What do dealer detailers make?

[greg72982]

Been considering a career change and wondered how much they make. I'm sure it varies between dealerships but I was looking for a ballpark figure.

I just dabble in it now and wouldn't have any desire to start a business. A few local dealers are hiring and I was just curious...

[VroomVroom]

IME, the answer would be $Diddly-Squat.Fifty. In the accurate sense, "dealer," and, "detail," are rarely synonymous.

Snarkiness aside, my stepson actually did this job for a bit. $10/hr.

[T3 AutoDetails]

All the dealers around where im at around about 9-10/hr range.

[Fishincricket]

Bup-kiss....

[greg72982]

Ouch. Guess that made the decision easy :)

[T3 AutoDetails]

Yea very under-rated work. They want the best/fastest job for pennys. I asked a dealer if he even knew what a swirl free finish was (looking at his inventory) and he replied A WHAT. When I tried explaining the process he said...Ohh yea you mean just a polish...

Edit, and pay was DOE..Well if you don't even know more than me in proper detailing than how can you offer me a job at such a low rate and say its because my experience.

All in all. Leave em alone not worth the hassle.

[VP Mark]

They make a minimum wage, maybe a bit more.

[cardaddy]

Well your question is has a two-fold answer. What MOST people think a 'detailer' is and what AG-er's think one is are drastically different things.

At your typical "tunnel of doom" car wash or at your local dealership they'll be making minimum wage. Washing cars all day long as fast as you can possibly do it!

Working for a 'professional' detailing operation there is a lot of money to be made. Anthony up at B&B for instance was recently looking for someone to train and take over that location in the next year. That salary was base plus percentage and (according to his figures) was well in excess of $91,000.

Here locally I just saw some ads for several shops on the north side of Atlanta. They were also offering base plus percentage. Base was (if I remember correctly) $300~$400 a week and according to them you have the potential to do $1500.00 weekly, M~S, 6~4.

[ShaunD]

It is so bad that several acquaintances of mine that work at dealerships sad they would feel bad have me do work for them if they could only pay me $10/hour. You are better off working for yourself and finding the jobs you want to do for the money you need to make. Only one of my acquaintances actually knows what the finish on a car should look like and is actually willing to pay when it's done right. Said person actually offered his detailers commission from car that sold well at auction because of how good they made it look. But that didn't last long as his guys started pumping cars out for auction and less concerned their work was top notch.
No one wants to pay production car washers/detailers more than minimum wage.

[akj]

I'm hearing $10/hour a lot. I know that's not much in most places but I gotta say that much where I live is pretty decent money. For example my wife's dad has been a welder for over 30 years working at the same place the whole time. And I know he makes under $15/hour.
I worked at a trucking company for a long time 5+ years my ending pay was $10/hour. And I lived a pretty nice life off that.

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[TundraPower]

A friend of mine is a Master Polisher with Mercedes. He started off as a "detailer" earning next to nothing, they sent him to schools, he worked hard, and now he makes good money. Don't forget that Paul Dalton started off this way.....

[cardaddy]

It is so bad that several acquaintances of mine that work at dealerships sad they would feel bad have me do work for them if they could only pay me $10/hour. You are better off working for yourself and finding the jobs you want to do for the money you need to make. Only one of my acquaintances actually knows what the finish on a car should look like and is actually willing to pay when it's done right. Said person actually offered his detailers commission from car that sold well at auction because of how good they made it look. But that didn't last long as his guys started pumping cars out for auction and less concerned their work was top notch.
No one wants to pay production car washers/detailers more than minimum wage.

I hear that!
And speaking of "Mike", not the Mike here, but the Mike from my Lexus detail. He thinks EXACTLY like most of the people you just mentioned. The entire time I was doing his wife's Lexus he complained how long it was taking. (while he was helping) Then after it was done, and even after she came home the next week and saw it, along with FELT IT the both KNOW it's done right, BUT don't really care. Neither cares a rats ARSE about someone taking 6, 7, 8 hours to detail a car and what's worse... thinks it is a waste of time.

