Our 25th Year of Serving the Fast Oil Change Industrywww.noln.net

November 2010 n Five Dollars

Best Looking Lube!The Lube Center Wins

Our Annual Contest

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z First Place: the lube center/auto spa in Gambrills, MD z

2010 Best looking lube contest

Many aspects of this Maryland shop caught the attention of our judges, enough so to be named the best looking lube

for 2010.“I love the white pillars; they make it look like a plantation,”

one judge said. Our judges loved the shop’s many water features that included

fountains, fish ponds and a stream. “The outdoor fountain is a treat for customers,” one judge

gushed.Perhaps one of the most fabulous aspects of this shop is its

landscaping. Hundreds of flowers in nearly every color of the rainbow adorn almost every corner of the facility, a perfect ac-cent to the facility’s aquatic features and a feature that brightens up the lube bays inside and out (there are potted plants hanging from the ceiling in the bay area).

The facility’s waiting room is definitely unique. “The beautiful mural covers wall-to-wall,” one judge said. “I

almost thought that ship was really sticking out of the wall.”The waiting room has a decided nautical theme, complete

with lights that look like they belong on a ship and an aquarium full of beautiful fish.

As expected with any best looking lube, the shop’s bays were spiffy and organized.

Overall, the judges agreed upon the facility’s impressiveness.

“It’s beautiful, clean, modern and feels like a spa, actually,” one of the female judges wrote.

Other comments included:“There are too many neat touches to list.”“A beautiful facility with wonderful aesthetics — fountains,

flowers, calming streams, outdoor white benches amongst floral arrays on rock surfaces, and a gorgeous mural in the waiting area.”

“Simply beautiful facility.”Part of the Maryland-based The Lube Center chain of fast

lubes, this shop is located in Gambrills, a small town just a stone’s throw from the banks of the Chesapeake.

Of course, we didn’t stop there in our judging. Turn the page to see the results from our 12th annual Best Looking Lube Con-test.

About the Best Looking Lube Contest: Every year an editorial panel of judges pores through hundreds of photographs from liter-ally dozens of entries. Judging is based on a point system (i.e. 10 points for a first-place vote, nine for a second, etc.), and judges are directed to rate a facility based on its outward appearance, wait-ing area, bay area, landscaping, cleanliness, any “neat touches” they find and overall appearance.

This entry can be summed up in just one word: cute.

“It’s beautiful,” one judge said. “So green and pretty. I love the brick of the building and the gorgeous green landscape with the trees behind it.”

If the designers of this facility were going for a homey feel, they nailed it.

“It looks like a cute little house inside and out,” exclaimed one judge. “Plus, the wait-ing room looks like it could be a little tyke’s bedroom.”

One judge wrote, “Honey, I’m home...oh, wait!”

“Wow! I love the house/fast lube con-

cept,” said yet another. “I bet the customers feel right at home.”

The waiting room caught the eye of sev-eral of our judges.

“I like the bright colors inside the tiny waiting area,” one said. “I also like the pop-corn maker, aquarium and gumball ma-chine.”

“Very unique colors for an oil change fa-cility,” another said. “The bright orange in-side really grabs you.”

One judge might have summed up the facility in a way few could when he said, “It looks like an old country schoolhouse.”

z seconD Place: Valvoline express care in Madison, oH z

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A few words come to mind with this facility: beautiful, clean, posh.

“This facility has a beautiful waiting room, reception area and bathroom; as well as a clean, polished exterior; and a nice, orga-nized and spacious bay area,” one judge said.

“It’s ultra luxurious,” said another judge. “The tile inlays, leather chairs and granite work all add to it. A very nice facility.”

The detailed tile work is one of the features most commented on by the judging panel.

“I love the tile work, and the flat screen TV looks like it’s in a photo frame.”

“The beverage area and restroom are beautifully done with tile and marble,” said one judge who also loved the cushy black chairs in the waiting room and the use of pleasing plants throughout the facility.

Any customer would be happy to wait in such a posh waiting area, and there were plenty of the judge’s comments that echoed that sentiment:

“The countertop in the waiting area is beautiful, and I like the color scheme that’s used throughout the interior.”

“The neat, clean bathroom is very nice. I like the indoor plants and the wrap-around desk.”

“It looks more like a doctor’s office or a beauty salon than an au-tomotive facility.”

“Very nice coffee station, and the waiting room feels very hom-ey.”

The exterior is sure to catch attention from the street with its two-

tone brickwork, along with a large LED sign. Did you notice a spe-cial exterior touch that one of our judges did?

