Thunder Brothers
Car Wash Services
Our car wash services run from a hand wash and vacuum through to a machine buff, a full valet or a deep interior clean. Every one of them is done by hand, at 47 branches across South Africa, and not one of them needs a booking.
Drive in, tell the team what the car needs, and get on with your shopping while the work happens. Most branches sit inside or alongside a shopping centre for exactly that reason.
The full list
Every car wash service we run
Anything on this list can be taken on its own or added to a wash package. If you are not sure what the car needs, ask at the branch and the team will tell you straight.
Hand wash and dry
The classic get it gleaming clean. Washed by hand, dried by hand, with the mags cleaned properly rather than rinsed and the tyres dressed at the end.
Interior vacuum and wipe down
Carpets and seats vacuumed, plastics wiped, glass done last so it stays clear. Part of every package, from the Usual upwards.
Hand polish
For when the car deserves a little extra. Polish applied by hand lifts stubborn grime and light scratches, and leaves a deep shine and a smooth finish.
High definition wax
Premium wax that shields the paint from rain, dust, sun and bird mess. Water beads and slides straight off instead of drying into spots.
Machine buff
The full glow up. Faded paint, swirl marks and age spots cut back by machine. The before and after on a sun beaten bonnet is the one that surprises people.
Claybar
Pulls the bonded grit out of the clear coat that washing alone leaves behind. Run it before a polish or a wax and both work better.
Full valet
Not just a clean. Deep cleaned inside and out, seats and carpets shampooed, leather treated and the roof lining done. Covered in detail on our car valet page.
Odour removal
A wild night out, a spilt coffee or a mystery in the back seat. We go after the smell at the source rather than covering it. Ride share drivers, this one is for you.
Undercarriage and chassis clean
Caked on mud in the places you cannot reach. A proper clean underneath for cars that have been on gravel, a farm road or a beach.
Headlight restoration
Cloudy, yellowed headlights cut back to clear. The car looks younger and, more to the point, you see further at night.
Engine clean
A clean engine bay is not only about looks. The gunk and grease come off, which makes a leak or a worn belt far easier to spot.
Leather care
A dedicated treatment for leather seats and trim, so they are cleaned and fed rather than just wiped over and left to dry out.
By hand, every time
No rollers, no brushes, no scratches
There is no automatic tunnel at a Thunder Brothers branch. Every car is washed by people, which is slower than a machine and a great deal kinder to paint. Spinning brushes are what put swirl marks into a clear coat in the first place.
It also means the work can be matched to the car in front of us. A bakkie back from a farm road, a black car that shows every mark, a family car with three years of biscuit crumbs in the seat rails: none of those want the same treatment, and none of them get it.
The same hands do the engine bays, the wheels and the interiors. The team at each branch does this all day, every day.
No booking, no deposit
What happens when you arrive
- 1
Drive in
No appointment and no waiting list. Arrive when it suits you and the team takes the car from there.
- 2
Pick a package
Choose a wash, then add anything from the list above. The team will say if a wash will do and an upgrade is not worth the money.
- 3
Go and do your thing
Nearly every branch sits at a shopping centre. Do the groceries, have a coffee, run the errand you came for.
- 4
Collect and pay
Come back to a finished car and settle up at the branch. Card and cash both work.
Packages
What each wash package includes
Prices move a little between branches, so these are the ranges across the network. Your branch page carries its own exact figures.
| Package | What you get | Price range |
|---|---|---|
| Usual | Hand wash and dry, interior vacuum, tyre shine, mag clean | R 140 to R 260 |
| Superior | Usual wash, silicone on the arches, engine clean, more time on the car | R 240 to R 360 |
| Duck's Back | Usual wash, high definition wax, leather treatment | R 400 to R 600 |
| Special | Usual wash, hand polish, leather treatment | R 400 to R 600 |
| Royal Treatment | Exterior wash with a full interior deep clean of roof, carpets and seats | R 700 to R 1200 |
Add-ons can go onto any package: polish R 250, wax R 300, machine buff from R 400, claybar from R 500, leather care R 200, chassis clean R 150, engine clean from R 150, headlight restoration R 500, seats only R 500, carpets only from R 350, baby seats R 150, roof lining R 300. The full Thunder Brothers price list has every figure.
While you are there
The other things your branch can do
A wash is not the only reason to pull in. Most branches carry more than one of these, and it is worth asking when you drop the car.
Willard battery fitment
Ten branches test your battery and fit a new Willard on the spot while the car is being washed. Details on the battery fitment page.
Car detailing
Paint correction, interior deep cleans and protection, above what a wash covers. See the car detailing page.
Full car valet
The whole car taken apart and cleaned properly, inside and out. See the car valet page.
Mobile car wash
Cannot get to a branch? In parts of Cape Town and Bloemfontein we come to you, with our own water and power. See the mobile car wash page.
47 branches, no bookings
Find your nearest branch
Thunder Brothers runs branches across the Western Cape, Gauteng, the Free State and Limpopo, and every one of them offers the full range of car wash services on this page. Pick the closest branch for its address, opening hours and its own prices, then drive in whenever it suits you.