Life on the bay
Ramps into the bay and the creek
There are boat ramps on Main Road either side of the Wellington Point Jetty, and another at Bligh Street into Hilliards Creek. Launching and pulling out a boat usually means backing the trailer into salt water.
Salt in the air
At low tide you can walk the sandbar from the headland out to King Island, and at any tide the breeze carries salt. Salt from seawater and spray makes steel rust faster, which is why RAC WA's advice is to wash a car exposed to salt water or salt air as soon as you can, and at least once a month.
Off to Straddie
Vehicle ferries to North Stradbroke Island leave from Cleveland, 8.2 km away. After a day on the sand, RACQ says to clean under the vehicle as soon as practical to get the sand and saltwater off.
Farms to house blocks
Sugar cane, timber, fruit and vegetables and fishing came first, and farmland began giving way to house blocks after mains water arrived in 1969. The Cleveland railway line has a station here, but most trips to the ramps involve a car and a trailer.
What a bayside tow car needs
Towing a boat counts. RACV says towing caravans, trailers or boats can mean servicing around every six months, and Subaru lists both coastal areas and towing among the severe conditions that need extra maintenance. Check whether your owner's manual says the same.
Ask the mechanic to look underneath for rust at each service, particularly around the tow bar, the brake lines and the exhaust. An automatic that tows a heavy boat works hard too: RACQ says a larger or second transmission cooler is often worth having for heavy towing. If the car goes on the beach, 4WD and diesel mechanics in Brisbane know what sand and salt do underneath.
If it were our car
After every launch we'd hose the trailer and the back of the car with fresh water, and we'd ask for an underbody rust check at each service. A car that tows a boat or goes over to Straddie should be on the maker's severe-use schedule, and we'd say so when sending the job.