Detailing - URGENT ADVICE

[elliotw]

Hi

I took my 5 yr old Boxster to AutoFinesse (www.autofinesse.co.uk) to be detailed. I spoke to the guy before and he told me he could get rid of scratches, swirls etc and it will look like new etc. I chose the package linked here http://www.autofinesse.co.uk/#/correction-detail/4535053471 (correction detail) and we agreed a price (subject to an inspection).

I live in London and on the basis of the phone call, took the car round to him on Sunday morning (his garage is in Ware, an hour drive away). The same guy had a look over the car and said it should be fine and he could get all the scratches out (bar some isolated places) for the agreed price.

I called AutoFinesse this morning just to find out how things were getting along. He called me back to say that while he would be able to sort out the scratches, as they were deeper than he first suspected, it would be considerably more expensive. He said I would need a full paint restoration - see http://www.autofinesse.co.uk/#/signature-detail/4535053217. This ain't cheap (and nor is a correction detail!). What is more annoying is that when I was there with the car on Sunday, after an investigation he said he was confident he could fix the car for the amount agreed. Now I am back in London (without my car), he says that following a clean of the car will be almost DOUBLE to fix as the damage is more serious than he initially estimated (today he said he couldn't tell this on Sunday as I left him the car dirty - why he didn't mention this on Sunday and left me to return to London I don't know....he has me in a corner and he knows it...).

I'm not sure what to do. Guess there are three options:
1. Go for restoration detail. Expensive and I feel like he has cornered me a bit here (he should have said the agreed price was subject to a clean).
2. Go for normal paint detailing. Still expensive, but what I budgeted. However, I don't want to receive a car that just looks like it's had a nice valet and car wash - still to have lots of marks on - when I'm spending hundreds of pounds.
3. Go elsewhere/seek second opinion. This is a little tricky (and guy knows this) as it's an hour drive away.

Any advice - on either the company or other - would be gratefully received.

Many thanks

Elliot

 

[Rodney Naghar]

IMO you must pick the car back up and tell him goodbye.
He's been disengenuous with you, if you go for the basic detail he'll have little incentive to do a good job because he's already put in his 'get out' clause that it won't be sufficient.

Get some recommendations here of good detailers in your area and get some peace of mind that you're dealing with professionals you can trust your car with.

 

[GeoffB]

Have to agree with above, get car back and go elsewhere.Look on here for recomendations.

 

[Bob]

The type of minor scratches that can be removed by this process are very easily hidden by dust and muck on a dirty car so it would be nigh on impossible for him to make a proper judgement if you delivered the car dirty. I think he has been above board and honest pointing out the extra work involved in advance. If you are unhappy to pay for the more major service then I should go and collect it but be mindful he has now lost a days work.

 

[Rodney Naghar]

That would have been abundantly clear to the detailer and should have been relayed to Elliot. Instead he got assurances.
That's either amateurish or dishonest, either way I'd walk away.

 

[gdavison]

FWIW Autofinesse are hugely active on DW and their historical work posted and subsequent owner feedback does not indicate "amateurish or dishonest". Also I'm not doubting Elliots perception of his situation, just providing a view as requested by Elliot

However if Elliot is unhappy, he should pick the car up, (come to MUTUAL agreed price for the work done to date versus client satisfaction and additional costs incurred to pickup etc) and take it to another detailer whilst clean and inspect-able and let us know the result of that .. Could be the car is badly scratched ..

G

 

[jeegnesh]

I think I'd walk away

 

[Black80XSA]

Have to agree with the above posts, the company are reputable and have good feedback.

Perhaps they were a bit rushed int heir initial assessment, but if the car was dirty then they can only make a judgement in that condition. There does seem to be an awful lot of difference in cost from one service to another though, and if there are only a few scratches to sort, rather than every panel then you should aim to find some compromise between the two costs.

I'd also be asking autofinesse what paint thickness they have to play with, as if the scratches are quite deep and the car has been machined previously they may not have enough scope to fully remove them anyway without painting panels.

 

[elliotw]

Ok, I decided to stick with AutoFinesse rather than look around. Yes, it's more expensive and I feel a little bit annoyed about them not telling me after their initial investigation - but, I assume they are telling the truth. If they are telling the truth, it's too much hassle to look around again and AutoFinesse agreed to give me a bit of a discount given the circumstances. Plus, while some of you said no, some of you said they have a good reputation....

