How many hours do detail ? Santa Fe...

[DaC]

Hi guys, a cousin of mine asked me to detail and opti-coat his car.
He has a Hyundai Santa Fe...... question is.... how many time do you think a car like that will take to detail ?
By detail I mean:
Wash / Clay / Compound / Polish / Wash / IPA / Opti-Coat
Using a meg's g110v2.....


My guess would be around 32 hours... is it too far off ?

I've never detailed a car of that size, so I have no idea....
A honda civic for a 2-step polish with wdgps as lsp takes me around 16-18 hours to complete...

[Agfan]

Everyone details at different speeds. I detail as a full time job so I'm sure I can detail a car a lot faster then a hobbyist. So who knows?

[DaC]

Everyone details at different speeds. I detail as a full time job so I'm sure I can detail a car a lot faster then a hobbyist. So who knows?

I'm quite sure you can... that's why I'm asking how much time the average guy around here would take.....
I assume you must use a rotary, right ? How long would you take to do a job like that ?

[rider9195]

It would probably take me around 15-20 hours depending on paint work condition.

[Agfan]

I actually wouldnt use a rotary on a Hyundai. Their paint is really soft so I would use a orbital to prevent swirls. Also I wouldn't consider myself an average detailer. The average person on here doesn't do this as a full time business. That being said if you are just doing the outside and those products it would probably take me 7-8 hours if the paint isn't horrible. Worst cad scenario about 10-11 hours.

[DaC]

It would probably take me around 15-20 hours depending on paint work condition.

What type of equipment and product do you use ?

[DaC]

I actually wouldnt use a rotary on a Hyundai. Their paint is really soft so I would use a orbital to prevent swirls. Also I wouldn't consider myself an average detailer. The average person on here doesn't do this as a full time business. That being said if you are just doing the outside and those products it would probably take me 7-8 hours if the paint isn't horrible. Worst cad scenario about 10-11 hours.

Yeah I know, it didn't called you average, I'm average... you are a pro. "=]

But 7-8 hours.... that's quite fast.... could you explain me how you do it ?
I mean... how many passes while compounding and polishing, how do you break your work and sections... ? This kind of thing....

[Agfan]

No I know you weren't lol.

Doing this everyday is like any job. You get in a rhythm that you repeat constantly and after a while you become very fast at your job while getting quality work. For example a mechanic can do an engine swap a lot faster then I can.
Hyundai paint is very easy to deal with. Especially if it's a newer one. So it doesn't take as much effort as a Chevy or a BMW would take due to the soft clear. I use megs d300 on all japanesse/Korean cars. It works extremely well with correcting paint. For heavily scratched paint you can add some m105 with the d300 and get great results. Best part about using that is you can jump right into a finishing polish.

As far as method goes, follow directions on the container of the product. A lot of people fail to do that because they think they are better then that and they don't need directions. (not saying you are that person) the producers of the product spend countless hours finding the best results with the product so they know what works best.

Like I said that may seem fast to some but you also have to keep in mind I have all my tools of the trade at my finger tips at my shop. So that helps speed as well. Just remember don't rush perfection if you don't have to. Take your time and make the car owner happy.

[MikeAOK]

At my job they give us 4 1/2 hours for a full detail and 2.2 hours for new car prep. On the full details it sucks sometimes because we can get trade-ins that are in terrible shape ,and then expect show room finish. There are other types of details with different times but I don't understand how we cant get more time on something that I feel will take at least 6 hours to look half way decent.


Sent from my iPhone using AG Online

[DaC]

No I know you weren't lol.

Doing this everyday is like any job. You get in a rhythm that you repeat constantly and after a while you become very fast at your job while getting quality work. For example a mechanic can do an engine swap a lot faster then I can.
Hyundai paint is very easy to deal with. Especially if it's a newer one. So it doesn't take as much effort as a Chevy or a BMW would take due to the soft clear. I use megs d300 on all japanesse/Korean cars. It works extremely well with correcting paint. For heavily scratched paint you can add some m105 with the d300 and get great results. Best part about using that is you can jump right into a finishing polish.

As far as method goes, follow directions on the container of the product. A lot of people fail to do that because they think they are better then that and they don't need directions. (not saying you are that person) the producers of the product spend countless hours finding the best results with the product so they know what works best.

Like I said that may seem fast to some but you also have to keep in mind I have all my tools of the trade at my finger tips at my shop. So that helps speed as well. Just remember don't rush perfection if you don't have to. Take your time and make the car owner happy.

Thanks for the tips!
You touched on a vital issue... as I don't have any fixed place to work, I'm always carrying my stuff on my car, which is not prepared for that... so it's about 2 hours to put everything in and take everything out... plus "on the wild" I always have to walk from side to side to grab something or to put it away safely...

What would you use to finish ?
M205 or PO85RD ? which pad ?