Outstanding Customer Service from Ramon -- A Disappointing Experience at the Lake Forest Location I would like to recognize Ramon, the manager at Checkered Flag Lux Express Car Wash, for his outstanding professionalism, dedication, and exceptional customer service. Every time I visit, Ramon is consistently active, attentive, and genuinely committed to ensuring that customers receive the best possible experience. His professionalism, leadership, and attention to customer satisfaction are truly commendable. He is the kind of manager who makes customers feel valued and gives them a reason to return. Unfortunately, my recent experience at the Lake Forest location was extremely disappointing. Having had such consistently positive experiences with Ramon, I recommended this car wash to a family member. While we were in the Lake Forest area, we decided to visit that location, expecting the same level of quality and service. Sadly, the experience was completely different from what I had come to expect. The overall condition of the facility and the way things were being handled were extremely disappointing. Everything seemed disorganized, and the entire experience fell far below the standards I associate with the Checkered Flag Lux Express Car Wash name. It was particularly frustrating because I had personally recommended the business to a family member based on my previous positive experiences. I sincerely hope management takes this feedback seriously and addresses the issues at the Lake Forest location. Customers should be able to expect a consistent standard of cleanliness, organization, professionalism, and customer service across locations. Ramon deserves special recognition for the excellent work he does. His commitment to customers is precisely the kind of leadership and service that businesses should strive to maintain throughout their operations. Thank you, Ramon, for consistently providing such an outstanding customer experience. I only wish our experience at the Lake Forest location had reflected the same standards. read more

This is now a drive yourself thru car wash. It's not perfect, but better than others in the area. The workers are helpful with any questions you might have. They supply microfiber towels, vacuum, air hose, and water hose for you to use and they keep the area clean and organized. read more

Checkered Flag Lux Express Car Wash - Car Wash Near Me - Irvine, California

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This is a no fuss place to wash your car. If you don't mind drying it off and vacuuming it yourself, then this is the right place for you. We usually come 2 to 4 times per month, so the monthly pass usually works out for us. The common issue we run into is that if there's someone in the line before us that is unfamiliar with the process, it takes a while for an attendant to come out. They provide plenty of clean towels. It's nice to have all the supplies nearby. read more

been my new car wash for about 4 months and it's been great. Always sparkly afterward and tons of vacuums available and busyness never been an issue. Only problem I've had so far was it shutting down midway and being stuck in for 10 minutes but things happen. Great wash for the price! Can't find a better one read more

Got a free $25 Lux Car Wash (their top price wash rest were cheaper with fewer addons I assume) from Instagram ad. I know automatic hands free carwashes like these aren't the best for your car paint or they don't clean as well, but with the right expectation I thought this place did its job just fine. Can't be giving Planet Fitness 1 star with your mind set on Equinox. I drove my corolla instead of my euro to test it was pretty dirty from street parking I'd say the carwash got it from 8/10 dirtiness to 2/10 with some stains that's too engrained into the car from long outside parking which I'll probably just visit a handwash to buff it out better. 0 issue when presenting barcode to the payment station before the wash, I actually waited too long so the wash selection menu resetted when I scanned the barcode and it still registered the right free wash option and let me proceed so that was nice to not have to renavigate the menu. The attendant waving me in to put my car in neutral was fine and did his job. After the wash I liked that there were many air blowers along wall which can push water off better while covering more angles. Extra bonuses included they had many many self vacuum parking spots and also offer clean microfiber cloth and cleaning solution if you want to spot clean places the wash missed yourself. There's also a highly air conditioned giftshop with drinks snacks and for some reason very beautiful little cards, gifts, and trinklets, which I thought was interesting. I wad expecting snacks drinks and car accessories but ended up seeing those plus a makeshift Hallmark stall I guess it's nice if you want to pick up a small gift on the way to an event or meetup. Place was clean, staff was nice. tldr: come here for quick hassle free B+/A- car wash if you are on a time crunch read more

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FREE CAR WASH! They have it all here! Air dryer, window water spritz, and vacuum but it's packed and the cars are too close together when I open my door to vaccum that's the only downfall but otherwise it's packed here and people are really getting out and cleaning their cars! You can get free tire cleaner and rags to wipe ur car down too! Nice! read more

Checkered Flag Lux Express Car Wash - Car Wash Near Me - Irvine, California

Shoutout to Salim for the amazing customer service! He was super friendly, helpful, and made sure everything was taken care of. Great experience overall! read more

