r/Cartalk • u/Ok-Gain-3366 • 1d ago
I need help fixing something Are my car detailing expectations too high?
Got my car detailed today. It was $300 for interior only. There are several spots that are still not clean. I wanted the car to look close to new. Here are some pics that show where there is still a mess. Is this normal or did they do a poor job? If they did a poor job how should I tell them that?
404
u/TheMightyBruhhh 1d ago
The first pic alone is atrocious. I do DIY detailing on my own car with sum $60 in products and I do a better job than this bs
→ More replies (5)39
u/snoosh00 1d ago edited 1d ago
How many hours would it take to do better than this (not saying this is good, but half assing still takes some amount of time)?
(Not being snooty, I literally have no idea how long detailing takes)
43
u/TheWalrus101123 1d ago
My 10 year old has done a better job with nothing but water, paper towels, and 30 minutes.
9
u/420BlazeIt187 1d ago
For any normal detail i would agree. However we don't know the "before".
8
u/TheWalrus101123 1d ago
I can get behind that logic, but I feel the very least that can and should be done is clean cup holders lol.
10
u/TheMightyBruhhh 1d ago
Dude it takes me like an hour just chilling in my car. To be fair I clean my car and do my lil amateur detailing like every 2 days so it really makes it hard for stuff to get dirtier than surface lint/dust.
But both cars I’ve owned were super dirty upon buying… but just taking the 20-40 minutes to go through it, vacuum, and run through with a towel/cheap detailing brush ‘builds up’ cleanliness level overtime
having a steamer makes a difference but the one I used at my local car wash got replaced with a scent infuser(idk why, they hate money i guess). So it hasn’t looked at ‘brand new’ as it usually does
6
u/Grimey_N_Grumpy 1d ago
A SUV with third row seating takes me 4 to 6 hours to complete. Admittedly, I work a little slow because I have a bad back; but I do a better job than what OP paid for. If this detailer is getting 300 bucks for this kind of work, then I need to up my prices.
2
u/Zoomoth9000 2h ago
The cup holder in the picture folds down from the middle of the back seat. It's more understandable that the detailer missed it, until you see the THREE HUNDRED DOLLARS OP was charged. It doesn't look like that one has an insert, it's just textured like that. The big blob slightly below the center might not come off, or at least would require lots of denatured alcohol, but cleaning the rest of it is very simple with a damp cloth and whatever degreaser the detailer is using. Maybe a light scrub with a brush.
Second picture, that carpet just be like that sometimes. It's very common in KIAs and Toyotas, among others. You can spend twenty minutes on it with a rotary brush and a vacuum and it will look marginally better
In the third picture, it looks like the detailer saw it was a "clean car" so they didn't try all that hard. It doesn't look like part of a stain that escaped the carpet shampooer, more like it was never hit with more than a vacuum. It would probably come off with a damp cloth and some elbow grease. Again, perfectly acceptable for a normal car wash, but not a $300 "detail."
The fourth picture: That fuzz in annoying. I personally would be fine with it, because I've been there and know how annoying and tedious it is to pick it off piece-by-piece. Honestly, I'd be more annoyed that they didn't dress the vinyl on the back of the seats
The final picture looks like the detailer didn't take out the insert. Some inserts are a real pain to get out, which means they're an even bigger pain to get back in. That doesn't look like one of those, the detailer absolutely should have taken it out, or at the very least hit it with cleaner and a detail brush one more time
OP could take a full 5 minutes to clean the cupholder, center console insert, and wipe the schmutz off the front seat. Those are very basic things I would expect a detailer to get right at half the cost. At $300, I'd be kinda mad, too. I probably wouldn't demand my money back or anything, just never use the same person/company again
CC'ing u/Ok-Gain-3366
→ More replies (1)6
u/crysisnotaverted 1d ago
3 Minutes and 8 sheets of paper towels to clean that cupholder properly.
4
u/Sawmaster125 1d ago
Given that that is a rubber bottom in that cup holder, you can actually take them out. A little soapy water, a toothbrush, and a microfiber towel cleans it right up.
→ More replies (1)10
u/LovelyHatred93 1d ago
You need some towels for cleaning if you’re using paper towels to clean your car. That’s crazy wasteful.
