"I just started with one piece, but I kept going and going and going," he says. "I can't seem to stop."

"You get so many compliments -- What can you do?" he adds. "People are constantly taking pictures of this place. There was a woman here at 6 this morning taking pictures."

For now -- the landscape changes often at Classic Auto Wash -- the location is dominated by a 20-foot lighthouse atop the roof. It lights up at night and is an exact replica of actual lighthouse.

"I just happened to be driving along I-95, and I saw it on top of a restaurant," Vento says. So he went in and bought it. "I had a little problem transporting it. The first two sections got sheared off as I went under a bridge. Luckily I went to school for body work and mechanics, and I was able to repair it. It's a beautiful piece."

But things don't stop there. There is also a train with three cars and a caboose, a lobster boat, five antique gas pumps, a 1926 tractor, a windmill and another lighthouse, just to name a few of the attractions. There is also a cupola from a Friendly's ice cream store.

The inside is equally eye-catching. There are a variety of nautical items, including a third lighthouse, as well as several antique signs.

Customers going through the tunnel see neon and other lights, and barber poles. Vento has also installed mirrors in the tunnel so people can watch their car being washed as they go through the tunnel.

Does he have a favorite antique or attraction? The lighthouse, of course. But he also likes the train. Though he got the engine from a restaurant, he made the cars by hand out of sheetmetal.

The lot decoration is a draw to the wash, but periodically Vento adds other items specifically to attract customers. He uses animated figures such as Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny and clowns to advertise holiday and other specials. He purchased more than 40 of them at an out-of-business sale.

"I have a figure for every holiday and any occasion," Vento says. "The kids go crazy for them. A lot of mothers tell me they have to bring their kids to this carwash just for the figures."

Classic Carwash has four self-serve bays, and Vento does detailing during the week. The tunnel is 125 feet long, and has a 95-foot conveyor. It was built to be a full serve, but the carwash is operated as an exterior.

"I have tons of equipment," he adds. "The amount of equipment I have would probably go into a 120-foot tunnel, I had to make a lot of modifications to make the equipment fit."

The location washes between 60,000 and 90,000 cars per year, depending on the year. The 1-acre location is tucked among a Taco Bell, McDonald's, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Blockbuster Video and Stop-N-Shop.

Vento's father, former owner of a wash in New Britain, CT, picked out the lot. "One day he drove by Cromwell, he saw the location and that was it," he says.

Though the lot is starting to fill up, visitors don't have to worry about becoming bored with the attractions at Classic Auto Wash. The next addition, a 20-foot Santa Claus, proves Vento will probably always have a few surprises up his sleeve.