The biggest decision a new car wash owner makes is also the most expensive one: tunnel or in-bay automatic? The wrong choice locks you into a footprint and labor model that's hard to undo. Here's how operators we've equipped think about it.
Throughput
- Tunnel: 80–150 cars/hr at full staffing. The Hanna Positrack conveyor easily handles 120/hr in a 100-foot tunnel.
- In-Bay Automatic (IBA): 15–20 cars/hr per bay. A two-bay TF-Series install tops out around 35/hr.
Footprint
- Tunnel: 100–180 ft long, plus stacking lane, vacuums and pay lanes. Plan for 0.75–1.5 acres.
- IBA: 11' × 25' per bay. Slots into gas stations and dealerships easily.
Capex
- Tunnel: $1.5M–3M+ equipment + build-out.
- IBA: $62,500–75,000 per bay for a Coleman-Hanna TF-Series or Soft-Touch, plus building.
Labor
- Tunnel: 4–10 employees per shift for prep, drive-on, dry-off and detailing upsells.
- IBA: Effectively zero labor. Customer pays at a pay terminal and the bay does the rest.
How to choose
Pick a tunnel if you have the land and the traffic to push 60,000+ cars/month. Pick an IBA if you're maximizing a single small footprint or attaching a wash to an existing C-store or dealership. Many of our most successful customers run both — a tunnel as the flagship and IBAs at satellite locations.
Need help running the numbers for your site? Call us at 1-800-999-9878 or email info@colemanhanna.com.