🚘This Florida car wash turns ‘Tunnel of Terror,’ raising money for students

WINDERMERE, Fla. – It’s a haunted house that you visit from behind the wheel. A Central Florida car wash is transforming into the ‘Tunnel of Terror’ for one weekend only and it’s for a great cause.

“You’re getting a lot of soap, you’re getting a lot of fog, you’re getting a lot of scares in there,” said Sweetwater Car Wash General Manager Michelle Alderman.

News 6 Anchor and Insider Guide Crystal Moyer and Trooper Steve were just a couple of the hundreds of visitors getting those scares after visiting the Tunnel of Terror at a different Sweetwater location last year.

The experience starts before you even enter the car wash with more than a dozen of menacing monsters wreaking havoc.

Then when you get inside the tunnel, shadowy figures hiding behind some of the equipment.

The lights. The foamy soap. The sounds, just adding to the nightmare.

“To make it safe for everyone, we turn off a lot of the equipment in the tunnel so there’s nothing moving, but you’re still getting a car wash. With the soap covering your windows it’s difficult to see which makes it scary,” said Alderman.

In its fourth year, the Sweetwater Car Wash Tunnel of Terror in Windermere is doing something new by partnering with local students to raise money for neighboring Horizon West Middle School.

“We’re doing it as a fundraiser to give back to the community. Proceeds from each ticket will go to the school for different student programs,” said Alderman.

Nearly 30 students and their parents are expected to volunteer during the two-day event encouraging community members to show up and support, no matter the age.

The cost is $20 per vehicle and the Tunnel of Terror runs Friday and Saturday 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. The location is 11675 Silverlake Park Drive in Windermere.

“It takes a lot of work, a lot of decorations, a lot of cobwebs and a lot of lights,” said Alderman. “It’s a big team building event for us. We like to get all the staff together and the kids put on unique costumes and we really scare people, so it’s really fun.