Car Wash

[jcesare]

So far I've washed my Leaf myself, but that is getting real old real quick.
Anyone care to relate any experiences concering automatic car washes?
How did you "educate" the employees?

 

[z0ner]

I don't know if it's a dick move, but the two times I haven't hand-washed it myself I simply explained that neutral is a little "tricky" and I have to manually drive it through. No issues.

 

[thankyouOB]

In the time it takes me to drive to the car wash, wait on line, get washed and dried, and come home-- I wash and chamois my Leaf and have time to do the wet part of a second car.

the car wash does do a better job on the ICE's wheels, but the Leaf's are almost pristine, regardless.

 

[dlich18]

Yes - I'm very interested in hearing responses too. I'm afraid of them dragging the car through.
When I was at the car wash with my ICE car, I asked whether they knew how, and they said "yes", but I wasn't confident in that answer.

Also, just to confirm, the way I would instruct them is 1) the Leaf has to be "on" and 2) Push shift lever to left until goes into neutral and 3) (and most important) Don't turn it off or it will go back into park. Agreed?

 

[Nekota]

One way of getting into Neutral for Car Wash

1) Car power off
2) Power on without brake peddle - no driver dashboard display lights
3) Power on again without brake peddle - driver dashboard display lights up (battery temp & charge level gauges)
4) shift knob to drive or reverse results in neutral

 

[evnow]

Hmmm ... all the car washes I've been to ask drivers to put the car in nuetral and go thr' the wash tunnel. Is it different in CA ?

 

[rawhog]

.

 

[davewill]

Hmmm ... all the car washes I've been to ask drivers to put the car in nuetral and go thr' the wash tunnel. Is it different in CA ?

At full service car washes, you drop the car and the keys with the attendants, they vacuum, then send the car through the wash while you go in and pay and get a chance to buy snacks, etc... They then drive the car to the finishing area where windows and interiors are done. You don't stay with the car.

 

[jcesare]

Hmmm ... all the car washes I've been to ask drivers to put the car in nuetral and go thr' the wash tunnel. Is it different in CA ?

At the full service car wash around here you drop it off at the vacuum station, the attendent drives it onto the track, puts it in neutral, gets out of the car, hops back in at the end, then drives it off to the drying station. You don't stay in/with the car.

 

[LEAFfan]

Here, for $3, you put the car in neutral, it goes through the car wash and drier, then you can use the free vacuums if needed. But that's for my wife's car. I used a dry car wash initially for mine that just takes about 15 minutes, no water needed. Then, for the next cleaning, just a water mister and a micro-fiber cloth brings back the shine.

 

[davewill]

Here, for $3, you put the car in neutral, it goes through the car wash and drier, then you can use the free vacuums if needed. But that's for my wife's car. I used a dry car wash initially for mine that just takes about 15 minutes, no water needed. Then, for the next cleaning, just a water mister and a micro-fiber cloth brings back the shine.

We have those, too, but you pay as much for it as the full-service if you aren't getting a fill up...and with a LEAF...

 

[dlich18]

I think the question pertains to "full service" car washes - the ones where you leave the car at the vacuum, and pick it up after washed and dried. In such car washes, you have to depend upon the "jockey" to drive it onto the line and place it in neutral.

 

[csriram45]

After seeing how thin the paint is on the LEAF I think I am going to stick it on DIY car washes. I was bummed to see so few chips on the car even after taking extreme care. one of them had gone all the way through....

 

[dlich18]

how thin the paint is on the LEAF

That seems very odd. Have you spoken to your dealer? This is my 4th Nissan, and have never had a problem with paint. I find it hard to believe (but concerned that) Nissan is painting the Leaf any differently than its other cars. I have not noticed any problems with my 8 week old Leaf.

 

[malloryk]

I haven't had problems at the car wash so far. They just knew what to do. But I'm in Santa Monica so they probably have more EV experience than in other cities.

 

[planet4ever]

Here, for $3, you put the car in neutral, it goes through the car wash and drier, then you can use the free vacuums if needed.

We have those, too, but you pay as much for it as the full-service if you aren't getting a fill up...and with a LEAF...

Huh? I'm too cheap to use the full service, and besides, I don't want anybody else driving my LEAF. I pay $5 for the self drive-through; it costs $15 and up for the full-service place. When they tell you to put it in neutral, just move the shift lever to the left and hold it there for about a second. None of the complicated nonsense Nekota spelled out.

Ray

 

[GaslessInSeattle]

I read through this earlier scratching my head thinking, what are these folks talking about? Now I realize you are talking full service. I don't even know of a full service car wash here. We use Brown Bear and drive through, it costs about $5, takes about 2 minutes and does a decent job most of the time... you do have to know how to put the car in neutral... which had to be explained by an attendant to me the first time, a bit embarrassing and the fact that he knew how kind of blew me away.
g

 

[EVDRIVER]

Did one today, they needed no instruction.

 

[davewill]

Huh? I'm too cheap to use the full service, and besides, I don't want anybody else driving my LEAF. I pay $5 for the self drive-through; it costs $15 and up for the full-service place...

Around here the cheap-o-matic drive through costs 7 or 8 bucks without gasoline, plus usually a coin-operated vacuum. The coupon price at the full service is 10 or 11 bucks. No contest. Besides, my local one had no problem understanding how to put it in neutral, after all a Prius works pretty much the same way...if you turn it off, it goes into park, so don't turn it off.

 

[TangoKilo]

I just did a car wash today... I'm left with the impression that it's gonna take a while for the local car washes to get the hang of how to put a LEAF into neutral, or drive for that matter.... Forget about trying to tell them to leave the car on while they dry it off...