User-Interactive Detailing

A

AcuraYYZ

New member
Do any of you guys have clients who like to participate in the detailing of their vehicles? Being that I have become more interested in car care, I might want to have my car detailed once to get rid of the damage caused by my previous attempts (well, my dad's "good for everything" nu-finish treatment) and then care for the car on my own. I'm sure many of you are going to say "Well, I prefer they don't help because they don't know what their doing and it gets in the way of my professional work". I for one would like to detail my car along side a professional so I can learn how it is done first hand.



Right now my car hasn't been washed in a few weeks and this is winter in Canada but I'm hoping to take it to the coin wash for a spray at some point. I'm looking forward to the summer so I can try a wool mit wash, clay and then a sealant to make it relatively slick looking. I'm not interested in paying big bucks for correction as the car isn't black and the color doesn't show swirls easily (my car is a dark metalliac grey color). It has steel wheels with my snow tires and I'm looking forward to cleaning the original rims soon while they're off the car, although they're not very dirty.
 
I honestly doubt you will find many professional detailers who will let you work along side of them. You might find an autopian style detailer that will let you though.
 
Danase said:
I honestly doubt you will find many professional detailers who will let you work along side of them. You might find an autopian style detailer that will let you though.
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Yes, obviously an "autopian-style" detailer as you put it would be more interested in having the client help. Although it could easily turn out like this --> :buffing: LOL
 
I offer a teaching lesson after my first Detail of their vehicle. That way they can maintain it as best as they can. I'm no "Pro" by any means of course, I just want to see better looking cars on the road :)
 
AcuraYYZ said:
Do any of you guys have clients who like to participate in the detailing of their vehicles?
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We call that training, which would cost much more than a detail. Those who are true professionals most likely wouldn't even consider what you're asking, just like your plumber, lawyer, doctor, landscaper, mechanic, etc. wouldn't.
 
not to get off topic



but this is like the 3rd thread where someone states "dad's "good for everything" nu-finish treatment" .. my freakin dad used Nu-Finish .. and i cant stop laughing ... was Nu a top product in its days or something ?
 
the price for teaching you would double, if not triple! for a couple of reasons...



1 - it takes longer

2 - we are giving you a lesson, and schooling isnt free

3 - you arent coming to us for a detail anymore, less money in the future



someone had this saying in their sig

"give a man a good detail, you will have a client for life. Teach a man how to detail, you have lost a client forever"



Or something very close to that and that is how I perceive teaching people. People ask me all the time how to do this and that, I rarely show anyone (jano you are the exception just because I knew you really were interested and you loved your car!!!)
 
I have a great deal of clients that don't live very close, therefore I only go to them about once every 2 months for the big details. For these people I usually offer a small course on how to do a maintenance wash, scratch-free. I have no qualms with doing this, as I'd rather not drive for 2 hours just to do a 1.5 hour maintenance wash, regardless if they pay extra. I also feel it gives the customer a better sense of pride about their vehicles and they really appreciate the fact that they've been taught by a professional.



Doing this also means that you need to be a good judge of character. I can read people very well and if I see that he/she may not be inclined to remember or carry out the methods I use I won't offer to teach them. Like toyotaguy said, if you want someone to train you it'll cost you.
 
GLuXuRy said:
not to get off topic



but this is like the 3rd thread where someone states "dad's "good for everything" nu-finish treatment" .. my freakin dad used Nu-Finish .. and i cant stop laughing ... was Nu a top product in its days or something ?
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Yes, it was very good and IMHO it isn't a bad polish for someone who wants the basic shine and protection. It's kept my parent's cars looking very nice with only 1-2 applications a year. Once again, to us the car doesn't have to be swirl/RID free to look good, especially since we don't drive very dark colored cars. My dad's ES330 looks great in the summer after a NuFinish treatment but I personally want a bit more protection. I'd say we take better care of our cars than the average person. You don't have to be totally swirl free to have a very looking nice car for everyday driving. That is why my parents' cars fetch high trade in values despite being 7-8 years old.
 
I offer training details where the focus is on teaching you basic correction skills and how to properly maintain your finish. If that's something you're interested in, send me a PM. :)
 
One time at a (hand wash) car wash I commented to a girl that her C Class was very nice. After paying, I looked for her because she was really cute as well. To my surprise she was out in the bay vacuuming her car along with the crew. Seriously! My thinking is I paid to sit and eat ice cream while they did the work.



She'd be hi-maint anyway.



(I only use the hand wash place in emergency)
 
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