“You can tell this is a Texas Kwik Kar by their use of stars in the corners,” she said.

z tHirD Place: Kwik Kar in spring, tX z

Being in California, it should be no sur-prise this facility’s landscaping is impres-sive, and there’s an outdoor waiting area to enjoy sunny days.

“I love the outside cabana look with all the flowers and nice patio furniture,” one judge said. “I also love the roses and the stucco building.”

“It’s a cute little facility,” another judge said.”

“I love the waiting area outside with cute tables, flowers, greenery and ivy,” one fe-male judge said.

If the outdoor waiting area wasn’t enough, there’s a cute gift shop inside (and one judge pointed out it probably encourages custom-ers to use the lube shop).

“I like the fact the indoor waiting room has shopping,” said another.

This facility’s landscaping is amazing. There are flowers and greenery everywhere you look.

Froggy’s is not only fantastic to look at — it has a fantastic story behind the name.

The facility is located in the “Gold Coun-try” of California. Mark Twain lived in An-gels Camp when he wrote the story “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County.” Frogs have been honored ever since, and the business received an appro-priate name.

“I could see Mark Twain getting his oil changed here,” one judge exclaimed!

If the name wasn’t enough, the signage sports clever sayings like “hop on in,” one judge noticed.

Throughout the many years of the Best Looking Lube contest, no entry has trav-eled as far to enter as this one has: Gulf Ex-press in Saudi Arabia. The shop has unique features our judges noticed.

“I like the architectural details and brick accents,” one judge said.

“I love the architecture,” said another. “It’s very bold and daring.”

“This place is huge!” exclaimed yet another.One unique aspect that impressed judges

is the waiting room.“I love how the luxurious waiting area

looks out into the bays,” said one judge.“Nice waiting room,” said another. “Those

chairs are begging me to sit in them.”As for the bay area, one judge said this:“Those have to be the cleanest bays

ever!”That same judge also said, “I love the tile

lining the walls of the pit.”“I like the tile on the bay floors,” said an-

other.One judge summed up the bay area like

this: “Very modern and impressive.”

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z HonoraBle Mention: Froggy’s auto Wash & lube in angels camp, ca z

z HonoraBle Mention: Gulf express in Jeddah, saudi arabia z

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z thanks to everyone who entered this year’s Best looking lube contest z

z american lube expressauburndale, Fl z Mobil 1 lube express

everett, Wa

z the lube centerFrederick, MD

z Kwik KarHudson oaks, tX

z texas express lube & autoluling, tX

z oil can Henry’sBelfair, Wa

z the lube centerGermantown, MD

z the lube centerYork, Pa

z the lube centerGermantown, MD

z Mystik service centerJasper, il

z Kwik KarMcKinney, tX

z Valvoline express careoakdale, ca

z citGo Fast lubeFuquay-Varina, nc

z oil can Henry’s sumner, Wa

z the lube center laurel, MD

z speeDee oil change/MidasPicayune, Ms

z castrol Premium lube express Griffin, Ga

z lube MasterUmatilla, Fl

z the lube centerGaithersburg, MD

z Grease MonkeyKernersville, nc

z Valvoline express careBaton rouge, la

z Kwik KarGeorgetown, tX

z Valvoline instant oil changeriverbank, ca z Grease Monkey

canonsburg, Paz expressway car care

Granbury, tX

z Kwik KarMansfield, tX

z carwash West/castrol Premium lube expressWest Monroe, la

z Jiffy lube 3288Grand Prairie, tX

z Pro-stoplombard, il

z Valvoline instant oil changeWalker, Mi

z the lube center Frederick, MD

z the lube centernew Freedom, Pa

z the lube centercolumbia, MD

z Quick lube Pluscalgary, alberta

z others considered z

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This year’s landscaping was some of the best we’ve ever seen, which means judging it was no easy feat.

With oodles of flowers, vines and plants, Froggy’s Auto Wash & Lube stole the top honors. A central flower bed with fountains and figurines was several judges’ favorite. Beautiful roses line the walkway, and ivy adds shade and color to the great outdoor seating area.

“I love the roses,” one judge said. “They are just beautiful.”

“Great landscaping, especially the vines covering the cafe-like outdoor waiting area,” said another.

“I just love all the frogs,” said one judge. “It’s such a cute idea having frog statues and fountains as decorations.”

