Do you trust dealer car washes?

[_hollywood]

No....it only takes one bad rag or improper technique to ruin the finish....

[911fanatic]

Maybe read through this thread I posted....here There is nothing free about a dealer wash. Its gonna cause you aggravation when you pick up your car and see how they f***ed it up, aggravation when they try to polish it out for you and aggravation when you try to get them to reimburse you for having to pay a real detailer to fix it for you. Just saying....

[LeeMaster]

When I took my car in for its first ever oil change, I forgot to mention for them to not wash my car. When they were done, my car had swirls all over. Fortunately they were not deep but in direct sunlight it is clearly visible.

I saw a new marine blue frs at a local scion dealer and with 6 miles on the odometer that car had crazy swirl marks all over it. Its been sitting at the lot for almost a month now and I blame Toyota for their 'no negotiation' ways.

[Thomas Dekany]

Higher end dealerships still employ minimum wage employees. Yours is a bad advise. Never let a dealer wash your car. Ever.

Originally Posted by WingsofWar

Generally NO NO NO NO!!!

but there are exceptions. Many luxury brands such as BMW, Mercedes, Lexus, etc, have pretty skilled porters that have all the inhouse tools necessary for good wash and simple detailing.

I knew several techs from BMW and Mercedes that used the facility to wash their own cars, of course which was extended to me when i had a s14, and they did a bang up job.

If your going to pay for wash and detail service take it to a professional, not your dealer! If you take it to a dealer, you should take it to luxury manufacturer and you should know the tech to get you in if your car isn't of their brand.

[WingsofWar]

Originally Posted by Thomas Dekany

Higher end dealerships still employ minimum wage employees. Yours is a bad advise. Never let a dealer wash your car. Ever.

then i think Seattle must be a great anomaly, because when i worked as a tech for Infiniti in 05, our wash facility was amazing and the detail and wash guys got decent training and still got paid $12-18/hr. over the $7 minimum wage.

Like i said, Generally say no to dealer wash jobs..but there are ALWAYS exceptions.

[Thomas Dekany]

The exception is so small, that it is always best to steer people away from dealerships.

Not to mention the condition of the cleaning materials. Try asking for new wash mitts or drying towels. See what the manager's answer is.

As a pro detailer, I can tell you that high end car preps do not equal better quality.

Originally Posted by WingsofWar

then i think Seattle must be a great anomaly, because when i worked as a tech for Infiniti in 05, our wash facility was amazing and the detail and wash guys got decent training and still got paid $12-18/hr. over the $7 minimum wage.

Like i said, Generally say no to dealer wash jobs..but there are ALWAYS exceptions.

[WingsofWar]

Originally Posted by Thomas Dekany

The exception is so small, that it is always best to steer people away from dealerships.

Not to mention the condition of the cleaning materials. Try asking for new wash mitts or drying towels. See what the manager's answer is.

As a pro detailer, I can tell you that high end car preps do not equal better quality.

Yes the exception is small, but any "good" exception despite its value is still worth mentioning because we never know the details of each individuals life.

I can also assume that most average people use less than satisfactory cleaning materials when washing their car in the first place, and there are much higher standards in place at those venues vs the own home of an invidivual. Your right that high end places do not equal better quality, but does it equal to the quality found at the average joe? IMO no.

You as a pro detailer should automatically tell me that you yourself many times fix the mistakes that the owners did themself on their own time more often than fixing mistakes from dealers.

Despite that, do i recommend the dealer? hell no. They over charge majority of the time and do very bare minimum work. Which is why i added to my exception that you must know the tech, because more often you have access to a person you trust with your car, and that person does have access to better materials and tools than found in your own garage.

[Thomas Dekany]

LOL - how is that going to help the OP here?
That is like telling a guy that he can find a straight girl in a lesbian bar. The possibility is there, but shouldn't he be looking elsewhere?

Fixing marring: I never not had to correct paint on new cars when the dealer got their hands on the car. That is very sad. Just imagine if they produced the same quality jobs changing oil.

1 - we should "NEVER" have to correct paint as pro detailers due to dealership Fups. Never.

2 - correcting paint due to the owners's lack of understanding is just fine. They are not in the car business.

The difference is that when you teach/educate the owners, most will have superior results compared to their old habits.

The dealers won't even acknowledge you and have no desire to better themselves.

BTW, 2 of the very best detailers that I know of work out of Seattle. John Kleven and Jason Kilmer. Check out their work when you get a chance.

Originally Posted by WingsofWar

Yes the exception is small, but any "good" exception despite its value is still worth mentioning because we never know the details of each individuals life.

