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    A & W Car Wash

    2.1 (29 reviews)

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    This is what you see as you enter the building.
    Justin U.

    They should call this the 3-minute car wash rather than the $3 car wash. Because 3 minutes is about the most it takes to slide my credit card in the machine, grab the receipt, and drive through. This is so convenient and I'm always happy with the wash I get. On a side note about bent license plates. They are made of thin metal and bend easily. When you go to any car wash that has whirling brushes pushing against your car to remove dirt and salt, it's going to hook on things. And if that thing is a flimsy license plate, it's going to bend it. I learned this years ago and opted for a strong metal license plate holder from Pep Boys because I wasn't going to stop going to these kinds of convenient, quicky car washes. Haven't had a license problem since then.

    Xxxx O.

    4/2/19 Terrible experience by new manager call John, who approached me when I was vacuuming my car, told me that I may be just vacuuming the car and leaving with out washing and paying, was very Rude, zero customer service, told me he is a former police officer in Texas; and if I don't like it I can go to an other car wash. Took a picture of my license plates to report me, also treated me to call the police.

    Damage to my car from this horrible establishment!

    Warning!! Protect your cars!! This car wash is run by scammers!! Do not go here, plenty of other places in the area that actually care about their customers and do the right thing for them! I came here on Saturday (11/20/21) and unfortunately during my visit I heard my trunk light break off (pictured) during the blower section of the wash. I confronted the manager who was extremely rude and basically told me I was lying and if there was an issue that it was my fault. I am not sure how my light breaking off in THEIR car wash could be my fault, other than it being my fault that I actually gave this horrible place a try. After my encounter with the manager I knew this place was up to no good and would be trying to take advantage of me. I returned the next day and one of the employees let me see the video of my car and low and behold I could see my light breaking off right on the screen, which the employee acknowledged happening (I was scared that they would hide the video from me and claim the incident never happened). I provided my information and was told the GM would be giving me a call. The next day I received a call from the GM who told me he reviewed the video and after speaking to his lawyers, they advised him that they are protected from liability for this incident because there is a sign that mentions a warning prior to entering the car wash. Now I ask you, would good people who acknowledge watching a part of your car break off in THEIR car wash, hide behind their lawyers and claim that a measly sign protects them against the issue??? No, a good person would eat the $150 expense and do good for their customer. After working for the premier car wash in Palatine for over 5 years, I can tell you from first hand experience that this is not how you treat customers. The right thing to do (which we did at the car wash I used to work for) would be to eat the minimal cost since the incident took place in our car wash. Instead this place chose to blame me for the incident even after acknowledging watching the video of their car wash wrecking my car and then hiding behind their lawyers for protection. Absolutely pitiful. Do not under any circumstances take your car here, it's not worth it! Your car may get destroyed and the management team is extremely rude. Save your money and take your business to a place they actually care about their customers!! After reading plenty of horrible review on the is place after the fact, this incident is no surprise. Other horrible reviews date back over a year ago, so obviously this place does not care about their customers or running an ethical business because they obviously have not made any positive changes.

    Two bays
    Yakin Sal M.

    One of the best car washes i have been to in my area. Ive tried plenty of them as well. Just think of Fuller's car wash but better system. They have the $3 service for a quick wash, the $6 option for a wash and a bit of amenities. The $10 option which is the deluxe option that comes with the sealant and tire shine. Or if you are feeling yourself a bit spontaneous go for the $12 that comes with everything plus wax. The vacuum station is huge, so many and the power is precise. I am so happy that they don't turn down the pressure on those bad boys, because it vacuums my car with no problems. The staff seems very nice and helpful if you are having problems with the automated machine. Sometimes the screen is hard to touch, but the guys come right out to assist you. P.S yelpers, if you are in the area be sure to come get your ride cleaned here.

    Dirt stains all over the car after the wash

    They should change their name from $3 car wash to something else as the name doesn't justifies the service that you get. The cheapest $3 car wash which is mentioned on their display at the bottom is simply a waste of time and money. They do mention it as light wash but what's the point of offering it if it doesn't even washes your car. My car didn't even had too much dirt and it's ridiculous that it came out almost the way it went in. Attached are some images after the wash which might tell you the story. Won't recommend if you're going in for $3 option. It's better to go manual $2 car wash rather than going here.

    Dirty rims and a bent license plate for $20!

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    2 months ago

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    Ser A.

