Rain-sensing wipers + Automatic Car Wash = Disaster!

[IgoZoom]

Before I say anything else, I willingly admit that taking my CX-9 to an automatic car wash was a STUPID thing to do! I've only used the "touchless" ones in the past, where water pressure does most of the work. The ones with the cloth 'brushes' (for lack of a better description) collect so much dirt and grime from other cars then use it to scratch the finish on all the other cars that come afterward.

But I had to go to a funeral yesterday with only a few hours of notice. It's an unwritten law in my family that your car must be spotless if it's going to be part of a funeral procession, otherwise it would be disrespectful. I haven't had a chance to wash it in several weeks because of daily thunderstorms and being Pearl White, the front end was splattered with bugs and looked nasty. The only place that I had time to stop was an automatic wash with the rotating cloth brushes and I decided to run in through there just this once....

I didn't realize that my wipers were in the 'Rain-Sensing' and not the OFF position, though!!! Both wiper arms were bent but the driver's side one took the brunt of the damage. One of the attendants that cleans the inteior and dries the outside told me it happens quite a bit. He was kind enough to help me bend them back into shape enough to be functional, but I'm thinking I should just go ahead and order new wiper arms for both sides? Any other parts I need to worry about?

The guy also told me that most people start screaming and swearing at them for it, but I told him it was totally my fault! I learned my lesson the hard way. Next time, even in a last-minute situation like I was in yesterday, I'll take 10-15 minutes to spray off the worst parts and leave it at that....it beats having my CX-9 mangled! Imaged if it had broken one of the wiper blades or arms loose and then beat the car with it.....could be a lot worse, but I am so p!ssed at myself......

 

[knowaczark]

Or just push the wiper lever all the up to deactivate and shutdown power to the wipers. Problem solved.

Leaving the auto-sensing function on will get you a terse warning from any attended car wash agent. The worker will get a wiper blade knuckle slap when he goes to brush-wash window bugs off.

 

[IgoZoom]

It wouldn't be a bad idea for car washes to post a sign advising you to turn off Rain-sensing wipers if your car has them. They already have the signs to remind you to fold in your mirrors and remove your antenna if you have one that unscrews. It would probably save them a lot of headaches because you know they get blamed for 'letting' it happen by some of the jerks who leave them on. I was pissed off about it, but it was directed 100% at MYSELF...the attendant actually told me not to be so hard on myself. =)

I seriously should have known better! I witnessed the most horrific automatic car-wash nightmare when I was a teenager. One of my cousins had just got her license and inherited her mom's '87 Olds Cutlass Ciera. Even though it was so boring that a Buick LeSabre was sexy in comparison, it was in pristine condition and only 4 yrs old with 28k miles on it. It also had the GM 3800 V6 which made it a lot quicker than it ever needed to be. It was burgandy with burgandy pillowed velour seats (everything was the color of a bloodclot) and was fully loaded with the ridiculous digital dash and snazzy wire wheel covers. (She graduated high school a virgin, big surprise)!

Her parents were freaky religious and I was from the evil, demonic side of the family (Methodists). My sole purpose from ages 16-18 was to piss off her parents by exposing her to the evils of drinking (the hard stuff, like Wine Coolers) and staying out past curfew (I didn't have one, her's was about 6pm) and even skipping church. One Saturday night, we went to a party (if you can even call a bunch of teenagers sitting on the hoods of their cars drinking in a cow pasture a party) and got her Ciera stuck in the mud! A buddy of mine wenched us out but we had to get all the mud off her car. After spraying it down countless times with a pressure hose at the wash-it-yourself car wash, mud was still caked onto the underbody and I had the bright idea of running it thru the Automatic Car Wash and getting the Super Duper Delxue Wash that lasted for almost 10 minutes since it cleaned the underbody.

About 30 seconds in, one of the huge spinning brushes yanked a wire wheel cover loose and started beating the car over and over with it! You wouldn't believe how much freakin' damage it caused over the next 8-10 minutes....even smashed the windshield and broke the driver's side door mirror!

I insisted on being the one to tell her dad what happened and not letting him go off on her. He used to whip her with a belt until the buckle made her bleed (until I turned him into the Child Services when we were 15)...and I had been itchin' for 18 years to pound the SOB into the ground! And for her sake, since she actually loved her car, I insisted on paying the insurance deductible to have it repaired...thankfully it was only $250. Her dad freaked but backed down when I got in his face. She got the car fixed and I paid the deductible, but we didn't hang out for the rest of our Senior Year. My parents haven't spoken to her parents since (21 years and counting) but she and I chat and catch up at least every year or two....sometimes it's more often, just whenever she needs me to call (and fund) a bail bondsman for her or one of her BabyDaddys....and she still has the same Ciera...

Moral of the story....Wire Wheel Covers and Automatic Car Washes are EVIL, as are Heathen Methodist cousins! =)

 

[table5511]

That's what you get for taking her into brush filled carwash!! lol

 

[S_]

Holy Moly! Well I'm sorry to hear about the wipers. Definitely would make sense for company's to start putting signs out.