Cleaned Out In Carolina
(image via: Illicitohio)
These images of an abandoned, overgrown and partially-scrapped self service car wash come care of Illicitohio but wonder of wonders, the car wash itself can be found in North Charleston, South Carolina. Not to be confused with South Charleston, North Carolina.
(images via: Illicitohio)
Self service car washes typically are low-overhead operations so it’s unusual to find one that couldn’t cut the mustard. Considering its location in a hurricane-prone region, however, the car wash’s demise could be the result of an extreme overdose of water. On the other hand, the use of orange and blue lights may have dumbfounded customers expecting the familiar red and green.
Sorry About Your Grill
(image via: Martin Gonzalez)
While not exactly a Chicago landmark, the Handee Car Wash achieved local prominence in part due to longevity – it opened way back in the 1970s. Kudos to Flickr user Martin Gonzalez who snapped the stripped business in April of 2012. So, why did the Handee Car Wash close? Gonzalez isn’t telling but perhaps advertising health and dental insurance isn’t the greatest way to reassure potential customers. Put transmission in neutral and open wide… this won’t hurt a bit.
Rural Mural
(images via: Vanishing South Georgia)
Is there anything sadder than an abandoned car wash at sunset? Maybe an abandoned car wash at sunrise, and since we can’t tell exactly what time of day it was when Brian Brown of Vanishing South Georgia snapped the December 2013 images above, we’ll just state the scene is, er, timelessly sad. The only bright spot appears on the side of the gaudily painted Millen, Georgia building: an incongruously cheerful folk art mural of a juicy orange Chevy Suburban. Clean as a whistle, of course.
Bluebeard’s Revenge
(image via: rustyjaw)
Car wash machinery can exhibit an oddly organic vibe; like electron micrographs of ciliated protozoans blown up to hundreds of times life size. Maybe that’s why many abandoned car washes look “dead” as opposed to merely deactivated. Full props to Flickr user rustyjaw for the decidedly creepy image above, taken at a San Francisco-area abandoned car wash in April of 2006.
