Everything you need to know about using LocalWashAdvisor
Shine is our AI-powered car care assistant that helps you with car wash recommendations, car care tips, product suggestions, and answers to your automotive questions. It's available 24/7 on the homepage in the chat window.
Shine's product recommendations are sourced from multiple trusted partners and databases:
Note: We may earn affiliate commissions on qualifying purchases made through our product links, which helps support our free platform. This doesn't affect the price you pay.
When you ask Shine for car wash recommendations, here's exactly what happens:
🎯 Recommendation Process:
Bayesian Score Formula: (C × m + R × v) / (C + v)
💡 This prevents new businesses with 1 perfect review from outranking established businesses with hundreds of 4.8★ reviews.
Yes! Shine is trained on automotive maintenance knowledge and can answer questions about:
Note: For serious mechanical issues, always consult a qualified automotive professional.
Your conversations with Shine are processed securely and used only to improve your experience. We don't share your chat history with third parties or use it for advertising purposes.
Shine is powered by advanced AI language models (including Grok-4-fast via OpenRouter) fine-tuned specifically for car care and local business recommendations. The AI continuously learns from user interactions and automotive industry data to provide accurate, helpful responses.
The map automatically shows car washes near you when you grant location access. You can also:
Results appear on the map with markers showing business names, ratings, and available coupons.
When you select "Recommended" in the sort dropdown, car washes are ranked using a Bayesian rating algorithm - the same system used by IMDB, Reddit, and Yelp.
Why Bayesian? It prevents a new business with just 1 five-star review from ranking higher than an established business with hundreds of 4.8-star reviews.
Formula: (C × m + R × v) / (C + v)
Example: New business (5.0★ with 1 review) = 4.09 Bayesian score. Established business (4.8★ with 250 reviews) = 4.79 Bayesian score. The established business ranks higher.
Ratings are based on verified customer reviews. Each review includes a 1-5 star rating and optional written feedback. The overall rating is the average of all reviews.
Step-by-Step Process:
⚠️ Remember: The expiration date on your coupon is the deadline to REDEEM (use) it at the business, not just claim it. Check the date before claiming and make sure you can visit before it expires!
💡 Tip: Your claimed coupons are always available in "My Coupons" with both QR code and text code - no need to print anything! Just show your phone screen.
Yes, you need to sign up (free) to claim and save coupons. This ensures you can access your coupons from any device and prevents duplicate claims.
You can typically claim one coupon per car wash at a time. Once you redeem it, you can claim another one from the same business if available.
Yes! You can clean up your coupon wallet by clearing expired or redeemed coupons.
How to Clear Old Coupons:
📌 Important Notes:
💡 Tip: Clear old coupons regularly to keep your wallet organized and easy to browse!
Yes, each coupon has an expiration date shown on the coupon card. Make sure to REDEEM (use) your coupon at the business before it expires. Expired coupons cannot be redeemed.
The expiration date controls when you can USE (redeem) the coupon at the car wash, not when you can claim it.
Example Timeline:
Key Point: If you claim a coupon on Jan 30 but the expiration date is Jan 31, you only have 1 day to use it! The expiration date is FIXED when the coupon is created, not relative to when you claim it.
💡 Pro Tip: Check the expiration date before claiming. If it's expiring soon, make sure you can visit the car wash before that date. Don't claim coupons you won't use in time!
📱 What You'll See in "My Coupons":
Expired and redeemed coupons stay in your wallet for reference, but they cannot be used again.
Generally, only one coupon can be used per visit. Check the specific terms and conditions on each coupon for any restrictions.
If you have issues redeeming a coupon, contact the car wash directly first. If the issue persists, contact our support team with your coupon details.
Yes! Creating an account, searching for car washes, reading reviews, and claiming coupons is completely free for users.
Click the heart icon ♡ on any car wash listing to add it to your favorites. Access your saved favorites from your account dashboard anytime.
Yes! After visiting a car wash, you can leave a star rating and written review to help other users make informed decisions.
Each business profile includes contact information like phone number, website, and address. You can also get directions directly from the map.
Yes, we take privacy seriously. We use industry-standard encryption and security measures to protect your data. Read our Privacy Policy for details.
We collect only what's necessary: email, name, and location data (when you search). We never sell your personal information to third parties.
Can't find the answer you're looking for? We're here to help!