History of Caltex Car Washes

This page explores the history of Caltex Car Washes in New Zealand. Caltex has a very interesting and varies history of Car Washes, so this is going to be a very exciting adventure!

Currently, the Caltex New zealand brand is owned by Z Energy.

Currently, most Caltex's that operate car washes are those associated with the "Fix" brand that operates the retail stores, though this isn't the case for all Caltex Washes. The other brand still sometimes used by Caltex is "On the spot", though this generally doesn't affect the wash branding. Caltex used to partner with "star Mart", but these are now gone. A few sites are in operation that are not branded, with simple "Shop" signage used. There doesn't appear to be any relation between the store brand and what type of wash gets installed.

On the whole, Caltex wash number have actually been decreasing, as a number of site shave either closed or been transformed into Z Energy sites, with next to no new sites being built.

## Ryko UltraClean (1990's)

Like everyone, Caltex installed Ryko UltraClean 5-brush machines in the 1990's. These would've been installed with either plain-Red or Red & White brushes. However, some sites used second-hand brushes from Mobil (blue) to repair their machines. I also managed to find a photo online of the one in Porirua, taken in 1992! None of these are left at any Caltex nationwide.

## Ryko Premier XL (1990's)

Just as BP and Mobil did, Caltex switched to the newer Premier XL 5-brush machine in the late-90's. These were usually fitted with red brushes. Sites later used second-hand brushes from either Mobil (blue/red & blue) or BP (green) to repair their machines. None are left operating at any Caltex sites. Sites that were taken over by Challenge (Greymouth & Hokitika) have also now replaced theirs.

A rare example fitted with Red & black brushes.Looks like a Mobil wash, but is in fact a Caltex! This wash has now been replaced.
## Ryko Monarch II (1990's)

Caltex also installed a large number of Ryko Monarch II touch-free machines around the country. These were installed nationwide, mostly in bigger r, more populated regions, such as Auckland, Wellington, Palmerston North & Canterbury.

The last surviving example is found at a site in Invercargill, however - in a rare twist - this site actually has TWO wash bays. The other bay has been running newer Ryko Radius machines since 2010 or earlier, so I do not know if the Monarch II is still used.

## Mark VII Merchandiser (1990's-2000's)

A handful of Merchandiser (a variant of AquaJet series) touch-free's were installed around the country, but not many (mostly in Wellington and Canterbury). None of these are left (some were lost due to site closures, others were simply replaced).

## Istobal M10 Multiprogrammer (early 2000's)

This is an entry into the series of "oddball" car washes that a number of Caltex's in small towns ended up with. One site in Danniverke got an Istobal M10 Multiprogrammer with strange multi-coloured brushes. It was replaced sometime between 2009 and 2013.

## Washtec CK30 (early 2000's)

Caltex has installed three of these. Two of these are located in Auckland, both with two-tone blue striped brushes. Neither of these are original to their respective sites, so these are likely to be secondhand machines that have been refurbished. One of these two was replaced in 2022. The third was a site a small town, which was a machine installed new with white brushes. It was removed in 2017.

## PDQ Laser 4000 (2000's)

Caltex installed a number of PDQ Laser 4000 touch-free machines around the country. Quite a few of these have been replaced now, however. Most of these were installed in the Auckland, Hamilton and Wellington regions of the North Island, as well as a couple in Canterbury on the South Island.

## Unknown Car Wash (2000's)

This is another example of "oddball" car washes that you often find some Caltex's more rural locations. This Car Wash was located at a site in a small town called "Winton", just north of Invercargill at the bottom of the South Island. I cannot identify this machine. It was installed sometime before Google Streetview was a thing (so before 2008), but it was sadly removed in 2019. Whether a new machine will replace it or not is unknown.

## Ceccato Pegasus (late 2000's)

A couple of Caltex's in Auckland received Ceccato Pegasus machines with red brushes in the late 2000's. One of these has already been replaced.

The other machine was removed from it's original site in 2019, and re-located to another Caltex site not far from the original, to replace a Laser4000. It is unknown if the original station will recieve a new wash or be knocked down.