My experience at Checkered Flag Lux Express Car Wash has been nothing short of great. The pricing is fair, and the setup is genuinely convenient--having towels available for drying, along with a tire shine brush and vacuum, really completes the package. The wash tunnel itself does a solid job, leaving the car clean every time. What really stands out, though, is the staff. Everyone is helpful and welcoming. I want to give a special mention to Ramon, who I believe is the manager. He carries himself professionally and has been incredibly patient in answering all my (sometimes silly) questions. I highly recommend this car wash without hesitation. read more

Checkered Flag Lux Express Car Wash - Entrance to the lobby. - Car Wash Near Me - Irvine, California

$25 for just the drive-through? Ouch I could stay closer to home and get the drive-through for $10. They provide rags, but that's it. read more

Great car wash and customer service. There's always towels and open spots to vacuum. The store inside is super cute and has lots of nick nacks. There's also a bathroom which is convenient. My husband and I both have our cars on a membership for less than $50! It's a great deal. read more

I am so disappointed that this place has transitioned from a beautiful full service Car Wash to a self service facility. It's difficult to find a good Car Wash to begin with specifically in Irvine so I hope one opens up pretty soon. Full service will be on the top of my list read more

Checkered Flag Lux Express Car Wash - #CARWASH Irvine, CA - Car Wash Near Me - Irvine, California

Good car wash, I have after market wheels on my car and the track was well protected they didn't scratch my wheels. They provide towels, tire shine and so much more which is all part of the price. I went here after a road trip to Mammoth do a lot of dead bugs but they didn't all wash away. I did do their most expensive option. read more

Checkered Flag Lux Express Car Wash - Car Wash Near Me - Irvine, California

Fast, easy and they provide all the supplies! I love the tire dressing and the hand towels for drying.

You cannot match the price for the monthly membership. For $45.00 a month, their LUX wash, you can run your car through every day. A standard wash, you all know, $25-30 + tip. They offer a $10.00 per xtra car discount for each additional car. read more

"Shoutout to the Manager RAMON! I've been bringing my car here for months, and the team is always consistent. Today, the manager helped me upgrade to the monthly membership. He clearly explained the pricing and even threw in an air freshener for my trouble. The lobby is always clean, and it's obvious RAMON runs a tight ship!" MUCHAS GRACIAS CHECKERED FLAG!! read more

Clean surroundings easy access, towels provided. You will be satisfied after. 101% recommend.

$20 car wash machine and it's still dirty! I've used ones half the price and they've done a better job.

Affordable and convenient! Their unlimited membership is great value! It is automated - You drive up and the machine scans your license plate and allows you in. The car wash is quick. Once done you park and can use their free clean towels to dry your car and vacuum the carpets. They also have free coffee and hot cocoa machine inside. read more

Checkered Flag Lux Express Car Wash - Car Wash Near Me - Irvine, California

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Wow, I am so disappointed with this business. Checkered Flag sends coupons to my phone and then does not respect what is written on the coupon by insisting I purchase the most expensive carwash to redeem the coupon though the coupon does not say it. What a bait and switch! read more

I was a little harsh on my first review. Upon further reflection I've decided that this place is actually a good place to go for a wash. It has tire dressing, separate towels for the rims, kinda shaded area to dry and vacuum the car. The towels are new and twice as absorbent as other self dry places. The unlimited monthly wash special for $25 to $30 for a basic wash is a steal. read more

Picture this: i am vacuuming my car-- second car of the day her, and the owner tells me to stop and go through the car wash first, then I can vacuum. I let her know I just drove in from AZ and my car is full of bugs. I brought my own wheel cleaner and cleaner spray to apply to the car before I go through the car wash. I explain if I don't do this then you will have to run my car through the car wash twice-- and both of us don't want to do that. It makes ZERO difference if I vacuum my car before or after I wash. But it makes a difference if I have to abuse my paint twice to get rid of bug guts. But the owner insists I do it their way. No logic. No reason. Will NEVER be back. NEVER. read more

This was a very disappointing experience. The car wash itself was poor -- no proper soap ( I paid for triple soap and extra shine), no proper wash -- they just quickly ran my car through and sent me out. I was one of the last cars, but after me a couple more even came in, so clearly they were still letting cars in at 7pm when they are going to close! When I went to vacuum and dry the car, they started shutting everything down. I was still vacuuming when they turned off the machines and even took away the towels I was using. I asked the guy why the vacuums are off, he told me to move my car and use other one, as soon as I moved my car, the other vacuum shut off. Still 4 or 5 cars were there and who ever is responsible for taking care of customers left and close everything. If you're going to close, then stop letting cars in. Don't take people's money and then rush them out without finishing the service. Totally unprofessional and not worth the price. read more

