How much to charge for polishing?

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CheeseDetailing

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I'm starting to do some polishing on the side and I'm not really sure what to charge for the service.I learned to polish at an autobody shop fixing orange peel, runs, nibs etc. while doing production detailing so I never really set the prices for my work.

I did my first real job on the side yesterday cut polish+wax for $50+lunch on my buddies car. Obviously way too low but he got his 2 brothers and his dad wanting a polish when they saw the results so free advertisement :xyxthumbs:

Any ways how much do you guys charge for polishing? I'm thinking for trucks/suvs $150-250 depending on the colour and condition of the paint and $125-175 depending on the colour and condition. That's strictly for the polishing so the initial wash, polish, rewash and hand wax. I figure that easily covers the material cost and leaves a reasonable hourly wage.
 
For a one step those prices don't seem too bad, depending on your area. Once you have to two step it depending on condition and time estimate at roughly $35-45/hr.
 
I would not do a single stage correction under $40/Hr

I would not do a multi-step correction under $50/Hr

That however is just me. Some guys even get into the 60-75/hr range. A good number would more than likely be between $40-$55 an hour.
 
Hypothetically how much would you estimate for say a 2 door car? 4 hours or so?
 
CheeseDetailing said:
Hypothetically how much would you estimate for say a 2 door car? 4 hours or so?
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Kinda hard answering without a picture in my mind. So lets just say the paint has swirls everywhere and that's the only defect to the paint in which a 1 step would greatly enhance the beauty of the paint.

I would say around $175-$200.

Now again it goes by an estimation when I bid something because I'm timing each process in my head to determine what to bid and bid fairly.

So if the paint had RIDS, orange peel , oxidation , swirl galore with lets say some overspray. Pretty bad right?

It would be along the lines of $350-$400 for me possibly more depending on "How much" of each and how bad.

In my eyes bidding a job is an art form in itself and you have to know your timing for each process to get a good feel of what to charge. It does however get easier with every detail but once you have it down you can just look at a vehicle and determine a price in about 10-15 minutes of assessing it.

Hope that didn't confuse you. - Tory

Btw :welcome: to AGO.
 
T3 AutoDetails said:
Kinda hard answering without a picture in my mind. So lets just say the paint has swirls everywhere and that's the only defect to the paint in which a 1 step would greatly enhance the beauty of the paint.

I would say around $175-$200.

Now again it goes by an estimation when I bid something because I'm timing each process in my head to determine what to bid and bid fairly.

.
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This is where I start my one step polishing at. If a customer wants to know a price I advise them that this is a just a starting point price and that an accurate price will be given upon visual inspection of the vehicle.

Don't be afraid to hold to ur price that you quote them either. A lot of time people will try to get you to bring down the price because they may not like the one you give them but be sure to hold firm.

Mike always says know the difference between a swirl and a squirrel.

http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...etween-swirl-squirrel.html?highlight=squirrel
 
T3 AutoDetails said:
Kinda hard answering without a picture in my mind. So lets just say the paint has swirls everywhere and that's the only defect to the paint in which a 1 step would greatly enhance the beauty of the paint.

I would say around $175-$200.

Now again it goes by an estimation when I bid something because I'm timing each process in my head to determine what to bid and bid fairly.

So if the paint had RIDS, orange peel , oxidation , swirl galore with lets say some overspray. Pretty bad right?

It would be along the lines of $350-$400 for me possibly more depending on "How much" of each and how bad.

In my eyes bidding a job is an art form in itself and you have to know your timing for each process to get a good feel of what to charge. It does however get easier with every detail but once you have it down you can just look at a vehicle and determine a price in about 10-15 minutes of assessing it.

Hope that didn't confuse you. - Tory

Btw :welcome: to AGO.
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No that wasn't confusing at all and was really helpful thank you :D
 
My 1 step starts at $275 and my 2 step starts at $350 depends are car size . I did a one step on a Mini Copper Friday took me 6 hours to get it where I was happy with it.
 
I'd like to know more of everyone's prices too. For the most part, polishing is in 3 levels?
AIO
1 step
Multistep

Also, Pureshine and T3, do the prices you gave include the rest of the exterior and an LSP?
 
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