Mike's Car Wash Redeems Itself

Not too long ago I visited a Mike’s Car Wash.  Since I purchased my new car I have been keeping extra special care of it, inside and out, as this is the first new car that I have purchased and it is an investment that I want to keep clean.  I have tried washing it myself a couple of times but it is time consuming and I never seem to get the result that an automatic wash can provide.

So the last few trips to the car wash I have gone through the automatic wash in hopes of getting an extra clean result.  The first time, and there were a total of three washes, was made at the 146th and Hamilton Crossing car wash.  I went in first asking for change and was denied.  Not that the employees were rude necessarily, but it was disconcerting that they could not provide the change that I needed to wash the car on my own.  So I went out and got the automatic wash spending $3 more than had I have washed my car by hand.  When the wash was finished I jumped out to inspect the results and was sadly disappointed.  The rims on the front of the car were still covered in brake dust and the windows were all streaked with excess water that had not been dried during the final stages of the wash.  I drive a Smart car so it is not like there is much there to dry.

A couple of weeks later I needed a new wash so I headed to the Mike’s in Carmel on Greyhound Pass.  I headed over to give them another try.  This time I asked the gentleman taking my money to make sure they pay special attention to the wheels as I had an issue at a different Mike’s in the past.  He immediately tried to up sell me into something that would have cost me more than the wash to begin with.  After this wash was finished I again stepped out to see how well they had done.  This was better than the last but there were still streaks on all the windows and mirrors and brake dust left on the rims.

The next week, after a few days of rain, I decided that I would give Mike’s one more try.  They had one final chance to impress me or I would begin looking for a new service to wash my car.  I headed over to the wash on 96th street and I-69 as this is one of their busier locations and one that I had used in the past.  I told the lady taking my money, just like the guy in Carmel, that I wanted them to pay special attention to the rims as I had been given a bad taste in my mouth the last two trips to Mike’s.  Again, I was asked to up sell my wash for a tire and wheel cleaning package that was more than the wash itself.  (This is one of my biggest pet peeves as I did not come here to buy what you are trying to sell me.  I came here for a car wash.  It is not just car washes though.  Restaurants (Panera in particular) and car dealers alike do the same thing.  It never works on me which begs the question of if it works on anyone.)

I jump out after this wash and was blown away at how terrible of a job they had done.  This was three times in a row I had received a terrible car wash from Mike’s and this trip was the worst.  There were not only streaks on all of the windows and mirrors, but also bugs all over the front bumper.  Oh, and by the way, it did not even look like the wheels had been touched.  I have had it, this is the last trip I will make to Mike’s.

Before I decided to make it my final trip, I figured I would give a call to Mike’s corporate headquarters.  It was ironic that I saw the Mike’s headquarters on my way home from this wash.  It was a Sunday, so they were not open, but I left a message in hopes of getting a call back the next morning.  I figured just like every other company that I have called to make an issue known that I would not get a call back, but I was surprised at around 10:00 AM when my phone rang.  It was Mike’s Car Wash.

Manny Perez, the area director for Mike’s Car Wash, was extremely helpful and open to listen to my complaints.  He was apologetic and said time and time again that he would do anything that he could to make this up to me.  After mentioning that I did not feel that me returning to Mike’s was an option he said that he felt it was his responsibility to allow me one more chance with a couple of washes on Mike’s.  He also stated that the next time that I come in the manager on duty would be taking an extra close look at my car once the wash was complete.  I thanked him and thought nothing more of it.

The next week I received two free The Works washes in the mail as well as a card and an apology from Mike’s Car Wash.  Mike’s had come through like no other company that I have come across and I appreciate it more than words can say.  Sure, a free car wash might not mean anything to you, and it really does not mean anything to me.  What means the most to me is that Mike’s took a direct concern with my phone call and allowed me over twenty minutes to express any and all issues that I had with the previous three washes.

Mike’s came through on this one.  And while at the start of this story I would not be condoning what they do, with the efforts that were made by Mr. Perez and the folks at Mike’s Car Wash I will never use another service again.  So to all of the employees of Mike’s I wanted to extend my deepest thanks.  You came through and that is something any company can take a lesson from.