What does a full car detail include?
A full detail should include, what exactly?
It is our goal to provide an eye-opening view about auto detailing as a business and a customer. Professional detail service is one of the top 3 reasons why customers seek a quote from us. The shop and customer need to clarify what is included in a full detail service because they don’t automatically agree.
Understanding this is the key you need to turn when making or accepting an offer. Not all full detail car services are the same, so it is important to understand the question, what does a full detail include, you can follow this link to our car detailing service and form your own opinion.
Three car detailing pillars
Car Exterior
Car Interior
Car Rims & Wheels
The following few sections will explore the basics that any automotive detailer must know in order to work in the professional detailing industry. Some tasks are demanding and challenging, whereas others are repetitious and predictable.
Car exterior detailing
Tools
Basic tools for exterior car detailing
- Car wash brush, soap & bucket
- Clay bar & spray bottle (soapy water)
- Microfiber towels for drying
- Random orbital polishing machine
- 5-inch backing disk (with vent holes)
- 6-inch finishing pad with foam backing (high pile)
- Leather work gloves to absorb buffer vibrations
- A micro-compound for buffing
- Microfiber cloths
- Foam trim panel applicator
- Particle mask
- Stand up shop bench
- Increased lighting
Inspection
Inspecting the car paint for damages
It’s time to get close up and inspect the painted surface for damage. This is best performed inside of a shop with good lighting. You are looking for chipped paint, rust, deep scratches. If any are found, then the spot will need a repair plan. If many are found, then the car could need a paint correction. This all depends on the type of pollution damage discovered.
Follow this link to our paint correction and pollution damage article and it will help to better understand how it all ties together.
Trim
Car Trim Molding Care
Closely inspect any trim moldings for rubber seals. If you find any, then use sturdy 1.5-inch painters’ tape to protect it from the buffer pad. If you are going to tape off the car’s trim moldings, then it is a good idea to have the job done before using a buffer. If you plan to wax the car with a buffer, then this will prevent white wax marks in the black trim moldings.
Car plastic trim restoration
If trim restoration is needed, then purchase a car trim restorer product for cars. Apply it to a foam trim panel applicator & test a small area. Rub back and forth over and over until you see a visible result, or you realize that the trim is just too far gone. Some plastics have been painted and you may not know it. Take care not to strip off too much paint before you realize it. Most plastic trim restoration takes a few dozen wipes over 2-3 different sessions separated by short breaks.
If it is going to get messy then you will want to use 1.5-inch painters’ tape along the trim & on the car. This will create a barrier up closest to the trim being restored & keep the funk off that area directly. Pass the applicator back and forth 1-2 dozen times before moving on. Apply more product as needed to keep it wet without any dripping.
Allow to set for 3-5 minutes, then use a fresh dry foam applicator and do not add any product to it. Use it to repeat the entire process on each trim molding. Wait another 3-5 minutes before using a wax applicator pad & a tire shine product. Use the wax applicator to firmly rub the tire shine product into the trim moldings a dozen wipes for trim molding.
Let it air dry and enjoy a lasting shine. This has minimal effect on sun bleached black rubber bumpers. Instead, I hear there is a trick with a propane blow torch, but it’s probably best to leave that up the professionals.
Polishing
Car polishing by hand and by buffer machine
Hand Polish
Fold a microfiber in half 2 times to make a square or 3 times to make a rectangle. Apply a marble sized glob of rubbing compound to the terry cloth. Gently use your fingers to press the cloth & rub the cream evenly onto the scuffed paint. Shift the pressure from your finger to the broad flat of your palm and press harder.
For Really bad scuffs, you may consider wiping the scuff with a paint thinner before even rubbing it. This can be a very effective way to manage small paint damage in real time and avoid the hassle of an entire car buffing.
Polishing with a buffer machine
This article is written to fit a long throw 21-inch random orbital / dual action car polishing machine that can fit a 5-inch buffer plate. Fit the car polisher with the 6-inch microfiber finishing pad. Choose a location on a single panel like the car’s hood. Apply 3-4 small grape sized blobs of micro-compound to the painted surface in a 2ft x 2ft area. With the buffer machine in the off position, tilt the machine so the buffer pad is at an angle to the surface. Use the pad to spread the cream with 2-3 swipes. (buffer cream will splatter if it needs to be spread more)
How to polish with a buffer machine
Before turning it on, place the pad to the surface and turn the buffer speed down to slow. Set the buffer machine speed between 3-5k rpm depending on the need real time. The polisher will do most of the work for you while you use your muscle to guide it. Watch the polishing compound tumble beneath the buffer pad to determine when you will need to stop and apply more.
This task will perform a very light paint correction to the cars factory paint. If no rubbing compound was used and if no cutting pad was used, then it will leave no buffer swirls behind. Foam pads can produce the same effect with a different method of when and how to apply the polishing cream.
