The staff at Checkered Flag hand-washes cars with care, but that doesn't mean customers endure long waits. Thanks to efficiency measures implemented eight years ago, the locally owned and operated business can get a chassis glittering in just 10 minutes. "We don't compromise the quality," Manager Chuck Morris told the Orange County Register, which named Checkered Flag one of the best car washes in the county in 2012. "Our teams on the dry-off work hard to do a quality job of cleaning your car inside and out in a timely manner."

To make the short wait feel even briefer, Checkered Flag pampers guests with perks such as complimentary Wi-Fi, espresso drinks, and gourmet coffee. Inside an attached boutique, they can browse high-end gift items or admire the racecar in which Kevin Cogan zoomed to second place at the Indianapolis 500 in 1986.