News Photo by Steve Schulwitz A vehicle goes through the Ripley Car Wash in Alpena this week.

ALPENA –The Ripley Car Wash era in Alpena is over.

That’s how owner Wayne Kowalski put it when he talked about the sweeping changes taking place at the popular wash over the next month.

The car wash will close on Monday for renovations to begin.

Changes in automobile technology and safety concerns mean express vacuuming, towel drying, and interior cleaning are no longer feasible, Kowalski said, so the car wash will no longer offer those services. Kowalski said he’d offer a state-of-the-art vacuum outside for customers.

Once the remodel is complete, the business will be an exterior car wash, similar to State Street Car Wash, in which customers remain in their cars. Previously, vehicles were pulled down a track without the driver.

Kowalski said customers can still expect the friendly service it has since he purchased the full-service car wash in the 1980s.

The Custom Shop, which is connected to the wash and does interior and exterior detail work, will remain unchanged and stay open while the car wash is closed.

Once the car wash reopens, it will offer new services with new equipment, and will have a new name, which Kowalski wasn’t ready to announce, yet.

“We are going to redo the whole wash system, tear everything out, bust out the floors, put in a longer pit, and add a bunch of new equipment,” Kowalski said. “It will be the newest, latest, greatest car wash equipment that is available.”

The primary reason for the overhaul, Kowalski said, is safety. Modern vehicles don’t work well with driverless wash systems, creating the potential for customers, employees, or bystanders to get hurt.

“We’ve had some close calls in the past,” Kowalski said. “Today’s vehicles are also more complex, and somebody needs to be in a lot of them when they go down the track, and that is going to continue to grow. It’s too bad. We’ve been doing full service since 1985. It has been a tough decision for all of us, but one I think needed to be made.”

Kowalski said that, because customers will not exit their cars and money will be collected as they pull into the entrance, the car wash’s lobby will also change.

Greeting cards and other products will be removed.

“It is all going to be a big change, and I hope the customer will appreciate what we are going to be doing,” he said. “It will be quicker, comfortable for the customer, and safer. I don’t want to see anyone get hurt.”

Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 at sschulwitz@thealpenanews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ss_alpenanews.com.