How much would you charge a friend for a full detail?

my friend and i agreed on 100 for a full exterior detail, something i usually charge more on.



he went home damn satisfied, i told him that the car would be better than new, needless to say he didnt believe me until i was done.
 
Ive never did a complete detail on a friends car . Its always just a wash and wax ,and somethimes a quick buff , and in most cases they help me. I donot charge them because they will do me other favors. At our shop we charge $190.00 for a regular complete detail . That includes engine, interior, wheels and wheel wells, trunk, jams buff and wax. Leather treatment is extra, so is severe scratch and swirl removel. We also do show car detailing , but that cost much more. We done cars for Pebble Beach and Amelia Island. Our detailer is very good and fast and can do a average car in 3 1/2 hours.
 
artikxscout said:
Thanks for the reply guys. The guy said he didn't have money for a $100 dollar detail (how much I said to him), and he can get his other friend to do it for $50, and at the same time he's saving for a Supercharger for his car... I guess his supercharger is worth than my time.
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Tell him have it done for the $50...



and to never darken your door again!



I do give a "professional courtesy" discount to public safety and EMS personnel and a few of my long time customers... it averages to about $25 off the cost of the detail.



Freebies? The only freebies are my own vehicles! :buffing: :waxing:
 
For family I will do free of charge, grandparents, etc. Most of my friends though I would probably discount though for most serious work. If it was a friend of a friend, I think I would have to take a look at the vehicle, and think about it, but most likely it wouldn't be a discount like a close friend.



Although in this case this guy isn't really a close friend, for just a wash and a coat of wax I wouldn't charge most of my friends. I would tell them to come down for a beer, I would probably enjoy the company.



Some friends though I would probably do quite an extensive job just for free because they don't have the time/stuff/money/know how to do it, and they have a lot on their plate. The last thing they can afford to worry about is if it is time for a new coat of wax or an engine wipedown on their car, nevermind a full detail.
 
I'm thinking about doing details for friends in exchange for products, something like this:



"I'll do a full exterior detail for you, if you go down to Advanced auto parts and pick me up 2 boxes of meguiars clay bar system and throw me $50 bucks."



That way they think they are getting the job for cheaper but it's really gonna cost them almost the price of a regular customer and i'm getting something useful in return other than cash!
 
if hes telling you his other friend can do it for 50 dont even bother cus if he really thinks your work is the best money wouldnt be an issue. I know i would want my car looking its best for the price of a awesome detail, as opposed to someone doing it for half the price. the other guy will probbaly wind up screwing it up and wind up taking it back to you anyway.
 
If it's a $300 detail, I would charge $300. I never mix friendship with business. If he owned a store would he let you go in and get $300 worth of goods for $50.00? I doubt it. Oh and by the way, that guy is no friend (imo).
 
"[00:20] JJ23the***** honestly. i dont give a ******* flying **** what your clients are "paying" you. if thats the way u want to be fine. being shady and renigging on ur offers just because of whatever. i will make sure you dont get any more business from the forums. period. as for your recommentations. you can **** off. you'll probably take a cut from whoever u recommend me to.. and im going to make sure my money doesnt get anywhere near you. peace out.

...

[00:21] ohdamnitsSAM: lol chill out man

[00:22] JJ23the*****: lol **** you.

[00:22] JJ23the*****: ur a money grubbing piece of ****

[00:24] JJ23the*****: you do not know how to ****ing run a busines. ur just an 18 year old money grubbing piece of **** with an m3 that mommy and daddy bought u... ur more pathetic than this guy on audizine who sells and resells jordan sneakers from ebay. LOL. this would be like if macys had a promotion, and when i went in to redeem my promotion, they be like sorry we dont honor that anymore... LOL. they wouldnt be a franchise. theyd be reported to the bbb and people would boycott their store.. the same way people are going to boycott you after im thru with you on the forums.

