Quality over quantity has been my main motto since I got into the business of car detailing roughly 5-6 years ago.\u00a0 It\u2019s something on which I based the mission of LUSTR Auto Detail and something that\u2019s on my mind during every detail job, usually when I have 10 q-tips in hand trying to pull that last bit of dirt from a lug nut hole :).\u00a0 Thus, it\u2019s become second nature explaining to potential clients the difference between LUSTR Auto Detail services and those provided by the local car washes and detail shops.\u00a0 While it must be done and I enjoy the chance to do so, it\u2019s not the simplest thing to explain what I do differently and why high quality detailing work, like most any other service, costs more money.<\/p>\n
However, recently I received a phone call from a potential client, who asked me about the difference in such a way that made me appreciate the chance we as quality detailers have to educate the general public about automotive detailing.\u00a0 It reminded me of a great article Todd Cooperider wrote, explaining What is a “Full Detail”<\/a>, so I wanted to elaborate a bit more and put a bit of a different spin on it.\u00a0 With that comes this article, which is a short but sweet explanation of some main differences we as quality detailers provide to completely isolate ourselves from local shops, car wash places, and dealers, in other words volume-oriented detail shops.\u00a0 While it\u2019s a short and sweet explanation, it\u2019s a lengthy article as I\u2019ve tried to explain some of the main factors in clear detail, no pun intended.\u00a0 One small disclaimer: While all of us Pros on the Detailed Image blog, as well as other quality detailers out there, share many attributes and beliefs in the art of detailing, this article is written representing solely my methods and opinions based on years of experience.<\/p>\n The client mentioned above, who we\u2019ll call Bob for this article, didn\u2019t ask the usual \u201cHow much for my car? \u00a0Hmm that seems way too expensive.\u201d\u00a0 Or \u201cYour reviews are great, but are you able to match the price of X, Y, or Z Detailers?\u201d\u00a0 Or my favorite \u201cHi, I want to get a full detail, outside polished up and interior done, how much and when can you do it?\u201d\u00a0 On the contrary, Bob was an owner of a gorgeous mid 2000s luxury coupe who did almost all the paint maintenance on his own, which is always a big plus.\u00a0 In other words, he wasn\u2019t someone who typically uses the quick, lower quality, volume shops and didn\u2019t just call me to price shop based on my great online reviews.\u00a0 Rather, since Bob had decided the car needed a professional touch, he was on a mission to take the best possible care of his aging car and was doing thorough research before making any appointments.\u00a0 Bob simply explained to me that he has been searching for a quality detail shop in the Chicagoland area and came across a few businesses with great reviews on Yelp and other similar websites.\u00a0 After looking through my website as well as websites of a couple other detailing businesses in the area, Bob realized that while I provided thorough information as well as services that seemed to be what he was looking for, other shops had great reviews and offered substantially cheaper services.\u00a0 Since he was after quality and not simply price shopping, Bob wanted to figure out what exactly justifies the substantial price difference and if my services are worth it.\u00a0 So he simply asked for me to explain \u201cWhat exactly warrants the price difference of my services compared to others in the area?\u201d<\/p>\n I won\u2019t type out our entire conversation, partly because there\u2019s no way I remember the specifics, but long story short, there are three main factors that I explained to Bob: Customer Service, Products and Techniques, Passion and Experience.<\/p>\n No, I don\u2019t mean that quality detailers have a phone person with a sexy voice that will answer 24\/7 and solve your problems immediately :).\u00a0 In my opinion and in my business customer service is comprised of honesty and humility.\u00a0 Honesty to truthfully recommend a service to all clients based on their needs and humility to be able to recommend a job that will earn you less money for the sake of properly detailing and preserving the vehicle.<\/p>\n Each new relationship with my clients begins with a thorough discussion and inspection of the vehicle.\u00a0 The main goal of this is to find out the client\u2019s reasons for seeking professional detailing services and to determine if I\u2019m able to provide a solution.\u00a0 This happens as part of what I call a Pre-Detail Assessment, which is a thorough 30+ minute inspection of the vehicle in question.\u00a0 Once the vehicle is in for the assessment, we go over the entire vehicle to determine the client\u2019s concerns and expectations.\u00a0 If we plan on doing any paint correction, I\u2019ll usually perform a few polishing test spots in order to show the client exactly what they can expect out of a certain service, then we can schedule accordingly.\u00a0 Before scheduling a service, I like to know everything from the vehicle\u2019s detail history, to the way the vehicle is being utilized and most importantly the client\u2019s maintenance routines.<\/p>\n Long story short, my Pre-Detail Assessment is a 30 or so minute session, during which I assess the paint, discuss issues with the client, and finally schedule a detail service accordingly.\u00a0 I never up sell any services, rather simply recommend the minimum paint restoration necessary to bring the vehicle back to life and protect the paint.\u00a0 Similarly, if the client wants the vehicle perfect and time\/cost is no issue, it\u2019s possible I will still recommend a less invasive service if the paint condition and thickness aren\u2019t in favor of too much polishing.\u00a0 In other words, I am known to take an approach to polishing work with caution and the intent of preserving as much paint as possible for future correction.