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    5 years ago

    My truck was lightning when I went to wash it also they charge you for vacuuming your truck in truth I do not recommend them

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    5 years ago

    Wash was alright but it's not worth going there because your car doesn't even leave dry. Got water all over my mirror and windows

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    Wash Werks

    Wash Werks

    (10 reviews)

    Add the word WONDERFUL to Wash Werks! My car goes in their wash and every single time comes out…read moreshiny and looking wonderful! They have THE best state of the art car wash that no one can top! I've tried most of them out here and I'm so glad I have a reliable top notch place to get my car washed. Prices are same as other places but you get your moneys worth here! It's fast and easy service checking and paying with service members there to greet and help you all the time. Bill who runs the car wash is always there and doing quality control checks and super friendly guy to ask questions about the monthly wash programs! They spare nothing here! The soap they use is plentiful and you actually can smell the freshness in the car as it goes thru. The vacuums to clean inside the car are super suction and pick even the littlest stuff up! They have large trash containers too for you to get rid of trash. The place is kept meticulously clean and neat. I drive over 10 miles just to bring my newer car here. I'm at ease that Bill and his super crew will take good care of me but most importantly take care of making sure my car gets the best wash! Don't settle for a car wash using luke warm or cold water, diluted suds or no suds at all, inferior dirty washing parts or broken stages of the wash ie; tire scrub, hot wax machine. Thanks Wash Werks for keeping my cars looking great!

    Great experience. The attendant at the kiosk wasn't pushy with selling me the packages, but was…read moreinformative and answered the questions I did have. This was my first time here and I wanted to measure the quality before investing in a plan. I went with the Deluxe, which is fancy for "lowest tier", but I just wanted to get the salt off my car and undercarriage, which is part of the package. I was surprised to see that there was an attendant inside giving a little "pre-soak" from a hose to prime my car for the wash. Also, this wash doesn't have a tire track! It's literally a flat conveyor belt without any bumper or mound to push you along, which is great for those worried about scratching their rims. When I came out, I was pleased with the quality of wash, even at the lowest tier. There were a few residual spots, but nothing egregious and easily something that could have been remedied if I brought a towel for a quick wipe. Based on this experience, I will be back on a Sunday to get the full Ceramic Shield package and if that goes well, I'll consider a membership, as well as upgrading this review to 5 stars!

    Palatine Hand Wash & Detail

    Palatine Hand Wash & Detail

    (36 reviews)

    We had our car detailed by this shop, they were relatively inexpensive compared to competitors. The…read morecar when it was returned to us was in stellar shape, looked and smelled like a new car inside. There were a few stains impossible to remove but they were well faded by the cleaning they did and barely noticeable without closely looking at the car. The car being used for Uber gets dirty pretty fast and was very stained up, so the fact they got it to such nice looking shape shows me they know what they're doing and what they're talking about in upholstery cleaning. We had the car decontaminated after a guy puked in the back, it doesn't remind me at all of the incident. So they definitely do a good job of erasing messes! Service is fast, they are quick to reply to messages left on the answering machine and they have a decent availability. There really isn't anything negative I can come up with about this business aside from its location. The location is in an office building which is slightly awkward and their work area is outside, but. They get a great job done so it works. It just feels awkward not being attached to a car wash.

    I had a very disappointing experience here. I brought my car in for a full detail because there was…read morea smoke smell I wanted removed. I paid $240 for the service, plus a $35 tip, and I honestly regret spending that much considering the experience and results. First, the detail took TWO DAYS to complete. I've had my car detailed before and it has typically taken around 6 hours, so I was surprised by how long this took. The lack of professionalism was also frustrating. Their posted business hours on the door say 8 AM-5 PM, but both times I came in, they were not open at 8 AM. When I dropped my car off, I waited about 10 minutes past opening. When I came back to pick it up, I waited around 40 minutes for someone to finally open the door. When the employee eventually came to the door, there was no apology. He simply said, "Oh, I just woke up." I found that extremely unprofessional, especially after waiting outside for 40 minutes during their posted business hours. The shop itself was also very dirty, which did not give me much confidence in a business specializing in detailing and cleanliness. Most importantly, I'm not happy with the actual detail. After paying $240, my car honestly doesn't look noticeably different. I originally brought it in because of the smoke smell, and now, two days later, my car has an extremely strong chemical smell instead. I unfortunately cannot recommend this place.

    A & W Car Wash - carwash - Updated September 2026

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