I Cringed When I Saw "An Auto Detailer" Do This

speedgrid

speedgrid

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About eight months ago a hand auto car wash was opened by a mechanics shop, and since then it was always packed. Cars remain there overnight on many occasions just to wait for a wash. They do all kinds of work including some paint corrections. They also have a list of many specials one can get.

I have been thinking about getting my car done in the summer and have a full inside and out job done to my car as I am low on money at the moment for a Duel Action Polisher and some other professional equipment. Plus I don't have the time to proceed with a full blown detail.

I was always delaying taking my car there as I had this really bad feeling that they are a rush hand car wash despite having so many specials and packages. Many of the workers are also cheap labor and (possibly) illegal immigrants.

Well I was right about the car wash washing cars wrong as I was passing by the car wash today I saw one of the workers using those scratch inducing drying squeegees on a brand new Dodge Challenger SRT8 and it made me cringe like crazy. Despite this, this detailing place is always packed.

These "Hand Car Washes" are really just an overpriced regular car wash that in some cases induce more scratches than going to a regular car wash.
 
People don't have any clue about car care so they go for these types of places and you're right they do damage the paint. 1 sponge doing 20-30 cars a day is going to be the same as a drive through car wash.
 
The service must be priced right if they're so busy all the time. I'd say the guy's not so much an "auto detailer" as he is a business minded shop owner.

He's clearly making bank if he's so busy providing a service people are willing to pay for.
 
Again, I think we are the exception rather than the rule for detailing. Most people just want their car "shiny" and could give a wit about proper procedure.

I will use this example. My wife's cousin wanted to get her Lexus SUV detailed and had asked several detail shops for quotes (to be quite honest, I knew some of the shops and they do proper details and charged accordingly).

My wife tells her cousin that I like detailing our own cars. Long story short, I detail her car. My stipulation is that she can use my vehicle for the day, so that I have uninterrupted access to her car.(This initially confused her because some of the less reputable detail shops told her that they could "detail" her car in under an hour). It took me close to 10 hours to complete her car. (Exterior was above average but interior was a wreck). Needless to say, she had no idea of the level of attention required to due a proper detail.

As to the OP's decsription of the deatil shop, there are several near my work that are constantly busy. To me, it looks more like a social scene than a proper detail shop.
 
To me the difference is terminology. I would really prefer if they called themselves volume car cleaners than detailers.

Props if it works for them. I have no issues with volume shops as long as they do more good than harm.

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I see one place using a long handled brush going from wheels to side of car to under hood engine, back to front of car to side, to wheels, etc. no stopping, no new brush. Apparently giving customers what they want usually has work just like OP mentioned
 
People probably drive past my shop and see me maintaining the fleet of rental wheelchair vans on a regular basis and I'm sure a few people cringe when they see me racing over the vans with wash brush in hand.

The fact of the matter is that the owner of Access Bus and Van sales/Need a Lift Van Rentals (my shop landlord) is expecting to pay $40 per van upon return from the last renter. This is non stop, revolving, on site work for me. For their $40 they get a quick (but thorough) wash which includes wheels, wells and tire shine, vacuum the interior, disinfect the steering wheel and shifter handle, wipe dust off of dash, check tire pressure and check under hood fluids.

All this is done in one hour.

Those who may sit at their computer, or drive past my shop pointing fingers and cringing, are of zero concern to me as I stop to pick up my weekly check for performing this service.

Only those who know me know about the $1800 79 Corvette job, or the $1000 02 Corvette paint corrections etc. that happen behind the closed shop door from time to time. A very small percentage of the market indeed.

Let the scoffers scoff and go about their own business.
 
I saw just this yesterday on my way home from work. I was stopped at alight right next to one of these places. I watched the guy use the same towel to dry the car then the wheels. As he walked back around the car he was wiping at all of the drips...with the same towel.
 
Perfectly stated, Dave. Yes, we most times suffer an association with those who practice techniques we understand as sub standard. But...

There is obviously a market for both service levels, theirs and ours! And Dave is smart enough to provide both. Recognizing the revenue stream of those who simply want fast work, there are those like Dave who give the customer what they are paying for. And exceeding their expectations because he knows how to provide the high end, larger income jobs. And his quicker, lower paying work is still done right.

That's what bothers me. The splash and dash places CAN do it right and still be quick.

Although, not to contradict myself but, i am glad they don't. Maintains plenty of work for us!
 
But i also understand that the customer's for those places don't recognize nor care about having it done the right way. They just want it clean and shiny.
 
This is a fitting thread. Just the other weekend I was an hour or so away from home in a low income, rural area, and I saw a line of nice cars in line for something. It was "so and so's hand wash car wash". I watched them do a range rover as I was stopped at a light and they were using two wash mits, one on each hand. I thought "hey, maybe they know what they are doing." Then proceeded to watch them take one of the mitts from paint, to rims, to paint. I thought well, nevermind!

However, Dave makes a great point. Its not necessarily that they 100% don't know what they are doing, but they are providing a service to people for a price they are willing to pay. A $40-50 hand wash may be the cost of one that is done the right way, but if people are only willing to pay $25 for a hand wash - give the people what they want, even if it does cause swirls. Art said it, but Mike P.'s squirrels and swirls thing does make sense here.

Plus, in a funny way, its kind of ensuring job security. This place was a pressure washing place, but they do the hand wash and do some detail work. If you put the swirls on the people's cars, then they pay you to remove the swirls, thats giving yourself more business :laughing: Similar to how many detailers here refer to dealers as "job security" :xyxthumbs:
 
This is the scratch inducer I saw the guy use on that challenger.

mnoHgehY9HPQ_wU3jiEXE7Q.jpg
 
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