so, what CAN you do with a car wash token?

[edible_hat]

Had the first SC of my new job today. The scene is that we have a carwash setup consisting of one automatic bay and three do it yourself bays, two of which are big enough for trucks. And what with us being on one of the main roads into town, we get a lot of truckers. The DIY bays have coinboxes that take $1 coins or tokens (which sell for $1 each, and give you the same amount of washing time as a $1 coin).

So this morning a trucker came in and got $20 of tokens on a credit card. About 45 minutes later his wife or whoever she was came back in to buy some food and drinks, and demanded that I take back the one token they had left and give her $1. Which was fine by me, the boss did it yesterday and told me it's OK even though the tokens have "NO CASH VALUE" stamped on them.

The sucky part is that the SC came in prepared for a fight. First thing she did was shout "GIVE ME A DOLLAR FOR THIS, WHAT CAN I BUY WITH A CAR WASH TOKEN?" started asking what the problem is but couldn't get a word out before WE HAD THIS LEFT OVER, HE BOUGHT TO MANY, NOW WE'VE GOT THIS THAT WE CAN'T USE!"

The fun part is that the cash she had on her was $1.60 short for the food and drinks she wanted to buy, after the refund she still had to go back to the truck to get the extra.

Most truckers keep the leftover car wash tokens until the next time the truck needs washing - they work in all DIY car washes made by a particular company!

[Gurndigarn]

Do you know just how many car wash tokens end up in innocent, unsuspecting arcade games? It's a shame, really.

[sarahj]

I have approximately $5 in various arcade tokens. All from Bowl America & Chuck E Cheese. Maybe one day I'll go back for a visit and have myself a pinball-filled time.

Oh, and I have a few tokens that simply say "no cash value," that I probably found in the bottom of a pool or something. I find lots of coins in the bottom of pools. Maybe I have one of your car wash tokens? lol.

Wait, $1 coins, you're not in America. Canada? I probably have some tokens from there too.

[Andara Bledin]

Since the car was tokens work the same as dollar coins, and dollar coins work the same as car wash tokens, why on earth would someone who didn't know how many tokens they'd need not just get dollar coins instead?

...

Oh, right... if it makes sense, it's not allowed.

^-.-^

[edible_hat]

Wait, $1 coins, you're not in America. Canada? I probably have some tokens from there too.

Australia. In 1984 $1 coins were brought in to replace $1 notes, $2 coins followed in 1988.

why on earth would someone who didn't know how many tokens they'd need not just get dollar coins instead?

You're sort of right, if people are paying with cash we just change their notes for $1 coins from the till, if by credit card we're supposed to give them tokens.


Another good one today... someone wanted to know why tokens twice the size of ours and from another company "don't fit in the coin slot on the car wash".

[Geek King]

Wait, $1 coins, you're not in America. Canada? I probably have some tokens from there too.

Um...we have dollar coins here in the US, they're just not too popular since the government still insists on making new dollar bills as well. Any bank should be able to get you a roll.

[Ljt09863]

there have beena couple $1 coins in america. the Sacagawea and the Presidental(the ones just released) are both $1 coins in america. There have been others though, but these two are the ones in circulation.

[Brightglaive]

Wait, $1 coins, you're not in America. Canada? I probably have some tokens from there too.

Whaddya mean, not in America?!? America has had one dollar coins for a LONG time. Silver dollars were originally made of ...gasp... silver.

Seriously speaking though, the USA has the Susan B. Anthony dollars, Sacagawea dollars (gold looking things) and the 4 new presidents dollars (same color as Saca-dollars just with dead presidents on them instead and "In God we trust" stamped along the edge) The older larger nickel and silver dollars are now mostly gone except for coin shops.

The newer SBA, Saca and DP dollars are gaining a lot of popularity in vending machines and car washes in the U.S. AND they are widely available and HUGELY popular in Las Vegas. Go figure!!

I've long been a fan of the US $2 bill but I'm still waiting for a US $2 coin though.

Point-of-fact: In Canada the $1 coin has a common loon on the reverse thus giving it it's nickname, the loonie. The $2 coin by association is called a "toonie".

This just serves to prove that Canadian money is looney tunes!!!

[Sliceanddice]

Um...we have dollar coins here in the US, they're just not too popular since the government still insists on making new dollar bills as well. Any bank should be able to get you a roll.

saquguia, george washington, john adams, thomas jefferson, and susan b anthony.
All the people who are imprinted on the american dollar coins.
though susan is an older version.

but thomas jefferson is creepy...


oh james madison... i havent had one of them yet....

[edible_hat]

Now I'm glad I didn't mention the plastic notes we have over here.

[Namrepus221]

Now I'm glad I didn't mention the plastic notes we have over here.

You'd be suprised how many people dont' believe that money can be plastic (god knows I knew someone in an economics class that knew a ton of them)

Or that such a thing as a $2, $500, $1,000, $10,000, or $100,000 US bills...

But they exist

[edible_hat]

Some people around here don't believe in paper money. Or in the special experimental plastic $10 note (same size but a completely different design) that was released in 1988, well before the current design.

[sarahj]

Sorry, I have a few silver dollars myself. But I didn't spend them, I kept them, as I am a collector of everyday coins from other countries. I have like $5 in pennies from when I lived over there. lol. And I didn't think silver dollars were used much.

I'm in Australia too, but the car washes in my area take $1 or $2 coins. No tokens.

Next time I'll think before I post!

[Hon'ya-chan]

there have beena couple $1 coins in america. the Sacagawea and the Presidental(the ones just released) are both $1 coins in america. There have been others though, but these two are the ones in circulation.

Legally speaking, I could spend a Trade Dollar because the USA hasn't "demonitized" it yet.

Acceptance by the receiver is another matter entirely.

[Hon'ya-chan]

Whaddya mean, not in America?!? America has had one dollar coins for a LONG time. Silver dollars were originally made of ...gasp... silver.

We also had gold dollars.