How many hours does it take you to detail?

Heh I was just curious because I spent a good 17 hours on my aunts black Celica over the past 2 days and it still came out terrible, but it was my first big detail...I'm still a noob :)
 
It takes me a good 7 or 8 hours for a complete interior and exterior detail. I always have to set aside an entire day to do it. I prefer not to split it up over different days if I can help it.
 
Accumulator said:
While I'd probably still be a fanatic about getting them clean, I sure agree with you when it comes to marring removal on paint. If a customer's gonna mess it up again anyhow, I don't see any point in repeatedly cutting the paint. At some point you're gonna have to say "sorry, no more clear to spare" anyhow. Since nobody (except me and my wife) ever notices the "little things" I do, I can't help but wonder if you pros would need to bother with them unless the customer made it clear that such things were expected (and was willing to pay accordingly).



When I did cars for friends/family (note past tense ;) ) they never seemed to notice a difference whether I put in 2 hours or 22, but I didn't like doing the quickie jobs. Back when I was doing it for pay I kept getting told "don't bother with that, nobody cares", and when I did it for *my* dealership nobody noticed either :(
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While I never have subscribed to the theory of hiding defects, I usually will remove whatever I can up to the point of a mild-to-moderate rubbing compound (though usually DACP on a cutting pad is the most agressive I use) and then any REALLY bad marring that isn't removed with that, gets covered over with glaze. Usually I won't go over the whole car with the glaze, but the panels that need it the most will get it.



My customers have ranged from demanding total perfection to saying "This is just my black daily driver that sits outside 24/7. Who cares if it isn't perfect?" -- and then proceeding to demand perfection on their garage queen vehicle.



I know what you mean though about not feeling right about doing the quickie details. My aunt had me take her car to the tire store once because she had a blowout on the highway. After getting the new tire installed I didn't feel like I could just return the car to her like it was (that's the thing my parents beat into me growing up -- "Something borrowed should be returned in as good or better condition than when you first got your hands on it.") So, I ran home with it, washed it, threw on a quick coat of cleaner wax, cleaned and dressed the wheels and tires, and vacuumed/wiped down the interior in a couple hours' time. And yet after all that, she didn't even notice that anything had been done (despite the car being an absolute mess with bugs, tar, brake dust, etc. beforehand).



Its those kind of experiences that makes me question just how much people REALLY care.
 
Like the others, it depends. QEW wash, AIO and Acrylic Jett on a Tahoe today took me around 3 hours. That also including cleaning the glass and dressing the tires and fenderwells...and talking a bit to the owner as I was working since he is a friend of mine. The Tahoe was brand new though and had been washed the day before. The Ferrari 348 I did yesterday took 2.5 hours just for the polishing steps and sealing...and it was a convertible. That is the difference between brand new paint and 8 year old single stage paint two years out from its last wax job.
 
For my car after it's already been detailed before... ~4hrs for wash/polish/AIO(or equivalent)/sealant



For a typical customer car - same process, ~5-6hrs.



Interiors really vary, from about 45 minutes to maybe 2.5 hrs with a really nasty pet-hair-filled interior.



Engines...usually 45 minutes to maybe 1.5hrs.
 
I have tried many things to reduce my detailing times. The fact remains that, in order to do top notch work, I must spend as much time as it takes to get things right. This means up to 10 hours on cars. The only area where I think I could cut some time would be in the organization category. I feel as if I spend too much time looking for stuff, refilling products, untangling extension cords etc.
 
For me it depends on what needs to be done like Zane pointed out. It also depends on what products I'm using on how easy they are to work with. I would say for a full exterior detail takes me 6 and a half hours non stop. But I usualyy take breaks so probly 7 hours. I don't know how long it would take me to do an interior detail but next time I do I will time myself and write down what I do.
 
Full inside and out minus clay and heavy polishing: 3-4 hours



Full inside and out with clay and heavy polishing: 4-7 hours
 
For me it really depend on the size of the car. For SUT/SUV/SOCCOR MOM VAN, it take me 8-9 hrs. A full size car on a full detail, it take me 6-7 hrs. A small to mid size car on a full detail it take me from 4-5hrs.
 
GSRstilez said:
Full inside and out minus clay and heavy polishing: 3-4 hours



Full inside and out with clay and heavy polishing: 4-7 hours
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That's crazy...I don't know you do it Sean. 3-4 with interior too? :confused:
 
GSRstilez said:
Full inside and out minus clay and heavy polishing: 3-4 hours



Full inside and out with clay and heavy polishing: 4-7 hours
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That's crazy...I don't know you do it Sean. 3-4 with interior too? :confused:
 
if your willing to step up to a rotary you can cut your polishing time some-you might have a bit more clean up time after the rotary vs the pc if you have a lot of fine splatter
 
if your willing to step up to a rotary you can cut your polishing time some-you might have a bit more clean up time after the rotary vs the pc if you have a lot of fine splatter
 
I feel like it takes me way too long. I guess I'm just not as seasoned as some of these guys that claim they wash, clay, polish, seal all in about 4 hrs. or so. Sometimes I wonder if people are truthful about the time it takes them, or if I am just like molasses.
 
I feel like it takes me way too long. I guess I'm just not as seasoned as some of these guys that claim they wash, clay, polish, seal all in about 4 hrs. or so. Sometimes I wonder if people are truthful about the time it takes them, or if I am just like molasses.
 
I have a rotary and I realize the time reduction it allows, but there is a lot of splatter when I use the rotary, so I often find myself washing the car again after using the rotary. I typically only use it on horizontal panels too, where the swirls are the worst.
 
I have a rotary and I realize the time reduction it allows, but there is a lot of splatter when I use the rotary, so I often find myself washing the car again after using the rotary. I typically only use it on horizontal panels too, where the swirls are the worst.
 
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