What to look for in a good detailing.

K

KEISER

New member
I am going to get my 2005 Subaru Outback detailed for the first time. I have had it for six months. My question is this. What constitues a good detailing. I know very little about clay, wax sealents etc. When I meet the person who is detailing my car I want to appear to have a basic idea of what a full detail should include. Do professionals just wax a car or is there a multiple step process?? I have been quoted a price of $165 for a full detail by a local company. I have glanced over some of the postings on this website, and you folks seem to know your stuff....so any comments would be appreciated.



KEISER
 
if its a 2005...it should look pretty damn good. basically..if you see any dirt, goo, etc or scratches/swirls, take it back.
 
Thanks that was helpfull.....I have heard that ideally you should get a car detailed 2 or three times a year. Since I am in the northeast I figured before winter was a good time. Also...I have a couple kids and the interior needs to get cleaned up.
 
Yes, fall and spring are the best times to have a car detailed. In the fall, you get the car protected for winter, and in the spring you get all the grime off the paint from the winter, plus it looks great for the rest of the season.
 
Well look for anything missed, like wheel wells, door jambs, small places on dash and the top of your car. Also, do you know what the place in going to do to your paint? Polish, for swirl removing, clay bar for contamination removal and either wax or sealant for protection is what you should be getting for $165 as well as a good job. BTW typically sealants last longer than waxes. Also you might want to take a look in the click & brag section to see what other detailers do as far as process, that will probably help the most.
 
Thanks pontman43...... I am not sure the exact procedure he is going to use on my paint. Do you have any recomendations? I have never used a professional detailer before so I dont really know the correct process. On my previous car I just hand waxed twice a year with nu-finish.
 
Ugh...NuFinish. :down





A great detail starts with clay, and then the car is polished to remove swirls in the paint. Then a paint cleaner would be applied to clean anything else in the paint (not that there would be much of any oxidation in a 2005) and provide a base for the sealant or wax. Then a sealant/wax is applied to the car.



Little things like trim, tires, wheels, wheelwells, headlights, etc... should all look great and be protected.



I'd get a quality wax like Nattys to apply to it every couple months throughout the year.
 
KEISER said:
Thanks pontman43...... I am not sure the exact procedure he is going to use on my paint. Do you have any recomendations? I have never used a professional detailer before so I dont really know the correct process. On my previous car I just hand waxed twice a year with nu-finish.
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Max hit it on the dot. But I think that checking out the Click and Brag http://autopia.org/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=96 will really help you see what a pro should do. Here is one I did recently: http://autopia.org/forum/showthread.php?t=63864

But I mostly do it on the side, so my standards are going to be a little higher than a shop that gets multiple cars a day.
 
I would get an Autopian to do your first detail. You can post on the boards that you're looking for a detailer in the area/location you're at. There's a certain methodology/process that Autopians do with vehicles that sets them apart from a normal detailer, and I would say you can be 95% certain you will get better results. Many, many Profesional detailers on Autopia also.
 
kpounds said:
I would get an Autopian to do your first detail. You can post on the boards that you're looking for a detailer in the area/location you're at. There's a certain methodology/process that Autopians do with vehicles that sets them apart from a normal detailer, and I would say you can be 95% certain you will get better results. Many, many Profesional detailers on Autopia also.
Click to expand...

This is excellent advise! There are many detail shops that don't know JACK about paint surface care. They will leave huge swirls and tell you it looks great! :furious:



I bought my car 5 years ago, brand new. I have applied Zaino twice a year for 5 years. Never been touched by a buffer.



It looks like this.....

hianglerear.jpg








.
 
Keiser, the steps that you might expect for a full detail are the following:



Exterior: Wash, remove bonded contaminants with clay, then polishing, which depending on the color of the car and the condition, may be one or two steps (coarse and fine polish, basically). IF the paint is really in excellent shape, a cleaner might only need to be applied rather than polishing, possibly by hand. Expect the polishing to be done by machine (rotary buffer or dual action orbital polisher, as has been alluded to, if you allow someone to use a rotary on your car make sure they know what they are doing). This would be followed by either a synthetic sealant or a wax (or both). Alloy wheels would be treated in the same manner, while tires and exterior rubber trim would be cleaned and have a dressing applied.



Interior: Vinyl & leather surfaces cleaned and dressed. Carpeting and upholstery vacuumed, spot treated for stains, shampooed, and extracted (an extractor or wet vac should be used to make sure things are sufficiently dry to prevent any mold or mildew in your car). Clear plastic dusted. Glass surfaces cleaned.



If you can tell us where in the Northeast you live you will likely get some recommendations on who can do an "Autopian" job on your car, and they will likely explain to you before/during all their steps and why/how they are done.
 
I would like to add that make sure they are a good shop...There is one shop around my area who hires anybody off the street to pick up a buffer and start puting in holograms and swirls, make sure you have seen their work and know what your getting, I personaly would go with an autipian, also make sure that you look at it in direct sunlight if possible before you approve of the detail...One small piece of dirt on a buffer can mess up your whole car... :bawling:



-Justin
 
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