Hello all! I'm pretty sure this isn't being posted in the right section, but I didn't see a section for this specific topic (customer-provided thread from a pro-level detail). Mods, please feel free to move if necessary. I just wanted to give a quick, no-BS review of my recent detailing experience. I acquired a 2008 Audi A8L a few months ago, brilliant black with amaretto interior, 51k miles. The car was a one-owner, locally-purchased and dealer-serviced car, traded in on a brand-new D4 A8(L?). Mechanically well-maintained but cosmetically a little rough - not awful, but not great either. I typically like detailing my own vehicles, but time-constraints and family obligations weren't going to make that possible this time around, so I started looking around at my options. I called a few places, but quickly gained a meaningful comfort level and went with one plan involving three shops in Manheim, PA: Presidential Details (Barry Theal) ACAP Films/Auto Graphics (Bill) Sprakraft (Dan) I cannot recommend these individuals highly enough - particularly Barry Theal of Presidential Details. That guy is truly an artisan, not to mention an OCD maniac when it comes to automotive detailing. Here's what Barry/PD did: Full correction, including polishing, compounding, wet-sanding, etc. where necessary. Full interior cleaning. Full wheels (off) cleaning, with rotor hub and caliper painting. And, finally, 3 coats of CQuartz Finest over the whole car (minus the hood, front bumper, and front fender leading edges). Barry estimated roughly 30 man-hours into this restorative detail. I am not exaggerating when I say I was completely blown away at the results Barry was able to achieve. Here's what Bill at ACAP did: XPEL Ultimate clear film install on the full hood, full front bumper incl/ fog and head lights, leading edge of front fenders, and leading edge of roof (right above/back of the windshield). SunTek Carbon window film (35%) on the side and rear windows. Bill has modified the XPEL program to include enough material to fully wrap around the edges, as opposed to stopping at them. The film looks great and it has a very similar gloss/appearance to the non-filmed painted areas. Can't wait to see how the durability and self-healing properties hold up and help protect the front of the vehicle here on out. And finally, per Bill's recommendation, I had Dan @ Sprakraft repaint the front bumper before it was filmed. Bill's opinion was it was penny-wise and pound-foolish to wrap the bumper without first painting it - the 5 years and 50k+ miles had caused too many sand-blasted speck-marks to get a nice result from simply wrapping it. Dan did an excellent job as well. These three shops are terrific, and I'd highly recommend anyone in the eastern or central parts of PA, strongly consider any of these three if you need their specific services. I feel it's worth mentioning, I am in no way affiliated with any of these guys, paid full retail for my services, and am not getting any hard or soft-dollar compensation for writing this review. Simply a very happy customer and wanting to share my story. Unfortunately, I'm not a great photographer, but here are a couple pics from today (1 day after pickup): Thanks for reading!! -c32amg-dtm
Love the A8, drives so smooth and handles like a mid sedan. you definitely chose the right guys for the job. Looks amazing!
Looks great! Have the same car a couple of years older, and they are awesome, enjoy. Check out AudiWorld.com for insights into mods, service, tip and tricks, etc.
Sweet ride it looks great . Congrats and best of luck . You couldn't go wrong with Barry his work is awesome. Never heard of the others but looks like they did an outstanding job as well.
Thanks guys! Yeah Barry's work is top notch for sure. Some people would probably think it's crazy to drive an hour away from home just for a specific detailer but I'm glad I did.
