As a kid, Vanessa Sheffield was only allowed to dry at her family's car wash.
She all but grew up in the bright blue building that sits at the corner of Senate Ave and 10th Street in Indianapolis. Vanessa, now 24, is the latest owner of Swancy's Auto Laundry hand car wash, which has been family owned and operated for 88 years.
When founder Andrew Swancy died in 1948, his nephew, Andrew Sheffield Sr., took over until his death in 1980. Bonnie, Sheffield's wife, then took over and co-owned the business with her son, Andrew Jr., Vanessa's father.
"It's the oldest car wash in Indiana is what my grandmother always said," said Vanessa. "And a hand car wash is the best car wash you can get."
The forbidden word
The business started under a tent across the street in 1932. The blue building that now houses Swancy's was built in 1942.
Made mostly of cinder blocks, there's nothing fancy about Swancy's.
There are two waiting areas with seats spaced out properly for social distancing and two washing bays, though only one is in use currently.
An old, brown refrigerator holds pop and water for sale for $1. A bulletin board lists prices for the shop's various services outside the small office where Vanessa had lunch with her grandma as a child.
"That was my best friend. She really was. Everyone loved her. She was really a good-hearted person," said Vanessa, about her grandmother, Bonnie. "The reason why the cars are $12 for inside and out is because she wanted to keep it at a fair price that was affordable for everyone."
Vanessa said she plans to keep that price but does plan to make some cosmetic changes to the shop over time.
Nostalgia is abundant when inside Swancy's. If it's not the 1980s Lamborghini poster on the wall, it's the vintage Maytag washer and wringer machine cleaning and drying employees' chamois.
"It's a lot of help," said employee Glendon Montgomery, about the vintage machine. "If you didn't have a wringer man, you'd be sore at the end of the day. Sometimes we do 40 to 50 cars a day."
There's no cursing, and a lot of jokes and laughing. Customers wave and honk when they drive by just to say hi.
When IndyStar visited, Montgomery and James Moland wore mostly blue clothing. They both also wore face masks due to the coronavirus pandemic.
They're two of Swancy's four employees.
Montgomery has worked for Swancy's for 12 years, Moland off and on for five.
"Mercedes, Jaguars, we do top-end cars, $100,000 cars," said Montgomery. "We basically do the best cars in the city."
Customers enjoy the hand wash, they say it helps reduce the risk of potential damage from automated car washes.
"I have a soft top, my dad's car had a soft top," said customer Laurice Howard. "I used to drive that around and so I've always brought it here because you know they do a great job and then the personalities and I just know everybody. I just feel like it's a family environment, you know?"
The wash is simple. You pull up, get out and let Swancy's team do the rest.
"We vacuum the car first. After we vacuum, we rinse the car down," said Montgomery. "Wash the tires and rims first. Rinse the car down, rinse the tire and rims down. And, basically, wash the car. We'll pull it up to the front. Dry it off. Dress the tires and basically that's it."
Montgomery says that due to the coronavirus pandemic, some customers are opting to remain in their car and skip the vacuum.
From start to finish, a wash takes about 10 to 15 minutes.
Swancy's patrons are asked to never use the "R" word -- rain.
"We only like the three 'S' words," said Montgomery. "Salt, snow and sunshine."
Swancy's Auto Laundry is located at 934 N. Senate Ave., Indianapolis, IN. They're open from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. daily, closed Sundays. Car washes start at $12.
Contact IndyStar photojournalist Mykal McEldowney at 317-790-6991 or mykal.mceldowney@indystar.com. Follow him on Instagram or Twitter: @mykalmphoto.
"car" - Google News
August 20, 2020 at 07:09PM
https://ift.tt/34iqa9S
The story behind Swancy's Auto Laundry, that bright blue car wash downtown - IndyStar
"car" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2SUDZWE
https://ift.tt/3aT1Mvb
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "The story behind Swancy's Auto Laundry, that bright blue car wash downtown - IndyStar"
Post a Comment