I'm hoping it comes out looking fantastic - certainly I'm paying a lot of dosh it should do! I'll let you know!

 

[gdavison]

Good luck Elliot ..

please let us know the outcome .. I am sure it will be excellent

Post photos .. especially if you have before and afters

 

[CLIFFWILKINS]

As a detailer myself I have on some occasions quoted for a job which has needed more work than anticipated but always stick to the original quote as I think it is good for customer relations.
Cliff

 

[Peter_Bull]

ORIGINAL: CLIFFWILKINS

As a detailer myself I have on some occasions quoted for a job which has needed more work  than anticipated but always stick to the original quote as I think it is good for customer relations.
Cliff

Hi Cliff - there are not many people like you about. A credit to you, but I hope that doesn't mean you are out of pocket too often!!

 

[berty987]

£1000 for a paint detail , are you guys crazy ? Machine polisher £170 , complete with most of the pads and polishes / waxes you need , a tub of decent carnauba wax for about £18 and some paint sealant plus a few microfibre towels for another 30. As with all things , its a case of diminishing returns , so don't kid yourself that 200 pounds a tub car wax is going to be noticeably different to stuff at a quarter of that price. A clay bar for about another 20 and you have the same kit as the pro detailers , but in hobby rather than industiral spec. The paint restoration for deeper scratches usually involves either using a harder pad and / or coarse grit cutting agent or gentle use of a very fine grade wet and dry , followed by a machine polish. This is where the paint thickness gauge comes in handy as you can decide if the cutting agent or wet and dry is the most appropriate , and avoid cutting down through hte lacquer. If the scratch cannot be cut out completely , then the use of fillers helps to reduce its presence and a paint sealant locks in the filler for a more duarable result. If you do the job yourself you could even afford the proper paint thickness meter at 200 odd pounds and still be less than half the quoted price. You also have all the kit to keep the car in tip top condition for the rest of its days. Plenty of video and how to guides on detailing on the web. All it takes is a little time and patience and you can get nigh on the same results at a fraction of the price. Unless the car is really in a bad state initially I really think spending this kind of money is madness.

 

[elliotw]

Yes and no bert987.

While the tools to detail may work out cheaper, when you get someone to do a detail job you are (essentially) paying for labour. I don't think that's a secret. A detailer quotes for 2 or 3 days work. If I was to do it myself I don't know how long it would take (or how professional it would be!). But, maybe the detailers do overcharge...

Re Cliff's comment.

I think it is honourable Cliff sticks with his agreed quote even if he finds out later it may be a bigger job. Legally I think it is also correct. If one agrees to do perform a service for a price, they cannot back out/amend the price because they find it's going to be more difficult than they thought to perform such a service (unless one says the agreed price is conditional on something - ie. protect yourself by saying price based on factor X, Y and Z and that you may have to amend the price if you find out A, B or C).

 

[barrie nunn]

Personaly i would have taken my car back... but your right to give them the benefit of the doubt.... i would most certingly like to hear and se some pics of the outcome tho... Good Luck with it and i hope it works out.... if not take leagal action i would

 

[Nick_USA]

So how did the car turn out ??

 

[elliotw]

Collect it on Saturday. I'm hoping it will be as good as yours!

Am I right in thinking you heard good things about AutoFinesse when we spoke at the Porsche meet at Ace Cafe?

 

[barrie nunn]

any news

 

[elliotw]

Hi.
Well, car looks better in some ways and worse in others. But the reason it looks worse is NOT because of the detailer doing a bad job. Basically, the back and sides look very good, the bonnet less so because all the little chips are now very visible. I think only a respray will fix this, and that's a pricey option. I don't want to have one done.
In short, happy with the detailing - scratches and swirls removed. Unhappy I have chips on the bonnet, but that's something no detailer can fix without a respray.
Will post pics up shortly.

 

[jdpef356]

Just a quick tip in case you do go for respray - Why don't silver cars show stone chips as much? Its the colour of the undercoat - all cars are undecorated in that grey colour. Thus if your car is black get the undercoat in Black! Then next time you get a chip it will be black on black not black on grey[]