Then there is competition from both auto repair who are offering 29.99 oil changes and 5-9.99 automated car washes.

smeej 3y ago
"Quick lube" stations are everywhere too though. $20 and out in 10 minutes. This was more like "quick lube plus car wash," not "oil change, free 97 point inspection, and upsell on six things that aren't even wrong with your car."
- chasd00 3y ago
  Yeah some of the oil change places in my town don’t even require you to get out of the car. You just pull up, read the news for a few minutes and then pay and drive off.

mitthrowaway2 3y ago

There's one of these in Vancouver, on 4th ave. It's about CAD $32.

tacomonstrous 3y ago

Yes, I remember when I first moved to New England, and asked where I could get a hand carwash. No one had heard of such a thing.

throwaway_62022 3y ago
I can find them in Georgia (far and few in-between) and they are super useful, if I must say - if not for folks across the border, hand carwashes will entirely disappear from US.

ToucanLoucan 3y ago

PDQ!!! Still love that place, and they pay surprisingly well too. The wash is automated near me, but they do the hand-finish after, vacuum out, all the good stuff. I still get my car detailed once a year but PDQ is great between that.