[torquecurve]

I understand your fears. This and the other reason of a ditry cloth wipe made me fire my 'washer'. I find it easier to do a weekly wash myself and a jopasu dustup every day. In case of bird poo or something, I use a Quick detailer.

As a couple of people have suggested, head over to the detailing thread. The bug bites hard!

Regarding the key. there is a very recent incident which happened in our housing soiciety which I will like to share.

An Innova (with Autocop installed) was stolen recently from our society. The alarm did not go off at all and the key was clearly used to drive the car as the immobilizer would have otherwise not worked.

The owner used to handover the keys to the 'washing' guy everyday. Once he said that he had some work and left with the key. In all probability he got a key made. Not sure how the immobilizer was over ridden. But yes it happened!

A small example of how we trust a 10 Lakh vehicle with a 200 ruppee a month guy.

You dont need interior cleaning everyday (unless it is raining) and even in rains you can have 'Packy Poda' Type mats which are very easy to clean and hold all the crap within channels.

A simple wipe down everyday should be enough for your car, especially if it is waxed.

[SS-Traveller]

Cross-posting here for everyone's reference...

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

Gentlemen, unlike you, your car does not sweat. It also does not have little glands in its armpits that secrete a smelly substance and leave it with BO (body odour for the uninitiated!). And in the middle of a hot and dry summer, all it collects on its body is some dust. Ergo, it does NOT need a daily bath.

OTOH, most cars are made of steel. Steel rusts. Oh yes, the best cars rust too! Don't be duped into believing that expensive cars are rust-proof, just because they have some paint applied on them. Ergo again, your car does NOT need a daily bath - you do.

During the rainy season, sure, the guy who washes your car does a good job of massaging and smearing the mud well into the pores of the paintwork. And he does not clean where the car really needs cleaning - the underside and wheel wells. So, if you have a messed up and muddy car, take the trouble of taking it in for a pressure wash once in a week (certainly NOT any more frequently than that!) during the rainy season - and hire a fellow during the monsoons to wash away the mud from (and not massage it into) your car's paintwork.

For the rest of the year, when it doesn't rain and all you get is dust on the paintwork, use something as simple as a feather duster (or if you have a serious love affair going with your car, maybe use this). Use water to wash once a week, or even once a fortnight.

Your car's metalwork will thank you for it, and so will the environmentalists who have been shouting themselves hoarse asking you to preserve water.

[alpha1]

Cleaner listening to music is absolutely NOT RELATED to him taking the car out for a ride.
Of course you can enforce the strictness by telling him to only clean the vehicle from outside, and insides can be cleaned in weekends in your presence.

However, you are really taking this too far fetched by assuming that because he is listening to music, he can also take the vehicle for a ride. The cleaner is not an idiot, and he knows that while he is driving the car, you can come down and report theft.

[TaurusAl]

My apologies for replying late, It was a weekend and had taken my baby for a spin. I am overwhelmed by the response and thank each one of you.

Originally Posted by el lobo 6061

By the way which car is it? Prevention is better than cure, do look up into the matter before anything wrong happens to your car.

Its Ritz VDI

Originally Posted by Aroy

Time was this would have had a simple solution. In both my Ambassador and Fiat, we had three keys - door, ignition and petrol filler. Alas today you have a single key (or a single electronic signal) for user convenience.

Yes, those were the days. Even the petrol flap had a separate key

Originally Posted by carboy

- If your music player has a detachable faceplate & you detach it and take it home with you, he can't play music.
- If you car has an electronic key, you can make a regular duplicate key (from a street side key maker) which can only open the car but cannot start the engine.

The face plate is not detachable. Making a duplicate key sounds good, will give it a thought. Thanks.

Originally Posted by DarkEraser

BTW, you can gift him a small radio (cost less than Rs. 200), so he don't need your car radio.

Originally Posted by zzzehar

Buddy, you seem like someone who has trouble saying 'No'. I read an article a couple of weekends ago in TOI in the column by Khushwant Singh which talked about 'impotence being our only defense' now a days. Sorry to say, but your post made me recall that.