I ran over a huge piece of metal right when I got on the to the car wash and it completely punctured my tire. When I told someone in the from about it he completely denied it and tried to say I didn't even go through the car wash by the time I got out of it I could hear my tire. The man was so rude didn't tried to help at all just got so defensive. read more

Checkered Flag Lux Express Car Wash - The huge metal piece - Car Wash Near Me - Irvine, California

Went in because on Instagram they were advertising that you can buy something from the boutique and receive their $25 car wash for free. I asked one of the attendants and he just laughed and said no, he hardly spoke English and couldn't really understand my question. They also had no attendants in front of the car wash to scrub the car before going into the car wash itself. read more

Haven't been since they made it a self service. The quality started going down and instead of focusing on quality they switched to pretty much being no employees. I wonder what happened to all those people, it's sad. We already have enough drive thru car washes and that's what set this place apart from the others, now it's no better than a gas station carwash read more

My car was filthy so we ran it through at Checkered Flag. I just opted for the basic wash unfortunately not all the bird poop got washed away. I realize that it'll take some elbow grease to take that off. Overall, I like that there's plenty of towels to dry and clean the cars and special tire solutions to make them shine. The vacuums are easy to use and pretty powerful. My car looks so much better. read more

Well, I thought they fixed the problem with the cameras that read your license plate for the subscription service, but I guess not. Every time I come, I have to wave over one of the attendants to fix the login to start my car wash. Super annoying. read more

There was a promo to send a text for a free wash. After sending text, didn't hear back for days. Then was sent a coupon to be used on a different day later on. Tried the wash and would not recommend it. There is one attendant who couldn't even help redeeming the coupon and was rude. Wash was decent. However, there was barely any pressure on the vacuum. read more

I don't get my car washed often, but I think this spot has superb value. For $9, you can use their automatic drive-through car wash (and that's all you're going to need if you have minimal grime on your car). I will say it has been hit or miss with certain stains, but I think it does the job for the most part! At the end, you can towel off your car, spray down the interior, and vacuum if you want to go the extra mile. In and out super quick today! read more

Yikes. I don't get washes all too often but when I do, I usually go for hand washes. I'll preface by saying that I don't really like leaving one or two star reviews, especially during pandemic times, but I wouldn't return, nor would I recommend any of my friends to come here. I purchased the Luxury package. For one, their price online is $2 less than their actual price in person. Their advertised price online is $30.99, but the price when you get there is $32.99. They post the Yelp coupon for 15% off but don't accept it because it expired a month ago. I don't even think they did everything that comes in the package, to be honest. I spent more time waiting in line in my car than the amount of time it took for them to finish this "Luxury Package". I looked at my time stamp of when I paid (right when I got there and when I actually arrived back home (which is 5 minutes away), and they finished this entire package (with multiple cars ahead of me) in less than 15 minutes. I would say that's impressive to cover everything in the package, but the quality was just SO BAD and again, I really don't think they did everything that's included in the package. I'm posting pictures of AFTER they finished the car. There was still a good amount of dirt/dust that could have easily been wiped off that were in easy to reach places, but was missed. I couldn't even show the water spots on the side view mirrors because I had to pop my mirrors back open and wipe them off myself. Good thing they left their dirty wet rag on my car seat, so I can actually finish the cleaning when I got home. Sad. All in all, the exterior is cleaner than it was before, the insides were mostly vacuumed, but I think not worth the price paid for the package, and I'm not really too pleased with my overall experience. This was my first time getting a wash here but I think I'm going to find a new place. If anyone has any recommendations please let me know! read more

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TLDR - this place will not be worth it unless you do the base option. For those that don't do the cheapest option - this place will be a place with the prices of a full service car wash but you do everything yourself. And, what used to be a hand wash is now done by machines. Only pro of coming here is the facilities are really clean since it's new. For reference, their competitor go as low as $7 vs $10 here. Alternatively, I'd recommend just going to a machine free car wash at a gas station and vacuum the car yourself at home. Same quality for 50% cheaper. They do have an express wax wash option, and this is actually full service, but your car still goes through the machine. And, machine washes just aren't as good. For the price ($65 at time of writing), I've had much better. Also, I'd really be wanting a hand wash for my car at that price point. This place might've been family owned once upon a time, but now it just seems like someone bought the brand to turn a quick buck. read more