→ More replies (1)
78
u/Greennit0 1d ago
Do you have before pics by any chance?
74
u/NoResolve2022 1d ago
I agree. If it’s a disaster detail then this isn’t thatttt bad beside the cup holder.
14
u/ThomasTheNord 1d ago
Thought that too, unless it's something that just cant come off even with chemicals
22
u/Ok-Gain-3366 1d ago
Unfortunately I didn’t take any. I did go in with a paper towel and was able to wipe out the rest of the cup holder with normal interior car cleaner.
→ More replies (1)16
u/Greennit0 1d ago
Ok, that’s weird then. How would you describe the previous condition?
26
u/zvx 1d ago
Bad enough to avoid photography
15
u/PlumbgodBillionaire 21h ago
And bad enough to keep ignoring the countless folks asking for previous conditions. The car was underwater and on fire inside a dumpster until proven otherwise.
6
u/Peartree1 16h ago
Yeah but I mean it’s not that common to take pics of your car before a detail? I’ve never done it myself
13
86
u/skylinesora 1d ago
Show the before pictures. For all we know, that's an excellent $300 job. At the same time, that could be a shitty $300 job.
6
u/algae_man 6h ago
No, that's a shitty job regardless of what it looked like initially. That cup holder alone means it's a crappy job.
→ More replies (1)9
u/Ok-Gain-3366 1d ago
I wish I would’ve taken before pictures but unfortunately I didn’t. Now I know for next time.
→ More replies (1)45
u/mnonny 1d ago
Well. How fucking bad was it before
56
16
u/dem_titties_too_big 1d ago
The usual interior clean? No biggie.
Detailing job? I'd kindly ask my money back.
31
u/endthepainowplz 1d ago
The cupholder is terrible, but everything else I wouldn't really complain too much about. How dirty did it start?
→ More replies (1)25
5
u/VulpesIncendium 1d ago
I've paid for detailing before. Sadly, pics 2 through 5 are exactly what I'd expect. Pic 1 however, is unacceptable. It looks like they didn't even try to properly clean that cupholder.
13
u/RunsWithPremise 1d ago
I cannot judge this without the before pics. This interior could have been completely trashed and, if so, this would be a good outcome for $300.
5
4
u/nope_nope_nope_yep_ 13h ago
For $300, that’s a shite job of a detail. Especially that cup holder pic. I’d expect one or two maybe little items that are hard to catch, but the cup holder being dirty is just wrong.
3
u/MrJelly007 1d ago
That would be unacceptable at my work, and our prices are much lower due to the area. Even the dust around the phone charger I'd go back and fix, but the cupholders are genuinely inexcusable, especially for the price.
3
u/SnooPickles4069 1d ago
Yeah amongst detailing I do that would never ever happen. This isn’t even the result of fast work this is the result of not giving a shit.
3
u/jjamesr539 1d ago edited 16h ago
The cup holder goo is unacceptable. That doesn’t take very long to get out of there. Cup holder goo is like the essence of why detailers exist; we know about it. We can do all of this. We just don’t wanna be the ones to clean it.
3
u/plumdinger 9h ago
That’s a terrible job for $300. I’d ask them to give it another go - show them all they missed.
7
u/NoResolve2022 1d ago
Besides the cup holder it’s not that bad tbh but I would let them know about the cup holder. The reality is that no matter how much you spend or the products you have some dirt will still remain.
5
2
u/TechMonitorXO 1d ago
I used to do a 1000% better job for a third of the price when I was a detailer last year. Should look as close to new excluding actual wear
2
2
u/airfryerfuntime 1d ago edited 1d ago
How dirty was it before? If it was a mess, $300 is about the going rate if you wanted it about as clean as you got it. Was it already pretty clean? If so, I wouldn't pay for this.
People in this subreddit are out of touch with what stuff costs now. Detailing is like twice as expensive as it was 5 years ago. I usually detail my own car once a month, but a while back I just didn't have time before a road trip and started calling around for quotes. The cheapest basic interior only was $200, which essentially just consisted of vacuuming and dusting.
2
u/cheezitsarecool 1d ago
I do detailing and id never do this or 300 for interior only you got scammed
2
u/OGDREADLORD666 22h ago
If there are dried spills in the cup holders, I'm wondering what the car looked like before...
