This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Hannah Ingram, a 23-year-old car wash owner based in Tennessee. It has been edited for length and clarity. In high school, I read a book by ...

When most people think of a car wash, they tend to think of an exterior-conveyor wash. These are the washes that put cars on a motorized track and drag them through a tunnel where they are rinsed ...