Why do you love detailing?

I'm a perfectionist with a bad case of OCD and this art fits me perfectly. I love improving cars and making them look better ... and it's the most relaxing feeling in the world.

Everyone in my family thinks I'm crazy 'cause I have the patience of a saint when I'm detailing my own vehicles. I don't have patience for anything else in life ...

 

My buddy say's his wifes "ocd" is so bad it's called "cdo", because even the name has to be in alphabetical order.

I just love detailing, gives me new challenges and gives me some spending $$$.

 

Unlike sports or golf, video games, detailing is something I feel like I can master well enough to be satisfied and enjoyed the results for some time.

 

Like many others have commented, keeping a clean and detailed car is something that provides a sense of pride and accomplishment. I also firmly believe in taking the best care of one's belongings in order for them to last a lengthy useful life. That said, the newest to me car in my garage is now 6 years old and the oldest daily driver is 20! All of them look as new and I know that is accomplished by years of attention in detailing them inside and out. Beyond all of that, detailing does give me a sort of year round hobby that I find relaxing and a darn good excuse to spend extra time in the garage. My neighbors think I'm crazy but so be it, ha.

 

way to spend time. rewarding to see car shine again. extra cash always good.
gives me satisfaction to drive in freshly detailed and clean car when you look at other cars.

 

I have a somewhat different view than some of you guys. The main reason I do it is because it takes my mind off of things. Not that anything is wrong with my life, I happen to have a very good one albeit I'm not bouncing off of the walls in ecstasy all day. When I'm working on a car, I focus so much on what I'm doing that the background just melts away. Anything I was concerned with doesn't exist for the period of time and it relaxes my mind. I'm blessed and damned with an analytical and observant mind, I'm always ALWAYS thinking of things that could go wrong or things I did etc. and it makes me go nuts if I can't find refuge somewhere. I've also always had a mild case of OCD, and a high interest in cars, so it all just fell together that way. I view the car as a blank slate in which I have a canvas to work on, and everything else just doesn't matter temporarily. It's nice to stop thinking existentially for a few hours. It's also great knowing that when you hand back the keys to a vehicle, you'll have exceeded their expecatations by a landslide, so along the way in the process you know everything will turn out right and for the most part nothing will go wrong.

 

Mine started when I was a teenager because I could never afford a nice car. Since I couldn't afford a nice car I had to detail the thing constantly to make it look good. I started that way and it just carried over to when I could afford nice cars. I have always wanted my car to turn heads when I went by because it looked better than everyone elses. Growing up I could never keep up with the Jones' but I could make damn sure my car was cleaner than his!

 

Thought this might go here. Posted the following on a Lexus forum:

Appreciating Nice Curves

Nice curves....

As a car guy, I could be talking about twisty roads - I'm not.

As a guy, I could be talking about a woman - I'm not.

I'm talking about the curves of my car. I didn't truly appreciate the lines of my car until I hand washed it the first time. Wow, it's got some nicely detailed and crisp body lines.

To me, there is just something great about detailing a car - connecting with the metal and turning out a car that really shines and looks beautiful.

 

I can relate to that, even now. My daily driver is a 1995 Toyota Corolla, so that I could afford a newer and nicer family car for my wife and kids. That's how I found this website, because I was tired of my car never looking good, even after washing it, so I was determined to detail it the right way. Now its just turned into a passionate hobby, and every where I go I'm looking at everyone's cars, the swirls in their paint, etc. When I see my neighbors washing their late-model cars and trucks with a dish rag, I feel like going over and giving them a few pointers. Its also relaxing to me, I like looking at the finished product when I'm done and taking a little pride in my work. Very satisfying.

 

It pretty much started for me after I joined the military. I finally bought a truck, on my own without anyones help. I started asking some car guys on how to clean it, and also started learning how to fix things as well.

It ballooned a bit more when I got a white car.

But I went overboard once I got a s2k. Then I learned how to remove swirls, etc.

The rest is history.

I do agree with some that say it's not about a clean car. Sometimes it is, but for me, it's getting people to come back for more.

It takes my mind off of the crazy everyday life I have with 2 jobs, married, kids, etc.

It's Zen. even if its hoter than hell out, it's Zen.
It can bring some peace to my mind. And always keeps my hands steady.

 

two words sum it up for me. end result. doing well maintained cars is nice and easy and whatnot, but when working on a car thats totally hammered, and you feel more like you're in "restoration" mode, thats when its really rewarding. bringing that hell hole of a car back to life, and more. and like roger said, i find detailing to be particularly relaxing, minus interiors. plus im a little OCD and detailing just works for me. the last detail i did was exterior only, and it KILLED me to not get into the interior and clean it up as it was pretty dirty. but hey, i dont work for free. the look on peoples faces is particularly rewarding, especially when they didnt know that their car could even look that good.

 

Are you still active duty? Just curious because I'm active duty Navy in Norfolk, VA and I've never heard anyone mention prior service or anything. I've already been in seven years, and will probably do a full twenty and retire.