You’re not imagining it. You drive past a closed-down diner, and a month later, a “Coming Soon: Express Car Wash” sign is up. You see them on highway off-ramps, in suburban shopping centers, and sometimes, directly across the street from another car wash.
It’s become a running joke in many communities: every new development is either a car wash or a self-storage facility.
But this isn’t a coincidence; it’s a calculated business strategy. The humble car wash has transformed into a high-tech, high-margin gold mine for investors. So, what’s really behind this “car wash tsunami”?
We dug into the economics, and it comes down to four key factors.
1. The “Netflix” Subscription Model
The biggest change isn’t the soap; it’s the sales model.
The old car wash business was transactional. You paid $10 for a single wash. This made revenue unpredictable—it was heavily dependent on weather (no one washes a car in the rain) and whim.
The new model is all about recurring revenue. That $30-$40 “Unlimited Monthly Pass” is the engine of this industry.
- Predictable Cash Flow: Like a gym or a streaming service, the express wash gets your monthly payment whether you wash your car once or twenty times. This predictable cash flow is incredibly attractive to banks and investors.
- Customer “Lock-In”: Once you’re a member, you’re no longer a customer for any other car wash. You’ll drive past three competitors to get to “your” wash because it’s already paid for.
- High-Margin Upsells: The subscription gets you in the door, but the business still profits from high-margin add-ons like “ceramic coating,” “tire shine,” and “lava wax” that can be added at the kiosk.
2. The Low-Labor, High-Tech Machine
Look closely at these new express washes. How many employees do you see? Maybe one or two guiding cars into the tunnel and one in the office.
These businesses are models of automation. Modern car washes are essentially 100-foot-long automated factories.
- Low Labor Costs: Labor is the biggest expense for most service businesses. By automating everything from payment (at the kiosk) to washing and drying (in the tunnel), these businesses can operate with a skeleton crew.
- Scalability: Because the model is so automated, it’s easy to replicate. Once a company has a successful blueprint, it can “copy and paste” that same wash in dozens of new locations. This is why you see national brands (like Zips, Mister Car Wash, etc.) expanding so rapidly.
3. They are “Amazon-Proof” Real Estate
Investors are terrified of businesses that can be disrupted by the internet. You can’t, however, get your car washed on Amazon.
Car washes are what investors call an “Amazon-proof,” “e-commerce-resistant” business. It is a physical service that must be consumed locally.
This makes them a surprisingly stable real estate investment. They also happen to be the perfect fit for the “awkward” plots of land that developers struggle with. That 1-acre lot that’s too small for a grocery store but too big for a coffee stand? It’s the perfect size for an express car wash tunnel.
4. We’re Keeping Our Cars Longer
The final piece of the puzzle is us: the consumers.
According to market data, the average age of a car on the road in the U.S. is now over 12 years—an all-time high.
As new and used cars become more expensive, people are holding onto their current vehicles for longer. When your car is one of your biggest assets, you’re more willing to spend money to maintain it. A regular wash isn’t just about looking good; it’s about protecting the paint, fighting rust (especially in winter), and preserving the vehicle’s resale value.
The Bottom Line: Is it a Bubble?
So, is this a “bubble” that’s about to pop?
Possibly. Some markets are definitely becoming over-saturated. When three “unlimited” washes are competing on the same block, they’ll be forced to drop prices, cutting into the very profits that made them so attractive.
But for now, the car wash boom is the result of a perfect storm: a shift to subscription revenue, high-tech automation, a stable real estate footprint, and consumer demand for protecting their expensive assets.
