Help! Took my BS to a hand car wash and niw I'm afraid my grill is ruined 😭

[Meanderthal]

There should not be any reason to replace the grille itself. Worst case is that it needs to be repainted. You can buy the paint in a rattle can and do it yourself or take it to a body shop as someone else suggested.

Sponsored

 

[TEdison]

That is tempting, but unless someone in here is a lawyer in AZ and willing to help me out, I don't really have the time or ability to see that through.

File a comprehensive claim with your insurance company. If they want to get their money back, they will sue the car wash or their insurance company - if they have one. That is why you have insurance, and such claims usually do not affect your premium.

 

[Meanderthal]

File a comprehensive claim with your insurance company. If they want to get their money back, they will sue the car wash or their insurance company - if they have one. That is why you have insurance, and such claims usually do not affect your premium.

Comprehensive deductible is usually pretty high and then of course the rate would also go up.

 

[michelleperms]

I'll take a guess at it
what it does not look like
uniform
seems to have dribbled downward across grill work
looks like some of the soap or wax was left under lip of hood
rinse did not catch this soap/wax
after completion residual soap/wax dripped down face of grill
it might just be a heavy layer of product left behind post wash

auto detailing springfield va

I took my car to a carwash the other day because the dealership offered a free carwash, and I had a panic attack. I realized that I have an irrational fear of going through a car wash. The sounds freak me out and when those big machines with the spaghetti arms engulf your car its super freaky. I can't see anything but I just hear the slapping of the car. Its really hard to see and it just freaks me the hell out.
The last time I did it I almost had a panic attack because it was so freaky and unsettling to me. It was really late (8:30PM), I was alone and it was dark out. I wanted to leave but my car was literally engulfed by the machines and I couldn't move, and thats when I began to panic. I couldnt see anything because there was soap everywhere and the spaghetti machine was slowly engulfing my car so it was black. It was a stationary car wash so there was no hook to drag me along. I was stationary but my brain was confused from all of the moving parts and it felt like I was moving into another dimension, because it was late and it felt like the machines were trying to kill me. I was so anxious that afterwards I had to get out of my car and take deep breaths because it was so unsettling. It was just so scary that honestly I don't think I can go back to one again. I remember as a kid it scared me when my mom would go through.
Do you guys think I need to seek therapy? Is this normal? Car washes are soo eerie to me, I just can't get over those spaghetti arms, its by far the most scariest thing I ever encountered.

 

[PTown_Bronco]

I took my car to a carwash the other day because the dealership offered a free carwash, and I had a panic attack. I realized that I have an irrational fear of going through a car wash. The sounds freak me out and when those big machines with the spaghetti arms engulf your car its super freaky. I can't see anything but I just hear the slapping of the car. Its really hard to see and it just freaks me the hell out.
The last time I did it I almost had a panic attack because it was so freaky and unsettling to me. It was really late (8:30PM), I was alone and it was dark out. I wanted to leave but my car was literally engulfed by the machines and I couldn't move, and thats when I began to panic. I couldnt see anything because there was soap everywhere and the spaghetti machine was slowly engulfing my car so it was black. It was a stationary car wash so there was no hook to drag me along. I was stationary but my brain was confused from all of the moving parts and it felt like I was moving into another dimension, because it was late and it felt like the machines were trying to kill me. I was so anxious that afterwards I had to get out of my car and take deep breaths because it was so unsettling. It was just so scary that honestly I don't think I can go back to one again. I remember as a kid it scared me when my mom would go through.
Do you guys think I need to seek therapy? Is this normal? Car washes are soo eerie to me, I just can't get over those spaghetti arms, its by far the most scariest thing I ever encountered.

Dr. Google says you have Autoplenophobia.
My first thought is just avoid them, hand washing your own car is therapeutic, so try that. ?

 

[RiotfunK]

Stop going through car washes. Easy fix

 

[PhinG]

Do you guys think I need to seek therapy? Is this normal? Car washes are soo eerie to me, I just can't get over those spaghetti arms, its by far the most scariest thing I ever encountered.

One of the first things to consider is how this will affect your life? Is your quality of life worse if you never go through a car wash again? Maybe you can't hand wash your car (health, injury, lack of time, lack of physical space, etc.), so being able to use a car wash is important. You can also think about alternatives. How about a brushless car wash (it will still encase the car in foam, but no spaghetti arms)? I have a couple of local car washes where you are not inside the car and watch through windows.