Point made here is we all know a well detailed car, WITH no swirls will bring more when you go to sell it. It has been proven time and time again that it'll at least bring the $200 ~$250 detail fee and most likely double that amount and then some. Mike has decided he's selling his Corolla that he uses for work (has to drive a LOT) and moving to his Tacoma. I told him I'd detail it so he could sell it for more. His reply... "I'll wash and wax it." Which means, he'll wash it with some old scratchy rag and put some wax as you dry on it while he dries it with some old scratchy towel. Then complain about not getting top dollar for it because it's never been smoked in! *&^Q%^&(*&^%$#$%^&


I'm hearing $10/hour a lot. I know that's not much in most places but I gotta say that much where I live is pretty decent money. For example my wife's dad has been a welder for over 30 years working at the same place the whole time. And I know he makes under $15/hour.
I worked at a trucking company for a long time 5+ years my ending pay was $10/hour. And I lived a pretty nice life off that.

Dude, that's hard to hear that your father in law has been welding for that long and doesn't make more than that. Heck, I remember when a welder was treated as a skilled professional and STARTED at $15~$20 an hour and by the time they were 30 they were making $30 or more an hour. Plus it was something that by the time you got 30 years in you were making really decent money which meant a lot of guys got out by the time they were 50, bought motor homes and toured the US. ;)

And to think, my daughter has been complaining because her job started her not quite 4 months ago @ $13.25 and she wanted to quit! Just in the last week her review came in and she got a TEN percent raise and STILL wants to quit. Most people are not getting 3% raises these days. I know her mother (my wife) is way at the top of (well over the top of) the range for her job, that she's been at for 31 years and stands no chance of getting a raise. The way her company looks at it, she's making twice what they could hire someone half her age for!!!


A friend of mine is a Master Polisher with Mercedes. He started off as a "detailer" earning next to nothing, they sent him to schools, he worked hard, and now he makes good money. Don't forget that Paul Dalton started off this way.....

I used to know one of those guys when I did towing for the Mercedes dealerships around town. (There are 3, one was 100% mine and a buddy did the other two but once you're in one you end up in all three) He started with a big rotary doing 'domestic' cars and once he went to Atlanta Classic Cars it was like he died and went to Heaven! Now THAT dude could run a rotary without swirls! ;)

[ShaunD]

I'm hearing $10/hour a lot. I know that's not much in most places but I gotta say that much where I live is pretty decent money. For example my wife's dad has been a welder for over 30 years working at the same place the whole time. And I know he makes under $15/hour.
I worked at a trucking company for a long time 5+ years my ending pay was $10/hour. And I lived a pretty nice life off that.

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Where do and your father-in-law live? Welders these day can easily make double that. I didn't realize how expensive my consulting of living was until I got out he Navy and started a business. Here in VB cost of living is "a little" inflated. For extra money I could see $10/hour being enough but as a sole job paying that, no way.

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[Vegas Transplant]

Been considering a career change and wondered how much they make. I'm sure it varies between dealerships but I was looking for a ballpark figure.

I just dabble in it now and wouldn't have any desire to start a business. A few local dealers are hiring and I was just curious...

"Too many chiefs and not enough indians", IMO @ dealerships. Can be a stessful situation if one allows. Regardless if the detailer reports to a specific dept., both sales and service departments 'chiefs' collide.

[akj]

We live about 70 miles south of Jackson Mississippi in a town called bogue chitto (bet u can't pronounce that) our town consist of a high school, post office a texaco, a truck stop, a drive in restaurant, and a fire station. That's it.. not even a police station. On the highway the distance from one city limit sign to the other is less than a mile. U can stand at one and see the other.

Cost if living is CHEAP! Extremely high rent would be $500+ light bill runs no more than $150 gas now is $3.34
And an expensive pack of cigarettes is $4.75
Pay is cheap here everyone wants to get a job at this land scaper cause they start off at $9/hour.. even for a grown man with kids that's not bad at all.

The sheriff here brings home 28k a year.

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