\u00a0 I feel it is my duty as a detail professional to recommend a client, such as Bob, who will daily drive his car through winter in Chicago, not to bother with much correction now and save it for spring time.\u00a0 Why?\u00a0 Because removing the few microns of paint now to correct a few lighter swirl marks and some scratches is not as ideal as saving those few microns to correct more swirl marks and more scratches later on in the spring.\u00a0 Yes, there\u2019s always a chance that the paint will look almost identical in 3-4 months as it does now, but I\u2019d rather not take that chance and take the safer route.\u00a0 To sum it all up, a proper evaluation of a vehicle takes at least 20-30 minutes and sometimes less truly is more when it involves paint polishing.<\/p>\n In contrast, any of the local detail shops or car wash places will simply give the client a price and say to bring it by.\u00a0 That means the 30 minutes I spend inspecting the paint in person can all somehow be placed into a single minute-long phone conversation!\u00a0 I definitely missed that How-To article, thanks Todd!\u00a0 Joking aside, I think my point is obvious here\u2026 there\u2019s no way the needs of an enthusiast can be satisfied with a simple drop down service menu as you see in the volume oriented shops.\u00a0 Since cars are rarely, if ever, in the same condition and because the paint on even the same make and model vehicles usually varies, it\u2019s nearly impossible to recommend a service over the phone, let alone it be the correct service.\u00a0 This, of course, is in addition to the fact that almost all services performed by cheaper\/volume oriented shops are poorly executed and more often than not result in actual deterioration of the paint, but that’s another article on its own.<\/p>\n Next up is product selection and techniques employed while performing detailing work.\u00a0 Notice I said product selection rather than simply products.\u00a0 Reason being I truly believe that most products out there, especially those introduced over the past 2-4 years, are capable of producing very good results.\u00a0 For example, many over-the-counter (OTC) products get overlooked due to the stigma that comes with them as being of lower quality.\u00a0 In my opinion, many OTC products are capable of producing results very close to those of some professional or boutique products, the deciding factor being product selection.\u00a0 As an example, Meguiar\u2019s #83 Dual Action Cleaner\/Polish is an older polish usually available at local car part stores.\u00a0 It\u2019s a medium correction polish that can get some pretty good defects out and on some harder paints it can finish down very well, sometimes not even requiring a finishing step.\u00a0 What this means is that in some odd cases, if a client is limited by a certain budget and wants a one polishing step detail job on his white Mercedes (know to have very hard paint normally), I can reach for the OTC Meguiar\u2019s #83, pair it with a proper pad after doing some polishing test spots, and do quite a bit of correction on swirl marks while leaving a nice glossy finish.\u00a0 At the same time, there are numerous car washes or detail shops just down the street from me taking the #83, squirting it on some old wool pad that\u2019s attached to a rotary polisher, and attacking extremely soft, black Porsche paint with it.\u00a0 This clearly shows how a difference in product selection can lead to a huge distinction in results.<\/p>\n To clarify, while I did use Meguiar\u2019s #83 years ago and still have some, I have since replaced it with some newer polishes that have the same amount of correcting ability but are easier to work with and finish down much better.\u00a0 A couple examples are Menzerna Super Intensive Polish (PO83)<\/a> and Meguiar\u2019s DA Microfiber Correction Compound (D300)<\/a>.<\/p>\n Techniques employed in detailing work vary from detailer to detailer, especially when talking about the order of performing certain tasks. \u00a0Many of us have our reasons for cleaning wheels first or last, dressing or not dressing tires, etc., but at the end of the day it all boils down to how much can we improve our techniques to produce better results.\u00a0 For example, imagine a detailer is given a job of using one polishing step on the hood of an average sedan, say a BMW 3 series.\u00a0 This hood can be visually divided into polishing sections in order for the detailer to have some sense of direction of what has been polished, where he\u2019s going next, comparing sections, etc.\u00a0 The variable here is the amount of sections.<\/p>\n Personally, when contracted for my Light Polish Detail (a detail consisting of a wash, clay, one polish step, then wax) I divide the hood of a 3 series into about 8 sections.\u00a0 On almost every car I divide it down the middle and then divide the halves into a certain amount of sections.\u00a0 Some cars have scoops, odd shapes, etc. on the hood, so it\u2019s necessary to divide the hood differently, but that\u2019s beside the point so let\u2019s go back to our 3 series hood.\u00a0 While I have these 8 sections, a detailer that isn\u2019t necessarily bad, but quicker and cheaper, might have 6, or 4, or even 2 sections on the hood.\u00a0 What this means is while one step of polishing on the hood may take me about 30 minutes, the quicker detailers out there are doing it for 5-10 minutes.\u00a0 While neither of us is doing anything detrimental to the vehicle in this example, the results both in paint condition and final cost will vary significantly.<\/p>\n Paint wise, doing smaller sections on a panel will yield better results as it\u2019s concentrated correction that obviously leads to better defect removal.\u00a0 Add to that proper pressure, proper polisher speed, arm movements and product selection as mentioned above, a quality detailer will get the maximum yield from that one polishing step whereas someone doing quicker work will only improve the paint slightly.<\/p>\n Cost wise, let\u2019s simply imagine the hood to be 1\/8th<\/sup> of a vehicle\u2019s paint total surface area (just throwing a number out there, didn\u2019t actually calculate it).