Car Wash
05-02-2005, 12:30 AM
#11
Choice Magazine just reviewed these products this year.
(DRI WASH'N GUARD, NO-WET, PRO-MA, SUPRIMO)
I purchased the review ($5.95) to see what they thought.
I can't quote it all since they would hope you would buy it too but their thoughts include:
1) More work than bucket and sponge - more like waxing
2) Didn't scratch - as far as they could tell. But an owner of a black S2000 might be less tolerant.
3) Could be expensive - like $6 per wash. But I just took another car to the local Car Lovers and spent more than that to do it myself.
4) Won't remove really bad dirt - like dried bird poop.
5) Not good for crevices - better for large areas.
(DRI WASH'N GUARD, NO-WET, PRO-MA, SUPRIMO)
I purchased the review ($5.95) to see what they thought.
I can't quote it all since they would hope you would buy it too but their thoughts include:
1) More work than bucket and sponge - more like waxing
2) Didn't scratch - as far as they could tell. But an owner of a black S2000 might be less tolerant.
3) Could be expensive - like $6 per wash. But I just took another car to the local Car Lovers and spent more than that to do it myself.
4) Won't remove really bad dirt - like dried bird poop.
5) Not good for crevices - better for large areas.
05-02-2005, 02:38 AM
#12
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My brother looked into it as a business late last year. It was another franchise but the idea is the same (www.ecowash.com.au). I went along with him to the intro sessions for moral support (and to give him my opinion as a former small business owner).
In the end:
1. Each car wash works out at about $6 in average.
2. You can be trained to do one sedan in 35 minutes and an SUV in 1 hour (they gave us a full demo and we tried doing 1/4 of a car ourselves). That is not bad considering it takes that long just to wash and rinse a car with water not including any towel/chamois drying (I know, I wash two cars every week)
3.No scratching, even on the car we did ourselves without any training!
4. It worked on caked dirt but it took a lot longer.
5. It worked better than soap and water on tar and bugs but not as well as a paint cleaner/bug remover.
6. As a business you'll be able to make a living as an owner operator but you won't be buying a brand new s2k with the profits unless you get several franchises (Each franchise was the size of 1.5 electoral boundaries) or expand your franchise license to be able to operate more than one 'mobile unit'
7. ecowash has a high franchise fee ($50k) because they give you a car (Daihatsu Charade - not sure what they will do now that Daihatsu is leaving OZ). But you get a much more professional looking operation to support you (compared to the others we checked out)
8. The main problem I saw was that it costs $35 to the end user for a car wash (sedan). At that price I could not see the phone ringing of the hook any time soon (unless it became illegar to water wash cars). The price makes sense given that it takes at least 1/2 hour to do a car and the franchisors want to be able to ensure you can make a living but it is too expensive for the end consumer in my opinion.
Most of the other franchises had lower entry points but in the end each car wash would cost you about the same $6 unless you commited to buying the big ass containers (worth $700 a pop) in which case it would be something like $4.5. And it would still take about 1/2 hour to do a car anyway (back to the cost to the end consumers)
In the end:
1. Each car wash works out at about $6 in average.
2. You can be trained to do one sedan in 35 minutes and an SUV in 1 hour (they gave us a full demo and we tried doing 1/4 of a car ourselves). That is not bad considering it takes that long just to wash and rinse a car with water not including any towel/chamois drying (I know, I wash two cars every week)
3.No scratching, even on the car we did ourselves without any training!
4. It worked on caked dirt but it took a lot longer.
5. It worked better than soap and water on tar and bugs but not as well as a paint cleaner/bug remover.
6. As a business you'll be able to make a living as an owner operator but you won't be buying a brand new s2k with the profits unless you get several franchises (Each franchise was the size of 1.5 electoral boundaries) or expand your franchise license to be able to operate more than one 'mobile unit'
7. ecowash has a high franchise fee ($50k) because they give you a car (Daihatsu Charade - not sure what they will do now that Daihatsu is leaving OZ). But you get a much more professional looking operation to support you (compared to the others we checked out)
8. The main problem I saw was that it costs $35 to the end user for a car wash (sedan). At that price I could not see the phone ringing of the hook any time soon (unless it became illegar to water wash cars). The price makes sense given that it takes at least 1/2 hour to do a car and the franchisors want to be able to ensure you can make a living but it is too expensive for the end consumer in my opinion.
Most of the other franchises had lower entry points but in the end each car wash would cost you about the same $6 unless you commited to buying the big ass containers (worth $700 a pop) in which case it would be something like $4.5. And it would still take about 1/2 hour to do a car anyway (back to the cost to the end consumers)
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