Something tells me it was trashed, which is why the price was so high, and the detailer missed a spot in the mess.
2
u/greenlungs604 12h ago
I used to work as a detailer back in high school. Unless your car was a hoarders nightmare beforehand, it doesn't look like they did shit on your car. That cupholder? Atrocious. I would complain.100%.
2
u/___MOONDOG___ 8h ago
I used to manage a professional auto detailing shop for a few years- this is a very very shotty job. $300 should get you an absolutely spotless interior ( which is not hard to do at all ) the grime in the cupholders in inexcusable it’s a simple spray, scrub brush, and compressed air dry to blow out the crud. Also $300 should get you an interior shampoo which clearly wasn’t done either -I wouldn’t go back to this shop- or if you do go back, it would be to have them actually do the $300 worth of work. I’ve seen better interior details for the $40 quick details in all honestly :/
2
2
u/Ok-Gain-3366 1d ago
I should’ve taken before pictures but unfortunately I didn’t. It wasn’t crazy dirty. I do regularly clean it and I keep a car vacuum and cleaning wipes in it at all times. I just wanted a professional to be able to deep clean it and get it looking new. It’s also only a few years old.
→ More replies (3)
2
u/dankmemelawrd 1d ago
For 300, thats a seriously dog shit job, looks moreover like a bud would do for 30 lol
3
u/poop_magoo 1d ago
This is worse than what what buddy would do when he detailed vehicles on the side in his school. He was charging $20 for the quick once over job, and it looked fantastic compared to this.
1
u/WeeklyLingonberry163 1d ago
That’s not a $300 detail job. Like our auto spa does a clean for delivery on the used inventory that’s a quick wash and interior clean that looks better than this
1
1
u/FullofLovingSpite 1d ago
This looks like a quick "deep vacuum" from a regular car wash. I wouldn't expect any of those crumbs or that vacuum job on a detail. I would feel like I wasted my money.
Your carpets look fine and nothing looks like it was overly dirty, so even missing the before pictures it doesn't seem like it was a crazy job. I think you just got a lazy detailer who wanted to go quick that day.
1
1
u/TheWalrus101123 1d ago
A properly detailed car should look, smell, and feel like it is brand new. Clean cup holders would be the bare minimum.
Go tell them to do it again.
1
1
u/TehPyyRo 1d ago
What did you pay? I used to do detailing but our standards were quite high. If this was a $80 job? Maybe ok but anyone with respect wouldn’t do this
1
u/TehPyyRo 1d ago
What did you pay? I used to do detailing but our standards were quite high. If this was a $80 job? Maybe ok but anyone with respect wouldn’t do this
1
1
u/lostinhh 1d ago
Depends on how it looked previously, particularly if you had any stains in the seats etc. But overall that really doesn't look like a $300 effort.
1
1
u/billiarddaddy 1d ago
I spent about that and found hardly anything close to that.
I'd leave them a bad review and shop around.
1
1
1
u/Kixtand99 1d ago
I've done better work on a cupholder with a $30 steam cleaner, a rag, and about 8 minutes including 5 minutes for the steamer to heat up
1
1
1
1
u/LazyKebab96 1d ago
Lazy detailer. But id want to see what it looked like before… i used to run a car wash/detailing service. I would always give the customer a quote and stick to it, meaning i kight have to work an hour or two overtime to get the car spotless, but then again most of my customers brought in bentleys, lambos and ferraris 😅 no matter how dirty your car was when you brought it in, it should not have cost 5-6 hours of labor only for the car to atill be in that condition 😅
1
u/NiceParkJob 1d ago
If i paid 300$ for the extreme scrubby mamba wamba detail i would expect it to be 100%clean
1
1
u/Jolly-End-4115 1d ago
Bro issue a fucking charge back on this and then tell the place you have proof they did a shit job and have a chance to make it right.
1
u/LifeOnPlanetGirth 1d ago
I’ve had a detail at this price and my interior looked brand new. I wouldn’t have accepted this unless it was just horrendous beforehand and this is where the labor costs got them to
1
1
1
u/de_das_dude 1d ago
My car is 3 years old and only been cleaned by me. Still looks cleaner than this.