Cash machine where you pay for the car wash was stuck and no one around to help. A line of cars was forming. The female employee in the in the front lot said " we have only one manager he can't be everywhere". Better attitude towards customers would be much appreciated. read more

Who likes to wash their car? Me now. A friend told me about Checkered Flag Car wash and I went to see what it was all about. Since then I have gone back 5 x. What I like is is self serve, you drive through the car wash and then park to dry. That's where it gets good. You are offered towels to clean your car, also strong vacuums to clean inside. Dispensers with glass cleaner and tire polish are available. There is even a fine blower to blow out water in crevices of your car. You have 15 minutes to use these tools but I never saw anyone told that time was up. They have the option to have monthly or unlimited car wash purchases. I don't wash my car that much so the $ 9 signature wash when I go was good enough. I go out of my way to hit this Irvine spot, but I think it is well worth it given that a full service wash now is 3-4x as much. read more

I spent $25 for the "best" possible wash and my car was left with a ton of soap and water marks all over. The compressed air hose also kept getting pinched and the vacuum pump was sticky and dirty. I spent more time wiping soap and residue off my car than I did inside the "wash." Never want to return here. I'd get a better wash driving thru sprinklers read more

This is the 3rd time in 2 months that I take my car to these guys, and I'm sick and tired of spending $30 to get ripped off. Shame on you. The first two times I chalked it up to the time of day and how busy the guys are... but today is Sunday and I was one of the first people there. They don't take the time to clean. There are so many issues that I cannot comprehend it being an oversight anymore. If you are management, message me and I want a refund... otherwise I'm contacting my bank and reversing the charges. Up to you... I'm fed up. read more

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It's been over a year since my experience at Checkered Flag and nothing I have tried has worked to remove this weird blob. Three times I've paid for a professional service wash/wax of $200+ with an emphasis on this weird spot and I even wash/wax my own car monthly by myself-- I know every nook and cranny on this baby. I can't properly express how frustrated/sad I am when I see all my efforts to remove this blob not working. If you currently drive the car of your dreams, or if you are driving a car you genuinely love; this car wash is not for you. read more

Checkered Flag Lux Express Car Wash - I don't know what this is. - Car Wash Near Me - Irvine, California

I wanted to get my car a quick hand wash since it was really dirty from driving so much. I got the Signature Hand Wash, which was only $23.99. They did not do a good job hand washing my car, I could still see bug spots in the front and end bumper. They only spray and quick soap and hose it down again. I wouldn't recommend it if you want a spotless handwash, but I think it's fine if you're just wanting a quick wash without going through the machines. I think if I would've gotten the higher-tier package, they probably would've done a more spotless job? Either way, I can't complain about the price point and the job they did. I only wanted a quick wash and they did just that. They also do a quick vacuum inside your car as well. Service: 4/5 Tip(s): - Signature Hand Wash will be really quick, but don't expect a very clean car read more

I got a free $25 Lux car wash, there are cheaper options that go as little as $10. But to me, it's like any other car wash. I am not a fan of hand free car washes and it's not the best for a car but some people don't have time to wash their own car. This car wash was fast and provided the vacuuming, just like any car wash. Nothing special about this place! read more

BEWARE!!! This carwash will scratch your car. I have a 7 day brand new car that I took for its first wash September 7 around 4pm and there are scratches all over my vehicle from their carwash system. The GM Victor offered to wax my car in exchange for the damage. I unfortunately declined due to the lost of trust I had in their buisness. My personal detailer quoted me $650 to fix the damage. After presenting this quote to Victor, he refused any middle group resolution and only offered me a $15 refund and a months free of washes. I refused the month free washes as I will never go or recommend their buisness. I also asked for the owners email. I was I was told that he didn't have it and that I could email him and he would send it. Also jokes with me saying with laughter " Want a free wash, it can't do any more harm" Car washes should be more accountable for their machines and I wish this would have been dealt with seriousness and more concern. read more

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What a waste of time.. the quickest car wash with the worst vacuums on earth. Car was still dirty and had smug of dirt Don't waste ur time. It's not cheap either! Going back to my usual... 5express at the marketplace. read more