Car interior detailing
Tools
Basic tools for interior car detailing
- Portable Light Wand
- Pick set (for picking at crevices)
- Spray bottle (soapy water)
- Paper towels (lint free)
- Microfiber towels|
- Isopropyl rubbing alcohol (70% or higher)
- Trim panel applicator (foam)
- Wax applicator (microfiber)
- Plastic Trim Conditioner
- Leather Conditioner
- Brush (for getting into cracks)
Basic equipment for interior car detailing
- Shop vac
- Air compressor
- Air gun
- Tornado (carpet cleaning device)
- Detergent concentrated (used in tornado)
- Particle mask
- Work gloves (flexible)
- Wash brush (for weather mats)
- Bucket
Carpets
How to clean car carpets
Be sure to cover up the car seats and other surfaces that are vulnerable to staining because this is going to get messy. Connect the air compressor to the Tornado carpet cleaner before attaching the carpet cleaner to the shop vac. Turn the shop vac on and pull the trigger on the carpet cleaner.
Intense air will explode from a bent metal tube & twist inside of a plastic fitting. Adjust the nozzle to increase soap dispensing. Soap vapors will be released for extremely powerful deep cleaning of the carpets while the machine blasted everything and anything up into the shop vac attachment.
How to remove car seats from car
In the case of mold and mildew the seats will need to be removed along with the entire car carpet itself. Research seat removal and consult with a professional before attempting this yourself.
If you are removing the car seats, then inspect the seat frame and any wires hooked up to it. Check the manual for information beneath or inside the front seats & follow the instructions. Most car seats are held on by 4 bolts holding the seat frame to the floor pan. It is challenging to remove the seat perfectly so take special care and leave plenty of roof the doors to be completely opened while you work.
How to remove mold from car interior carpet
Use a spray bottle filled with a non-bleach product that kills mold and mildew. Test it on the carpet and wait 30 minutes to see if it causes bleaching. If it passes the bleach test then your ready to remove mold from car interior. Spray a whole bunch of your mold and mildew killing product directly on to both side of the carpet, but mainly on the top surface. Being sure the carpet is on the floor with the top surface facing up, use a whole bottle on this step. Let the carpet rest and gravity pull the soap down into the carpet for 30 minutes.
Hang the carpet in a well-lit and well-ventilated area before you begin. Wear work gloves and a respirator or high-quality particle mask while you use the Tornado carpet cleaning machine. Do not use a shop vac attachment & instead focus the blast of the machine deeply into the carpet inch by inch, until it is damp to the touch and very well cleaned out.
If you plan to use a carpet shampoo extraction machine, then this would be a perfect time to use the power of carpet extraction to remove any additional mildew or mold particles that could remain behind.
Do not forget to locate and repair the water leak that caused the problem. The usual cause is the moon roof drains being clogged. You will need experience removing and reinstalling car headliners for that diagnosis or repair to take place. Most car headliners can be removed and reinstalled in less than 5 hours.
Cloth
How to clean cloth car seats
Cloth will easily stain if it gets wet. It’s very important to save cleaning the cloth seats for last. You may need to re-wipe a few interior trim panels at the end, but that only takes a couple minutes. Cloth seats need to be done front to back all at once. The entire car seat must go through a shampoo and extraction. This means that fixing a small stain is not an option.
Cloth car seats normally need to be shampooed and extracted several times before the stains will lift. Allow 3-4 hours between extractions & in some cases wait until it’s completely dry and try again. Eventually the stain will lift. Also keep in mind that some stains just can’t be removed but keep trying until you’ve had enough.
Leather
How to clean leather car seats
Because there as so many different forms of leather available for car seat manufacturing, it can make it difficult to know if you are buying a good leather product for your car’s interior. Some leather car seats are slick & slippery, while others are rough & very soft.
In our opinion, most products available today spell out the type of leather it was made for. Take a look at a brand of leather conditioner that promises a shine result. I think it’s clear that our sample product has been made for slick shinny types of leather.
Only thing is clear, no rubbing alcohol and no solvents of any kind. Leathers have been cured and tanned for specific colors and feels. A solvent could bleach away the dye in that area or damage the special fibrous feel of more lush leathers.
Trim
Car Interior trim panels
Determine whether the car interior trim part is cloth, vinyl, plastic or leather and go shopping accordingly. Wear rubber gloves and have a microfiber cloth available to wipe up and smudges on glass. Use a foam applicator to spread the trim cleaner or conditioner evenly and purposefully.
The idea here is to be sure the interior conditioner has been firmly pressed into all the small bumps and groves. Cross wipe dozens of times trying to leave your final wipe smooth and even with no glob lines from spreading or dragging the applicator. Try and avoid touching glass or plastic shields or touch screen monitors. You can follow up later with some soapy water, but avoidance makes the follow up very tidy and easy.
- If you would like to learn more about car sealants like ceramic, then follow the link in this article.
- Follow this link to learn more about shopping for a mobile detailer.
