Back when I had a 1999 TJ Sahara, I used to go through these car washes all the time. Later I noticed that my mounts for the mirrors on the doors started to go chalky and eventually started to pit and corrode. This also affected my hardtop hinges. You guys must have seen many poor TJ's Jeeps aflicted with this blight. Later on I learnt that the solution they use in carwashes are very caustic and its' agressive cleaning solution will pit, bleach and fade certain materials on your vehicles. I rarely go through them now and I mostly hand wash my Jeep with Meguires products as I do not trust the materials they use for these parts. Also, the rear window has a tendency of leaking whe you do go through one.

 

Married with children does not alloy me to partake of 3 hour recreational car washes any longer. Heck, even 1 hour would be an impossibility. So once every two months I take it down to a local car wash, pay $16 for the workers to vacuum it out, run it through the wash, and then on the other side dry it, clean the widows, dust the dash, (no tire dressing or armor-all, that crap kills rubber and plastic) and all while I sit/stand in air conditioned comfort. Wintertime its handy for the underbody spray what with all the salt that gets thrown about.

 

I hit the auto wash about once a year with the soft top with no issues or leaking. The windows will get trashed over time anyway. With all of the contours and fenders etc. the auto wash only does a fair job at best. Most of my washes are courtesy of a good hard rain. It gets the power washer after muddy wheeling but most of time it's kind of dingy. I wax it once a year and it seems weird to drive it when it's all sparkly and shiny.......

 

I usualy run mine through the car wash prior to washing it in my driveway. Too much mud to hose off afterwords. But never had any issues with the car wash. However DO NOT go through the Costco car wash with a soft top, unless you want to find any and every spot that your top will leak the next time you are driving in a Hurricane. That car wash will get all bugs off and you won't need the mirror drill mod.

 

hahaahahah

 

Personally I will not do it again. I believe that doing it is what caused me to have to get the new header.
I drove a couple of hours to wheel and drove a couple of hours back without a single bit of wind noise. Later in the week, I was being lazy, and wanted to clean the jeep a little I don't normally drive on the highway to work, but a week or so later I did and noticed a terrible wind noise from the middle of the header. Luckily the dealer replaced it under the TSB.

 

Comes down to risk VS reward.... the risk of damage VS me having fun with my wife and son in the driveway with our powerwasher and a handsponge?!?! My Rig will NEVER go through an Automatic CAR wash. Come on the name alone makes my JEEP stay away.

 

I only wash mine a few times a year, and do a good waxing or buffing once a year. I'm more concerned with keeping the underside clean... so I can see leaks, keep grime out of things, etc... I rarely worry about the light dirt that sploches the Jeep when it rains. But under the hood and underneath are the most important areas for me... and auto car washes never do good at getting that stuff clean.

The Canvas top can be cleaned... but I think too much presure washer on it would be a bad thing!

 

Soft or hard top on, either way I have been through. The only suggestion is TOUCHLESS TOUCHLESS TOUCHLESS! Would never take mine through with the old brush/roller style wash anymore. I run the bug/tar remover windshield washer fluid in the summer too, great for the bugs!!