What does a professional detail cost - Page 2

sonnydaze1 · 12-07-01, 04:06

hi rmerikle, i'm in the mobile detailing business and like guess my name implied, as a mobile detailer i use products for the enthusiasts. not the stuff most shops use - it would be way too costly for them to use the supplies and materials we talk about on this forum. as it is it costs me a good chunk each month to use these supplies, but the end results are 10x better; besides that i just wouldn't feel right not using quality products. my rule of thumb is, if i wouldn't use it on my car then i'm not about to use it on someone else's. anyway, for the things you're asking about having done - my prices vary depending on vehicle size. however, the average car(like your friend's Lexus) would run you right around $200. that would include everything you mentioned as well as getting the engine cleaned, carpets cleaned, and leather seats cleaned and conditioned. oh yeah, i don't use klasse. would zaino or blackfire be ok?

Jngrbrdman · 12-07-01, 04:42

claying is expensive because it is time intensive. If you wanted your whole car clayed then you can expect like 40 buck an hour or something like that.

You'll be lucky to find a shop that will apply Klasse for you. I have yet to find one that uses it. They haven't discovered it yet I don't think.

In the end you will probably pay about 150 - 200 bucks to have that kind of treatment done on your car. To do it yourself you will save all of that. If you take into account actual product useage then you will probably spend about 5 bucks of your Klasse. You might spend about 5 bucks of your clay bar depending on how much your car needed it. You might spend about 5 bucks of your other detailing stuff doing up the interior as well.

Of course, if you don't have any Klasse then you will have to buy it and the same for everything else. I think that if you invested $100 in some detailing supplies and only detailed your own car then you could do your car every week for 6 months without a problem. If you decided to make a business out of it then all you would have to do is charge one person for a detail and you will have paid off half of your investment.

Professional detail shops have their uses but if you have the desire to do it yourself then you can save some big bucks and make even bigger bucks.

jazzyjack · 12-07-01, 04:58

There are some pro detailers on this forum and I would trust them to do a great job. However this is not the case most of the time. Just go to a detail shop and take a look around. Ask questions and you'll quickly see the weakness!

As about products used on the car, take a look at the person or persons doing the work. They look like they just got out of the gutter most of the time. TRUST... no way baby!!!!!

I'm out...

Every Little Detail · 12-07-01, 05:02

You guys are really tough on Detailers, but I would agree that many of them are butchers. However having said that if you find the right shop or get recommended to a mobile detailer these guys can work miracles with the right professional chemicals and tools including a rotary which used in the right hands can leave an amazing finish. I would charge between $110 and $140 depending on the size of the vehicle for those services not including detailing the engine that would be another $35. I don't use Klasse/Zaino or Blackfire they are all just polymers offering great protection. I use a polymer from Production Car Care and recently a polymer from Valueguard both offering just as good or better protection. Remember the trick is preparing the surface so it is flawless before the final step of waxing or sealing that is what determines much of the shine.

BW · 12-07-01, 06:00

Don't expect most detailers to use Zaino or other "boutique" products on your car... usually some generic bulk product. I've heard of detailers that use Klasse and Valu Gard. though.

YoSteve · 12-07-01, 08:00

Every Little Detail, I think that if any of us were to go to a professional detailer such as yourself, we would not be in it for the Klasse or Zaino or any other sealent.

Like you said, it's the prep before the sealant that does the trick. This is what we would be going for because it's the most time consuming and difficult part.

I would even be willing to say, hey do the prep and then you're done. Most of the problems people have is if the prep work is bad, they seal it the best temporary make up can offer and it looks great for as long as the makeup lasts. But then it's ruined. Course that's a worse case scenario, but you get the idea.

I would only go to a autoint approved detailer (or a highly reputable referred one, where I could see examples). If I had a car that needed serious prep, I might consider, but lucky for me prep is easier on my newer car.

Every Little Detail · 12-08-01, 07:34

Yo Steve,
Couldn't agree with you more. When I bought my vehicle (2001 Pontiac Aztek keep it to a dull roar I'm the only one that has to like it) I wouldn't even let them move the car. I negotiated my deal, signed all the paper work then insisted they move it from the showroom outside, I then chalked the tires and told them if they moved it the deal was off. It was raining steadily that day and told them not to wash or chamois the vehicle or the deal was off. Went back the next day the car was wiped down and had been moved. My salesmen wasn't there and I almost had to kill the manager to get out of the deal. Two weeks later I successfully bought the same vehicle at another dealership from the showroom and they followed my instructions to the tee. Most service people that deal with your vehicle couldn't care less it is just a bucket of bolts that has to be cleared off the lot. Same principle holds true to alot of detail shops it's just a job 40hrs. a week to pay the bills, much of the time pride has nothing to do with it

YoSteve · 12-08-01, 10:03

ELD, sometimes I despise dealers. I just feel that if salesman were nice they would generate so much more business.