I can also assume that most average people use less than satisfactory cleaning materials when washing their car in the first place, and there are much higher standards in place at those venues vs the own home of an invidivual. Your right that high end places do not equal better quality, but does it equal to the quality found at the average joe? IMO no.

You as a pro detailer should automatically tell me that you yourself many times fix the mistakes that the owners did themself on their own time more often than fixing mistakes from dealers.

Despite that, do i recommend the dealer? hell no. They over charge majority of the time and do very bare minimum work. Which is why i added to my exception that you must know the tech, because more often you have access to a person you trust with your car, and that person does have access to better materials and tools than found in your own garage.

[WingsofWar]

Originally Posted by Thomas Dekany

LOL - how is that going to help the OP here?
That is like telling a guy that he can find a straight girl in a lesbian bar. The possibility is there, but shouldn't he be looking elsewhere?

Perhaps the guy wants to pick up a girl, but the only bar in 150miles is a lesbian bar. its worth mentioning that many bisexual girls to frequent lesbian bars. Sometimes you get what you can with what your presented with.

Only thing OP asks is about getting a free wash at the dealer, the general consensus has been no. The problem with it has been establish in this thread. There's a higher risk of mistakes involved. He'll probably not get a wash now because he got the main point, but its still worth mentioning other points.

What if a person has a cousin or a brother that works at the dealer that is going to wash his car. Are you going to recommend not to trust his family with his car because he works at the dealer? Despite the family members access to a wash facility, tools, and cleaning materials. Which may be to much cash to lay down for the average joe to purchase all the proper quality materials and do the wash on his own?

Fixing marring: I never not had to correct paint on new cars when the dealer got their hands on the car. That is very sad. Just imagine if they produced the same quality jobs changing oil.

1 - we should "NEVER" have to correct paint as pro detailers due to dealership Fups. Never.

Yes you should never have to do that, but it happens, you know it happens. and its horrible, but it happens. Thanks God you never had to fix a dealership or a pro detailers mistake. But it does happen. The same goes with changing oil, or any other fluids from places like Jiffy Lube, Grease monkey, dealers, . Iv seen colossal fuck ups in professional venues. Iv also seen pro detailers make mistakes also, but that doesn't reflect the entirety of the industry, and make me completely distrust these establishments.

2 - correcting paint due to the owners's lack of understanding is just fine. They are not in the car business. The difference is that when you teach/educate the owners, most will have superior results compared to their old habits.

Yes of course, and like i said, this scenario is much more common. And even if you educate an owner, he/she will still make mistakes despite improvements and you will still fix them. You still have returning customers don't you and a good percentage of your client base are returning customers.

The dealers won't even acknowledge you and have no desire to better themselves.

this is true...and many times are arrogant bastards. **shakes fist**

2 of the very best detailers that I know of work out of Seattle. John Kleven and Jason Kilmer. Check out their work when you get a chance.

Ah i heard of Jason Kilmer, think he owns a place in Tacoma called Polish?
Regardless, my input for OP has not been wrong, and it is not wrong advise, nor is it bad advise. Its the only advise i recommend one should consider only if he/she is adamant about getting any sort of wash or detailing at the dealer. That is how I am helping OP.

[Thomas Dekany]

1 - you miss read my reply - I always had to correct new cars coming out of a dealership when the car was prepped.

2 - I have fixed many cars previously done by so called pro detailers.

3 - I do not exaggerate when I say 99% of pro detailers are hacks and I wouldn't let 100% of those wash my cars.

4 - That is Jason Kilmer. Great guy, and so is John.

5 - you are right you were not wrong and your advise was very good!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[FRiSson]

Originally Posted by Thomas Dekany

1 - you miss read my reply - I always had to correct new cars coming out of a dealership when the car was prepped.

2 - I have fixed many cars previously done by so called pro detailers.

3 - I do not exaggerate when I say 99% of pro detailers are hacks and I wouldn't let 100% of those wash my cars.

4 - That is Jason Kilmer. Great guy, and so is John.

5 - you are right you were not wrong and your advise was very good!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Advise is the present tense, "Advice" is past tense. You can advise him now, but you gave him advice in the past.

[Thomas Dekany]

Originally Posted by FRiSson

Advise is the present tense, "Advice" is past tense. You can advise him now, but you gave him advice in the past.

Is that all you have to say?

[FRiSson]

Originally Posted by Thomas Dekany

Is that all you have to say?

Not really. When you say "99% of pro detailers are hacks", you are essentially saying that the detailing is not worth doing. After all, who would take those odds?

[Foobar]

Originally Posted by FRiSson

Advise is the present tense, "Advice" is past tense. You can advise him now, but you gave him advice in the past.

I hate to nitpick, but advise is a verb and advice is a noun. :happy0180:

Carry on!

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