Other facilities our judges liked (below) had beautifully manicured lawns and flow-ers that color-coordinated with the shop’s motif; native trees and shrubs that outline a shop’s entire street side; and plentiful flow-ers outside a Maryland shop.

z Valvoline instant oil change in Walker, Mi z

z expressway car care in Granbury, tX z

z the lube center in Frederick, MD z

z Best lanDscaPinG: Froggy’s auto Wash & lube in angels camp, ca z

z others considered z

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z Kwik Kar in McKinney, tX zz expressway car care in Granbury, tX z

z Valvoline express care in oakdale, ca z

It should be easy to see one reason why Lube Master’s bay stood out from the crowd: color.

The primary-color paint job really caught the attentions of our judges.

“I like the cool paint job on the bay floor,” said one judge.

“Love the bays,” said another. “The check-ered tile containment wall is a very attrac-tive touch.”

“Very colorful pit,” said yet another.“The brightly colored bay areas make

them easy to navigate,” one judge com-mented.

Another bay area favored by judges (be-low) was Kwik Kar of McKinney, Texas’ very clean bays that are appropriately painted with colors that give helpful direc-tional info.

The Kwik Kar in Spring, Texas, was an-other favorite, of which judges commented, “Bay area shows patriotism with American and Texas flags.” Another judge said, “I like the yellow accent walls and the glass doors, they help the facility flow. Plus, everything is spotless.”

Valvoline Express Care in Oakdale, Cali-fornia was also considered for the honor. “It looks clean, efficient and professional,” one judge mentioned.

“Immaculate bays,” said another. “The diamond plate details on everything

are really cool,” said yet another.

z Best BaY area: lube Master in Umatilla, Fl z

z others considered z

November 2010 29

z Kwik Kar in Georgetown, tX zz expressway car care in Granbury, tX z

z Quick lube Plus in calgary, alberta z

If past years’ results are any indication of what our judges like, the best waiting room should be no surprise. Our judges are fond of checkerboard floors, and the waiting room at Carwash West/Castrol Premium Lube Express has just that.

“I love the black and white tile floor,” one judge said, “and those bar stools are right from the ’50s.”

Of course, the judges love more about this waiting room than just its floors.

“I love the old malt shop look and espres-so bar with sweets,” one judge commented.

Other judges agreed:“Nice touch in adding the ’50s diner to

the lube shop.”“I love the waiting room. It feels like you

just stepped into the movie ‘Grease.’”“Love the espresso bar waiting area. It’s

like ’50s diner meets Starbucks.”Our judges also like the waiting room at

Kwik Kar; some mentioned how open and spacious it was with a vaulted ceiling, while others liked the “nice little gift shop.”

The judges were also impressed with the waiting room at Expressway Car Care.

Our judges loved the rustic look of the waiting area, from the rock wall to the faux brick to the rustic furniture. One judge par-ticularly liked the rough wood trim and the antler mirror.

z Best WaitinG area: carwash West/castrol Premium lube express in West Monroe, la z

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z Gulf express in Jeddah, saudi arabia z

z Pro-stop in lombard, il zz the lube center in Gaithersburg, MD z

There were too many neat touches to list in this year’s contest, but the rustic feel of Texas Express Lube & Auto took the cake in this category.

“Very rustic, hill country look,” one judge said. “I like the cedar posts and rough wood siding in the bays. It gives them a down-home ‘barn’ feel; like you’ve pulled into a neighbor’s barn to get your oil changed.”

The “hill country look” continues with the waiting area and exterior of the build-ing. (What facility named Texas Express Lube would be complete without a giant Texas star accenting the building?)

The waiting room features tin wainscot-ing and rustic furniture (accented with the ever-fitting Texas star.) If you look closely, you’ll notice the walls of the waiting room

are covered in cattle brands, as local ranch-ers are encouraged to bring in their brand-ing irons and leave their mark.

“It reminds me of an old western saloon,” one judge said of the facility.

Another said, “It looks like an actual ranch; very cool.”

“Texas Express Lube looks like it should be in no other place but Texas. Very nice job,” added another judge.

Other “neat touches” noted by our judges were the graffiti accents at Gulf Express (if you look closely you’ll see someone else thought they were “cool” too!), and the “cool and comfy” massage chairs in the waiting room of Pro-Stop .

Last, but not least, a VehicleMD in the magazine rack of The Lube Center in Gaith-

ersburg, Maryland caught the eye of more than one judge — a tasteful addition to any waiting room if you ask us! S

z others considered z

z Best “neat toUcHes”: texas express lube & auto in luling, tX z