All of that being said, if it is something you would like to address, of all things a psychologist can deal with, a specific phobia is the thing that they can be most effective treating. Do not go to some psychoanalyst that asks you about your mother. For the most part, it does not matter why you feel this way, it is something that can be unlearned. This is a behavioral treatment that will be some variation on systematic desensitization where you will learn coping skills for anxiety and then be taken through baby steps up to experiencing the real thing (maybe first imagining going through a car wash, then watching a video of a car going through, etc. all while practicing coping skills). I am oversimplifying (which is why you go to a professional and not a random guy on the internet), but my point is that going to a psychologist is a realistic solution to this.

 

[Meanderthal]

One of the first things to consider is how this will affect your life? Is your quality of life worse if you never go through a car wash again? Maybe you can't hand wash your car (health, injury, lack of time, lack of physical space, etc.), so being able to use a car wash is important. You can also think about alternatives. How about a brushless car wash (it will still encase the car in foam, but no spaghetti arms)? I have a couple of local car washes where you are not inside the car and watch through windows.

All of that being said, if it is something you would like to address, of all things a psychologist can deal with, a specific phobia is the thing that they can be most effective treating. Do not go to some psychoanalyst that asks you about your mother. For the most part, it does not matter why you feel this way, it is something that can be unlearned. This is a behavioral treatment that will be some variation on systematic desensitization where you will learn coping skills for anxiety and then be taken through baby steps up to experiencing the real thing (maybe first imagining going through a car wash, then watching a video of a car going through, etc. all while practicing coping skills). I am oversimplifying (which is why you go to a professional and not a random guy on the internet), but my point is that going to a psychologist is a realistic solution to this.

Wow, I read that post as a "troll", but you guys are taking it serious. Good to know that people here want to help others but at the same time this isn't the place to ask for that kind of help.

 

[Major Kong]

Wow, I read that post as a "troll", but you guys are taking it serious. Good to know that people here want to help others but at the same time this isn't the place to ask for that kind of help.

sus

 

[PTown_Bronco]

Latest update in getting my grille fixed! Found a place that will Cerakote it for me nearby. Local body shop wasn't willing to paint it, so Cerakote it is! I chose a color that I think will be close to the original color. Spent the better part of today removing the grille and prepping it. That grille was a huge PIA to remove, my husband almost gave up multiple times! We'll drop it off tomorrow and hopefully will have it back by the end of the week. Wish us luck in reinstalling everything!

 

[Meanderthal]

Latest update in getting my grille fixed! Found a place that will Cerakote it for me nearby. Local body shop wasn't willing to paint it, so Cerakote it is! I chose a color that I think will be close to the original color. Spent the better part of today removing the grille and prepping it. That grille was a huge PIA to remove, my husband almost gave up multiple times! We'll drop it off tomorrow and hopefully will have it back by the end of the week. Wish us luck in reinstalling everything!

My take is that the engineers at Ford need some training on designing vehicles to be maintained. I think they do a good job making the lives of the factory workers easy in assembly, but they just don’t seem to consider how difficult it will be to dis-assemble just about everything.

 

[PTown_Bronco]

My take is that the engineers at Ford need some training on designing vehicles to be maintained. I think they do a good job making the lives of the factory workers easy in assembly, but they just don’t seem to consider how difficult it will be to dis-assemble just about everything.

Exactly, and to attempt to disassemble without snapping a thin piece of plastic in two, not having their special tools and knowledge, it was so nerve-wracking. I think we only broke one clip on the fender, considering ourselves lucky.

 

[PTown_Bronco]

It's looking so good, I can't wait! More pics to come after we can install it Sunday.

 

[bjbena]

Latest update in getting my grille fixed! Found a place that will Cerakote it for me nearby. Local body shop wasn't willing to paint it, so Cerakote it is! I chose a color that I think will be close to the original color. Spent the better part of today removing the grille and prepping it. That grille was a huge PIA to remove, my husband almost gave up multiple times! We'll drop it off tomorrow and hopefully will have it back by the end of the week. Wish us luck in reinstalling everything!

That's good considering the service guide says you have to remove the bumper cover in order to remove/replace the grill.

 

[PTown_Bronco]

That's good considering the service guide says you have to remove the bumper cover in order to remove/replace the grill.

Well, we'll see how reinstall goes, we may end up needing to, but hope not!

Sponsored