Final answer:
The equation to calculate the total amount of money the car wash should take in to achieve a profit of $125 is c = 550 + 12t, where c is the total money taken in and t is the total hours worked.
Step-by-step explanation:
To calculate the amount of money the car wash should take in if the desired profit is $125, we start by plugging the desired profit into the given profit formula P = c - 12t - 425. Our equation would then become:
125 = c - 12t - 425
To solve for c, the total amount of money taken in, we add 425 and 12t to both sides of the equation, leading to the following:
c = 125 + 12t + 425
Then combine like terms:
c = 550 + 12t
This equation represents the total dollars the car wash needs to take in to achieve a profit of $125, given the total hours worked, t.