There are different levels of auto detailing. The cheapest level might be only washing the outside, like a car wash; the next level might be doing the interior and the boot too and the top level might include the inside, outside and the engine.
Then there are degrees of cleanliness within these categories as well. for instance, the lowest level might be to merely vacuum the carpets, but the highest degree may include taking them out and actually washing them.
Needless to say the amount of auto detailing you get will (or should) be reflected in the cost. The lowest degree may be $75 and the highest level $300 for an averagely dirty average car.
Larger and dirtier cars cost more. However, the car will be restored to its new condition if that is at all feasible, so a decent detailing before selling your car might reap rewards.
It is not very difficult to learn how to clean the outside of a car well, but it is more of a problem to do the inside because you will need specialist tools and small vacuum cleaner heads to get into all the nooks and crannies.
You might also like to wash the rugs without removing them which can be a royal pain, if you do not have that specialist equipment.
You can definitely buy the waxes, polishes, vinyl and leather cleaners and you can even buy the apparatus, it is only that you may find it costly to buy and time-consuming to use.
Cleaning the engine is more or less just a matter of blasting the grease off the engine with a fairly weak pressure gun using degreaser in the (warm) water, so this requires more specialist equipment.
The brushes and sponges are all pretty regular as are the liquids and detergents, polishes and waxes.
Some auto detailing firms will also take care of minor repairs like a stitch that has come loose in the upholstery or a minor scratch on the coachwork.
However, I think that all companies should at least bring these defects to the owner’s notice even if repair is not in the price. Repairing a minor scratch on a wing can save that wing from having to be replaced in the future. Likewise with tyres, if an operative notices difficulties and reports it, it could save a blowout.
Waxing is an central issue. I think that there should be a wax included in the shampoo, because it will run into all the crevices and form a seal against rainwater. I am all for applying a second coat of wax by hand to the larger areas as well both for protection and appearance.
Do not bother applying a cheap wax by hand, because it will come off after a couple of rain showers. If you are going to do the job, do it properly using a high quality wax that will protect your paintwork from the sun’s bleaching rays, from the abrasion of wind-blown dust and from the oxidizing rain.
Owen Jones, the writer of this article, writes on lots of topics, but is now involved with auto interior detailing. If you want some tips on detailing cars come over to our website now at Detailing Car Interiors.
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