Ok, I'll let it slide this time.

 

Find a local shop, the dealer will charge out the ass.. I wouldnt give them even 200 bucks..

 

That's definately too much. My buddy does detailing and he charges $100 for a basic wash, buff and wax, 150 for interior included and add 35 for black. He will also add for larger vehicles like Suburbans

 

Nope....as you can see on their website link I posted, a "machine buffing" runs between $2-400. The city I live in is 100% blue-color, so def. no dough being flashed here.

 

i got my truck totally scratched up the first weekend i owned it. i was so pissed. thought i ruined it. i went to a local detailer and they waxed and buffed it. the finish was completely like new afterwards. $100 plus tip. this is in san diego.

 

Where is your buddy located?

 

sorry i didnt see this post

i went to prestige auto detailing in quincy

 

I feel like I pay that much to get the scratches.

 

if youre just looking for a quick fix for the wedding, id say go with some of the turtle wax color polishes. it comes with the lipstick looking wax thing and black colored polish to fill in the fine scratches for the time being. itll take away the noticeability (haha made up my own word!) of the scratches by the doorhandle n such. for long term, find someone with a rotary buffer (the one that looks like an angle grinder thing), and buff away with some medium cutting polish, then rubbing compound, then wax and your vehicle should look pretty good. this technique takes care of all but the nastiest cratches that you can feel with your fingernail. itll take time to do this, but its rewarding to see the change, and youll know every inch of your runner. hah

 

i've been detailing for 7 years now for various dealerships and when i did this kind of stuff on my own time for cash i would charge about $100-150 for a complete interior and exterior job. but, people are pretty stingy with their money around here so to get anyone to drop even that much money on their vehicle is a hard sell. i just did a trashed out VW Beetle yesterday that had tan interior that was almost black from dirt, dog hair, and it took a clay job, 2 buffs and a polish to make it look alright; $150 out the door. i guess things are a bit cheaper here in iowa too, not the big city by any means. i was thinking of what i could put on my resume' to jazz up my title instead of "detailer", i came up with "automotive beautician"

save your money and look elsewhere. even if you have to take an hour of your time to do a wash, vacuum, and windows it will save you money and it will look decent.

patrick

 

I just bought a PC buffer/polisher. I figured, if I was going to spend the $$ anyways...Now I just need to figure out which products work best for my needs/time-frame. Most will probably say Griots/Sonus/klasse, but I need something available at a local retail store because i cant wait for shipping at this point.

 

I would never use any of that boutique trendy crap. To expensive and, like you said, usually mail order only...

Lighter scratches, Meguairs Medallion Paint Cleanser w/yellow pad or Meguiars No. 2 Swirl Remove w/yellow pad. Deeper ones, Meguiars Medium and/or Light Cut Cleaners w/yellow pad. Mezerna products are also excellent.