[00:24] JJ23the*****: peace"



So the situation was this, when i started detailing, i charged him 100 dollar for a full out detail but i never got a chance to do it. We separated (i went to school he want to his), this was also meeting him only once. He contacted me from BFC using someone else's name because he was banned from the forum (I can see why now). This was when I was doing it as a hobby.



So after a while, I started doing it as a business, got my experience from all the other cars i've detailed so I'm entitled to raise my price for skilled labor. He comes back asking me to detail his engine, I said ok, set up an appointment when he was free and we met. He asked me how much it would cost, and I said $20 (this was only a week ago), and he blew off in my face, "Last time you charged me only $10 dollars! My friend can do a full detail [this guy goes to Stevens Creek BMW for those that have been there.... HALOGRAM CITY] for $60".



I told him to go to him then, and he said the guy got fired (i wonder why he does it for $60... kinda fishy).



So today he wanted a full detail, I told him, "Hey, i'll do it for $150 to get rid of your swirls" and he's like "**** that, you charged me only $100 last time", well... things change right? You gotta remember, this guy used to drive an $80k tricked out Audi S4, and now he has an e46 m3... and he's not willing to pay a small amount to pamper his car... what a *****.



Argh... I need to vent, i hope you guys feel what i feel. Now he wants everyone to know how crapy I am and such... I'll let my pictures do the talking... he can have his ways. ERGH!!! >>Angry Smily Face Here<<
 
SpoiledMan said:
Dude, *MY WIFE* has to "put out" for a detail.







Really!:D
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Lol, i'd purposely throw dust on my g/f's car then if she did that. :lol



Sigh... I'm glad we have mature people who understand how detailing actually works. It's an art, people enjoy art, it's not just a thing people do to wash cars.
 
That's some "venting"!!! :hairpull :shocked



Now that you've gotten that off your chest, here's a simple solution...tell him NO WAY and walk away. :nana:
 
Sam, I'm just curious, are you and this "friend" Asian?



I'm Asian myself, and I know some people might not agree with stereotypes, but IMO a lot of Asian people are just plain stingy with their money. I have many close friends who work in sales and Asians are their least favorite people to do business with. It's just a different mentality/way of bargaining that they're not used to.



Anyway, someone who I've only met once or twice would not be someone I considered to be a friend. Like someone else said, a friend of a friend or an acquaintance, but that's definitely not a friend, especially if he's bargain shopping and talking smack about you like that.



For really close family or friends that have helped me in the past, I do it for free to help them out and save their time and money. For friends, I never knew what to charge and just asked for $100-$150 because it seemed reasonable, especially for the amount of work I've put in. I think my time is worth more than that, but it's enough to cover for supplies, maybe allow me to buy new products, but more importantly, once someone gets something for free, often times they'll take advantage of it too much or they'll never want to pay for it in the future. There has to be a balance otherwise in the end, one person might end up feeling cheated. For the most part, I agree with the saying that nothing in life is free. You pay for it one way or another.
 
artikxscout said:
I know it depends on how close they are, but if you just met them a couple of times, and they're asking for a favor, would you do it for free or charge them, say the job calls for a $300 detail.
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For me personally, I have kind of a core group within my group of friends. The "core group" are people that have been by my side for years. If one of them needs my help with detailing, I'd gladly do it free. That said, any of those people that I would do that for, would do the same for me.
 
black ~ yeah I'm asian and he is too. I know what you mean with being stingy with their money, but it goes to a certain extent.



Wade~ I know what you mean by the core group. I do their car for free when I have time and even invite them to bring their cars over to work on. But this guy wasn't in my core group and believed that he was. -_-... gotta keep personal / business separate you know?
 
artikxscout said:
I know it depends on how close they are, but if you just met them a couple of times, and they're asking for a favor, would you do it for free or charge them, say the job calls for a $300 detail.
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bold is my emphasis.



That's the key right there. IMO, full price.
 
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