Carwash. Rain or Shine.
Nov 16th, 2005 by Don Ray
I am sure glad I took the car for a cleaning yesterday and not today. I was able to finish a couple chapters in a book I can’t seem to finish and the weather was pleasant. It is always cool following a rain and I was there about 9:00 so there wasn’t a wait.
There are carwashes all over David. There are a few things to remember when you take your car in.
1. Know the price before you go. Confirm that that is what they are going to charge, before they start. Gringos can sometimes be charged higher unless they are a returning customer.
2. Have the exact change. If the car wash is $2.50 and you give a $5.00 they will never have change and think you will leave the entire $5.00.
3. If you are leaving the car and going to pick it up later, don’t leave anything in the car that you are concerned might not be there when you return. While most of the people are honest, it is not good to put temptation in front of them.
People here wash their car, rain or shine. At this time of year, with rain usually everyday (just differing amounts), you really have no choice. I live close to the new Plaza El Terronal, which is being built. They have large trucks going in and out all day and the road tends to be pretty dirty. Cars get dirty fast with all the rain and all the dirt. Potholes in the street fill with water and it is impossible to keep a car clean. A carwash once a week is usually called for.
The good thing is that the car washes are cheap. For a normal car in David you expect to pay around $2.50. If you have a 4×4, it is going to be $3.00. If the car is extremely dirty, they may want more. $2.50 for an hour carwash by hand is a good deal. I am amazed at how hard they work for that money. I wonder how much the worker gets and how much the owner of the carwash gets.
I usually take a book and read as they wash. I need a few more car washes, this book is really getting good.
