i stopped by this place called auto salon where they detail porsches and other high end cars. my car doesnt have too much paint damage...some minor hazing on my cf hood, and swirl marks/webbing. its not bad swirling though. they told me they could detail the whole exterior of my car (will actually remove swirls etc) for $300. they said they will do three passes with a special polish they develop in house, clean my wheel wells, clean both the inside and the outside of my volks, etc. my question is, is $300 a good deal, or overpriced? thanks in advance

 

bump..any help guys?

 

waaay overpriced.

a detail is a detail is a detail.

I wouldn't spend more than 150. But I detail mine myself...

 

I just think it doesn't sound like they are doing much. Did they say how long they would need it? My guess is that they are doing a wash with a cheap buffer. Just my gut though.

"3 passes with a special polish they develop" - that statement sounds fishy.
No mention of wax/sealant?

If its just as described, I would agree, not worth it. If they start talking about some sort of 2 stage polish and they get into the details of what lsp they are using, and say they will need it for a day, then maybe it would be worth it.

 

sorry for not mentioning more facts...they said they might need it overnight, and they will top it off with a special sealant. while i was there they showed me the cars they were working on...mercedes sl55amg, porche carrera, 911 turbo etc. he also showed me a black porsche boxster he was working on. the part he was done with had 0 swirls/scratches/webbing. the parts he still had to get to looked horrible. so people usually only charge ~ $150 for a complete detail? and when we talk about detailing, we're talking about REMOVING imperfections correct?

 

For $300, you can buy a porter cable and all the pads and polishes to do your car for years. I know it's a lot of labor, but I actually enjoy it. There's something so satisfying about polishing to a 0 swirl finish. It's easy to do, just takes time.

 

^ + a MILLION

 

Wow bad advice. If you are getting quotes on detailing that tells me you don't want to get a PC and a bunch of products and spend hours on your car yourself.

$150 is way unrealistic for a detail job well done. And there's major differences in attention to detail and overall time spent with a detail. Some of our best detailers here on this board (go look at the Care&Detailing forum) charge 2 to 3 times that amount.

$300 seems like a mid-high-end price, so ask yourself if they are doing that level of work. It sounds like they MIGHT be, except for the b.s. about in-house developed polishes -- I want them to mention "best of breed" brands (Menzerna, PoorBoys, etc) not some b.s. bulk crap they buy from some warehouse and brand it with their name.

Look at some of the "Detailed:" threads on our forums and get an idea what the job entails, what kind of products most of these folks are using, etc.

I wouldn't go for "special polish" or "special sealant"... I want to hear that they use accepted high-end polishes and sealants.

FWIW, I *do* have a PC and a bunch of products (lake country, menzerna, and zaino work well for me) and do all my own (and my wife's) detailing myself. I can easily spend a whole weekend perfecting the finish on one of my cars.... and NO WAY would I do that to your car for anything near $150.

 

Couldn't be any further from the truth on that statement. Details can range from anything from a simple wash and wax to a full blown restoration that takes multiple days, even weeks.

It all depends on what services are offered and the quality of the job being performed. Before I stopped detailing, I wouldn't quote a job that was under $350 and some made it up into the $1,000s that could take multiple days to complete. If they are doing a 3 step polish on the paint like you said and they are a reputable place, then $300 is a good price, especially if you've seen their work first hand with little to no imperfections left in the paint. If they refer to a pass as simply going over the area 3 times and didn't mean 3 coats, then it seems like it's not a good price because it'd only be a 1 step polish and chances are wouldn't remove all / most of the imperfections.

As mal_TX mentioned, the special polishes and sealants seems to be a little shady. Many higher end detail shops will use and disclose some of the higher end brands and products used to justify higher costs.

As TheTick mentioned, you're in the price range to get most of the tools and products you'd need to do it yourself, many times over. If time isn't an issue and you want to pick up a new hobby, this would be a good time to get into it.

If you have any other questions let us know.

George

 

^ Listen to what George has to say, he's the man!

+1 for buying your own PC, pads and products and doing it yourself. Sure, it'll take a day but so will the place. But, you'll have the satisfaction of doing it yourself and you'll know you're getting your money worth. After all is said and done, you'll be investing $300 to be able to do a few details. Nothing like taking a day off to work on your ride.

 

im in law school...enough said lol. i called a mobile detail guy and he said that he'll wash, clay, polish (i made sure he was gonna remove the swirls), and wax/seal for $100. im even more cofused now cause it sounds too good for the price. he did sound like he knew what he was talking about though. think i should give the guy a shot? i dont have my appointment till next tuesday with the other place, and this guy will do it tomorrow. any thoughts?

 

i forgot to mention that this mobile detail guy gave me a rough explanation of his polishing process. he said he uses a high speed orbital, starts at a low speed, and works his way up from there depending on whats being removed. sound right? or too basic to do a good job?

 

Before I realized how simple and enjoyable it was to polish out my own car, I used to get quotes and could never afford it so I just lived with swirls. I wish someone could have told me about a PC years ago. Sorry you disagree.

 

I charge about 250 dollars for a complete detail. You want to make sure they are using quality products, such as Menzerna, not some "In house special". The mobile guy sounds too cheap.

What I can reccomend you do is go to DetailingBliss.com, and say where you are from and if anyone can quote a price for you. There are a lot of extremely good detailers on there who will do quality work on your car and are mobile. Best of luck.

 

i cant get a good detail for 120