Being Recruited...Scared

Z

ZaneO

New member
I was offered the job of detailing a fleet for a funeral home. The last guy that did the job was paid $1850 for wash, wax, vacuum, and shampoo.



The problems: 16 cars total & all BLACK. That's a lot of BIG cars.



It would be a great opportunity for me to make some good money, but with grad school going full steam, I don't know if I could handle that many cars.



The owners are used to shoddy work, so I'm sure they'd be pleased with me, but I'm just not sure if I can take the plunge.
 
How much time are they giving you ?



Obviously you shouldn't take it if you won't be able to complete it but if you feel that you could pull it off (with good results) then IMO it would be a good move.



Unless you're afraid of the environment ... :)
 
That's $115.63 a car. Not too bad for what they want. If you hire help, it wouldn't be worth it in my opinion.



How soon do they need it by? Do you have to do them all in a weekend or something, or do you have a couple weeks?



That's a lot of work for one guy especially if you have school full time.



If you do it, stick with a one step. There are plenty of lines of products that offer a one step. Meguiar's 66 comes to mind.



The interior shouldn't be too bad. After all, how dirty can they be?



Maybe you can knock out two a day a couple times a week? After all, it's a wash n' wax with a vacuum and interior wipe down. Not too difficult, just a lot of cars!
 
Dang 16 cars? I hope you dont do Grave Yard shift :D That would kinda scary. Of those 16 cars....Do you have any Hurst?

Wanna polish those casket too :)
 
They'd like them done once a month, but I know for sure I can't do that. It took the last guy 2 1/2 days to get them all done.



If I decide to do it, I will probably use AIO.



I think they're pretty flexible with what's done and when it's done, so we'll see.
 
2 1/2 days a month to make $1857? Thats not bad man, thats $40 an hour assuming it takes 3 hours to do each one.



I know there's a lot of reading and stuff you have to do for grad school (depending on your program) but I'd think you could do that. Devote one weekend a month to it...
 
That is what I was thinking about doing - Calling funeral homes to see if they need their cars detailed. I'd do it, but I am not in school. :D
 
I've done cars for funeral directors, but not the hearses. Usually pretty easy to do, funeral people tend to be pretty neat.



If you can work it into your schedule or just do 4-5 cars each week (so they'd get done once a month like they want), it might be easier to manage.
 
Regular business from a customer who takes care of their vehicles and is willing to pay a fair price sounds like a win-win to me.



Doing it regularly would mean that after the first time (and maybe not even then since they've had them done before) it's all maintenance and no restoration.



You don't need to worry much about using the longest lasting protectant or the deepest, wettest LSP. They aren't looking for a "show car" presentation. Perfection will be a lack of obvious defects and a clean, professional gloss rather than in-your-face pizzazz. An all-in-one product should work great.



All the cars should be nearly the same too so you'll be able streamline and "productionize" your process, saving time and work without sacrificing quality.





PC.
 
Hiring some High School kids to help at even $50 a day would speed things along quite a bit. Also, maybe give the Funeral Home a duster for each car to help maintain them. Or even a bottle of QD and a towel so they can do a quick wipe for fingerprints and such.
 
I've got a couple of cheap labor friends and family who could probably help me out :D



From the information I've already gathered, the cars are pretty swirled to begin with, so I guess it really depends on the owner's expectations.



Thanks for the advice and comments so far :)
 
Have you considered using a 1 step like Midnight express? It does a pretty good job of covering swirls/scratches and is easy to use.
 
ZaneO said:
I've got a couple of cheap labor friends and family who could probably help me out :D



From the information I've already gathered, the cars are pretty swirled to begin with, so I guess it really depends on the owner's expectations.



Thanks for the advice and comments so far :)
Click to expand...



If the owner cared about swirls the previous detailer would have gotten rid of them. Just make them look wet and shiny. I'd use PwC after washing it. m2c.



Don't pass this oppurtunity.



PS: If you had to take away 3 days a months from studying to entertain the hottest girl in school, I'd bet my car that you wouldn't be asking us here what we thought. :D



Just do it and manage your time a little better.
 
My vote goes to NXT with a polishing pad. I like it's filling/polishing abilities as a one step.





As far as the jobs go, they don't sound too hard. Time would be the biggest kicker. For me, I'd definately work it into my schedule. Being a college kid, I know how it is to be tight on funds, even with my venture going :).
 
GSRstilez said:
My vote goes to NXT with a polishing pad. I like it's filling/polishing abilities as a one step.
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Agreed. :xyxthumbs



Repeated use would mean in a few months the vehicles would look like you spent some serious polishing time on them.
 
I've been pretty pleased with the swirl removing capabilities of AIO. I used it with great success on one of my jobs, and he reported beading after 6 weeks. If you factor in the cost per application, I don't know if it could be beat.



NXT might be a good topper when called for...help hide some more and give a little more shine.



I think that taking a job like this would definitely cause me to take the plunge into a proper insurance plan, too.
 
Where's Redcarguy when we need him? Bill works in a Funeral Home! Me, I'd do it, but begin to cycle the cars so that you just do maybe 4 per week... That may even allow you to gradually approach the swirling issues, as well.



Good Luck!



Jim
 
Jimmy Buffit said:
Me, I'd do it, but begin to cycle the cars so that you just do maybe 4 per week...
Click to expand...



Good point...I made it too;)



Much easier to deal with 4 cars at a time each week then 18 at once. Plus you'd have money coming in each week.
 
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