Strictly by Hand

Forget the naysayers here including the guy complaining about clutch abuse; you can’t hurt the clutch at low speeds unless you either have the brake on or deliberately try to rev the engine and not move the car with skill for an extended period! I have used these people for years and they put out a reliable and reasonably priced product. If there is a line, it is telling you that you should come when it is less crowded and cheaper – early! I feel for Ziggy having to contend with some of these mopes.

This place is so expensive and they did a bad job cleaning my car, they didn’t vacuumed the inside and I paid $ 20 plus tip to get the full service. I’ve bee to other places you pay $ 15 and they do a nice job. I was expecting them to do a good job since I was paying more money for the wash. I pulled the car out and I see the car still dirty inside.

These guys generally do a good job on the cleaning job itself, at a good value.
But it’s really tough coming from the Los Angeles car wash culture to these Chicago care care places. The waits are horrendously long. They wash cars serially, rather than out west where teams do them in parallel, so it is common to sit here for 30 min or so for a basic wash.
And my latest wash the guy didn’t know how to drive a stick and, hearing a bunch of noise in the garage, went out there to check on progress (which was nil) and noticed him over-​revving, bucking and stalling the car out. There goes the rest of my clutch!!!
I don’t see any good management oversight going on here. Granted, it may rain today but the place is full of cars.
They also don’t tend to follow instructions and requests.
I would come here with a normal car that perhaps I don’t care too much about, but you should think twice about bringing anything nice here, especially any vehicle with manual trans.

They they did a great job the car looks wonderful it took about 10 to 12 minutes. I got a great deal on Groupon for three carwashes that expires in February, so I’ll be using them all up by then and it was a really good deal. One tip, air freshener was a bit strong for my taste, maybe tell them to go light on your car.

I’ve been a customer for a few years now. The lines can get long-​but they always do a wonderful job consistently. My car is a mess with children and crumbs-​and the inside is spotless when they finish cleaning. I’m not giving 5 stars only because they apparently don’t give the Early Bird discount on «holidays»?! Not good. Keep your customers happy and take the small loss on holidays.

I heard hand car washes are better so I decided to drop by & get car washed. They did a good job. It didn’t take more then 10min. Multiple ppl doing different areas. wed is ladies day $ 3 off.

Go early on a Saturday if you’re interested in a sub-​par car wash. The people cleaning the car seldom stopped to look at what they were doing. The staff was distracted and slightly rude. Doubt I’ll be going back.

I always look forward to getting my car washed at Strictly by Hand. I found out about them years ago by getting a Groupon. Boy was I impressed! There are several men working hard to clean the inside and outside of your car. I get the Supreme wash and when they are done, my car is GLEAMING! And smells so good with the air freshner they use. The only small thing I would ask that they improve is having someone at the cashier booth. Everytime I come there I have to ask for someone to come to the booth so I can pay and that shouldn’t be. Otherwise, a good run business that I will continue to patronize.

Decent service had a bad experience recently

Don’t listen to nay sayers! The crew at Strictly by Hand does a top notch job. Thorough hand wash inside and out, with great attention to detail. And with the Groupon deal that’s on right now — it’s a no brainer. I look forward to take my car back in a month.

I am extremely offended and upset with the service I received at this incompetent car wash. I went back to speak with the manager because my car looked like it was never touched with soap and water. The manager was rude and I had to wait in a hour long line for a service that should have been done correctly the first time.
I called the owner and left a message to complain about the manager. Today I received FIVE rude, insulting and distributing calls from the owner or owner assistant. He insulted my friend and myself. I have never seen or heard anything as rude and insulting from upper management. I will be filing a complaint, calling BBB, immigration as well as contacting blogs and media resources. I will make sure this will NEVER happen to a paying customer AGAIN!
Stay away from that place especially African American I highly believe that’s why he felt so compelled to insult me.

I love this place! The service is inexpensive & of high quality. I usually get my car washed Saturday mornings when they open at 7am. There’s absolutely NO wait.
I’m very particular about my car and his hygiene. My eye can spot every inch of dirt in every nook & cranny. The employees take time to listen to detail, they’re friendly, & always do an outstanding job.
Overall, I wouldn’t get my car washed anywhere else. Strictly by Hand is the bee’s knees!

Don’t understand those bad reviews. Been coming here for eight years and never had a problem nor heard a complaint.

We live in the south loop and this is our go to place. They are fast and do a good job. They are friendly and the car always looks great.

