What is a detail?

I see people are quoting Dana when he can not respond at this time, funny how that works. Also please look up the definition of the word detail or details. I would agree a detail is doing paint correction and a wash and wax is just that.
 
bimmersales said:
I see people are quoting Dana when he can not respond at this time, funny how that works. Also please look up the definition of the word detail or details. I would agree a detail is doing paint correction and a wash and wax is just that.
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ASPHALT ROCKET...Last Activity 1/24/2011 @ 9:47pm ;)

As far as what a detail is....who gives a crap :surrender:
 
Detail: The small elements that collectively constitute a work of art.
 
I think whats most important is not what anybody here thinks it is...what matters is what the potential client thinks it is...and frankly, most of people driving daily drivers who have never been exposed to this...have no idea what detailing a car is.

The challenge is explaining it to them in terms that make sense. If I walked up to a guy getting out of his car after a hard day's work, and told him that I'm an artist...he'd punch me in the face.
 
silverfox said:
The challenge is explaining it to them in terms that make sense. If I walked up to a guy getting out of his car after a hard day's work, and told him that I'm an artist...he'd punch me in the face.
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Haha. That's hilarious but id have to agree.
 
Thats funny but why would you tell him you are an artist? :poke:
 
CEE DOG said:
Thats funny but why would you tell him you are an artist? :poke:
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because I draw scenic pictures in the wax after it hazes...DUH

Even Mike Phillips does it

Behemoth2016.jpg
 
CieraSL said:
Bit of an old thread revival here, but I happened across this thread and found it very interesting. In my opinion, you can't really define a detail. Look at it this way - it's kinda like buying a cake. You can go to the grocery store and buy a small simple cake for $10-$15, or you can have a huge extravagant cake custom-made that costs thousands of dollars and takes days to make by a cake "artist". It is agreed that there are basic ingredients involved that make it a cake and separate it from, say, a cookie - flour, sugar, eggs, milk, etc. But whether it is a $10 cake or a $10,000 cake, both are undeniably cakes, and each is made and sold according to the desires and affordability of the customer. Same with detailing. If the customer just wants a wash and wax for $100 and he thinks it looks brand new, then in his mind, it was a detail. If the customer wants a 4-step correction, jeweling, sealant, and wax for $1,000, and he is happy with it, then he received a detail as well. But to say "This is a better cake" or "This is a better detail" merely because it cost more or involved more time and skill is in my opinion just plain wrong. After all, the number one priority should not be how well the cake looks or how good the car looks, it's about how happy the customer is. Just my two cents. This thread is a great read if you want to take the time to go through it.
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Stir the pot much? lol
jimmyjam said:
I have done the same and it has taken a couple days to complete the detail, but the customer/client appreciated the fact that I was honest about needing their vehicle a little longer than expected. I don't see anything wrong with a $400/$600 detail taking two days to complete thoroughly. IMO
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I agree, In my honest opinion there is no way to do correction involving more than one step in one day. For me I quote at least 2 days on everything other than a wash and wax. It gives me the time to go through the entire vehicle and make sure it is perfect.
sullysdetailing said:
You do not have to remove swirls from a vehicle to have it called a detail. Detailing a vehicle is not just about removing swirls and making the paint look pretty, it has to do with cleaning and taking care of the whole vehicle as a whole not just the exterior.
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sullysdetailing said:
If the person drives their vehicle 100 miles a day there is no need for them to have their paint swirl free. But if they just want a wash, wax, and full interior detail. Then when you detail the inside of the vehicle you better make sure you get everything from A-Z.

Detailing does not always have to be correcting paint but more about taking the time and effort to do everything right.
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If you read back through the rest of the thread, he mentioned that exact point. The point he is trying to make is it's not a detail if you clean everything, but don't correct the paint. I tend to agree. Anyone can go out there and wipe stuff of with a rag and some chemicals. It takes much more knowledge and skill to correct a paint job and have it look flawless. I'm not going to say that a detail has to be 100% paint correction, but it does have to involve more than washing a car and slapping on some spray wax. So yes paint correction alone is not a detail, but it is part of a detail. Without the paint correction it's just a wash and wax...
bimmersales said:
I see people are quoting Dana when he can not respond at this time, funny how that works. Also please look up the definition of the word detail or details. I would agree a detail is doing paint correction and a wash and wax is just that.
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Eh, sounds like someone shouldn't have run off at the mouth and gotten banned... :poke:
silverfox said:
I think whats most important is not what anybody here thinks it is...what matters is what the potential client thinks it is...and frankly, most of people driving daily drivers who have never been exposed to this...have no idea what detailing a car is.
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silverfox said:
The challenge is explaining it to them in terms that make sense. If I walked up to a guy getting out of his car after a hard day's work, and told him that I'm an artist...he'd punch me in the face.
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I don't agree. The fact that the customer doesn't know what a detail is means they should not be the one deciding what steps a detail consists of. You can have a happy client, but that doesn't mean you truly detailed their vehicle. Just because I have someone that is doing back flips because I washed and waxed their vehicle doesn't magically mean that wash and wax became a detail.
 
