I cringe when I hear about automatic car washes. As others have pointed out, the damage from the brushes are very harmful to your cars paint. Also, am not a fan of the touchless knid. I have only been to them twice but I had a big problem the second time I went to one. The pressure was too strong and it damaged the paint on my 2002 Pontiac Firebird Formula. It put several chips on the hood and roof of the paint. It may have been just that car wash but I will never take the chance again. The car wash would not pay for the damages and I had to pay out of my pocket to have it fixed. Normally I just hand wash my vehicles which is the best. The do it yourself car washes with the pressure sprayer are not to bad because you can control how close to get to the vehicle with the spray reducing or increasing the force of the spray.

 

See if there is a "self service" car wash near you... they typically have a dial where you can select different kind of rinses, foam, etc. I use one and it is about $3.50 to get a good wash.

 

Has anyone used those spray jets that spray upwards under the car ? Any chance they'd cause a problem with a Hybrid ??

 

In winter I always get the "Bottom Blast" to clean the crud and slush off the bottom. In Michigan you almost have to so the salt that sticks to your undercarriage gets removed and doesn't have time to corrode the metal. In only 5 years of driving, my old 2k1 Civic had to get one of the pins that hold the catalytic converter's heat shield replaced because it rusted away and caused the shield to start vibrating.

 

Thanks - yes, I get that too in Chicago - the sludge is the worst ! I'll definitely get the "Bottom Blast" the next time !!