\u00a0 That means that it takes me roughly 4 hours to complete the one step of polishing on the entire vehicle, while the other detailer is doing the same one polishing step in at most 1.5 hours.\u00a0 If we both charge $60\/hr and ignoring the rest of the detail like washing, claying, etc., the difference in price will be about $150.\u00a0 Add that to the entire detail as well as additional polishing steps and you can see how the price between a quality detailer and a quicker detailer can differ considerably.<\/p>\n The exception in this example is the fact that a huge majority of the quicker detailers out there, whether individuals or a volume shop\/car wash, don\u2019t care much if at all for proper car detailing.\u00a0 Thus, they not only performing the one polishing step in a faster time and with the lesser results of quality detailers, but with improper products and techniques their work is usually detrimental to the paint finish.<\/p>\n I\u2019ll repeat this again and again, but as you can clearly see in this example, in the car detailing industry you get pretty much exactly what you pay for each and every time.\u00a0 Unfortunately, going with the cheaper and quicker jobs will also usually lead to negative results rather than simply less correction compared to proper detailing, ultimately resulting in a poor finish and damaged paint.<\/p>\n Beyond the accurate evaluation of a vehicle, correct service recommendation and use of appropriate products and techniques lies a very important part of a quality detailer\u2019s repertoire, \u00a0which is the passion and experience they posses from years of hard work and rigorous training.\u00a0 I articulate passion and experience as one because, personally, they have always come hand in hand throughout my detailing career.\u00a0 All detailers who I know that perform great detail work and am pleased to call colleagues are in one way or another hardcore car enthusiasts.\u00a0 Whether they started cleaning cars for some grimy car wash back in the day, spent countless hours in the garage trying to make the finish perfect by hand, or simply started with a mechanical background fixing cars, these individuals all have a passion for fine automotive work that translates to the quality results they produce now.\u00a0 They truly believe vehicles deserve better treatment than the norm and have spent countless hours, weeks and years improving their skills to provide such treatments.<\/p>\n I personally always tell clients that I am man enough to admit taking my first car to those car washes where you put some coins in, grab the disgusting brush, which is typically jam-packed with small rocks and dirt, then scrub your paint shamelessly before rinsing it down and drying with a \u201cshammy\u201d to further force the dirt into the finish.\u00a0 Live and learn as they say.\u00a0 After that car, a high mile, white 97 VW GTI that I\u2019ll never forget, was replaced with a jet black 98 328i and things changed for the better.\u00a0 Through my passion for automobiles, I squandered many days and dollars in my pursuit of perfection and, consequently, received the experience necessary to perform higher end and higher quality detail work now provided by LUSTR Auto Detail.<\/p>\n Similarly, most quality detailers out there are always looking to improve and learn new things, in order to provide their clients with the best services available.\u00a0 Thus, many are either in the process or already offering services in related disciplines, such as window tinting, clear bra installations and wheel refinishing.\u00a0 All this because due to their passion and experience these detailers realized things can be enhanced and better results can be provided to the clients.<\/p>\n In conclusion, the goal of this article wasn\u2019t to condemn cheaper and quicker detail work, nor was it to state that high end, quality automotive detailing is the solution for everyone.\u00a0 Rather, my intent was to make available some information that can help car owners of all shapes and sizes make more informed decisions when seeking detailing work.\u00a0 As many already know, there is a demand for both quicker and quality detail work.\u00a0 Because most individuals out there are owners seeking more economical services to simply clean their cars, I believe our next challenge as quality detailers is to find some sort of middle ground.\u00a0 To improve the quality of the quicker detailing jobs by means of utilizing better products and safer techniques.\u00a0 It\u2019s something that I\u2019ve been personally debating lately: Can the gap between your typical car wash and your local quality detailer be bridged in terms of quality and price?<\/p>\n I can\u2019t claim to have the right answer yet, but I believe that it is possible and I intend to take this issue head on.\u00a0 My plan of attack is to offer an additional service structure catering to the majority of vehicle owners, those seeking simpler, more economical detail work, while employing the products and techniques of high end services to provide results much better than what\u2019s currently available.\u00a0 Only time will tell whether this initiative is successful, but regardless of the outcome, I’ll reiterate my point from earlier: in the world of automotive detailing you can always count on getting what you pay for.<\/p>\n For those wondering, Bob ended up coming for a Pre-Detail Assessment, scheduling a service, then after a couple days picked up his car a very happy owner.\u00a0 He will be back in the spring for a more thorough paint correction.<\/p>\n As always, thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed it.\u00a0 I wish everyone here a happy and healthy 2012!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In this great article from Ivan Rajic of LUSTR Auto Detail in Chicago, he discusses the concept of quality versus quantity, and how he and other professional highline detailers distinguish themselves and their high quality of work from others. 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Service<\/h2>\n
Products and Techniques<\/h2>\n
Passion and Experience<\/h2>\n
Final Thoughts<\/h2>\n