Car washes are the Walmart of car care
They Treat Cars Like Cattle — And the Public Cheers
If this offends you, good.
It means it’s working.
Most people are abusing their vehicles and calling it maintenance.
They line up for tunnel washes like livestock, swipe a card, watch foam spin, and drive away convinced they “took care of it.”
No thought. No understanding. No accountability.
And they eat that sh*t up.
Stop Lying to People: Car Washes Are Not Good for Cars
They’re not.
They never were.
They were designed for speed and profit, not preservation.
Car washes are the Walmart of car care:
High volume
Lowest acceptable quality
Zero responsibility for long-term damage
They don’t care about your clear coat.
They care about throughput.
Your paint is just collateral.
Salt + Brushes = You’re Grinding Your Own Paint
After storms, everyone panics:
“GO WASH YOUR CAR! THE SALT WILL RUST IT!”
Then they recommend the worst possible solution.
Dragging salt, sand, and grit across cold paint with shared brushes isn’t protection — it’s accelerated damage.
You’re not preventing corrosion.
You’re manufacturing surface failure.
A hose rinse in your driveway is safer than most drive-thru washes after winter weather.
But nobody wants to hear that — because it’s not convenient.
Why the Worst Quality Makes the Most Money
Here’s the part nobody wants to admit:
The lowest-quality segment of detailing often makes the most money.
Not because they’re smarter.
Not because they’re better.
Because they don’t slow down.
They don’t inspect.
They don’t adjust.
They don’t care.
They move cars through like cattle — and the public rewards them for it.
A skilled detailer could absolutely make more money running a tunnel wash.
Most refuse — because you have to lie to yourself to do it.
This Post Is Not for Everyone
Let’s be crystal clear.
This is not for the 80%.
If you:
Want fast over correct
Want cheap over right
Want convenience over consequence
This isn’t your space.
You can keep living under a rock, eating carbs for breakfast, trusting machines to take care of things you don’t understand.
This is for the 20%.
The people who give a damn.
The ones who understand that everything worth owning requires intention.
Premium Care Is About Discipline, Not Ego
High-end detailing isn’t luxury.
It’s restraint.
It’s saying no.
It’s knowing when not to touch paint.
It’s understanding that damage doesn’t always show up immediately — and that’s exactly why most people miss it.
If you want fast and cheap, tunnel washes exist for you.
If you want longevity, integrity, and control — you already know better.
Final Reality Check
Cheap car washes don’t survive because they’re good.
They survive because people keep choosing easy over intelligent.
Professional detailers don’t compete with them —
we outgrow them.
Decide what side you’re on.