## Ryko Excel (late 2000's)

Caltex has had two Ryko Excel's. One with Yellow, Red & Black brushes was installed in Danniverke to replace the existing Istobal M10 sometime between 2009 and 2013. In 2018 it was replaced with a new Istobal M'Start.

The other was a secondhand unit with red brushes installed in Balclutha in 2013. In 2017 it was replaced with an Istobal M'Nex 22.

## PDQ Laserwash M5 (late 2000's)

Three Caltex sites in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch respectively received PDQ Laserwash M5 touch-free's. The original location of the Auckland M5, Upper Harbour, closed down and was demolished in 2018, however the M5 was safely transferred to another Auckland site and re-used there, where it remains to this day. More sites could have received M5's had it not been for the introduction of the new Laserwash 360 in 2011, and subsequent discontinuation of the M5 in 2013.

One of the Caltex sites with an M5, on Russley Rd in Christchurch, was sold to Z in 2020 and the machine was replaced in September 2021.

M5 at the former Caltex Upper Harbour, which closed in 2018, but the machine was re-used at another site.M5 at the former Caltex Upper Harbour, which closed in 2018, but the machine was re-used at another site.Machine from Upper Harbour was re-used at anohter Auckland site.
## Istobal M12+ (late 2000's)

Two Caltex's in the Canterbury Region (Riccarton and Rangiora) installed an Istobal M12+ with Red Brushes sometime between 2009 and 2012. The site in Rangiora became a Z in 2020.

## Ryko Radius (2009-2017)

Caltex also installed a large number of Ryko Radius touch-free machines around 2009. All of these can be found on the South Island, particularly in the southernmost areas of Queenstown, Invercargill and Dunedin, as well in areas at the top of the South Island, such as Nelson. I am yet to find any of these newer than 2017, and am assuming that Caltex has stopped purchasing these.

Sadly, the very first Radius, installed in Alexandra in 2009, became the first Radius at a Caltex to be replaced in early 2020, with a new PDQ Laserwash 360plus replacing it.

## PDQ Laserwash 360 (2012-2017)

Caltex installed a large number of PDQ Laserwash 360 touch-free's. These were mostly installed in the lower-half of the North Island (including Wellington, Palmerston North, Hawke's Bay and more). I have also found one or two of these in Canterbury, on the South Island. These were installed right up to 2017, when PDQ replaced the 360 with the new 360plus model.

## Washtec SoftCare Evo (2012)

Caltex has only installed One SoftCare Evo. It is located at Caltex Sylvia Park in Auckland and has Red & Green brushes. It was installed in 2012.

## Christ Centus (around 2012)

This is the only known Caltex to have a Christ Centus, located in Otorohanga on the North Island. It has Black & Red striped brushes. The site was redeveloped at the wash bay moved, but this machine survived. Sadly, this machine was replaced in 2019 with an unknown machine.

## Washtec SoftCare (2012-2015)

This is another type of Car Wash that Caltex installed many of. These are mostly found in the upper-half of the North Island, in places such as Auckland, Tauranga, Rotorua and the Far North. In addition, some areas in the South Island also received these, particularly in certain regions of Canterbury. These have all been installed fairly recently, but not for a few years. It is interesting how whilst the rest of NZ seemed to be getting touch-free's, Caltex seemed to prefer Brush-washes in the upper north.

Almost all of these were installed with two-tone blue brushes. However, there was one unit in Auckland (installed in 2012) which had Red & Dark Green striped brushes instead, this was originally installed in Grey Lynn, but was re-located to Western Springs when the Grey Lynn site closed down & was demolished in 2022.

## Washtec SoftCare2 Pro Classic (2015-Recent)

From 2015, Caltex installed the newer "2" Version of the Washtec Softcare. These new machines feature the new-style rotating dryer, which is what makes these machines different from the original SoftCare's.

## Washtec EasyWash (mid-2010's-Present)

Caltex installed two Washtec EasyWash machines at sites in the far north. The EasyWash is more basic machine, with less features than the SoftCare. These two machines were both fitted with blue striped brushes. One of the two Caltex's has since been taken over by BP, but the wash remains original. Caltex installed a third EasyWash with black brushes in Auckland in 2022.