Believe me, you are not wrong. I have even finished reading a book call "Dont say yes, when you want to say no" I should master this skill or else I am going to be in deep trouble someday.

Originally Posted by torquecurve

Regarding the key. there is a very recent incident which happened in our housing soiciety which I will like to share.

An Innova (with Autocop installed) was stolen recently from our society. The alarm did not go off at all and the key was clearly used to drive the car as the immobilizer would have otherwise not worked.

The owner used to handover the keys to the 'washing' guy everyday. Once he said that he had some work and left with the key. In all probability he got a key made. Not sure how the immobilizer was over ridden. But yes it happened!

A small example of how we trust a 10 Lakh vehicle with a 200 ruppee a month guy.

You dont need interior cleaning everyday (unless it is raining) and even in rains you can have 'Packy Poda' Type mats which are very easy to clean and hold all the crap within channels.

A simple wipe down everyday should be enough for your car, especially if it is waxed.

Thanks for sharing this, I am even worried now.


After going through all the posts, this morning I denied handing over the keys to him saying that the car was just serviced yesterday and there is no need to clean it so frequently form inside. He was more than happy as his job has been reduced.

From now he will be wiping (not washing and wasting water daily) with a moist cloth on daily basis and washing if absolutely required.

Also, for interiors i have thought, I normally go shopping for fish etc on Sunday morning and have decided to go down in the basement, open the car, wait there till he finishes cleaning the interiors and then drive away for shopping. Sounds like a complete peace of mind.

[normally_crazy]

Originally Posted by SedatedDrive

I too have a guy who washes my car everyday. But I don't hand over the key. No matter what.

Same here. Never give the guy the key.

Ask your guy to buy a cheap mp3/FM radio receiver.

Better still gift it to him, costs a couple of hundred bucks but will ensure special care for your car.

[ghodlur]

One simple suggestion - if you dont trust the cleaner, dont give the keys. Today its the radio, tomorrow it can be something else. The cleaner will start taking things for granted. Restrict him to exterior cleaning only with a reason of your observation. Even if he agrees to not using the radio, get the interiors cleaned once a fortnight in your presence. If the discipline is instilled in the cleaner you can think of handing over the keys for interior cleaning esp in forthcoming monsoons. Till then only exterior cleaning.

[libranof1987]

The car cleaners at my appt. complex wash cars 5 days a week only from the outside and on sunday, they clean the interiors too.

Every sunday, a diff. guy came to collect the keys and each time I handed the key, I was wondering if he'd get a duplicate key made or steal something.

That fear ultimately became reality when my BT dongle was missing when I checked the car one monday morning. That day, I fired them from washing my car.

My cook now cleans the car on the outside; I clean the interiors myself.

I feel, there's no point living in such fear. There's a lot that can go wrong and it's best you clean interiors yourself/get them cleaned under your supervision rather live in the anxiety that your car can be misused.

[amk_2009]

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[TaurusAl]

Originally Posted by libranof1987

The car cleaners at my appt. complex wash cars 5 days a week only from the outside and on sunday, they clean the interiors too.

Every sunday, a diff. guy came to collect the keys and each time I handed the key, I was wondering if he'd get a duplicate key made or steal something.

That fear ultimately became reality when my BT dongle was missing when I checked the car one monday morning. That day, I fired them from washing my car.

My cook now cleans the car on the outside; I clean the interiors myself.

I feel, there's no point living in such fear. There's a lot that can go wrong and it's best you clean interiors yourself/get them cleaned under your supervision rather live in the anxiety that your car can be misused.

Yes, these days cars are loaded with all kinds of valuables that we require almost everyday. Sunglasses, Pen drives, Bluetooth Dongles, Cds, Mobile Chargers, Portable Tyre-Inflater to name a few. Fortunately nothing has gone missing till now, but cant live in anxiety and fear in future. Instead can live with not getting the interiors cleaned for a week.