A local car wash, run by locals.
Four Hampton Roads locations, one family, no shareholders. We're Cool Wave — built here, run here, reinvested here.
- Founded
- 2008
- Locations
- 4 (Virginia Beach · Newport News · Poquoson · Smithfield)
- Ownership
- Family-owned, independent
- Service area
- Hampton Roads / 757 corridor
Our story.
Cool Wave started in 2008 with a single self-serve location in Hampton Roads. The idea was simple: most local car washes were either expensive, slow, or rough on your car. We thought we could do all three better — faster, cheaper, and gentler on the paint.
Over the next 15+ years we've grown to four locations across the 757: Indian River in Virginia Beach, Warwick in Newport News, and sites in Poquoson and Smithfield. Indian River became our flagship when we built the Express Tunnel — a soft-cloth conveyor wash that runs a full clean in under three minutes. That's the location where we launched the Cool Wave Unlimited Club, where you can wash every day for $19.99/mo.
The other three locations keep the same philosophy with different equipment. Touch Free automatic bays — no brushes, no cloth contact. Self-serve bays with our pressure wands, foam, and spot-free rinse. Different tools, same promise: fast, honest, and easy on your car.
What we stand for.
Fair pricing
Same prices online, in the app, and at the tunnel. No surprise upsells, no "deluxe" markup buried three clicks deep.
Gentle on your car
Soft-cloth Express Tunnel. Touch Free bays where brushes don't touch paint. Safe for ceramic coatings and custom finishes.
Local reinvestment
Revenue stays in Hampton Roads. New equipment, better lighting, more vacuum stations, and hiring locally.
Cancel anything in a minute
Unlimited Club cancels online, no phone-tree, no retention script. We'd rather earn it back than trap you.
Transparent memberships
What you pay is what's on the page. No contracts, no hidden fees, no annual renewal locking.
Fast
Three-minute Express Tunnel at Indian River. Member lane for Unlimited Club. Touch Free bays that don't back up.
Hampton Roads first.
We sponsor local schools, sports leagues, and community fundraisers. When hurricanes hit the 757, we've donated free washes to first responders and helped with storm cleanup. We hire locally — every Cool Wave attendant, manager, and mechanic lives in the area we serve. When you spend money here, it doesn't leave.
Want to partner on a school, sports, or community fundraiser? Reach out through our Contact page and we'll get back to you.
Try us out — on us.
Your first wash at Indian River is free. No card, no strings. We'd rather show you than tell you.