Detailing a rental car

B

BoxsterCharlie

New member
Ok this is pretty sick, but hear me out.



I'm going to California and I have lots of cool road trips planned for the week. I just can't drive a car that much without doing something!



Here is the small kit I'm thinking about taking:

- RainX (to me this is a safety item)

- 4 microfiber towels

- Klasse AIO

- 303 Protectant



Hope I get the Mazda 6 rather than the Toyota Corolla. I can't believe Hertz puts them in the same class! (But at least it will be better than the horrible Cavalier I had last time)
 
Hey its a great way to try out new products. I actually practice with my PC on my work car. It gets washed at the drive through car washes so it give me a chance to practice getting out swirls with diff products.
 
I wouldn't detail a rental car unless they were willing to give a free day or two with unlimited mileage!



PS: get that it writing!
 
I think it would be a waste of your good wax products and time. I would detail it with the swirl brush and spray on wax at the self-service booth and give that a shot... or should I say swirl :)
 
I detailed a loaner car one time. It was just so horrible to look at I couldn't help myself! I'm sure the dealership thought I was crazy, but I wasn't going to drive around in a car that has so much brake dust it looked like the wheels had been powercoated black.
 
johnnygee3 said:
You detail your rental cars? Are you serious?
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Why not! If you are going to use the car for a week or so. Thats what cleaner-wax is for. It gives you a chance to try products you wouldnt use on your car.
 
kompressornsc said:
I detailed a loaner car one time. It was just so horrible to look at I couldn't help myself! I'm sure the dealership thought I was crazy, but I wasn't going to drive around in a car that has so much brake dust it looked like the wheels had been powercoated black.
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Yeah, that's what I'm talking about! :up



It's not that I'm going to spend more than an hour on it...just that if it annoys me, I want my good stuff on hand and not have to buy $20 worth of Turtle crap at the car parts store!



Where do you draw the line? C'mon guys, you can't say you've never cleaned the windshield on a rental! :p
 
Sure, I've detailed rentals and loaners. When Accumulatorette's S4 got totaled we got a new Caddy DTS rental to drive while they sorted it out. NO WAY were we gonna drive around for weeks in a nice car that was so obviously neglected/abused. One afternoon made a world of difference. And detailing service loaners ("hey, this is a cool car/color..what if I hit it with some 1Z?") has REALLY paid off in goodwill with the shops I patronize.



BUT..spend your vacation detailing a car? I DO take window cleaning supplies (I wouldn't RainX someone else's car though, some people hate the stuff). I've even pulled off the track at driving schools and cleaned the windshield on the school's racecar. But when we're on vacation, it's just an appliance that gets us around. I'll run it through a carwash, don't want to get dirty if I brush against it, but that's it. Not gonna give MY *TIME* to a rental company. I somehow doubt you'll stop after an hour ;)



Now if I were renting something REALLY special, that would be different...maybe. I probably value my time as much as anything in life, so I'm pretty particular how I spend it.



BUT#2...If doing a quick detail on the rental will enhance your vacation, do it! It's all about enjoying yourself.
 
I don't see anything at all wrong with detailing a rental car. Remember detailing relaxes some people I know it does me and it is somthing to take pride in driving around in a clean car. Just because the car doesn't belong to you doesn't mean you should drive it around dirty if you have time to clean it.
 
i think it is even more fulfilling detailing both a neglected car, and a car that doens't belong to me. i get bored sometimes detailing my own car b/c its so familiar.
 
I've detailed one, when I knew I was gonna have it for a week. It really is a fun tool to experiment on.. I scratched mine up on purpose so I could use some of the more abrasive products and see how they worked...



You know, doing 1/2 of a panel, using 2 different products on different panels, that sort of thing...
 
I washed, polished, and vacuumed a rental Town & Country minivan last week. I did a vendor spot at an Aston Martin concours and didn't want to show up "improperly dressed" so to speak.



You know what... WE ALL NEED TO GET A LIFE!!! :p
 
johnnygee3 said:
You detail your rental cars? Are you serious?
Click to expand...



I have (just the exterior) when I have them for more than a few days. I can't stand a filthy car and it also gives me a chance to experiment with different combos.
 
johnnygee3 said:
You detail your rental cars? Are you serious?
Click to expand...





My GP needed some tranny work done, so I ended up with a rental Grand Am. They did the world's quickest wash on it. It was so bad, I ended up washing it myself when I got home. When I saw the water sheet, I took a few minutes to wipe it down with Mother's California Gold cleaner wax I had laying around. I scrubbed the tires and got the brake dust off the front rims.



My wife thought I was nuts. I just couldn't stand looking at the filthy, streaked windows.
 
Scott P said:
My GP needed some tranny work done, so I ended up with a rental Grand Am. They did the world's quickest wash on it. It was so bad, I ended up washing it myself when I got home. When I saw the water sheet, I took a few minutes to wipe it down with Mother's California Gold cleaner wax I had laying around. I scrubbed the tires and got the brake dust off the front rims.



My wife thought I was nuts. I just couldn't stand looking at the filthy, streaked windows.
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Thats make you a better person, If the rental company were good people they would give you a price break, but they wont , at least not in our life time.
 
Actually, I had a GP Club meeting that night, and I didn't want to show up in a dirty car, even if it was a rental. I did a nice E-Brake Burnout, so I think the rental company and I are pretty even now...:cool:
 
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