×

Ultimate Express saves your undercarriage

Ultimate Express Car and Pet Wash, at 1112 Washington Blvd., offers a three-minute scrub positioned to protect vehicles though the harsh winter conditions.

“Clean, shiny and fast,” is their motto, said Butch Heim, director of management and business development.

In 1999, the ultimate express brand started from a self-service car wash in Montgomery Borough. The business soon moved into multiple locations like Danville, Selinsgrove and Williamsport.

It features automated washers and dryers, the drive-through style car wash has sprayers trained on the rarely-cleaned undercarriage of the vehicle, said Heim.

“Unless you’re going to get down on your hands and knees at a self serve car wash you’re not gonna get up underneath the car very well,” he said.

“There’s actually sprayers down through the middle of the tunnel,” Heim added.

Working to stay green, half of the water used at the Ultimate Express Car Wash is recycled.

Even in rain or snowy weather, where many people think debris has been cleared, Heim said those conditions are not a replacement for a wash.

They don’t realize that even with rain, there’s acid rain and it’ll still do damage to the paint,” he said. “Same with the wintertime.”

Road salt, which can accumulate when streets are treated, is abrasive and may cause future corrosion, he said. Bugs, hit while in transit, can also cause damage to paint.

“It’s really bad for the undercarriage — for all the little cracks and crevices,” said Heim.

To combat the application wearing off over time, Ultimate Express Car and Pet Wash always applies a clear coat of wax to each wash.

“It’s good for your car to wash it on a regular basis,” said Heim.

Ultimate Express Car Wash offers wash cards which can be used at any location. Many of their customers use them for their unlimited number of washes, and unlimited vacuum time, he said.

“They’ll come in like once a week or so and run their cars through. They really keep ahead of the game and it’ll help hold the value of the vehicle longer,” he said.

Customers may go to www.washmydirtycar.com to sign up, alter or cancel their card at any time.

“We communicate with our customers a lot through social media too,” said Heim.

In the end, Ultimate Express Car Wash is there for the community and its employees, he said. It help local charities by offering half the money from selling their wash cards and ensure a low turnover rate for their workers, he said.

Nearly 50 percent of those who work at the car wash are family, said Heim.

“People are used to seeing the same people working all the time so they get used to everybody they see,” he said.

Some customers have been coming since the day they opened, he added.

Ultimate Express Car Wash’s other locations are: Selinsgrove, Routes 11 and 15 North Across from Longhorn Steakhouse; and Danville, Route 11 North across from Geisinger Woodbine.

NEWSLETTER

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
   

COMMENTS

Starting at $4.62/week.

Subscribe Today