I'm posting here because I got some good advice here before I started this job. It's not a job up to standards, but I had to work within the parameters given me. Word's out among friends and co-workers that I'm detailing. So I get a phone call from a friend of a friend about detailing her car. "What kind of car is it?", I ask. "Uh, it's a Lincoln," she replies. "What color?" I cleverly come back with. "Black," she answers. "How much would it cost?" Well, if there's one thing I've learned from these forums it's not to price a job over the phone, so I agreed to go to her house the next morning and we'll talk about it. I drive up to her house the next morning and her husband is standing on the porch. I pull into the driveway and sitting there among 5 other cars is a black Lincoln limo, with a 72" center section. OK, now I'm starting to freak. Not only will this be my first black car, but the thing looked about 50 feet long to me. The customer and I talked and he pointed out all the white wax remnants left in the crevices from his last "detail," and how unsatisfied he was with people who do sloppy work. I assure him how good I am (gulp) and try and sell him a full detail. He insists on just a "wash and wax," and talks about me getting to know this car this time, and "we'll talk about other work" when this is finished. Well, the car is LOADED with swirls, scratches, sprinkler stains and tons of holograms on the finish. I try to upgrade him to a full detail, but he insists on just a wash and wax. I agree, making sure he understands that although some of the swirls might be gone when I'm done, the car will still have all the faults I'm pointing out. He sticks to a wash and wax. I agree. He brings the car to my house the next morning, and here we go. For wheels and tires Meg's APC Autozone's version of an EZ brush Tire brush from Walmart to scrub the tires DG 501 to coat the wheels AA Tire Foam on the tires For the paint: Meg's clay with Mother's Showtime QD as a lube Meg's #66 via G110 at speed 5 Meg's yellow polishing pad (2) DG 521 (Marine QD for stubborn stuff) Meg's 105 by hand to get rid of the sprinkler stains DWG on top of the #66 Opti-Seal (one quick coat on top of the DWG) Now the pics. They're not great pics....oh well. The boat, er, car arrives: The size of the car makes my 10x10 canopy look like an umbrella in a drink: A tire and wheel on arrival: After tires/wheels done and a wash: Left side after M66: Rear door M66'd, but not the center section. Hopefully you can see the clearer reflection of the trees from the door: After M66 and DWG: Holograms and scratches still there as promised, but SHINY!: See the scratches/swirls mid/bottom of the photo? Maybe next time I'll get to handle those: An after of a tire/wheel. I even removed the all middle wheel pieces and scrubbed to make sure no residue remains in crevices because of his concern: All done: Looks good to me from 5 feet away: OK. Looks good from 2 feet away too: Finish shots. I should've taken better ones but oh well: Thanks for looking.
I had a list made of what was wrong and what needed attention all ready for him for when he came to pick it up. But I waited first to gauge his reaction to the finished job and I'm glad I did. He loved it! Said it was the best it ever looked, even when it was delivered brand new. After the accolades, then I told him what needs work in the future, and showed him all the flaws. I kept warning him though that he may not even see these things, and I'm looking with a detailer's eye. His concern is me thinning the clear coat to fix these things. I explained about how little has to come off, and none comes off in fixing the holograms, but I think he's satisfied with the car as it is now. So worse comes to worse, I'll have the car back in 3-4 months to maintain. Hopefully he'll want his other cars done too. I saw 2 Mercedes, a Yukon, and another I'm not sure what it was.
I started at 8:00 am and finished at 2:30 PM. I might have finished maybe an hour earlier if I didn't take so many breaks, but I'm an old man!
I actually made a list of all the faults and problems with the paint, but thankfully decided to wait to tell him until he commented on the job when he came to pick it up. Glad I did. He loved it. Said it never looked this good, not even when he picked it up new last year. Then I pointed out all the scratches, swirls, holograms, etc to him, but I kept saying I see these with a detailer's eye, and I don't want to ruin it for him pointing out problems. I had to balance between showing him paint faults in a hope to get a full detail out of it, or having him satisfied with this "wash & wax." So I'm glad I let him say he loved it first.
Hehe, kind of a rough way to start out on a black vehicle! It's too bad you couldn't sell a full detail off the bat but hopefully your client will call you back soon! Great work!
Thanks, Denzil. I was nervous enough on my way over there to first look at it because it would be my first black job. Thoughts of "Black's not a color - it's a full time job" floating in my head as I drove over to give the estimate. Imagine how I felt when I saw what kind of black vehicle it was!
It really is a part time job... my car needs so much maintenance but it looks damn good when done right, hehe.
