By Tay Shi'an

Click to see images from the news reports. (Photos: TNP, WanBao)

HE couldn't believe what his girlfriend was telling him.

Mr Gary Yap's first reaction was: "You mean they are going to wash my car for free? And they'll be topless?"
They decided to go, to see if it was true.

And what they saw at the event surprised the 28-year-old freelance photographer and his girlfriend, Ms Bella Zhong, 24, an advertising executive.

Ms Zhong told The New Paper on Sunday: "I was quite surprised it actually happened.

"At first I thought, 'Cheh, wear bikini'. Then they took it off. They were wearing nipple tape. (The pieces) were very small, just covering. I thought, wow.

"Then they took off the tape. They were really topless."

Ms Zhong was one of 20 winners of an online contest held by a new motoring classifieds website, Motoring Exchange, which was launched yesterday.

She had been picked for having recommended friends to its Facebook page, called Tease & Wash, to have their vehicles cleaned.

Each winner was allowed to bring a friend.

The New Paper on Sunday had earlier reported how the motoring portal had planned to organise such a car wash.

The winners were given staggered time slots over two days, last Sunday and Monday.

The wash took place in the afternoon on both days at an abandoned warehouse in the east of Singapore.

When they arrived, they were briefed on the guidelines - no touching the models, and no photography, except by the two official photographers.

Then each car was moved up individually to be washed.

The models moved in, with their hoses and props - wash mitts, big brushes and sponges.

Each wash lasted 20 minutes to half an hour, including photo shoots.

Ms Zhong said she had entered the contest for fun, not really believing it was for real.

She and her boyfriend were among the earliest to arrive on Sunday afternoon.

Said Ms Zhong: "Since (my boyfriend) has a car, we decided to go and check it out. If it didn't turn out to be real, we could just leave."

The couple spent the car wash discussing the models' figures.

Said Ms Zhong: "The Caucasian model really stood out. And there was one girl, who was very skinny and busty for her size."

She said the event was very entertaining.

Was she concerned the event might be illegal in conservative Singapore?

Said Ms Zhong: "They are just topless and not doing anything funny. And we're not allowed to touch them. So I guess there's nothing wrong with that."

Was she uncomfortable to be at such an event with her boyfriend of three years?

Said Ms Zhong: "I think I'm pretty open about it, no point getting jealous. It's something we can experience together.

"It's not every day you get to have a topless girl washing your car for you."

Another winner was a 28-year-old banking officer, who would give his name only as Mr Lin.

He went alone to the event on Sunday afternoon, in his grey Mercedes-Benz SLK.

He said: "There was a (photo) shoot and wash at the same time, so the models were half posing, halfwashing."

According to him, most of the winners were asked to park their cars and sit in a reception area, where there were snacks and drinks, and watch the models wash their cars from a distance.

But Mr Lin said he was allowed to put up the top of his convertible, and watch the wash while sitting inside his vehicle.

He said: "It's something new and obviously exciting, not something that's been done before. It was not a very sleazy thing, I think it was quite classy."

So did the models do a good job cleaning his car?

"It was just a normal wash. No wax or polish. But I guess that's not really the point," said Mr Lin.

The organiser of the event, Mr Gerald Chen, 29, said the event was a publicity stunt for his new motoring portal.

He added that he knew the company was "treading on dangerous ground" by holding such an event, and readily admitted that he was out to court controversy to attract attention.

But he claimed he had sought legal advice, and had organised the event such that it would fall within the confines of the law.

Said Mr Chen: "The concern is always there. But we (were very careful). The last thing we want is to do anything wrong.

"It's a risk we were willing to take."

Mr Chen said censored pictures from the event, with the breasts of the models digitised, have been uploaded on the website, with an "above 18" restriction on it.

Visitors must do a free registration and declare their age before they can view the car wash event pictures.

For the car wash contest, Mr Chen said the website received 259 entries, from which it picked 20 winners - 18 men and two women, who owned 19 cars and one motorcycle.

Four female models were hired for the wash, to appear at the event wearing only bikini bottoms and high heels.

Mr Chen said the company has spent almost $25,000 to film and produce teaser videos, which were uploaded online as a lead-up to the event.

The actual two-day car wash cost $11,800, of which $5,600 was for the models.

Mr Chen said he has poured in another $45,000 to set up the portal..

Apart from motoring classifieds, the portal will also feature DIY videos on maintaining cars, like how to do basic waxing and polishing.

Mr Chen said he spent months studying the business models of existing websites in the lucrative car portal business, for example, ST701.

He's confident that as a smaller operator, with lower overhead costs, he will be able to compete with the big boys.

He claimed he has already made some deals and tie-ups with car dealers to advertise and work together on his website.

Mr Chen said he has not received any complaints from members of the public about the car event.

As to whether he has plans to hold another similar contest, he said: "We'll see what response we get when we post the pictures on our website."

This article was first published in The New Paper