Editied with enhanced colour & boosted contrast to better show machine
## Washtec SoftCare2 Pro Touchless (2015-Recent)

Sometime around 2015, Caltex began installing Washtec SoftCare2 Pro Touchless systems. These are not actually "Touchless" as the name might suggest. Instead, they are combination washes capable of Brush, Touchless or Combination wash packages. All of these were installed with two-tone blue brushes. I'm not sure if Caltex still installs these, since more recently they have bee mostly installing Istobal Car Washes.

These are found in the North Island in places such as Hawera, Whangarei and Auckland, and also two in the South Island in Timaru and Ashburton.

## Istobal M'Start (2015-Present)

Three Caltex Sites first received Istobal M'Start's with Red & Black striped brushes from 2015-2017. All of these are in the North Island, with two of these are in Auckland and one in Danniverke.

In 2020, Caltex Springs Road (Auckland) became the fourth Caltex to Operate an Istobal M'Start. This one is different to the other three, for it has a white and red frame (as opposed to silver) and the brushes appear to be red & grey, (rather than red and black). In 2023, Caltex Cavendish became the fifth caltex to gain an M'Start, using the same design as Springs Road.

## Istobal M'Nex 22 (2015-Present)

Caltex's main machine for the last few years has been the Istobal M'Nex 22. Earlier machines had plain red brushes, and new machines have Red & Black striped brushes. You'll find most of these in the upper North island, particularly Auckland, though there is also one located at a site in Paraparaumu, Wellington, which was installed in 2017 (the first M'Nex 22 in Wellington, and currently to only Caltex in the region to have a brush-wash).

In 2017, one was installed in Balclutha with Orange, Red & Green brushes, which are actually the brush colours for 7Eleven in Australia (who do not operate in NZ). This is the only Caltex (thus far) on the South Island with an M'Nex 22, the rest are in the North Island.

## Istobal M'Nex 25 (2015-Present)

In addition to the M'Nex 22, a select very few sites have had two-carriage Istobal M'Nex 25's installed. The first two machines, installed in 2015 are fitted with dark blue brushes. One of these is located in Auckland, the other is in Napier. The next two machines were fitted with plain red brushes, and were both installed in Auckland. The fifth was also installed in Auckland, featuring a grey frame and black & red striped brushes.

The site in Auckland with the blue-brushed M'Nex 25 was taken over by Mobil in 2021.

## Washworld High-Velocity (around 2016)

There is only one Caltex (in Auckland) to have one of these touch-free machines. It was installed sometime between 2015 and 2017. It is the only petrol station in NZ to have one (though others exist at private car wash sites). The High Velocity was succeeded by the Razor some years ago, so this is probably a secondhand machine. This wash was demolished in 2022 to make way for a private car wash facility.

## Mark VII TurboJet XT L-Arm (2017-Present)

One site in Christchurch has had one of these new TurboJet XT Touch-free machines installed in 2017.

## PDQ Laserwash 360plus (2018-Present)

The 360plus is an updated version of the original 360. This new machine features overhead lights, and has four dryers, as opposed to only three on the original. All of Caltex's 360plus machines feature the LaserGlow coloured lighting on them. an example installed in Upper Hutt, Wellington in 2022 also features the swing-air drying system.

One of these was removed in January 2021, when Caltex Basin Reserve closed down. However, we believe that the machine may have been re-used elsewhere.

## Christ Sirius (2019)

This Christ Sirius with black brushes was installed in July 2019 at Caltex Otorohanga, as a replacement for the Christ Centus. It is interesting that the only Caltex to have had a Christ car wash replaced it with another Christ machine.

The brushes are light & dark grey stripes.

## Istobal Tracer (2021) - (now Z Energy)

Caltex installed their first Istobal Tracer Touchless system at their Rimutaka site in Wellington in July 2021. This Caltex transitioned to a Z Energy station in 2022. The whole site is operated directly by Z Energy (who own the Caltex brand in NZ), and it was Z who chose and installed this car wash.