Time Managment Help

Mike Burke

Mike Burke

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Hello...this is the 6th vehicle that I have done (first one for money) and am getting some interest to do others....but am needing some advise on the time issue.

Here is my usual routine......

2 - 2.5 hrs

Friday night : power wash at local auto wash ,
then two bucket hand wash (onr)
door hinge area wash (apc) wash wheels, tires, wells
....clay roof, hood and trunk

8-9 hrs

Saturday : finish claying everything including glass ,
scrub rocker panel area to remove all tar, 2 hrs

Tape all black trim




Sorry................here is more of a break down


Here is my usual routine......or how it worked this time anyway

2006 Chevy Avalanche 4 door
Silver, in good shape,
daily driver
two step ( polish & wax )


Friday night 5:00 to 7:00 ++ 2HR

power wash then two bucket wash (onr) wash tires & wheels ( westleys bleach white)
wheel wells, door jamb hinge area, (apc+)
clay roof, hood , truck ( pinn. ultra clay onr lube )

Saturday

10:00 to 12:00 scrub tar of rocker panels, (pinn bug spounge)
clay entire vehicle, including all glass and front grill trim , tail and head lights.

12:00 to 12:30 tape all black time

12:30 to 1:00 Lunch :hungry:

1:00 to 4:15 Polish with Megs D151 ....PC 7424 and LC flat white pads.....4 section pass's per section...not going for perfection....

4:15 to 4:30 Polished chrome bumpers (mothers power ball)

4:30 to 5:45 Waxed with PC and Collinite #845 , removing tape as I go

5:45 to 6:15 Waxed rims , wiped door jambs down, black trim treatment on front and back bumper,
++ 7.5HR

I come up with 9.5 hrs total and haven't even touched the inside. On a couple other I have were about the same story 8 to 9


I have been real happy with the results I'm getting...and I'm getting some good feed back from the owners...family and friends. In fact I'm getting some request to do others.

Like I said , this is the 6th vehicle that I have done and am really trying to keep close track of my time........I have some others to do and I am going to start charging for it. I'm trying to get a handle on the time issue.

I have in mind $ 20.00 per hr

I have looked around quite abit and see some of you are doing exterior and interior in less time and charge less for a one step daily driver job.

Is there any place that you see where I could shave some time ?

Is it just a mater of time and experience before I get faster ?

Or am I on track with what I'm doing ?

Any suggestions would be appreciated,

:) Mike
 
You will most likely get alot of different answers on how to do a car the quickest. My best advice is to get a routine that works well for you and master it. You will become more efficient the more you work.

Maybe including your clay process on each panel right after you ONR wash it but before you dry it may speed things up?
 
LuxuryMobile said:
You will most likely get alot of different answers on how to do a car the quickest. My best advice is to get a routine that works well for you and master it. You will become more efficient the more you work.
Click to expand...

100% agreed. Creating a productive and efficient workflow is a very personal thing and there are a ton of ways to skin a cat.

I would say though that #1 in importance is organization of tools and products. Having everything you need right where you can find and grab it (and ensuring it's always in the same place) will cut your time down significantly. Chasing supplies around the shop is by far the biggest time waster there is.
 
Yeah, I think we can all agree on the first response. Everybody has their way. You could argue who has the quickest most efficient system all day.

As long as your customer is satisfied with your expected pickup time, and the finished job...then don't worry about time. Best thing to do, is to just make sure the customer knows how much time you need. If you need it over night...then let them know, that's all. I think more customers care about the quality more so than the time frame.
 
For me the two things that has helped me detailed faster is experience and organization. I remember the first 5 cars I polished with a DA, just absolute hours. A year later it still takes hours, but I'm not as tired and it does take less time. I use to run in and out of the house, the garage, the backyard getting just one thing that I need right now. I now use a couple tool bags, one has wheels and I keep towels, sprays, and all other supplies in there. A cart would be nice. Also a stool with wheels is helpful. I alos try to make sure I have enough products with me, its bothersome to run out of apc in the middle of a job.

For dirty cars its worth pressure rinsing, but most of the time I don't bother. I will pre spray with ONR you can use APC in a garden pressure sprayer(these things are amazing. I have a 2 gallon for ONR pre spray, a 1 liter for ONR, interior wipe down and clay lube, and a 2 liter APC for carpets, wheels wells, ect.

You can use a soft paint brush to get the badges/shuts with apc. I use ONR to wash and before drying I clay. IPA wipe down, polish, IPA, wax. The IPA takes a bit of time, but I feel like its worth it. I leave wheels and windows till last. Oh, wax/seal the wheels.

Have extra pads and towels and clay with you. Sometime always drops on the ground or when pads get dirty its faster to just replace rather than cleaning on the fly all of the time.
 
Thank you for the advise and suggestions.

I appreciate it :xyxthumbs:
 
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