Carwash and the Antenna?

[Josh00333]

Can we get away with using regular car washes?

Don't see why not but I'm wanting one ya'll tell me it's ok first 

[serrasalmus]

i would only use the touch free ones, anyone with a cloth or material that touches the car can and will scratch the paint but more importantly they can wrap around the antenna and rip it off....funny story...i had a 93 s10 blazer and went to a touch wash and the cloth got caught on the handle to swing open the spare tire carrier (factory) and then pulled it into the rear machine and got them stuck the operator had to shut it down so it could get free....nvr went to a touch wash again unless it was wearing a bikini....

for those in the 303......this was in brighton at the car wash next to the grease monkey and lowes

[wayoverthere]

The one I use isn't a fan, even down to not having taut tie-downs in the bed. Upside of the mag mounts is I can just pull them off and toss them on the passenger seat while I go through, and then stick them back up.

[Josh00333]

Went just fine, if any one else wondered.

 

ya touch less on paper are better but they don’t get 1000 miles of snow slush grime off. 

[n4gix]

My HF antenna folds over and is stowed in the trunk, the other two I have to unscrew and put caps on the NMO mounts. 

[PACNWComms]

Most of the antennas on my vehicles are New Motorola (NMO), so they unscrew easily enough for car washes, that use rollers and cloth strips. However, the mounts vary from flush NMO to lip mounts for the hood and trunk, which is the same as many vehicles for my current employer. Maintenance teams are dispatched in trucks, SUV's, forklifts, and semi tractors. Many of the Chevy Suburban drivers would manage to find the one car wash in town that would tear off antennas, bust mounts, and the worst one was an 800 MHz "thimble" antenna, Laird Phantom type antenna, that was "grabbed" by one of the car wash cloth strips, and wielded like a sling, hitting the entire roof of the SUV, hitting it with the antenna and denting all over the roof. There must have been about thirty hits to that roof before the car wash was shut down. Luckily, this one had two people that would hand wipe down the vehicles to dry it beyond the fans, but the damage from the spinning cloth strips did thousands in damage. I do not use car wash machines that touch the vehicle, too much possibility for damage. Glad it worked out for you though.

[gortex2]

Depends on car wash, but I take both my JK and JT thru many car washes with the antennas on the NMO mount. If its one with the spinning brushes I'll unscrew the NMO and put it inside.