But... I like to give benefit of doubt. How bad was it when they started? Looks like you have drinks solidified in the drinks holder... That's something I would have immediately cleaned up after a spill.
1
1
u/JhonnyMerguez 1d ago
Men. Its not my job but i DO detail cars.
For 50 bucks i would never give your car back like this.
This is shit job. And you should ask for a refund
1
u/InvestigatorOk5602 1d ago
For 2 bills, I would have gone back to them and asked to finish up the job. There is a place I go locally that charges me about $40 and gives me a similar cleaning quality, except the cup holder is not left with blobs.
1
u/Brilliant-Ice-4575 1d ago
this does look like a poor job, but it also depends how did the car look to begin with. you complain about that dirty cup holder, sure is dirty, it was not properly clean. but for my entire life I have never even make something dirty like that to begin with. I would be extra ashamed to even bring a car like that to the detailer.
1
u/FerrumAnulum323 1d ago
The fuzz is a bitch to get every single bit of it out so I wouldn't be to extra about that... But the cup holders and the cubbie are the easiest to clean, and it sticks out like a sore thumb.
1
1
1
u/Odd_Station1034 1d ago
I did my car last week and did a better job for feee and it took about 1 hour.
1
u/Weak_Membership_4667 1d ago
$300? What's going on in your economy?
Over here in the UK, I get the interior and exterior done for £17 which is $21.90. And it's actually clean afterwards.
1
u/poop_magoo 1d ago
I don't think you really need to ask if this is a shitty job. Ask yourself this. Say this is an insanely talented car detailer that is in extremely high demand. They charge an unheard of premium rate of $150 an hour. So let's say they spent 2 hours cleaning it. I know that if I spent 2 solid hours cleaning my car, it would look way better than what you showed, and I have no professional experience at all. I'd be filing a complaint.
1
u/Mayor__Defacto 1d ago
Look, if I spent $40 at the car wash, I’d be okay with this. Detailing means attention to detail. I would not accept less than spotless for that sum.
1
u/Joey_Tribbiani29 1d ago
It would take 5 minutes to take the foam insert out of the cupholder and scrub it off. Don’t call that guy again
1
u/bublifukCaryfuk 1d ago
This is what my interior looks like after I give it a one hour interior quick clean, only having some of the needed products and no professional tools. Not including the cup holder, thats just nasty. From super messy to clean-ish. I wouldnt call this detailing.
1
u/PiratePuzzled1090 1d ago
If it was specifically interior you got scammed in my opinion.
I used to do car detailing and sometimes this was what I had to start with. Not end up with. For 300 dollars I would expect more.
1
u/Fluid_Dingo_289 1d ago
That does not look like a 300 detail, unless you went to an exotics shop and that was the rinse and drive special.
1
u/Albasahi 1d ago
Im sorry but where im from i get better work “In and out” done for literally 9.5$
Nissan patrol y62
1
1
u/1893Chicago 1d ago
To be honest, $300 for interior alone seems really high.
And that is not even looking at the results- the pictures that you posted.
Cheers, mate.
1
1
u/boboshoes 1d ago
Did you happen to get it detailed at a dealer? Never do that they don’t care at all. This is unacceptable take it back
1
u/greyone75 1d ago
Many people sell car detailing services and provide a simple car wash. The devil is in the detail…
1
1
u/cnorlin157 1d ago
Yeah scammed , brother 300$ buys you a air compressor and the chemicals to do it your self in half the time with half the effort
1
u/Grimey_N_Grumpy 1d ago
In my opinion, this is a job done poorly. How long did it take them to complete the job? I feel like I do better work for less money, but I'm sure I'm biased to my own work.
1
u/overcatastrophe 1d ago
Gonna need to see a before pic before I condemn this completely, I would have told my guys to go back over it though.
1
1
u/Interesting-Tax-6947 1d ago
Just like most have mentioned here - you could have most likely done better yourself. You got robbed for $300, wouldn’t have even paid 10 for that job. He most likely didn’t even do much, I’d be getting a refund 100%
1
1
u/TheScientistBS3 1d ago
I don't know what the going rate is in the US, but $300 is £232 and for that I would expect a reaaaaally fucking clean interior.
A £50 clean at a hand car wash would get far better results than your photos show, so a proper 'detail' should take it to almost factory standards.