I’m anal-​retentive when it comes to my cars. I only hand wash my own vehicles and I never let them go near the clear-​coat destruction provided by automatic washes. That being said I can’t be washing my car in the dead of winter when I’m in the city, so a few years ago I tried out Strictly-​By-​Hand as it’s 1 block from our condo in the city.
Considering most touchless gas station washes are $ 5 with fuel purchase and these do not get all the dirt off the car then $ 11 for an exterior hand wash is a pretty good deal. Even better, head there before 10:30AM Mon-​Thur for $ 4 off with the Early Bird special. That’s $ 7. I can’t even get a beer at that fancy new bar in South Loop for $ 7.
(Note that this review is from when I used their service often, up until the winter of 2012 when I moved away from the South Loop; it sounds like they may have unfortunately gone down-​hill since then)

ZIGGY– I don’t believe I owe you a response. All you mentioned in your private message to me was «there is always a manager on duty should you feel the need to make something right». TRUE. I don’t disagree but EVERY SINGLE TIME I go there you guys screw up the wash. NO — I will NOT continue to go back there and seek a manager just to have my car done the way it SHOULD BE.
Afterall, if we pay your business to wash the car, you should be responsible for overseeing that your employees are honest (don’t steal change and personal items) AND that they do what they’re supposed to do (not standing around waiting for the end of the day while we watch them through the window). Also, what’s up with that power washer kid and his bag of dorittos?! Last but not least, if we can do a better job washing the car ourselves, why do we need you? Convenience or more headaches? You have had plenty of chances and my money. I don’t see how this seeking your manager every time will HELP ME. Plus, I don’t want my car getting scratched up either. NO THANK YOU! Many of us are done here.
Also, too bad there are people like me that you claim, «BASH» businesses while providing «inaccurate» and «untruthful» reviews. Boo-​hoo! If it were «untruthful» I would still have the money your employees stole and if it were «inaccurate» my follow up here today will clarify this!
It’s people like me that stand up for consumers to make them aware of business owners like you that do not stand behind your service/​product. And I DO STAND BEHIND MY COMMENT that MANY of your new hires are LAZY & DISHONEST. I’m sure you’ve read what others have to say about your business that are aligned with my experience.
SO, GET OVER YOURSELF!

Great job on my car. I was not expecting the Attention to detail in getting my car dry. Will definitely repeat and highly recommend!

Simply the best!

TERRIBLE EXPERIENCE! I got the Supreme Car Wash, which is supposed to inlude exterior wash and wash, clearing of all interior glass, vacuum of interior and truck, twipe down interior, and wipe down all door and trunk jambs. The outside looked nice, but the inside of my car looked like it hadn’t been touched. There was dust all over the console. Nothing had been wiped down. I asked the man, who I later found out was the owner if the package I got included wiping down the inside. He said that if I wanted it fully wiped down, I would need to schedule an appointment for a detail. He told me that I needed to move my car out of the place because I was blocking other customers instead of coming to look at my concerns.
Once I drove my car out, I noticed that the car hadn’t been vacuumed either. I called immediately and asked what all was included in the Supreme package. Whoever answered the phone listed everything that I thought that I purchased. I let him know that I hadn’t received all the services. Once I came back, one of the workers met me outside to take a look at what I was talking about. He agreed that the inside hadn’t been cleaned. Before I could get in to wait for the service to be complete, the owner came out yelling, «It’s only supposed to be a wipe down. Get back in here! (referring to the worker assisting me) .»
The owner then yelled at me, «Didn’t I tell you that if you wanted it all wiped down, you needed to schedule a detail.» I let him know that the worker told me that it hadn’t been done. He said that if I wanted to get the interior done, I would have to get back in line (which was an hour long). I let him know that I had gotten similar packages at other car washes and that my interior was completely clean. He responded, «different car washes do different things.» I then asked, «So your car wash is okay with subpar service?» At this point, I asked him if I could just have a refund. He yelled, «No, we did our job! I’m done with the conversation! «He then walked away. I left at this point.
I’ve never felt so disrespected when leaving a business, especially after speaking with the owner. I had purchased a package of 3 car washes. I would rather lose the money than return.

What happened, Strictly? You guys were so good at what you do. But now, I find myself hesitant to go there for a car wash so much so I wait for my trip to the burbs to get it cleaned. They used to take their time taking care of the little things that made them standout against all the other car washes like using a sponge to clean the headlights, and cleaning the exhaust tips to bring out the shine. But now, the kid cleaning my car is too busy drinking his bottle of Pepsi from his back butt pocket between wipes and eating his bag of Cheetos he so meticulously twists the bag in his hoodie sweater. Seriously? Do you not get a lunch break? Sometimes, you can see parts of the car where they didn’t even wipe. The interior is seldom wiped down. The windows as well. One time, they forgot to put tire dressing on the passenger side! Do you know how annoying it is to see half your tires shine, while the other half doesn’t?
On another note, State St car wash has been doing a way better job as of late!