Wow, how much again?

cgriggs

cgriggs

New member
Today I see a local detail guy in my area that I had been trying to track down and get my car detailed. I know I have all the info right here in front of me but currently I am working nights and am far too lazy on top of that. So anyway I pull up and ask the guy how much for an exterior only wash, clay and wax plus any other normal exterior stuff. I have a 2005 Honda Civic Sedan (Satin Silver Metallic) which is just past one year old and the paint is in average to above average condition. So he walks around the car checks it out, asks if it has been repainted, I tell him no it has not, factory paint all around. He then tells me about $200 for the detail. I was thinking to myself, damn this much for an exterior only....... Anyway long story short I get his card and leave. He will not be getting my business. Do you guys think this is a little high or am I a little cheap?
 
Depends on the area,

(SIDETRACK)

Make sure to post your location in your user cp. It helps us determine the area you live in. Thanks!!

(/SIDETRACK)

Ok, well I think 200 is probably a bit much. Its definatly a rip off in my area of minnesota. I would do a full exterior for about 100. That includes the following.

Wash
Clay
2-3 Step paint polishing
Sealant and or Wax

Clean and Dress or Protect Wheels, Wheel Wells, and Tires.
Polish and Seal all windows.
Dress all trim
recondition wipers

So unless your car is really trashed, which you said it is not, then 200 is probably a little steep.

Hope that helps.

Greg
 
That's a lot Greg for $100.
But $200 is way too high, and I doubt you'd get the same value Greg is offering.
Check to see if he meant a polish system too, and whether that included tax.
 
I added my location, Montgomery, AL. When I asked the guy I had 125 in my mind, I think that is a fair price for exterior only. After he told me the price I think he knew it was not what I was expecting he says, "I only use Zymol wax, the good stuff" of something very similar. I forget those may not have been his exact words. Anyway I am sure Zymol is a good product but good gracious I am not paying 200 bones for exterior only.
 
Where i live a detail is close to $170.00 for a car.if the shop is slow $140.00 add $25.00 for a large SUV.The Price inludes Ext/Int. Here is the Catch the EXT is only a polish and wax nothing else and dress the tires.You will get a basic wash on the wheels if there is break dust and they don't remove it with the wash you own it and you drive away with it..
 
lets see -- charge $200, filter out those who cannot afford it and do low volume high-end work, or bust arse doing a whole bunch of work for those who just want the lowest price yet expect the best quality?

For me, this question is kinda a no-brainer.
 
dr_detail said:
lets see -- charge $200, filter out those who cannot afford it and do low volume high-end work, or bust arse doing a whole bunch of work for those who just want the lowest price yet expect the best quality?

For me, this question is kinda a no-brainer.
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I can afford it, it is just not worth $200 to me. I will go buy the stuff myself and do it before I pay 200.
 
if you do it yourself, there are many helpful how-to's and such on the forum. Just search around and look through threads. You will get an idea on what type of stuff to buy and what the process is to do it. Its addicting so watch out.
 
dr_detail said:
lets see -- charge $200, filter out those who cannot afford it and do low volume high-end work, or bust arse doing a whole bunch of work for those who just want the lowest price yet expect the best quality?

For me, this question is kinda a no-brainer.
Click to expand...
I totally agree with you.
..
 
I agree that the price is a little steep. I have done full details for complete strangers and not charged $200. BTW, it's nice to see some more backwards AL people here besides myself. :) I would say for an exterior only detail like you mentioned - wash, clay, wax/sealant & the normal dressing, etc - I would probably charge less than/right at $100 - and I'm quesstimating I could have it done in under two hours (and probably less than that). Now if you wanted polish or swirl removal or engine bay cleaning it would add up, but for what you asked for $200 sounds a bit steep for down here.
 
For me $200 would be worth it if it included some polishing on my Honda Ody. Since I dont have a PC I would gladly pay somebody to do some paint correcting.
 
LynchMOB said:
For me $200 would be worth it if it included some polishing on my Honda Ody. Since I dont have a PC I would gladly pay somebody to do some paint correcting.
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I don't think the $200 dollar price included any polishing/paint correcting steps, at least not from the description that was given when he asked the detailer for a price.
 
