How much time a express clean (exterior and interior) takes?

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fellipe

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To better evaluate my mobile car wash business plan, I need to ballpark how much time a express service would take.
My service is to mainly clean the car, not really 'detail'.

Considering a medium sedan, mild situation, mostly everyday dirt.

I'll plan to use ONR for exterior. For the interior, a quick vacuum and steam.

Is it realistic to think 30 minutes? What do you think?

Thank you.
 
depends on how fast you move, what you and the customer thinks is 'good enough', what the customer expects, etc..

don't over think this part.. set your rate and time.. then go do it

if it actually takes you longer, then you'll know it takes you longer

create, test, change, test, and so on....


BTW, since you mentioned steam.... It’s better to have a system than a lot of tools –
 
For me it would be 4-5 hours. This would assume:

Ext:
Wheels/Tires/Wheel Wells cleaned
Foamer followed by 2BM
Dry with spray wax
Air compresser to get all the water out of nooks and crannies
Wipe down jambs
Dress tires

Int:
Water wipedown (or APC, if needed, followed by water wipedown)
Protectant
Vaccuum carpets and seats
Quick wipedown of leather surfaces (if equipped) with leather cleaner followed by water wipedown and protectant
Clean windows

If I add in a clay and AIO polishing/sealing step, that's at least another 4-6 hours.
 
wdmaccord said:
For me it would be 4-5 hours. This would assume:

Ext:
Wheels/Tires/Wheel Wells cleaned
Foamer followed by 2BM
Dry with spray wax
Air compresser to get all the water out of nooks and crannies
Wipe down jambs
Dress tires

Int:
Water wipedown (or APC, if needed, followed by water wipedown)
Protectant
Vaccuum carpets and seats
Quick wipedown of leather surfaces (if equipped) with leather cleaner followed by water wipedown and protectant
Clean windows

If I add in a clay and AIO polishing/sealing step, that's at least another 4-6 hours.
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I appreciate your input, but it's way off from a mobile express 'wash & wax' (with ONR) with quick interior wipe down proposition. Please don't get me wrong. But taking that long would make this business not viable.
 
i would estimate an express clean would take 2-3 guys 30 minutes. as for one man, if you plan to do a full vacuum (getting all the cracks, and getting all the crap off the floor that could be stuck on), while wiping every surface and getting minor dirt off of things you could be looking at an hour or an hour and a half.

if you get into getting spots out of carpet and cleaning overhead and doorpanels/seats real well you could be more into the 2 hour range.

really depends on the car, something decently clean would take about 30 mins because you wouldn't have any focus spots, it would be a quick vac and wipe. but once you get some gunk and hard to reach crevices, you start going up quick.
 
A quick detail like that would take about 2-3 hours depending on condition.
 
To be perfectly honest, I don't think you will get anywhere close to 30 minutes. To do a good ONR wash takes me 20+ minutes on my own cars that I have done many, many times. Assume at least 5 minutes of set up and tear down of your equipment and you are already at 30 minutes without having done the interior.

Also assume that you are probably going to have to run the steamer and vacuum off one electrical circuit, so trying to have the steamer heating and vacuum running at the same time may not be viable unless you have a decent generator; In which case, expect at least 10 minutes of steamer heating. Syou may have to vacuum, then start the steamer heating and ONR while you wait for the steamer.

You're asking a very reasonable question, but the question also leads me to believe that you haven't done much detailing previously, else I would expect you to have a pretty good idea of the time it takes you to do this kind of stuff. Good for you, taking the initiative to start up, but I would caution you on the use of the steamer until you've used it on your own vehicle and some beaters so you can make a few mistakes on your car or junkers before you make a mistake on a customers car.
 
Audios S6 said:
To be perfectly honest, I don't think you will get anywhere close to 30 minutes. To do a good ONR wash takes me 20+ minutes on my own cars that I have done many, many times. Assume at least 5 minutes of set up and tear down of your equipment and you are already at 30 minutes without having done the interior.

Also assume that you are probably going to have to run the steamer and vacuum off one electrical circuit, so trying to have the steamer heating and vacuum running at the same time may not be viable unless you have a decent generator; In which case, expect at least 10 minutes of steamer heating. Syou may have to vacuum, then start the steamer heating and ONR while you wait for the steamer.

You're asking a very reasonable question, but the question also leads me to believe that you haven't done much detailing previously, else I would expect you to have a pretty good idea of the time it takes you to do this kind of stuff. Good for you, taking the initiative to start up, but I would caution you on the use of the steamer until you've used it on your own vehicle and some beaters so you can make a few mistakes on your car or junkers before you make a mistake on a customers car.
Click to expand...

Thank you for your honest thoughts. You're right, I found a business opportunity in my area and I started to research/learn about car detailing.

Based on your reply I realized that to keep the total time around 30min I will need a helper. This way I think it *may* be doable to get in and get out within 30 minutes. But we'll see.

Regarding generator, the I'm looking to buy has a 2800W (3000W peak) with a 7hp motor. I think it's enough to power both the steamer AND the vacuum at the same time.

And yes, I plan to starting practicing at my own car as soon as my steamer arrives.

Thank you again for your help!
 
fellipe said:
Regarding generator, the I'm looking to buy has a 2800W (3000W peak) with a 7hp motor. I think it's enough to power both the steamer AND the vacuum at the same time.
Click to expand...

You shouldn't buy all that equipemnt if you have no customers..
 
Audios S6 said:
To be perfectly honest, I don't think you will get anywhere close to 30 minutes. To do a good ONR wash takes me 20+ minutes on my own cars that I have done many, many times. Assume at least 5 minutes of set up and tear down of your equipment and you are already at 30 minutes without having done the interior.
Click to expand...

Same for me. That's if my wheels aren't trashed/caked in brake dust too. I always clean/dress the wheels/wheel wells/tires. I never rush drying either, because I think that's where a large portion of people swirl the paint.

I find myself using ONR when I can see light dust, I am admittedly over-cautious, and have been doing the 2 bucket method alot recently. The setup of the 2BM is where I lose time, I actually wash the car faster than a RW. Dry time is also alittle slower with 2BM as well. My point is, I wouldn't bank on ONR to be most of the wash type until you know what kind of clientele your dealing with, and what kind of "dirt" your location causes to the vehicles.
 
thebamboo23 said:
You shouldn't buy all that equipemnt if you have no customers..
Click to expand...

I agree with you. But a generator will be necessary to run a mobile system. Of course there're inherent risks when opening any business. They can be minimized by idea validation techniques. Also, I can always resell everything and not 'lose' too much :)
 
fellipe said:
I appreciate your input, but it's way off from a mobile express 'wash & wax' (with ONR) with quick interior wipe down proposition. Please don't get me wrong. But taking that long would make this business not viable.
Click to expand...

No problem. Lots of different definitions of "express". :xyxthumbs:
 
I would say 30min to ONR a car, then at least another 30 min for the interior.

The more you do it of course, the faster you'll get.
 
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