Detailing

I'm gonna treat my car to some detailing work. I've never had it done before, but as the car is now nearly 20 years old there are a few bits of long term grime getting into the crevices that I want out before small animals start making nests.

I was looking online and the prices vary massively, from £25 - £250+ so my question is 1) does anyone have any recommendations for the South Oxfordshire area and 2) what is a realistic price to expect to pay for a half decent job?

250 is still rather too cheap for detailing, valeting sure.

Why can't you do it?

My opinion is no one can valet as good as me as it's my car and no one cares about it as much as me.

ric I wish you lived here , prices vary a lot as you say , and before the fuel increase ive travelled further than oxford to do a detail, but trying to factor in fuel kind of pushes it over the price .

but depending on the condition of the paint swirls scratches £250 will be a good starting point , and if its only light swirls it could be done in a day , commonly known as an enhancement detail , but any more than that not possible in a day

If it's never been done before, then you're looking at a 2-3 day job with multiple machine polishes to remove the swirls.

Get yourself over to Detaling World and see who's in your area.

If you're looking at any form of paint correction it'll be well north of £250 for a decent job.

I always do the car myself so couldn't give you a relative figure. I wouldn't trust anyone else to do it. Its tough but worth it in the end although it's very easy to spend a fortune on detailing stuff

skippy I think your wrong there ive got ten years of gear in my garage and van that will cover anything im likely to come across, and the experience of working on all types of automotive paint . I think youd be surprised at a professional detail

have a look on detailing world plenty of advice on there what to use and how to use it, since I've been a member on there I have changed the products I used to use, with a bit of practice and elbow grease you can achieve great results.

Why can't you do it?

My opinion is no one can valet as good as me as it's my car and no one cares about it as much as me.

Nothing to do with the factor some detailers have over 10 years of knowledge, experience & understanding of the paint chemical process

I had mine done by Stonkin (Christian), the paint was in quite a state as it spent a large amount of time sitting outside. It cost IIRC £350 for stage one paint correction and took a few days but the difference it made was night & day. I had thought about detailing it myself but as it has no lacquer I didn't want to mess it up. So took it to someone who knows what to do. Not only did Christian do an amazing job, he spent time with me explaining the process, what I needed to do to maintain the protection and varies other things.

His quite a distance from me but worth every penny to drop off and catch the train back. He knows the Supra's inside out.

It's easy to do if you have the time it really is just taking your time to do it correctly with the right compounds for the job I would say 2-3 days for a correction if your base car is a bit tired I just did mine and spent two days on it but plan on doing it again over 5 days in a few months...

because I have no life

There is a guy on YouTube called AMMO NYC, he can show you and explain all the ins and outs of detailing with the steps and processes required.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYsa8SOy3TkoxI5D17s1u-w

You'll learn quite a bit from him as he puts in the extra effort from various angles of detailing.

hope this doesn't get me in trouble but i'm from around your area and have done a few detailing/paint correction/scratch removal jobs in my spare time as a hobby I also have a job booked in for next week for a well known member on here but won't name names in case it's being kept quiet lol, few pics of my work

https://scontent-b-lhr.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn2/t1.0-9/399224_10152140354261224_1326401_n.jpg

https://scontent-a-lhr.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/t31.0-8/1519023_10152140354331224_141583741_o.jpg

https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn2/t31.0-8/1486144_10152141783111224_234093477_o.jpg

https://fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-frc3/t31.0-8/1498852_10152141783116224_703461230_o.jpg

https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn2/t31.0-8/1492272_10152140354111224_803334179_o.jpg

https://scontent-a-lhr.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn2/t31.0-8/1511487_10152140354091224_1729237192_o.jpg

its all well and good looking at vids , but what if the paint is hard , what if the paint is soft , what if its sticky , will he have the products to solve these possibilities I doubt it , probably end up spending a fortune and just making a mess , where as get a pro to do it and then just maintain after , cheaper in the long run and less hastle

i couldn't give a monkeys but Christian pays to advertise on here

its all well and good looking at vids , but what if the paint is hard , what if the paint is soft , what if its sticky , will he have the products to solve these possibilities I doubt it , probably end up spending a fortune and just making a mess , where as get a pro to do it and then just maintain after , cheaper in the long run and less hastle

Can't argue with that at all.

i couldn't give a monkeys but Christian pays to advertise on here

i'm not trying to upset the apple cart and Christian's work is very good i was simply saying that's all, if my post is against the rules then a mod can happily remove it i wasn't advertising any rates and i am not a business

Swirls and paintwork aren't that much of a problem, I had a full respray just 2 years ago so the paint isn't that old. It's the gaps crevices and corners that need some attention ie 'details'

Peter if I lived in Wales there would be no need for this thread

Dan pm me details if you want

thanks G good luck

Minor swirls and the like are not too bad to remove, I did my own car after I brought a DA and it worked wonders but IMHO there is a massive step from part time enthusiast to a pro.

Peter hit the nail on the head though, I have/had quite a bit of kit of various polishes/waxes/pads/cloths and so on that totaled a few hundred pounds and frankly that wouldn't even be the tip of the iceberg.

For minor correctional work and decent maintenance I can just about cover it..... anything else then get a pro.

There is a hell of a lot to consider too such as paint depth gauges, I basically took a punt with mine but you could end up with a massive ball ache if you are not careful.