For me that's a really crap job, but like I say I don't know what's normal for you guys.
1
1
u/cweber219 1d ago
As a pro detailer they could have done a better job but those seats are a pain in the ass they never come out 100 percent hair and fuzz free I can get it to about 90 percent or so hair and fuzz free
1
u/MrPartyWaffle 1d ago
I do my own detailing for my own car and thats basically what mine looks like... It's not exactly a hard job, but this is lazy, specifically the crusties around a removable insert is unforgivable...
1
u/MRXXKINGZER0 23h ago
Even if the car was bad, the cup holder and stain is really bad. Unless they told you they couldn't get it out. They got you for 300 b
1
1
1
u/stoned-autistic-dude 23h ago
Clean cup holders are mandatory on a detail. Same with cleaning the seats and compartment areas. That's kind of crazy.
1
u/MichaelThePlatypus 22h ago
Oh wow, every time I’ve left my car for detailing, I’ve gotten it back looking brand new. I’d be pissed too.
1
u/Villematic266 22h ago
That's pretty unacceptable even by shitty used car lot refurb standards, that customer would 100% be coming back to me but I'd never let it leave like that to begin with.
Cup holders are one of those spots, they have to be perfect or the whole job looks like shit.
All storage compartments that have rubber liners come out and get soaked in apc before touching anything else inside.
Hair can be a bitch and I might let one or two go in hard corner spots on the floor (especially this shitty thin carpet) but certainly not directly in front of the rear passengers face on the seats.
IMO someone gave you a quick and dirty job at a fairly premium price point here. Hard to say otherwise without the full picture
1
u/Puzzleheaded_Pitch26 22h ago
Not even close to too high. I do a better job when I detail my car. Also, my coworker whom I pay $80 does a better job detailing my car. This job for $300 is a disgrace.
1
u/Impossible-Polo 21h ago
Yes, with the exception of the cupholder. That could have been done better.
1
1
1
u/spriggs999 20h ago
That’s what I would expect in the 80-100 range for a full interior. The cupholders though are really just ridiculous no matter what you pay.
1
u/UseDaSchwartz 19h ago
I pay $50 to have my car washed and vacuumed. They do a better job than this.
1
u/Twinkie454 19h ago
Dude I detailed for a summer one year. I would have been fired for this. And they were only charging customers a $100. I'd try to get at least a partial refund or something
1
u/Twinkie454 19h ago
Dude I detailed for a summer one year. I would have been fired for this. And they were only charging customers a $100. I'd try to get at least a partial refund or something
1
1
1
u/InsideEagle1782 15h ago
Literally the DIY guys who hang outside my local chase does a better job. They charge 40. Outside and inside. And yours 300 for the inside alone? Shit
1
u/BackgroundWorld3396 15h ago
I've done detailing. It looks like shit, no offense.
→ More replies (1)
1
u/First-Junket124 15h ago
It.... depends. If your car before was in similar condition then 100% a shit job but if it was an absolute pigsty with rubbish everywhere, food, leaves, dirt, etc just left there then it's not a bad job.
I'm not leaning one way or another but if you believe it was in a somewhat good condition prior take this as a lesson to take before pictures otherwise you have no standing to even bad review without proof.
1
u/BangaloreM 14h ago
I used to detail cars and I must say stuff like that and for price you paid is unacceptable I’d send them the photos and tell them that they missed out on certain areas and 300 dollars seems like a lot how dirty was your car and what do you drive a sedan a pickup?
1
1
u/Capitain_Collateral 13h ago
It looks like you have paid detailer prices for a supermarket handwash and valet.
1
u/Total-Improvement535 12h ago
No, that’s awful of them to do that after you paid several hundred dollars.
If I take my car to a professional for a detail, I expect not a hair, but of lint, crumbs, or any other nasties anywhere. I expect it to be as close to new as they can get it.
ie, I’m paying someone to break their back for me because I don’t want to, I expect to not see corners cut or things left because they “didn’t want to” do a better job.
1
1
1
u/Hairy-Foot6069 12h ago
I kinda understand that job (still kinda of meh) for $300 including exterior but just $300 for the interior and that’s what the result was is kind of a joke
1
u/Cripplinnn 12h ago
I've detailed my car better than that with 40 bucks worth of stuff from oriellys and a free afternoon
1
u/Emergency_Ad_8284 12h ago
$300 for interior only?? They robbed you. You could probably use that money to buy the products & equipment used and do it yourself.