I had some troubles when buying the Passat. This guy was going to charge me full sticker price, and he even took money from my credit card to ship the vehicle (said it was for a credit check on the phone) When I alerted his boss, he pointed and yelled and called me liar, like a principle yelling at some kid (didn't help that I looked like some kid

) but that wasn't the point. We worked the price down to invoice and I was like, see ya! Never set foot in that place again.

When I finally got my car at another dealer, I was promised everything haha. What I got was charged for keeping the salesman late, and the next time I came in there was no free rental or pickup or anything I was promised way back when (thanks I get for buying the priciest car in the lot.)
Also a tip (for everyone else), when getting financing really check their math. I took in my phat calculator and beat out their computers. They were like here's you monthly payment and I was like um that's too high, and they were like, but that's the interest and the payment. I told them the calculator doesn't lie. He then said, so you don't want the accidental death insurance added to your payment. Hahah duh! Some people have some nerve, he did say no one's ever calculated their own payment before haha. So it does pay to do your homework; I did get it at invoice.

I hate dropping my car off and doing a crap shoot, so I will probably never go to a detailer, only cause of my lack of control over my baby.

Jason is stopping by next summer and he can do our other cars, but not the Passat

darbh · 12-08-01, 11:23

I nominate Every Little Detail for honorary, instant Senior Member status. Only a true Autopian would chalk the tires! Yes, it shows distrust, BUT it shows the ELD is facing the real world squarely and not fooling himself. And, then, he did what many would not do. He followed through on his warning and did not buy the car! He stuck to his guns. Applause, applause.

Scottwax · 12-08-01, 10:26

Quote:

Originally posted by carguy

But I would expect 9 out of 10 detailers will return my black car with more swirls than it had when I gave it to them. I would prefer to check references and even find one of their customers' black cars (no matter what color car you have, ask to see a nonmetallic BLACK car they maintain.)

I would be happy to show anyone the black cars I regularly maintain. I have 3 customers who have nothing but black cars, except for the dark blue Lamborghini one of them has. I do everything by hand, including the polishing and buffing. I don't even own a buffer.

I charge a base rate of $85 and up for details, but being mobile without a grease recovery system, I don't normally do engines. I add $40 an hour for claying and the same rate for extra buffing or polishing (for oxidized or scratched cars). I have also started charging extra for very filthy interiors. I hate doing that, but some cars I've done, add a urinal and they would look like a truck stop men's room.

With everything you listed, probably at least $150 or so.

If you decide to have a detailer clean your car, ask what type of surface care products they use and how they apply the polish and wax. If your paint is in good shape and they intend to use a wool pad, run. Don't look back, just run. They should either do it by hand or with a soft foam pad. Find out what they use on leather. If it is the same protectant they use on vinyl and rubber, don't let them touch your car. You can also ask high end body shops for recommendations.

YoSteve · 12-08-01, 10:43

Quote:

Originally posted by Scottwax

If your paint is in good shape and they intend to use a wool pad, run. Don't look back, just run.

hey scott what about the car, drive away instead

Every Little Detail · 12-09-01, 07:39

Scott,
I once again have to disagree with you on a couple of points.
1/ You said you do 1000 cars/yr if this is truly the case then it would be next to impossible to do them by hand. You would be polishing for hours to even make any real difference on even minor swirls and marring. I would suggest to you that the products you are using are cosmetic in that they simply fill in the swirls. Which may be fine if you are seeing your customers really frequently.
2/A modern wool pad that is safe for clearcoats is no more aggressive than a foam cutting pad. The differnce is what product you are going to use in most cases a cutting compound is not needed.
3/The results a rotary can produce in the right hands cannot be matched by hand if the goal is to truly make a difference in the vehicles appearence before any glazes or waxes/polymers are to be applied.
4/If somone is not able to afford or be trained on a rotary then the PC still would safe them a done of time unless they could vibrate their hand 2000x/min.

I would agree with many of the members here that many shops do have inexperienced guys working on the vehicles and that they are under unbelievable time restraints. However there are lots of true professionals all over the country at shops with the highest accreditation and many mobile detailers that are perfectionists who can do just about anything to the appearence of a vehicle. You need all the tools to be able to do the work that the vehicle requires, experience and judgement is what sets detailers apart.You may have these forum members running or driving from a pro who could detail there car once a year so that they could maintain it until the next year by simply hand washing it. $150-$200/yr is cheap when you consider the time required to do it yourself and by all the stuff involved.