IMHO, if the detailer is really meticulous and does what you asked him to do with a high level of quality, $125 would have been a fair price for the exterior if no paint correction (swirl, scratch and oxidation removal) was requested or needed.

$200 would be a fair price for an interior/exterior detail with $250-$275 being the price range if extra polishing was needed to correct paint issues.

This detailer with the Zymol wasn't British was he? :D
 
just out of curiosity, let's look at this in another way -- what's the going shop labor rate in your area??

would we have any problems paying $29 for an oil change (.5hr), $99 for that transflush (1hr); yet to pay a professional detailer, who is trained to know exactly what to use, how to do use it, when & where to use it, a fair price for his labor/services???

So if that mechanic that was doing the oil change did 3 hours of work his charges would be somewhere's around $175, the transflush would be close to $300. What does a doctor charge for 3 hours of their time, how about a lawyer, or a stenographer, or an engineer -- some how though, getting our car washed has turned into this strawberry pickers category and with the influx of do-it-yourselfers who now turn into do-it for-a-few-bucks for others with some buckets, towels, and off the shelf items (not dissin' products) and the knowledge of the internet -- ugh!!! Knowledge can be found anywhere, wisdom, however, comes from experience and there is no substitute for experience -- you can't read how much pressure to apply when polishing, nor can you feel paint imperfections in a picture. And if what makes a good polish is the instructions printed on the label, then power to those madison ave guru's. On the other hand, what if all us car-washers and detailers in America formed a union and started setting prices based upon value of our craft, not what people think it's worth????

Ugh--- So Sorry for ranting.... gotta get to work I got kids to feed and a mortgage to pay
 
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dr_detail said:
What does a doctor charge for 3 hours of their time, how about a lawyer, or a stenographer, or an engineer
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With all due respect Dr., you can't honestly compare those professions with detailing. :rolleyes:

I see your point of paying someone to perform a service, but honestly detailing is not rocket science. It's something most people can learn to do relatively well in a short period of time, given some education & time.

You also have to look at the area we're talking about. What's "worth" $100 to you in CA is probably not going to be "worth" the same amount of money here in AL. When it comes down to it, it's even more specific than that. Some people just don't care enough to spend $100/hr. to have their car cleaned. To them, it's not "worth" that much money.

Again, I completely understand the points you are making, I just don't agree that you can lump it all together and say "detailing is 'worth' x amount of money."

dr_detail said:
On the other hand, what if all us car-washers and detailers in America formed a union and started setting prices based upon value of our craft, not what people think it's worth????
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You probably wouldn't have a lot of business. Only the oil companies can do that. :)
 
$200 for a wash, clay, and wax (cleanerwax most likely) ? You can go to friggin' Advance Auto and pick up a Mothers "Clay Kit" ( It brings a small bottle worth 5-6 uses of cleanerwax) for $17 and acomplish that in 90 minutes, no rocket science involved.

If anything you should look at his going price for a wash and wax and simply add an extra $20 for the clay and that should be the price you pay.

Joy
 
I know that there are a lot of ways to look at a situation like this. You say your paint job is somewhere in the range of average. When this guy did his walk around maybe that isn't what he saw. Maybe he sees swirls and is including making right what he considered to be wrong. Without seeing the car I don't know how I would fairly respond to a statement like this.
 
GregCavi said:
Depends on the area,

(SIDETRACK)

Make sure to post your location in your user cp. It helps us determine the area you live in. Thanks!!

(/SIDETRACK)

Ok, well I think 200 is probably a bit much. Its definatly a rip off in my area of minnesota. I would do a full exterior for about 100. That includes the following.

Wash
Clay
2-3 Step paint polishing
Sealant and or Wax

Clean and Dress or Protect Wheels, Wheel Wells, and Tires.
Polish and Seal all windows.
Dress all trim
recondition wipers

Greg
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Dang that is a lot... 2-3 step polishing! Wow.... Shoot I could move you to DC and pay all of your moving expense. Guarantee you a 100% of what you are charging plus i could get rich!!!!
 
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