Automatic car wash
Lead Driver
Joined: Dec 2016
Posts: 5,650
Likes: 243
From: GA
Ouch
Sorry that happened to you and Tom is right, that`s not going to be a cheap repair and I see a new fender in that F150`s future.
I`m sure the customer is not going to be happy.
At least now you know and you can tell your customers to "remove" the antenna before going through a car wash and sure, this won`t happen in every car wash but why take the chance.
Good luck to you.
Sorry that happened to you and Tom is right, that`s not going to be a cheap repair and I see a new fender in that F150`s future.
I`m sure the customer is not going to be happy.
At least now you know and you can tell your customers to "remove" the antenna before going through a car wash and sure, this won`t happen in every car wash but why take the chance.
Good luck to you.
Senior User
Joined: Feb 2017
Posts: 113
Likes: 0
From: East Tennessee
I use a carwash every week practically, it's a Zipps carwash, one of the best I have ever used. It doesn't have brushes, but has those flopping wide long blue strips of whatever in the hell that is..sorry for the ignorance..but anyway, what kind of car wash did this damage? I hope they used a spinning brush, which I would never use. I think I will just take my antenna off from now on, as this kind of damage would ruin a whole week.
New User
Joined: Apr 2018
Posts: 3
Likes: 0
I use a carwash every week practically, it's a Zipps carwash, one of the best I have ever used. It doesn't have brushes, but has those flopping wide long blue strips of whatever in the hell that is..sorry for the ignorance..but anyway, what kind of car wash did this damage? I hope they used a spinning brush, which I would never use. I think I will just take my antenna off from now on, as this kind of damage would ruin a whole week.
Lead Driver
Joined: Dec 2016
Posts: 5,650
Likes: 243
From: GA
I use a carwash every week practically, it's a Zipps carwash, one of the best I have ever used. It doesn't have brushes, but has those flopping wide long blue strips of whatever in the hell that is..sorry for the ignorance..but anyway, what kind of car wash did this damage? I hope they used a spinning brush, which I would never use. I think I will just take my antenna off from now on, as this kind of damage would ruin a whole week.
And you are right, this would ruin a week, and maybe even a month.
Just take it off to be safe and sure. .
Fleet Mechanic
Joined: Feb 2017
Posts: 1,597
Likes: 83
From: N. Texas
I've been using an automatic car wash of sorts forever. I couldn't imagine NOT taking the antenna off before sending it thru.
Fleet Mechanic
Joined: Sep 2016
Posts: 1,801
Likes: 48
From: Abilene TX.
Now that is nice, If you need someone to drive I can help you out my friend! I just missed a deal on a 56 Crown Vick back in the 70's I was heart broken. It belonged to a frien of my Grandmothers whose husband had passed away. had 42,00 miles on it and I missed it by 1 hour! The guy that got it had just drove off. it was pink and black.
Cross-Country
Joined: Nov 2017
Posts: 65
Likes: 3
just learned my lesson. thought i was smart and replaced my antenna with a short one (about 12") right after i bought my 2017 superduty. thought it wouldn't whip around so much during washes. stopped taking the antenna off when going through car washes. noticed the other day that the base of the antenna is broken. gonna fix it and go back to the original antenna and start removing the antenna before going through washes. bummer.
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Lead Driver
Joined: May 2015
Posts: 5,873
Likes: 357
From: Mts. S. of San Francisco
We stopped going to "brushful" car washes some time back. When we do go through a wash, it is now the ones that don't use brushes at all. They do it mostly by hand. Much gentler.
Cross-Country
Joined: Mar 2017
Posts: 99
Likes: 5
From: Lewisville, Texas
I've enjoyed reading this thread. Responses run the gamut from well thought out to, well, tit for tat fearless keyboard warriors! ;-)
Anyway, I figured the truck needed a wash (even though it is just a pickup). Out came the garden hose and soapy bucket. Also, being that I am not an eight foot gorilla, the ladder for reaching the middle of the roof.
Let's just say that ladders and soapy water may not be the best of combinations. Ended up landing in the grass with no damage to truck or myself.
Maybe next time I'll look into the automatic doofers.
matt
Anyway, I figured the truck needed a wash (even though it is just a pickup). Out came the garden hose and soapy bucket. Also, being that I am not an eight foot gorilla, the ladder for reaching the middle of the roof.
Let's just say that ladders and soapy water may not be the best of combinations. Ended up landing in the grass with no damage to truck or myself.
Maybe next time I'll look into the automatic doofers.
matt
Lead Driver
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 9,878
Likes: 2,485
From: Louisiana