To me detailing is cleaning and protecting the parts of a vehicle that are not normally tended to during routine maintenance. i.e. attention to the details if you will.

Correcting and reconditioning have always been separate add-ons at my shop. Although these aspects take a more skillful and experienced person than someone who just "cleans" well and can apply protection products, we usually call both detailers.

To sum up: some do not make a distinction between detailing and reconditioning, but I do. My services are broken into 1. Clean 2. Correct and 3. Protect categories. I let the customer choose the contents of their "detail."
 
You cannot argue with AR, he is always right.

So a detail is whatever he says it is.

I dont even think he is banned either.
 
Obviously everyone has their own definition of what detailing is. Some believe a wash and wax is a detail, some believe that correcting paint is a detail, and others just don't care. My understanding of a detail has always been: To recondition a blemished vehicle back to a condition as close to or better than new, to include polishing paint to remove swirls/defects. To take the vehicle to it's maximum potential.

CieraSL said:
Bit of an old thread revival here, but I happened across this thread and found it very interesting. In my opinion, you can't really define a detail. Look at it this way - it's kinda like buying a cake. You can go to the grocery store and buy a small simple cake for $10-$15, or you can have a huge extravagant cake custom-made that costs thousands of dollars and takes days to make by a cake "artist". It is agreed that there are basic ingredients involved that make it a cake and separate it from, say, a cookie - flour, sugar, eggs, milk, etc. But whether it is a $10 cake or a $10,000 cake, both are undeniably cakes, and each is made and sold according to the desires and affordability of the customer. Same with detailing. If the customer just wants a wash and wax for $100 and he thinks it looks brand new, then in his mind, it was a detail. If the customer wants a 4-step correction, jeweling, sealant, and wax for $1,000, and he is happy with it, then he received a detail as well. But to say "This is a better cake" or "This is a better detail" merely because it cost more or involved more time and skill is in my opinion just plain wrong. After all, the number one priority should not be how well the cake looks or how good the car looks, it's about how happy the customer is. Just my two cents. This thread is a great read if you want to take the time to go through it.
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Shane, what I got from your post was that you believe the guy/girl at McDonald's flipping burgers could also be considered a Chef because they work in the food industry, or that a Phlebotomist could also be considered a Doctor because they know how to use a needle.
 
rwright said:
Obviously everyone has their own definition of what detailing is. Some believe a wash and wax is a detail, some believe that correcting paint is a detail, and others just don't care. My understanding of a detail has always been: To recondition a blemished vehicle back to a condition as close to or better than new, to include polishing paint to remove swirls/defects. To take the vehicle to it's maximum potential.



Shane, what I got from your post was that you believe the guy/girl at McDonald's flipping burgers could also be considered a Chef because they work in the food industry, or that a Phlebotomist could also be considered a Doctor because they know how to use a needle.
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Not necessarily, because if this were true, then I would consider hacks to be detailers as well, which in my opinion, they are not. Just because I can make a cake does not make me a cake artist. Just because somebody can flip burgers does not make them a chef. Just because somebody has a buffer does not make them a detailer. Just because somebody has a needle does not make them a doctor. There is a greater sense of necessitated "quality of work" and customer expectations that define an occupation or job description. I can tell a big difference between a Wendy's burger off the dollar menu and a $5 burger from Five Guys. Of course, budget and personal taste will play a major role in which one I decide to have for lunch, but I can see that difference in both taste, how the food is prepared, and the quality of the ingredients used. Either way, I am still getting my fast food burger, chosen by me, the consumer (literally). Or I can go another step up - there is a place about a half hour or so away from me called Litton's that serves the best burgers I have ever tasted. However, they are also quite expensive. For a medium-well burger with bacon and cheese, an order of fries, and a sweet tea, also including the tip, my total was just under $20 (I ate there the other night with a friend). Now given, the burger was pretty good sized, as was the order of fries, and it was a sit-down restaurant, but you just can't compare the people who make a Litton's burger to people who make a Wendy's burger. But now I'm rambling, so I'll sum up with this - it basically boils down to "Cost-Benefit Analysis," which, by definition, means "A process by which you weigh expected costs against expected benefits to determine the best (or most profitable) course of action."
The three questions that are asked by the consumer are (1) What do I want, (2) What is my budget, and (3) What product or service will net me the best "bang for the buck". That's my point. I hope that made sense. I think I have a headache now. :)
 
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