There’s a car wash place near me that cleans exterior and interior for $35 and usually leave better results than what you got. It’s not a perfect detail but it’s $35
1
1
u/iMakeBoomBoom 11h ago
This is exactly why I clean my own car. Why would I pay someone else to a half-ass job, when I can do a full-ass job myself for free. Sure, I have to get my lazy butt off the couch to do it, but it is worth it.
1
1
u/AverySmooth80 10h ago
It really depends on how dirty it was before. My car is filthy and if I hire someone to put it in $300 worth of time and effort it probably wouldn't look that good.
→ More replies (1)
1
u/I-Way_Vagabond 10h ago
Are my car detailing expectations too high?
u/Ok-Gain-3366, in my opinion, no, you are not being unreasonable at all, but not uncommon.
I went through something like this myself. Used to work for an employer that has a small fleet of vehicles. I had to go to three different "professional detailers" before I found one that was competent.
Go to a new-car dealership that has a used car section and look at their used cars. For $300 your car should look like that.
Unless you have a specific issue that a competent detailer should point out up front, your car should look better than that for $300.
1
u/Hope-to-be-Helpful 9h ago
To be clear, are these before, or after shots....???
If after you got screwed, and i hope that you paid by credit card so you can charge back and get your money back
1
u/papa_yop 9h ago
Nah, this is a horrible detail job. I’ve done 30 minute - 1 hour personal detailing sessions with no skills and done better than this ☠️☠️
I would ask politely and sternly for a refund/redo
1
1
1
1
u/Dry_Bike7650 7h ago
Vegas detailer here... I don't think you've found the right detailer I've noticed a lot of "car wash" are calling themselves "detailers" while still performing car washes. Of you need a real detailer look me up on ig Facebook or Yelp under Jaguars_Detailing.
1
u/Dry_Bike7650 7h ago
Vegas detailer....when you are looking for a good detailer my advice would be to look at their portfolio. If they have any... look for before and after pictures references reviews word of mouth... that being said look at mone I have all that contact me for services of needed.
1
u/Slamhamwich 6h ago
I detailed cars for about 7 years. That looks like it’d be the end result of a WVW (wash, vac, windows) where we wash the car, vacuum it, clean the windows, and generally wipe down the dash/ console. We charged $75 for it. Get a refund or have them complete the detail. Doesn’t matter what the car looked like before for the most part. $300 for a complete detail entails it’ll be complete.
1
u/Just_another_Joshua 6h ago
Next time ask me to do it because I can do a poor job for $250
→ More replies (1)
1
1
1
1
u/Bitchesbeshopping24 4h ago
300!? For just inside? I charge 180 for inside and outside and I make them look good!
1
1
1
u/Financial_Jicama5500 3h ago
This is what my car looks like after I give it a quick hoover. Not a deep clean
1
u/eshghi88 3h ago
Wow that’s just not acceptable.. I live in so cal and my guy comes to every 2 weeks for a normal wash and it’s $40 and spends and hour on my car.. looks like brand new each time.. if I want a detail he charges a $100 and does the inside, outside and engine bay
1
1
1
u/KaspTheFriendlyGhost 2h ago
There’s a reason it’s called a detail - It’s supposed to be an attention to detail.
1
u/Sweet_Manager_9908 2h ago
I ran a detailing business throughout high school, no your expectations are where they should be, especially the cup holder!!! I would have given him a high five as payment
1
u/Lou_Ferrari69 2h ago
I think for $300 I’d have high expectations. You could always communicate with the detailer and show them pictures of the areas they missed.
1
u/Sufficient_Lab_3040 1h ago
Cupholder bad. Could have done better in the charge area. But the seats n stuff. You have fabric, it’s going to kind of catch fibers from other cloth n such. I have 2 Mazdas and a detailing business. I swear these things show dust and dirt if you look at them too long.
•
•
•
717
u/Mintsopoulos 1d ago
I have never had my car detailed but I would be pretty bummed about spending $300 with that type of result. Hopefully others will chime in but I think they did a poor job and need to make things right.