As I am totally hopeless when it comes to knowing the ins and outs of detailing a car, I was hoping someone would know of a good place to get a detail job done, or if someone would be interested in doing it that is a member of DCMM. (Which I'd actually prefer to a mass-market car wash place).

Maybe I should say having a full detail job done isn't really the top of my list, I just have a few problem areas I want to have cleared up and will be willing to pay someone for a full detail to clear them up:

* I have probably about 15 - 20 what I think are "sap" droplets on my MINI. They are dark reddish-brown in color. I can pop them off with my thumbnail, but they tend to leave a brownish stain that regular washing won't remove. I have since moved and am sure these came from my last parking area since they haven't multiplied since.

* I have the remnants of a sticker that was stuck to the inside of my windshield in the upper driver's side corner. Probably a razor blade would remove this, but I haven't tried.

* I moved some poles that had sharp stakes on one end - even though they were wrapped in cloth and plastic, they left some scratch marks on the inside of the trunk (okay, boot) area. I don't think much can be done with this, but since I'm throwing out a wish list, there it is.

So I think anyone that knows how to do this "clay bar" thing will probably be able to remove the sap, and probably anyone handy with a blade could remove the sticker residue.

So anyone in the DC area looking to make some cash on the side and detail someone else's MINI other than your own? I'll be happy to drop it off and pay in cash. I'll try to take some pictures tonight and let you know what you might be up against...

Thanks!

 

Currys Automotive has a really good detail guy out at the Dulles location (right next to AOL). Give them a call at Curry's Auto Service of Dulles 1510 Moran Road
Sterling, VA 20166
Phone - 571.522.1002
Fax - 571.522.1010

 

You might want to try Detail Authority. Please see the last DCMM newsletter for a coupon. check out their web site at www.waxmycar.com

Tell Randy that Laura referred you.

 

clay barring will indeed fixing most of your problems. the weather is going to be great this weekend, if you feel brave, clay barring is really easy to do, just a bit time consuming. think about giving it a try

 

It is easy! i say give it a try. It took me I think 5 hours to wash, clay bar and wax the first time I did it.

 

I'm too scared! I've never even seen it done and I know that you can really mess up a car if you do it incorrectly! Now that the weather is definitely on a turn for the better, hopefully we can find someone with enough room to have a "MINI Detailing 101" workshop.

Meanwhile, I'm giving Randy at Detail Authority a call since they are nearly in my own backyard... I'll be sure to let everyone know how it turns out!

 

$145.00 for everything but engine cleaning. Great job.

 

Hey,
Don't be scared. I have never detailed a car before either, but I did it today and I can't believe how easy it is.

The clay thing sounds way intimidating, but it is really, really easy and makes such a difference even my boyfriend, The Car Guy, was impressed with the results.

I was shocked at how quick and painless the whole process is and it gave me a new appreciation for caring for a car. I love my baby and today I showed it how much.
And it looks pretty damn good, if I do say so myself
Take it from a newbie, do it, you will be glad you did!
Jen

 

Well, I have to say that my first pay-for car detailing experience was pretty awful. I began pointing out a lot of these issues while at the shop, but the only person there ready to help was the office girl. She was very friendly - She tried to get one of the other guys to help her out, but he just randomly rubbed my car with a towel for a few minutes before dissapearing off. Even though I arrived at 4:20pm (closing time 5:00) looks like everyone was leaving. This was the time they asked me to arrive, too, after dropping it off at 8:00am this morning and making my appointment last week.

So, I'm going to call and talk to Randy tomorrow and see what he can do. I just certainly didn't feel like I got my $230 worth out of the experience, and in some ways (see the black bumpers) I feel my MINI looks worse! I know a lot of my initial impression was dust and pollen, but... *sigh*

 

For the much money you should have been able to eat off it! If the paint was detailed then it should be silky smooth...almost slick. I am use to detailing full size trucks and SUVs so detailing a MINI inside and should be a breeze.

 

Well, I called Randy at Detail Authority yesterday morning (actually, left him a message, he called me back that afternoon). I explained to him the issues I had with the spots and prints on all 4 bumper guards, the brake dusts marks, the spray on the interior, the center console not being cleaned and the boot area not being detailed.

Randy immediately went on the defensive and said that cleaning the boot was not part of the complete detail package I ordered. He said they vacuumed it out (I have the rubber boot mat so no vacuuming needed anyway), but that was it. I said "okay, I understand". I told him I had pictures of the other issue areas, or I could bring it in for him to look at. He suggested I bring it in. He was busy over lunch, so I agreed to come in around 3:00pm.

When I came in at 3:00, Randy was very brusque and short. Basically "So what's the problem?".

(1) I started showing him the brake dust. Now, this isn't the powder, but the actual stuck-on stuff that gets on our rims. I showed him how it was still on the rim, and how easy it was to remove (managed to remove it with a fingernail). He said that must have been there from my drive back. Fine, I let it go. It doesn't matter that I live, work and the detail shop are all in the city of Herndon. I guess in the 3 miles I drove since it was detailed, I had a lot of that stuck-on stuff accumulate. (Did I mention I drive a manual, too? I know how to downshift).

(2) I showed him the bumper guards. I was really worried about these because I couldn't rub off the spots at home. He said it was just "overspray".

(3) I showed him the spots on the interior (see picture from prior post). Is this the "A" pillar? Not sure. He said that the Complete detail package (the best package they offered!) does not cover the headliner, and that is considered the headliner. I told him that I don't smoke, I don't have pets, and I keep a very clean vehicle. That spot was not there when it was delivered and that is obviously overspray from where your guys were cleaning the dash. So even if you don't clean it as part of your most-complete package, I would expect them to clean up a mess that they made. He grunted and said "What else?".

(4) I showed him the cup holder that still had coffee on it. This is the only time I saw him get upset over anything. Not sure if he was upset at me or his shop guys. He took it off and went inside. I went back to the lobby area.

I waited about 20 minutes and Randy came back and asked if I wanted to see it. He got all the spray marks off the bumpers, took the brake dust off the rims, wiped down the spray marks on the pillar and also cleaned my cupholder. He also got the tool to remove the sticker that they forgot to remove in the original detail. Then he said "What else?" again. I said "I think that was everything, thanks for making it right", and shook his hand. He walked away.

I was a little dumbfounded. I never heard "I'm sorry this was done incorrectly" or "I'm sorry you had to leave work in the middle of the day and come back out here so we could fix it". I never got a "Let me give you 10% off your next visit and show you we can do it right". Nothing. I was so sure this was going to be so great - I schedule employee events at my company and was thinking of booking all their mobile units for a day and having car washes for employees (free car wash, extras added on at your own expense), but there is no way I would use Detail Authority now. So I guess I'm back at the drawing board.

Thanks for the recommendation, Laura, sorry it didn't work out for me. Randy did give me a 10% discount (when I picked the car up originally) for being a club member, though (not because of any issues I had).

 

wow that blows. I'm sorry you had that experience. When I have someone do something for me I have to weigh it against - what would it cost me professionally to do this - i.e., my billable rate is $125/hour - so if you were productive for the time the detailer was working on your car - can you gain some solace, "yeah it wasn't done to my perfection - but I would've lost four or five billable hours and I made this much money in that time because my car was detailed."

That said, I am a perfectionist and I would expect the car to look prestine when I picked it up - I used to detail cars as a high school kid many years ago - and I would always have my MOM check my work - and if I missed ANYTHING she would point it out. It's unfortunately made me a detail freak when I see stuff amiss with my car. :-)

 

Sometimes the best detail is the one you do yourself.