Why don't more people get their vehicle(s) detailed?

[ta240]

300 is a lot of money to most people. Just because they have a newer car, or even an expensive one, doesn't mean they have 300 extra for what most view as a glorified car wash that they can get for $15. I love washing cars, but I find it hard to justify spending 300, when I could spend that money on a weekend vacation or an iPod.

right, I agree it is a lot of money but it is cheap compared to replacing a car as often as many people do. Granted many people buy for other reasons but I'd think quite a few don't like driving cars that look old and tired. They start out with a car they love, but after a couple years it looks like so many 2-3 year old cars on the road that are water spotted, scratched, and dull. Then they don't like the car so much anymore and trade it in on a new car taking a hit of thousands of dollars in depreciation on their old car.

They have enough to spend thousands on a new car or extend their payments out for years longer when for less than a single months car payment their old car could look brand new again.



At the same time I've seen plenty of before and afters here where the before shot of the car looks like a piece of junk I wouldn't even ride in and the after looks like a car I'd be happy to buy/drive/own. Exteriors that looked trashed and interiors that were practically pig pens brought back to like new or sometimes better than new condition.

I don't let me cars get that bad and I don't do that extreme of cleanup but when I do clean them up it is always nicer to drive them afterwards.



I know for the average person you couldn't sell them on spending that much money, I just think that if they did spend it that after it was done they would think it was money well spent.

 

[mmarmarou]

right, I agree it is a lot of money but it is cheap compared to replacing a car as often as many people do. Granted many people buy for other reasons but I'd think quite a few don't like driving cars that look old and tired. They start out with a car they love, but after a couple years it looks like so many 2-3 year old cars on the road that are water spotted, scratched, and dull. Then they don't like the car so much anymore and trade it in on a new car taking a hit of thousands of dollars in depreciation on their old car.

They have enough to spend thousands on a new car or extend their payments out for years longer when for less than a single months car payment their old car could look brand new again.



At the same time I've seen plenty of before and afters here where the before shot of the car looks like a piece of junk I wouldn't even ride in and the after looks like a car I'd be happy to buy/drive/own. Exteriors that looked trashed and interiors that were practically pig pens brought back to like new or sometimes better than new condition.

I don't let me cars get that bad and I don't do that extreme of cleanup but when I do clean them up it is always nicer to drive them afterwards.



I know for the average person you couldn't sell them on spending that much money, I just think that if they did spend it that after it was done they would think it was money well spent.

Honestly, with my previous car, I would just get a pretty good hand wash for about $15 from the place on the corner, and my car looked good enough for me. Consider that the top two car colors are white and silver, both of which hide swirls well, and in many areas of the country the weather is so bad that a professional detail would last about 10 minutes, it's a tough sell.



I don't mean to say that detailers don't do great work, but that for the price, the service is hard to justify for many. Really what the detailing world needs is a magic product that allowed paint correction in an hour. I think this would reduce the price of a professional detail to the point where a larger majority of consumers would start considering it. I liken this to the digital camera world. For most, a point and shoot was fine, and for many years SLR's were far too expensive for most consumers. Eventually, the technology caught up and we now have a wide array of SLR's, some of which are even cheaper than high end point and shoots. Give me a professional detail, with 75% paint correction at $100 and I'd recommend it to everyone I knew.

 

[Bunky]

Detailing is a niche market. Mainly, the people who purchase detailing services are enthusiastic about their cars. In addition to this, they need to have the discretionary income to afford such services. The masses are content with a car wash or express detail once in a while. Part of the problem is a lack of education. The other major problem is the reputation this industry has. The fly by night and un-professional operations really damage our industry.

The car washes can be very busy around here paying $25 to $35 for a drive through the car wash and hand drying as well as many of the DIY. There are very expensive cars going through the nearest place.



Most just want a clean car and not likely to know or care about swirls, etc. until someone educates them about the problems that can be caused by improper washing. Then tell them how someone who knows what they are doing can get rid of them and keep them from coming back.



Poor washing techniques causes gradual damage so they do not see a connection. In several years, as the paint degrades (swirls, marring, etc), I do not think people associate with losing that new car look with poor washing. They jusy think the car is getting old.



Once people are more informed, most will say they are happy but you should convince some small percentage to pay more for a hand wash/wax, etc.



As for my case, I got interested in detailing after my wife took my truck to a local car wash place that does detailing. It came back with holograms, stained trim. and thinned clearcoat. The paint failed in various places within 6 months. This is what people may experience as well and get turned off to detailing.



The key to selling any service is educating the consumer and telling them why you need it. For example, you could try to convince the owner of that trashed interior kid hauling van that a clean interior is better for their kids (germs, etc). You have to appeal to some fear or want.

 

[ALAN81]

Because a weekly wash and vacume is fine for most people. People are watching there money and shelling out 200-300 is not in there buget.

They are not SICK like us

 

[imported_Larry A]

Some people wont even go to the local swirl -o-matic for a car wash. They dont care. A clean car is not high up on there list, I know people who dont like to clean there houses much less there cars. There are 3 soft cloth car washes by me who reduced ther express car wash to under $5.00 and it still did not increase the busness that much. All it seemed to do was let there regular customers who paid $12.00 - $14.00 for a full service car wash now pay $5.00 for a express wash job. I guess people who do get there cars washed do not care if the car gets vaccum, inside windows cleaned , door jams wiped.

 

[Accumulator]

I too question whether good details *really* add much to the value of a non-collector car.



When I sell/trade my immaculately-kept vehicles, the buyer *might* say something about how nice they look ("yeah, that looks lot-ready") but I don't get anything extra for them. At best it makes them easier to sell because they're obviously well taken care of.



Most people just don't care as long as the vehicle looks remotely decent. And most of today's vehicles will look OK for a few years with hardly any upkeep at all.



And most of the people I know replace their cars every few years, long before any neglect will start to show in a big way. One dealer reconditioning-type detail at every ownership change works well enough for the next owner. A lot of these people lease them, claiming the lease costs as a business expense, and never give it any thought at all...a pal has turned down my offer to do his leased car "it's not really mine anyhow and they don't care".



The guy who cuts my hair just bought a year-old Audi with *hideous* holograms/RIDS/etc. It's just awful looking, but those flaws simply don't register to him. He told me flat-out that he doesn't care. In fact, *nobody* I know really cares about that kind of thing other than me and my wife. Well, *maybe* four or five members of my Jag Club do some almost-serious detailing... but 99% of the "serious car guys" that I know couldn't care less about this stuff, including people with "show cars" (scare-quotes intentional).



I've done cars for people. Made 'em really, really nice. The people say "wow". And then turn around and trash them and have zero interest in the whole thing, even when I offer to redo them..."nah, that's OK, don't waste your time, it's good enough for me."