Drivin' Through

New research by The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) foresees large numbers of partially self-driving or autonomous cars with highway- and traffic-jam-autopilot functionality appearing on our roads by 2017. Fully autonomous driving... »

Those involved in the car wash industry are ever mindful of water. It is the one resource that operators cannot do without. »

The National Automobile Dealers Association’s (NADA) recently released forecast for 2015 covers several areas that impact the car wash industry.  »

Out and about on a Sunday afternoon with cloudless skies and mild temperatures: the ideal circumstances for a car wash. I had not planned on having the car washed, but on my way home I decided to stop in at the first wash I came... »

More than a year ago, in this space, I lamented the erosion of privacy. Not only are people becoming more comfortable living their lives in the public square, they seem also to accept, with little complaint, the collection of... »

Recently, two unrelated events came together for me as a single issue. First was a news item pointing to California’s record breaking drought and explaining how motorists could still responsibly wash their cars by utilizing a... »

The car wash I frequent is a full-service location and part of a metro-wide chain comprised of two-dozen-or-so sites. It is also one of the chain’s older washes and, frankly, it’s beginning to show its age. The waiting room is... »

Autonomous cars were once again in the spotlight recently with the unveiling of Google’s self-driving prototype, 200 of which the tech giant plans on putting through a test program starting this summer.  »

In his “Finishing Line” column this month, Robert Roman makes a statement that most operators hold as true: “The car wash industry is literally fed by vehicle sales from new- and used-car dealerships.” I was wholly unaware,... »

The International Carwash Association’s The Car Wash Show 2014 exceeded most observers’ expectations. With the event being held in Chicago — at the end of March — few had hopes for a solid turnout. The final attendance figure of... »

Many readers will be picking up this issue of Auto Laundry News for the first time at The Car Wash Show in Chicago. Those who have made the effort to attend the car wash industry’s premier event will be rewarded with... »

Whiplash. A mild form of this affliction is what you get when you pay too much attention to media reports based on studies that appear in medical journals. Coffee is bad for you one study finds, shortly after which another finds... »

Car-care-show season is upon us. As usual, the first round gets started in Arlington, TX with the Southwest Car Wash Association’s annual convention and expo in February. The Automotive Oil Change Association’s iFLEX follows in... »

Less often than I’d like to, I spend a little time at one of the annual auto shows and try to figure out what car washers will be contending with in the near future. Of particular interest are the concept cars, which »

Twelve months ago, our State of the Industry Survey, although showing some improvement over the previous year, offered results that could best be described as a mixed bag. The results from the current survey (page 34 in this... »